Your Garmin Forerunner 735XT is supposed to keep perfect time automatically. That’s the promise. But when you glance at your wrist and the time is off by hours or refuses to update at all, frustration sets in fast. Maybe you’ve traveled to a new time zone and your watch is stuck in yesterday. Or perhaps daylight saving time came and went, but your watch didn’t get the memo.
This sync issue is more common than you think, and the good news is that most cases have straightforward fixes you can handle yourself. We’ll walk through what causes the problem, why it happens, and exactly how to get your watch showing the right time again.
What’s Really Happening With Your Watch Time
The 735XT gets its time from GPS satellites, not your phone. Each time the watch locks onto GPS signals during an activity, it pulls the current time directly from those satellites. Between activities, your watch should maintain accurate time using its internal clock. When syncing with Garmin Connect through your phone, the watch can also update its time settings and time zone information.
When time sync fails, your watch essentially gets stuck. It might show the wrong time zone, refuse to adjust for daylight saving changes, or display a completely incorrect time. This happens because the watch either can’t reach GPS satellites, has outdated firmware preventing proper sync, or has corrupted time zone data stored in its memory.
The watch needs three things working properly: GPS reception, up-to-date software, and correct time zone settings. If any piece fails, your time display suffers. Left unfixed, you’ll miss scheduled workouts, get confused about activity logs, and constantly do mental math to figure out the actual time.
Temperature extremes can also affect the watch’s internal clock accuracy. If your watch has been exposed to very cold or very hot conditions for extended periods, the quartz crystal that maintains time between GPS fixes can drift slightly, making sync issues more noticeable.
Garmin Forerunner 735XT Time Not Syncing: Likely Causes
Several factors prevent your 735XT from syncing time properly. Understanding which one affects your watch helps you pick the right solution quickly. Here are the main culprits behind sync failures.
1. Poor GPS Signal Reception
Your watch relies on GPS satellites to set and update time. If you’ve been using your watch mostly indoors or in urban canyons with tall buildings, it might not have gotten a clean GPS signal in days or weeks. The watch needs a clear view of the sky to connect with satellites.
Each GPS satellite broadcasts its precise time. Your watch uses this information to stay accurate. When GPS reception is blocked or weak, the watch can’t refresh its time data. This is especially problematic after traveling to a new time zone because the watch needs GPS to recognize the change and adjust accordingly.
Indoor activities, heavily overcast weather, and dense tree cover all interfere with GPS signals. If your recent activities have all been in gyms or you’ve been traveling in vehicles, your watch simply hasn’t had the chance to grab that satellite time data it needs.
2. Outdated Firmware Version
Garmin regularly updates the 735XT firmware to fix bugs and improve performance. Time sync issues often stem from software bugs that newer firmware versions have already addressed. If you haven’t updated your watch in months, you’re likely running software with known time-related glitches.
Firmware also contains updated time zone databases. When countries change their daylight saving rules or when time zones shift, older firmware won’t know about these changes. Your watch ends up showing the wrong time because its internal reference data is outdated.
3. Incorrect Time Zone Settings
Sometimes the watch has the right time but the wrong time zone selected. This happens frequently after travel. The automatic time zone feature might be disabled, or it could be set to manual mode showing your home zone even though you’re halfway across the planet.
Your watch might also have time format confusion. If the format settings got changed accidentally, what looks like a syncing problem might just be a 12-hour versus 24-hour display issue making things appear wrong.
4. Garmin Connect App Sync Failure
Your phone’s Garmin Connect app serves as a bridge between your watch and Garmin’s servers. When this connection breaks, time updates can’t flow properly. Bluetooth connectivity problems, app glitches, or background data restrictions on your phone all disrupt this sync process.
The app also helps coordinate time zone changes. If your phone changed time zones but the app hasn’t synced with your watch recently, the watch stays stuck in the old zone. Connection issues often happen when phone operating systems update and change Bluetooth permissions without you realizing it.
Battery optimization settings on your phone can put Garmin Connect to sleep, preventing background syncs. The app appears connected but isn’t actively talking to your watch, so time updates never transfer.
5. Corrupted Watch Data or Settings
Sometimes internal watch data gets corrupted through software bugs, incomplete syncs, or power interruptions during updates. This corrupted data includes time settings, making your watch confused about what time it should display. The watch might cycle through different times or refuse to save new time settings when you try to adjust them.
Cache files and temporary data can also become problematic. Your watch stores various data points during normal operation, and when these files become corrupted, they can interfere with basic functions including time display and sync.
Garmin Forerunner 735XT Time Not Syncing: How to Fix
Now that you understand what’s causing the problem, let’s fix it. These solutions work for the vast majority of sync issues and progressively get more thorough as you move through them.
1. Get a Fresh GPS Lock
Take your watch outside to an area with clear sky visibility. Open spaces work best. Parks, fields, or even your driveway are perfect. Avoid being near tall buildings, under heavy tree cover, or inside any structures.
Start a GPS activity on your watch. Running, walking, or cycling modes all work fine. Let the watch search for and acquire GPS satellites. This usually takes one to three minutes. Watch for the GPS status indicator to turn green or show satellite lock. Keep the watch stationary during this process. Once locked, let it run for at least five minutes while maintaining GPS connection.
After the activity ends and saves, check your time display. The watch should now show the correct time for your location. This method works because GPS satellites provide authoritative time data that overrides any incorrect time your watch was showing.
2. Update Your Watch Firmware
Open Garmin Connect on your phone and make sure Bluetooth is enabled. Bring your watch close to your phone, within arm’s reach. In the Garmin Connect app, tap on your device icon or navigate to the device settings menu.
Look for software updates. The app will check Garmin’s servers and notify you if newer firmware is available. If an update exists, start the download and installation. Keep your watch and phone close together during this process. The watch needs to stay charged above 50% for firmware updates to proceed.
The update takes anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes depending on your connection speed. Let it complete without interruption. After the update finishes, your watch will restart automatically. Check if the time now displays correctly. Firmware updates often include time zone database updates and fixes for sync bugs.
3. Verify and Adjust Time Settings
Press and hold the Up button on your watch to access the menu. Scroll down and select Settings, then System, then Time. Check that automatic time is enabled. If it’s already on, try toggling it off and back on again. This refresh can clear stuck settings.
Look at your time zone setting. Make sure it matches your current location. If you’ve traveled recently, you might need to change this manually even with automatic time enabled. Some regions require manual adjustment because GPS time zones don’t always perfectly match local administrative boundaries. Also verify the time format matches your preference between 12-hour and 24-hour display.
4. Force Sync With Garmin Connect
Open your phone’s Bluetooth settings and verify that your Forerunner 735XT is connected. If it shows as disconnected or isn’t listed, unpair it completely and then re-pair through Garmin Connect. This establishes a fresh connection.
In Garmin Connect, pull down on the main screen to force a manual sync. You’ll see a spinning icon while data transfers. This sync includes time settings and zone information from your phone. Make sure your phone’s time is correct and that it’s set to update automatically from your carrier.
Check your phone’s app permissions for Garmin Connect. Go to your phone’s settings, find Garmin Connect in the app list, and ensure it has permission for background data and isn’t restricted by battery optimization features. These restrictions often block sync operations without showing any error messages.
5. Restart Your Watch
Hold down the Light button for about 15 seconds until the watch powers off completely. You’ll see the screen go blank. Wait 30 seconds, then press the Light button again to power it back on. This clears temporary memory issues and resets various system processes that might be interfering with time sync.
After restart, give the watch a minute to boot up fully. Then check if time displays correctly. A simple restart resolves many software glitches including time-related ones. The watch essentially starts fresh without any carried-over conflicts from its previous session.
6. Reset to Factory Settings
If nothing else works, a factory reset wipes all data and returns the watch to original settings. Before doing this, sync your watch one final time to save all your activity data to Garmin Connect. Once synced, go to Settings, System, and select Reset. Choose Delete Data and Reset Settings.
The reset takes a few minutes. Your watch will restart and display the initial setup screens. You’ll need to pair it with your phone again and reconfigure all your personal settings. After setup completes, test time sync by starting a GPS activity outdoors or forcing a sync through Garmin Connect.
Factory resets eliminate corrupted data that might be causing persistent sync problems. Think of it as giving your watch a completely clean slate. All the settings conflicts and data errors get erased, letting time sync function properly again.
7. Contact Garmin Support
If you’ve tried everything and time still won’t sync, the issue might be hardware-related. Reach out to Garmin customer support through their website or by phone. Have your watch serial number ready along with details about which troubleshooting steps you’ve already attempted.
Garmin’s support team can run remote diagnostics and determine if your watch needs repair or replacement. They can also check if there are known issues with your specific firmware version or if your watch falls under any active service programs.
Sometimes GPS receivers fail or internal components develop faults that prevent proper time keeping. These hardware problems require professional service. Garmin support will guide you through warranty coverage or repair options if hardware failure is the root cause.
Wrapping Up
Time sync problems on your Forerunner 735XT usually come down to GPS reception, outdated firmware, or incorrect settings. Most cases clear up with a fresh GPS lock or a quick firmware update. The solutions we covered handle everything from simple setting tweaks to complete factory resets.
Getting your watch time accurate matters more than just knowing when to start your next run. Correct time keeps your activity logs organized, ensures scheduled workouts trigger properly, and lets you trust your watch as the reliable training tool it’s meant to be. Follow these fixes in order, and you’ll have your time syncing properly again.