Understanding Scaling Magnitude in the General-Purpose Sensor View

What magnitude is

Every sensor instance has an initial magnitude that's hard-set by the manufacturer. This value isn't something you choose — it comes baked in, and it differs from one sensor metric to the next. Two instances sitting side by side in the same view can easily have different starting magnitudes.

What scaling magnitude is (and isn't)

Scaling magnitude is not precision. It's a common and understandable assumption that setting it to 1 means "show one decimal place" — but that's not what it does.

What it actually does is shift the value based on the difference between the magnitude and the scaling magnitude. The raw numbers don't matter on their own; it's the gap between them that determines the result.

• Scaling magnitude higher than magnitude → the value shrinks (shifts down / divides).
• Scaling magnitude lower than magnitude → the value grows (shifts up / multiplies).
• Scaling magnitude equal to magnitude (gap of zero) → the value is left untouched (usually what you want).

How the gap plays out

Each step of difference shifts the reading by one decimal place. Using a starting reading of 250:

Notice that magnitude 0 → 1 and magnitude 2 → 3 both produce the same result, because both have a gap of +1. The starting numbers differ; the effect is identical. Equally, 0 → 0 and 1 → 1 both leave the value alone, because both have a gap of zero.

Recommendation

If you're not confident about how magnitude and scaling magnitude interact, the safest approach is to either leave scaling magnitude unset, or set it to the same value as the magnitude — both give you a gap of zero, so the reading passes through untouched. Only introduce a deliberate gap, on a per-metric basis, once you know the starting magnitude of the instance you're changing.