If there are simply three issues it’s essential know concerning the new Suunto Race ($450), it’s that the high-definition AMOLED show is just lovely, the worth for the worth is phenomenal, and ultrarunners needn’t concern as a result of the battery life places the watch in the identical firm as these from Coros.
This watch is a lovely piece of {hardware}. Nothing has modified with the Finnish firm’s eager sense of favor and design mixed with high-quality componentry. However it’s the aggressive worth level for a feature-rich watch that may be a large leap ahead. The bottom mannequin contains a number of first-time options like worldwide contact screen-enabled maps, a vibrant display, coronary heart fee variability (HRV) monitoring, and Suunto Guides that do all the pieces from providing teaching to offering real-time effort monitoring.
However even amongst these constructive modifications, two staple Suunto drawbacks stay true: The processing velocity remains to be lower than different related watches from different manufacturers and the mapping out of the field just isn’t as sturdy. Additionally, some key options I’ve grown to like from different producers are lacking, together with offline Spotify streaming and photo voltaic charging.
Nonetheless, the whole package deal, together with its worth, warrants the addition of the Suunto Race to our Finest GPS Operating Watches information. Learn on for the small print.
The Suunto Race. All images: iRunFar/Craig Randall
Suunto Race Show
The two.45-ounce (70 grams) Suunto Race is the primary trail-specific watch to make use of an AMOLED show that’s a beneficiant 1.43 inches throughout. We’ve all develop into accustomed to high-definition shows — be it on our telephones, laptops, or TVs — however GPS watches for operating have been sluggish to deliver this similar brilliance to the wrist. Corporations like Garmin have provided these high-definition shows however not of their trail-focused fēnix or Enduro strains. Even the watch that lately preceded the Suunto Race — the Suunto Vertical (Suunto Vertical evaluation) with its $800 price ticket — nonetheless has an analog show.
The distinction between AMOLED and analog is staggering. This show is extremely vivid and straightforward to learn in any climate or mild situation. In my 5 months of testing, I’ve taken it to Hawaii’s seashores, Colorado’s snowy mountains, and day by day by means of the flat mild and early winter darkness. It does take extra battery energy to maintain the show operating, however Suunto has built-in standby and raise-to-wake options to assist preserve energy.
These battery-saving choices are useful on paper, however in apply, they are often problematic. Whereas at relaxation or throughout exercise, the watch will dim the display for battery conservation. Sadly, it could possibly take a number of seconds for it to return again to full brightness — a lot in order that I’ve slapped on the watch in frustration after I merely wish to examine the time or see some knowledge whereas operating.
After all, you will get round this by leaving the watch in full show mode, however as I discussed, it takes a major toll on the battery. In day-to-day life, this implies charging the watch extra typically. In case you are in a race or out on a really long term, you’ll wish to be aware of the show setting and put up with the mildly annoying dimming to maintain the watch from operating out of energy.
Sooner or later, when know-how prices come down and battery effectivity improves, all GPS watches will embrace an AMOLED display, however for now, Suunto is in a category of its personal by combining this lovely show with the watch’s different options.
A entrance view of the Suunto Race.
Suunto Race Battery Life
Earlier than the Suunto Race, one of many knocks towards Suunto watches was the battery life, particularly for ultrarunning. A lot so, actually, that many people have taken measures like re-charging a watch throughout actions, similar to at support stations, so as to make a watch final the length of an occasion. It was good {that a} Suunto watch was capable of cost whereas in use, however it’s 2024 and we want a watch that may go for 20, 30, or 40 hours of steady utilization. Out of the field and with full options enabled, together with coronary heart fee monitoring and best-performing GPS monitoring, the Suunto Race can exceed the corporate’s 40-hour battery life declare. I’ve gotten near 45 hours of letting it run on my wrist in a take a look at state of affairs from residence.
With a decrease battery efficiency setting in a non-activity mode with fewer GPS pings and coronary heart fee, sleep monitoring, and mapping disabled, the watch will keep powered for as much as 26 days. Evaluate these stats to the Garmin fēnix 7, which is sort of twice as costly, or any Coros mannequin, a few of that are cheaper, a few of that are extra, and also you received’t discover a extra aggressive look ahead to the worth and have set.
One sneaky distinction between Suunto’s newer watches, beginning with the Suunto 9 Peak Professional that got here out in 2020, and opponents’ merchandise are their quick re-charging occasions. If you plug the Suunto 9 Peak Professional, Vertical, or Race into the wall, it takes solely about 25 minutes for the watch to recharge from lifeless to almost 80%. In lower than an hour the watch will probably be totally charged once more. That is about 45 minutes to a full hour quicker than the competitors. It’s a really spectacular function, and if you’re endeavoring to push the watch past 40 hours in a single push, you’ll be able to nonetheless recharge the battery throughout an exercise.
The aspect view of the Suunto Race.
Suunto Race Options and Performance
When wanting on the Suunto Race, it’s best to ask your self should you’re a dial or buttons particular person. Frankly, after testing practically all the finest GPS watches for operating over the past 4 years, I’m nonetheless not a dial man. From the Coros Tempo to the Coros Vertix line and now, sadly, with the Suunto Race, I proceed to seek out dial scrolling imperfect and unreliable.
This watch has two buttons on both aspect of a scrolling dial, and it’s simply too sloppy for my tastes. It’s tactile and appears nice, however to truly use the dial, similar to on the finish of a run when scrolling to the save choice, it scrolls too shortly and wishes extra precision than my energy-deprived mind can shortly muster. Happily, it additionally has a contact display that, in most circumstances, enables you to keep away from utilizing the dial. The contact display itself is a superb improve, significantly when utilizing maps.
You get both 16 gigabytes of inner storage for the metal mannequin or 32 gigabytes for the titanium mannequin that you would be able to fill with maps from all around the globe. You must arrange Wi-Fi pairing with your property router, open the free Suunto app to seek out and obtain the map you need, after which spend about 10 minutes transferring the maps to your watch.
The draw back is that the maps are unnamed and unlabeled, which is a gripe we’ve had with different Suunto watches. The plus aspect is that they’re totally touch-screen appropriate, so you’ll be able to merely swipe across the display to maneuver concerning the map, after which, and right here’s the place the dial is a really helpful contact: flip the dial to zoom out and in with whole ease.
The buttons and dial on the Suunto Race.
Suunto Race Coronary heart Price Monitoring
A number of Suunto watch fashions have include optical coronary heart fee sensors and the one on the Suunto Race is the perfect but. Actually, whereas it’s nonetheless not so good as the information obtained from a coronary heart fee strap, the optical coronary heart fee knowledge is extra dependable, correct, and reliable than another watch I’ve examined. Although all watch producers tout optical coronary heart fee monitoring accuracy of their advertising and marketing, behind closed doorways they’ll let you know that it’s, significantly at excessive cardio outputs, pitiful. That is the least pitiful amongst watches I’ve examined from Coros and Garmin through the years, and it has emboldened Suunto to combine HRV measurement into its function set.
HRV has develop into a buzzword in teaching circles for its means to point your coaching readiness. A number of elements have an effect on it past train, however in easy phrases, HRV observes the variations in time between your coronary heart’s beats. It’s crucial to make use of sleep monitoring to get an HRV rating that’s as correct as doable. It has develop into an fascinating metric I refer to every morning after carrying the watch at night time. The watch has a “don’t disturb” mode that retains the display darkish at night time and pauses alerts.
A take a look at the Suunto Race’s optical coronary heart fee sensor.
Suunto Race Different Options
On the subject of night-time use, one other glorious function of the Suunto Race is the flashlight. Enabling this operate takes over your entire show with an adjustable brightness white glow. That is not like the extra most popular type that Garmin gives, which is a light-weight on the high of the crown, enabling you to level the sunshine at issues, however I nonetheless very a lot admire this model of a flashlight, significantly when sharing a small area with somebody, similar to a tent.
Suunto has a library of Guides that you just set up on the watch from the app. There are all the pieces from Strava Reside Segments to vitamin alerts to cadence and energy measurements, in addition to different teaching elements. The app is way improved from the previous days of “Movescount” — it’s a really clear and easy-to-use addition to the watch. Transferring programs or routes is quick and a breeze.
By way of on-wrist sizing, it’s the identical dimension because the Suunto Vertical however the Suunto Race feels smaller in your wrist. Consequently, it sits someplace between the tiny Suunto 9 Peak Professional and the Suunto Vertical when it comes to on-wrist dimension.
The Suunto Race, as worn on a wrist.
Suunto Race Total Impressions
The Suunto Race, for the cash and have set, is probably the most profitable look ahead to path runners from the model as of now.
The spectacular battery and high-definition show alone make it a steal for the worth, however if you add the perfect optical coronary heart fee sensor available on the market and clear aesthetics that put it means above even the best-looking watches from the competitors, this watch turns into a extremely covetable machine.
The lagging processing energy is the one actual downside. Suunto nonetheless hasn’t managed to make a GPS watch transfer as fluidly when scrolling options, enabling features, or saving actions as the opposite manufacturers. This can be a fairly small critique after we’re speaking a few distinction of milliseconds, however it’s the one criticism I proceed to have with the model’s merchandise. That doesn’t take away from making the Suunto Race the runner-up for finest general GPS watch in our Finest GPS Operating Watches information.
Name for Feedback
- Are you operating with the Suunto Race? If that’s the case, what are your ideas on its numerous specs and efficiency?
- How does the Suunto Race examine to different GPS watches you’ve gotten used?