TL;DR: Garmin devices recently began behaving erratically, with many entering an endless boot loop. The company acknowledged the issue and provided users with a temporary workaround to unlock affected devices while working on a permanent software fix. Windows users are all too familiar with the infamous blue screen of death. Now, Garmin users may need to get used to their own version: the blue triangle of death (BTOD).Since yesterday, smartwatches and other GPS-enabled devices from the US-Swiss company have been displaying an ominous BTOD icon before becoming completely unusable.Frustrated Garmin users quickly took to Reddit and other online communities to share their experiences. The issue affected multiple smartwatch models and GPS devices, often causing crashes or endless boot loops whenever users attempted to start a GPS activity.The BTOD epidemic became widespread enough for Garmin to issue an official statement. The company acknowledged that "some" devices were stuck on the start-up screen or showing a blue triangle. Garmin advised affected users to press and hold the power button until their devices turned off, then power them back on and sync with either the Garmin Connect app or Garmin Express a fix the company hoped would resolve the issue permanently.Upon further investigation, users on the Garmin subreddit discovered that the BTOD issue was caused by a faulty update to one of Garmin's smartwatch subsystems. When users synced their devices, the update installed a corrupted file (GPE.bin), rendering the devices unusable.A temporary fix involved factory resetting the affected device, manually deleting the corrupt GPE.bin file via USB, and disabling syncing to prevent reinstalling the broken update. Some users dubbed the meltdown "CrowdStrike 2.0," though a few bricked smartwatches are unlikely to bring the world to a halt. // Related Stories Google open-sources Pebble smartwatch software framework Fortunately, Garmin acted quickly to resolve the issue at its source. The company replaced the corrupted file on its servers and pushed a proper update through its synchronization service. However, users still stuck in a BTOD loop may need to follow the factory reset instructions to restore functionality.