Suunto engineers outfitted the Ambit HR Altimeter Watch with an array of easy-to-operate features and technology, and seamlessly merged them all into an intuitively designed tool that is ready to track, monitor and report every one of your high octane adventures. Having set a new standard for what outdoor athletes can, and should expect from a GPS/orienteering tool, the Suunto Ambit isn’t just a GPS watch, it’s a lifestyle.
The Overview…
The Ambit is loaded with an array of technology and user friendly features. All told, it is not your typical GPS watch, and so this is not going to be your typical review. From our perspective, whether you are an endurance athlete or a weekend warrior, your gear should be as reliable and trustworthy as a lifelong friend. Yet being friends through thick and thin, adventures big and small, is no minor feat. So we took a slightly different approach in vetting the Ambit.
We used our review time to ensure that this GPS/orienteering tool measured up to the rules of trustworthy trail comradery. After all, when your adventure begins… you should be confident that your gear has got your back.
Rule 1: Trust and Honesty Rule the Day
In the immortal words of Albert Einstein, “Whoever is careless with the truth in small matters cannot be trusted with important matters.” If you can’t rely on your GPS unit to provide accurate and reliable information, then no other feature is even worth considering. Designed around a full-featured GPS receiver, and loaded with massive computing power, the Ambit consistently and faithfully provides honest and trustworthy information.
From trail runs in Santa Cruz, to hiking the backcountry of Yosemite National park, the accelerometer-integrated GPS, provided flawless navigation and tracking functionalities. The unit consistently locked onto signals quick and easy, so we never wasted time waiting around for the unit to load. The Ambit also allowed us to track information on heading, elevation, and weather. Moreover, a premium heart rate strap, provided feedback on our cardio, and kept in tune with the body’s response to every adventure, trail run, or training regimen. After all, as we all know, the heart doesn’t lie.
Rule 2: Loyalty and Perseverance.
Loyalty and perseverance are the hallmarks of an enduring relationship. Boasting up to 50 hours of battery life, the Ambit perseveres through the ups and downs of your relationship over the long haul. Simply connect the Ambit to your computer via the included 2-way USB cable and charge away.
In part, the battery life depends on how the Ambit set up and used. If you’ve set up your Ambit to take a GPS fix each second, Suunto suggests the battery will last at least 15 hours. That being said, over the course of our testing we were able to get upwards of 17 hours on multiple occasions. In the instance 15 hours isn’t enough, then you’ll appreciate the fact that with a few simple tweeks at movescount.com, you can extend tracking to one point every 60 seconds. This results in 50 hours of battery life which is plenty of juice to track your progress over the course of endurance fueled endeavours.
When it comes to loyalty, a strong housing survives the bumps and bruises of an outdoor life. The Ambit was tough enough to take on all comers and never look worse for the wear. And because sometimes the only way around a water hazard is through it, this bad boy is also water resistant to 100m (330 ft.)
Rule 3: Be Adaptable
A good friend readily and willingly adapts to where you are, and what you are doing. And while the Ambit can’t read your mind, rest assured it can read every heart-pounding step of your adventures. Yet, this powerhouse tool does more than just read and record your adventures, it offers an unprecedented level of customization so your Ambit can adapt to virtually any and every situation.
Customization all starts with your free account at the Suunto powered movescount.com website. Think of it as your own personal command center where you are the master of your fate, the captain of your adventure.
Through movescount.com you can select up to ten different sports modes to display on your Ambit. Within each of those ten modes you can customize up to eight displays to provide absolute customized information over the course of your adventure. Once you’ve selected your sports modes, customized the displays on movescount.com, simply sync up your Ambit, and head outdoors to raise some havoc. Come back home, upload your adventures in your own online sports diary and then share all of your data with the world.
For further customization, Suunto offers access to the Suunto App Zone. Yes, you read that correctly, much like your smartphone, the Ambit has apps. Since its launch in November 2012, Ambit users have created more than 5,000 Apps. These apps span the gamut from ‘Oxygen Level’ Apps displaying the percentage of O2 in the air to help mountaineers acclimate, to the ‘Beer Burning’ App. A personal favorite, this app lets users see how many beers they can safely consume after training. Can’t find the app that suits your personal needs? Simply create your own.
Additionally, the movescount.com website also allows you to create a route with waypoints or points of interest (POIs) for your next adventure and upload the data to your Ambit. The watch will then alert you each time you reach a waypoint or POI to help keep you on track along the route. When defining waypoints you can either define them in advance online at Movescount – or you can create waypoints on the fly on the watch.
Rule 4: Actions Speak Louder than Words
Consider your Ambit the strong but silent type that understands actions always speak louder than words.
Once you’ve set up and personalized your Ambit, the fun starts with a simple push of the “Start” button on the right-hand side of the watch. This calls up the main menu. From here you can choose “Exercise,” “Navigation,” or “Previous.” “Previous” is going to let you go back through your previous log of exercises. By selecting “Exercise” and “Next” you’re directed to the various sports features that you’ve set up from the MovesCount.com homepage.
The accelerometer-integrated GPS offers highly responsive tracking of pace/speed and distance. That means whether you set the watch to training, running, boxing, trekking or swimming, you can trust that the Ambit will never lie to you. Then when you are done crushing your adventure, simply press stop and hold the button to save your exercise. The watch then displays your activity from which you can review specific data.
Rule 5: Be Understanding
Anyone who’s ever been on the wrong end of a breakup knows that a ‘lack of understanding’ is often a reason that relationships come to an abrupt stop. While we aren’t going to make any judgements or assumptions on the past relationships of the Suunto engineers, clearly this is one issue they understood, and the benefit is all ours.
Considering the mountain of information and detail packed into the Ambit, it would have been understandable if the watch was difficult to navigate, update or operate. Which is why the Suunto engineers deserve credit for creating a product and platform that is intuitive and simple to understand. In terms of technology, it’s one of the best user interfaces that we’ve encountered. Easy to operate at home on the computer. Easy to operate out in the field when adventuring.
Perhaps even more impressive is the ability to update the firmware that runs the Ambit by connecting your watch to the movescount.com website via the USB cable. Gone are the days when innovation and time force your GPS watch to the trash heap of obsolete and outdated technology. With the Ambit, you’re always up to date with the latest tweaks, updates and improvements. So while it’s true that you will pay a premium for the Suunto Ambit, the reality is that barring a catastrophe, you’re locked into a committed, long term relationship.
Rule 6: Direction and Details Matters
In any relationship, it’s important to know where you’re going. Towards those ends, the Ambit has a unique built in 3D-compass. If every one of your adventures was on flat terrain, they wouldn’t really be ‘adventures’ now would they. There will be moments you’re slaying a 30 degree hill on your way to the ridgeline and nothing is on the level. So unlike a traditional compass that needs to be held on the level for accurate readings, the Ambit’s 3D compass compensates for any tilt ensuring that you’ll always have an accurate reading.
To access the compass, simply press the ‘Next’ button to instantly display the Ambit’s 3D-compass. Pressing it again brings about the current temperature and barometric pressure, and pressing it once more returns you to the time. The following video will show you how you can calibrate the compass:
As we all know, in the end it’s the little things that make a big difference. The Suunto design team not only captures the little details, but nails them. A comfortable strap means you’ll never need to take the watch off until it’s time to upload or recharge. The large readable face is not only clear, but can be adjusted from light to dark or vice versa simply by long pressing the view button.
Five button controls with textured surfaces make for easy use with gloves or frigid digits. Admittedly, the buttons are large, and our one critique is that they easily and routinely snagged on the straps of our backpack when gearing up for the trail. That being said, the Ambit does allow you to lock the home screen so any incidental button pushing won’t take you to another screen or feature.
Bottom Line…
At its core, the Ambit is an accurate navigation device that is fast, reliable and easy to use. With the Suunto Ambit, you’re always in the know when it comes to your route, routine, your body’s performance, and pretty much everything else. It’s the one technological gadget no serious outdoor enthusiast should be without.
*Gumption Gear Review received the item featured in this review from Suunto at no cost and receives no monetary compensation for this or any related review. The item featured was provided solely in return for our honest views and opinions.