Reader Reviews

Rating: 4 / 5

This is the "first" and industry standard in a watch, altimeter, compass, barometer and whatever else it does -- according to my research. It is a kind of wrist computer. It costs around $150 - 200 new, I have not checked eBay for them or looked for one used.

We just got one of these.

Actually, I got it for my partner. She is always trying to tell me the altitude of a place ... which used to lead to a lot of debates. And, having the ability to determine the altitude without a GPS, which I think of as real cheating when trying to UL trek or just "be" out there, is a plus -- for more than navigational or geographic purposes. It is a safety function.

The altimeter part is useful in locating our position on a topo map. For example, we once hiked from one lake to a series of lakes in the Lassen Wilderness area. After climbing a good distance, being tired, we really couldn't tell exactly which of several lakes we had reached - we had never been there before. One lake was at like 7,000 feet, one was at 7,200 - it made a big difference in determining if we had a ways to go to our destination or not. (I had brought along a clunky altimeter bought in an auto parts store for putting on your dashboard and determined the approximate altitude.) Voila, I knew which lake it was and, thereby, knew exactly where I was on the topo map.

So knowing the altitude is great when we are out there and have never been to that "there" before. It is safer to know the altitude, for example in the winter here, whether hiking or driving around, because it determines the projected snow line and freezing line.

The other aspect making it a great trekking tool is that you don't just have the altimeter you have all of the other functions, including the watch, timer, compass, etc.

The only reason I am giving it a 4 is that it seems clunky in size to me, it has a built in rubber type band which I think is going to wear out, and most importantly the face on the one we got has a dark background instead of the light background shown in the Suunto pictures and is a little hard to read with my now well used and oldening eyes in a glare -- the sunlight glare, not my eyes glaring.

See it at:

http://www.suuntowatches.com/Suunto-Vector.pro

Edited by bdavis on 11/30/2006 16:47:15 MST.

Rating: 4 / 5

The Suunto Vector has been available in the UK for over 3 years now and I have had mine for two years. It is an constant companion for myself on the hill and is possibly the most important peice of outdoor kit that I own .

Its ability to give you accurate alitude information , help you predict the weather (very useful in the UK climate) and monitor the current temperature are all invaluable features. The compass is also fairly accurate but I admit that I only use it as backup for my Silva. You can now purchase it with either a +ive or -ive LCD display.

The only complaint that I have is that it is a little big and does not have the advanced data logging features of some of the newer wrist top computers on the market.

Overall it is a good performer and should be viewed as an entry level product and should be on anyones wish list. Plus it even tells the time !!

Edited by JOHNPRICE on 04/10/2007 15:16:30 MDT.

Rating: 5 / 5

I've had mine for two years and it has lived up to my expectations. It is large but once you wear it awhile you will get used to it. The watchband has been fine and looks as good as new. My only complaint, and it is a minor one, is the difficulty of changing the battery and getting everything to seal up again. Make sure you purchase the battery kit which includes a new lid and 'o' ring.

Make sure you get the 'o' ring in place before you turn the lid. Other than that minor issue, I love this watch.

Rating: 5 / 5

picked up the x lander not to long ago and have fallen in love. The nav features are more then enough for basic wandering around in the woods or wherever you happen to be. (being able to lock onto a azimuth is a fantastic feature in my opinion) combined with the barometer and altimeter ability youve got a winning package. YES its big, but the fact that you can do all the above AND do it without alot of work (suprisingly easy to use when you consider 4 buttons and at least 2 sub functions per button) i love it and until there a watch that does all this..AND gives me a 8 digit grid in a similar size..i wont be buying another watch

Rating: 5 / 5

I bought this watch primarily as a watch and as an aid to navigation. More specically, my goal was to possess for a trek in the Rocky Mtns of New Mexico to have a compass to discretely double check bearings taken by the 8 teenaged Boy Scouts I was supervising and to replace my 2.15oz Casio G Shock which I was finding impossible to read at night because of its small fonts.

In basic watch mode, the Sunnto Vector's time font is 8 mm high and very readable in all conditions.

The Sunnto Vector weighs less than my Casio at 2.15 vs 1.9 oz. While some of the above reviews complain of the Sunnto's size, the basic diameter of the exterior chronometer casing is only about 1 mm greater than my Casio. I would have liked a smaller device and examined the Casio Pathfinders (which come in two sizes, slim and regular) on the Casio web site and in one store. In my first looks opinion, while the small version of the Casio looked convenient, the Casio had way too many buttons.
High Gear sells something called the Alterra which at 2 oz is probably not any smaller than the Vector.

Suunto Vector Highlights
Pluses
- Manual is clearly written and easy to use.
-Great timepiece, legible dial, also easily readible in the dark
-Compass, while needs to be calibrated daily seemed as accurate as my Silva mechanical compass.
- Altimeter, a useful tool to double check pathfinding against a map
- Thermometer, works OK. Only available in the Altimeter mode and you have to take off the watch and wait several minutes to measure ambient temperature. Otehrwise all you get is the temperature of your wrist!
Minuses:
-While backpacking, it is easly to bump the mode button and accidentaly change your watch from a chronometer to a compass which can burn the battery
- While the watch supports several alarm features, the alarm is not all that loud. I found that I had to set two alarms sequentially and keep the watch on my wrist at night to use it as an alarm clock (and not wear the ear plugs to survive my snoring tent mate).

While the watch does have basic logging features, it does not attach to a PC but most watches with such feature have lower rated battery lives.

In short, a great watch at a competitive price that needs a louder alarm beep.

Rating: 3 / 5

I've had a Suunto Vector since 2000. It's a good watch, and I Like the functions. however, it has not been a very sturdy watch for me.

The case got filled with water once, after a short swim.

I've lost the bezel twice. I ended up super glueing it on, to stay in place.

Now, one of my buttons has fallen off, and the bubble level has lost its fluid.

I just bought a Suunto Core, and like it a lot better, but have yet to find out if its any more rugged.

Rating: 5 / 5

I have used a Suunto Vector for the past 8 years (at least 200 days) and it has worked flawlessly. I use the watch, alarm, compass and altimeter/barometer functions. I replace the battery each year and have finally had to replace the strap after 7 years. It is a bit battered now but I still think that I get another rather Vector rather than a Core if I ever need to replace it. My only wish is that the alarm was a bit louder as I have slept through on a few occasions.