Suunto Core Wrist-Top Computer Watch Review
Suunto Core Wrist-Top Computer Watch Feature
- Wrist-top computer watch with altimeter, barometer, compass, and weather indicator
- Altimeter displays current elevation, shows ascent or descent, and records session
- Intelligent storm alarm senses drops in air pressure and notifies you of approaching storms
- Barometer helps you predict changing conditions; built-in weather trend indicator
- Aluminum black finish; accurately measures depth to 30 feet; weighs 2.26 ounces; 2-year warranty
Building on the success of the venerable Suunto Vector, the Suunto Core keeps you informed of conditions while you hike, bike, or camp, making it a terrific companion for outdoor enthusiasts of all stripes. What can the Suunto Core do for you? For starters, it can sense an approaching squall even when the sky looks clear. This intelligent Storm Alarm--one of several intelligent features designed to keep you safe and secure--is activated by a rapid drop in air pressure over a three-hour period. Once the Core senses the change, the Storm Alarm sounds and flashes, letting you know that something unpleasant is fast approaching. The built-in altimeter, meanwhile, displays your current elevation, shows how much you've climbed or descended, and records your entire session for later analysis. Accurate to within 30,000 feet, the altimeter is an extremely valuable tool for mountaineering, backcountry skiing, and wilderness travel. Add in such features as a barometer, a digital thermometer, a weather trend indicator, and a digital compass and you have a terrific wrist-top computer for almost all your outdoor needs.
The altimeter contributes to your excursion in several ways. If you're standing on or near an obvious geographic feature, such as a ridge, trail, or creek, the altimeter can alert you to your current elevation and help you find your position on a topographic map. Similarly, if you plan on climbing a slope to a certain elevation and then traversing, the Core can help you stay on course. And as a bonus, the Suunto Core includes a unique start-from-zero function, so you don't have to enter a reference altitude. Instead, with the single push of a button, the altimeter will begin tracking your ascent and descent.
The Core also includes a barometer, which measures and records air pressure to help you predict changing conditions--from sunny skies to hair-bending electrical storms. The barometer helps you decide whether to bring a soft shell or rain shell jacket when the skies look ominous, or even when to high-tail it back to the car. In general, low pressure brings inclement weather, while high pressure brings stability and clear skies. If you've arrived at camp and notice the pressure starting to plunge, it's probably a good idea to secure the tent and crawl in. Likewise, if you were on a climb, it would be prudent to find shelter and retreat. Even at home, the Suunto Core barometer can look beyond office walls, skyscrapers, and nearby hills to help you plan for upcoming activities.
If you want a weather forecast that extends out a few hours, you can turn to the built-in weather trend indicator. The indicator shows the barometric history for the last three and six hours, helping you predict the weather with amazing accuracy. What's more, the watch doesn't give you a regional forecast posted earlier in the day, but rather the most current information about the weather directly overhead. And no outdoor watch is worth its salt without a digital compass, a great tool for keeping track of your direction while skiing, hiking, or exploring a new city. You can set and follow a bearing with a traditional rotating bezel, or simply point the top of the watch toward your intended destination and lock it in.
Additional features include several traditional watch functions, including dual times, a date display, and an alarm; predicted times for sunrise and sunset to help you maximize your daylight hours; an automatic Alti/Baro mode that senses movement or lack thereof and switches between the altimeter and barometer accordingly; a depth meter that provides accurate water depth readings to 30 feet; and the ability to function in English, German, French, and Spanish. The Suunto Core carries a two-year warranty.
The Suunto Core watch includes an altimeter, barometer, compass, and weather indicator. |
The watch is compatible with several different straps (sold separately). |
Specifications- Finish: Aluminum black
- Real-time vertical cumulative value: Yes
- Temperature compensation: Yes
- Total ascent/descent: Yes
- User-removable logbook files: Yes
- Automatic Alti/Baro switch: Yes
- Automatic 7-day Alti/Baro memory: Yes
- Resolution: 1 meter
- Recording intervals: 1 second, 5 second, 30 seconds, 60 seconds
- Altitude range: 1,600 to 29,500 feet
- Difference measurement: Yes
- Log graph: Yes
- Logbook function: Yes
- Countdown timer: Yes
- Stopwatch: Yes
- Guided calibration: Yes
- Heading in degrees: Yes
- Declination setting: Yes
- Cardinal directions: Yes
- Bearing tracking: Yes
- North-South indicator: North indicator
- Languages: English, German, French, and Spanish
- Depth meter: Yes, to 30 feet
- Rotating bezel: Yes
- Time: 12/24 hours
- Sunrise/sunset times: Yes
- Calendar clock: Yes
- Dual time: Yes
- Daily alarms: 1
- Alarm snooze: Yes
- Weather memory: 7 days
- Weather alarm: Yes
- Trend indicator and graph: Yes
- Temperature range: -5 to 140 degrees F
- Sea level pressure: Yes
- Barometer range: 300 to 1,100 mbar
- Low battery warning: Yes
- Water resistance: 100 feet
- Backlight option: Yes
- Weight: 2.26 ounces
- Warranty: 2 years
The award-winning Suunto Core is a sophisticated outdoor instrument that gathers a range of data to help you navigate your way through the wilder parts of the world. The altimeter features a range up to 9000m (29500 ft) and sports an altitude difference measurement that allows you to track your progress in terms of altitude climbed. The log recorder stores all your movements in altitude between the start and stop times, so you can find out how much you climbed, the duration of ascents and descents, average ascent and descent speed and more. Suunto Core displays the current sea level pressure as a detailed graph, showing recording of the last 24 hours with a recording interval of 30 minutes. The storm alarm notifies you of a sudden drop in air pressure, which may be related to worsening weather conditions. Suunto Core senses your movement or lack thereof, switching between altimeter and barometer accordingly. A drop in air pressure while you’re sleeping under the stars will be recorded for what it really is: a change in barometric pressure, not altitude. The digital compass displays the cardinal or half-cardinal point and the North. The declination adjustment function allows you to correct the difference between the true North and magnetic North. The Suunto Core provides current and maximum depth reached during your snorkeling dive. The maximum depth of the device is 10m (328 ft). Watch functions include time, dual time, date, alarm, sports chronograph, countdown timer and predicted times for sunrise and sunset for over 400 locations worldwide. Also features a digital thermometer. Menu-based user interface in English, German, French and Spanish. 2 year warranty.
