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alti watches


marylou

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Yeah they are big but the suunto are realiable and accurate watches. I have used mine for over 5 years now with no problems. Get your nice small watch but don't be surprised when it busts on you while you are navigating in a white out. Avocet were nice n small but notoriously unrealiable. And Nike? They make shoes. How reliable could their watch be? Consider how long the watches have been around.

 

Pretty reliable in my book (even more so than any other watch I've had) - it's been getting beaten up for the last three years on alpine climbs, skiing trips and a trip to Alaska. You can replace the battery yourself, and I don't have any issue recommending it to people who ask. My dos centavos. bigdrink.gif

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My Vertech is now 10 years old, and has always worked great, as long as I feed it a battery every couple years. I tend to wear mine on a cord around my neck, so getting wet hasn't been an issue. Also I've had the batteries changed at Avocet, so maybe they are more careful with keeping any case seals intact. Don't know....

 

None of the newer watches have intrigued me except the Highgear model someone mentioned, the one with the carabiner. That would make it simple to keep on a cord safe under clothes, or clip it to a pack where an accurate temperature reading could be obtained.

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I bought a X6 last year (not the X6-HR). Turned out that it would mess up every now and then. Called up Suunto and they said oh yeah there is a bad chip on the circuit board. I sent it to them and they kept it for 4 weeks. It has been flawless since then. Been up numerous mountains, a couple of trips above 14,000 feet. Appears to be accurate and no more glitches. Pizzed me off that Suunto knew there was a glitch and didn't recall the watches when they knew there was a problem. Happy now.

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just saw the new suunto x9 with built in gps - sweet!

now all i need is one with a HR too and i can tell where exactly in the time space continuum my HR redlined and at what elevation

 

ACtually - for altitude and general cardio training - this coupled with a PC interface would be an amazing training aid

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I own the Suunto Altimax. I've only used on one trip to Camp Muir. I was surprised to see that it read the same altitude in the Paradise parking lot on the return that it did on the start. There was even I major shift in weather overnight. I'm happy with it. But it's my first one so I have nothing to compare it with.

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The three alarms are great for ensuring an alpine start.

I wish the Altimax alarm was louder. I usually have to set all three alarms (one minute apart) to make sure I hear the damn thing. Otherwise, its a great watch for skiing and climbing.

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  • 2 weeks later...

The Nike Oregon Alti-Compass runs $200. It's pretty circular tho - not really oval. Alti-Compass There is a flash demo on the page that has a real nice overview of the product.

 

There's also the Alti, which is like $150. The main difference between the two is that the Alti-Compass has a (duh) compass and also a barometric trend (Weather) mode which is nice.

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I had a an Avocet and used it skiing and on a trip to Nepal. I liked it, but when it it broke Avocets were out of stock for a spell so I switched to a big ugly Suunto. It is indeed big but it is light and reliable. I don't know how to use 90% of the functions but the ones I use have worked flawlessly for years, and you can change the battery without taking it to a dealer, something that seemed absurd in the avocet. A friend of mine asked me to unload a Suunto x3 HR for him on ebay (sponsored uberjock) anyone interested?

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I have the High Gear it's like 160.00 quid but I got it at the yardsale for like 40.00 Couldn't pass it up. Works great the altimeter has a bit of barometric drift but I don't think there is much that can be done.

 

Two alarms and an amazingly accurate little weather feature that is really cool.

 

Numbers are super easy to read and the illumination is bright. The LCD gets a little slow at about 20 degrees and below but it is still readable and accurate.

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The Nike alti compass is the model I have, I like the features more than my Suunto. Easier to read, see, hear, the buttons are good with gloves on too. There is an anti drift computer function that makes it more accurate than other barometric altimeters, none are perfect though. You could skip the compass feature though, I never use electronic compasses.

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So I am trying to get a list of good quality watches that will do altimeter plus heart rate monitor (I'd like to avoid having two watches). Prices are from Froogle.

 

Suunto X3HR $169

Suunto X6HR $330 (and the X6HRM)

Suunto Advizor $265

Polar s720 $253

 

What else? Any feedback on the different models?

 

TIA,

drC

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I'm returning my Highgear. I think it has too much drift.

 

Bought one of the Nike Ascents at the North Bend outlet for $100 on Saturday. With just a bit of preliminary testing, it seems to have less drift than the Highgear.

 

The non-compass Ascent is $70 at the outlet, but they only have it in brown. Easy to lose, and a bit ugly too, but cheap. Other colors for the version with the compass, and $100, which is half off of retail.

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  • 4 weeks later...

I just got a X6hr. Can say it is the best alti watch I have had so far. One of nicest features is that you can change your ascent and descent units. example- ft per hour to ft per minute. All of the old suuntos only had ft per minute which sucks for climbing. Also the HR monitor has been great for running and biking and its cool to download to my computer and get HR and altitude profiles.

 

dale bigdrink.gif

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