Great watch by Suunto, they kept this watch simple without cutting on the Suunto tradition. The modes are easy to go trought with the jog dial and the watch will change mode (ie Altimeter-Barometer) automatically unlike the other Suunto Model. The negative face take a bit to get use to and is sometimes hard to read. The night light is excellent and the rubber band is very confortable ( very soft rubber), no 2nd time zone.
I had an Observer for ten years, it got me through two Leadvilles but it is scratched badly. So I decided on the Elementum Steel.
First thing out of the box that is quite obvious; this watch is bomb proof, solid, and a bit heavy (steel is real) but I got used to it quickly. Slightly larger than my Observer. Skinny wrists had to take off 5 links, but it feels right.
Other reviews say it has a second time zone, it doesn't, if I have to check the time in the Himalayas I use my I Pod Touch. Also some reviews said it has seconds, it doesn't but the stop watch works well for counting.
Other reviews say it is dim, it is dimmer than my Observer but not by much, and yes you can increase the contrast which helps but contrast isn't brightness. Still, after a while wearing it I found it to be fine. The back light works great.
I use it for biking, hiking, backpacking, and some mountaineering.
The buttons took me a day to get used to them. The compass is simple just one button. I found the best way to calibrate the compass is this: put it in calibration mode, it will say Level and Level will blink if it isn't level. This is hard to do if you try rotating the watch. So get it level and just turn yourself while holding the watch. Simple and works.
It is large but it's a beauty, quality, design, construction all add up and this one has it. And for me not made in China is a big deal, what they are doing to Tibet is nothing short of genocide.
It is expensive, I got the steel so I can swim with it. My Observer is still going after ten years and lots of abuse, I expect this one will last longer, for me it was worth it.
I will take off 1/2 a star because of the dimness, otherwise it's a high quality durable piece that I can wear anywhere.
Got this watch as a replacement for a Suunto Observer, which had started to fail after almost ten years of regular use. Considered the Suunto Core, but wasn't convinced it would last long. The Elementum, like the Observer, is made in Finland, and feels like it's built to higher standards.
Planned to get the leather strap at first, because I had to replace the rubber strap on the Observer several times. But the leather strap looked cheap, and the rubber strap on the Elementum is made from a different, softer material, so I decided to give it a try. We'll see how long it lasts.
The Elementum has the same basic functions as the Observer: date and time, alarm, stopwatch, compass, altimeter/barometer, and trip log. However, it only has one time zone, doesn't show seconds (except in setup mode), and doesn't let you adjust the declination for the compass.
The altimeter/barometer mode selection is automatic, based on the rate of change. This is convenient, but a consequence of this is that the watch often misses some elevation gain when hiking, while also ending up with wildly inaccurate numbers after a few days in town without calibration.
The Elementum has just 3 buttons, one of which can be used as a dial. Access to all functions is quick, though not always intuitive. For example, you twist the dial up to enter stopwatch mode, and down to view log entries. I like using the dial to adjust the altimeter, unless I'm wearing gloves.
The dark face is too hard to read, even more so than the dark face on the Observer. I found a hidden setting to increase the contrast, which helps a bit. Hope that won't reduce the battery life too much, especially since you can't replace the battery on your own.
The watch has been accurate so far, losing no more than 5 seconds during the past month.
Friday, April 6, 2012
Suunto Elementum Terra Altimeter Watch
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