SUUNTO Traverse GPS Outdoor Activity Watch (Graphite)

This was a BD gift for my spouse, He likes it, hasn't learned all of it's functions yet, but seems to enjoy the watch.

I have had this for 3 years now and it remains my favourite watch overall. I wanted a watch I could wear everyday but that could handle any additional activities, planned or unplanned.It’s big but not too much so and comfortable to wear. In three years, I have worn through the silicon strap (after about 18 months) and swapped it for a replacement from Suunto. I love the clear large display, which is customisable in many ways. I used the negative display for a few years but have switched to the positive display more recently which is slightly crisper and easier to read - great that it has both. The screen can be adjusted for contrast and the backlight is useful, adjustable and has an incredibly useful flashlight function, using a single long button press to activate it. Easy. Always there. Super useful for use at close range.The GPS can be started at any time by a long press of a single button. It's easy to mark a POI (single long button press) and easy to record a route and then follow the trail back. GPS/GLONASS finds satellites very quickly and I've almost never had to wait more than a few seconds to be hooked up.The compass is fine, and the altimeter is accurate enough if you calibrate, to measure ascent and descent. Fused alti/baro is a good option but takes a little while (using GPS to assist) to give you your altitude. The storm alarm is a little too pessimistic but the baro itself is fine for reading that off.I love the timers (countdown and stopwatch) - I use them very regularly and they are dedicated modes, rather than just being an aspect of the clock function. The timers also occupy the main large digit display (unlike the Suunto Core which only has the stopwatch and countdown timer as a small display option and only as a secondary aspect of the clock function).The watch has a vibrate function, which is useful on alarms, timers and especially when the watch is paired to your phone - it can serve to vibrate to let you know you have a text or phone call. You can read phone notifications on your watch (but you cannot reply) - such as incoming calls, texts, emails, any notification. That's smart enough for me. I have a large iPhone which is always on silent (for work) and often not on my person (so, on a desk or nearby surface, or bag) - the vibrating watch when it rings is very useful.Battery life is good enough. Using GPS is the heaviest drain on battery life. From a full charge, I can do about 80 minutes of GPS activity a day for about 3 days, with all notifications on. If you switch off notifications, it will improve slightly. If you use neither notifications nor GPS, the watch will go considerably longer. Power has a percentage indicator and it’s rare to get caught out. It charges very quickly. A few hours will do, as opposed to overnight necessarily.Integration with the phone app and movescount online is good enough, as is the newer Suunto app. Its not massively specced but enough for me - I just want to see how active I have been lately and save or organise a few routes/POIs.I have owned other watches in the three years but I keep coming back to the Traverse. Its high-tech but still feels, for the most part, like a watch rather than a computer on your wrist. The button arrangement, menu system etc are well thought out and the utility of the watch is never more than a button press or two away. As a result, you are more likely to use the features.Seems pretty robust too. I have worn this watch most of the time since I got it, , doing most activities - and it is still fully functional.DOWNSIDES?The mineral glass seemed to scratch much too easily for my liking. Not just once or twice either - but all the time. One after another. It MAY be to do with its dimensions, or the degree of deflection provided by the Bezel's profile - I don't know – it’s more than my other mineral glass watches. The Suunto Core All Black, for example, has remained pristine on my same wrists, with my same lifestyle. Not sure what has happened there. I have mostly repaired the scratches with some very time consuming polishing - only to find that they have started to reappear again in multiple places.The graphite on the bezel has been all but scuffed off and the watch looks quite untidy now – neither one colour nor the other – but its not terrible.I'd like better battery life, but it's not terrible on a day to day basis. It's trickier if you go away on any sort of activities over a few days without power - I have variously opted then to go for an ABC watch that uses replaceable batteries or a solar powered one OR take a power pack for a top up if I don’t mind the additional equipment.For running training, I much prefer my older runners watch for its more task specific design, ergonomics, response and function. This is not really a specialist runner's watch - but you can certainly use it for that purpose. Better for hiking or navigation/not getting lost.I also have some issues with the step counter: Once you go over midnight, even by a second, the days step counter resets and you cannot see your steps for the day just gone other than as a bar graph for the week, month or year (but with no numbers on it). The average number of steps, for a week, month or year appears to take into consideration the days where you obviously did not wear the watch – I wish it had a threshold setting to eliminate that. As a result of it, all of my averages (that’s three screens worth) are rendered statistically useless.When you navigate a saved route (forwards or backwards), or navigate a trip you previously recorded, from the logbook (again, forwards or backwards), there is no screen to show you distance remaining to the end, nor an ETA. In both of those cases, the entire route is set out so it should be possible. In contrast, if you navigate to a POI, it shows you the distance remaining BUT only as the crow flies – and obviously, has no idea then of the available paths or routes to get there. It hazards an ETA (ETE?) but neither of those figures are as useful to me, as they would be if it could do it for the fixed distance route scenarios I mentioned above.Button presses vary in response time. Mostly OK, but sometimes a little slow and sometimes not at all – and it seems related to how much processing is going on. Using the timers, or flicking on the backlight is fine. Changing screens in Navigation can be slow or unresponsive. This is the only time you are reminded that this is, ultimately, a computer on your wrist. The rest of the time, as I said, it feels like a watch. The whole thing has crashed on me perhaps 3 times in 3 years – which required a quick reboot and then all was fine again.OTHER OBSERVATIONSEvery time you use the GPS, it sets the clock correctly (if you have that set up) - I like that accuracy on the time.Also, its very easy to use on the fly - need to note where you started a hike? One button press (works as a man overboard marker too). Need to find your way back to base or retrace your steps - few easy presses to follow breadcrumb trail. Flashlight – always there. Timers – a few simple button presses away.It is perhaps beginning to age, as all tech does, but it’s still a relevant, versatile and desirable watch. For the right price, it may still be a good investment. GPS uses a lot of battery compared to newer watches now available (though maybe they are more expensive). One long day of GPS use will be about all it can do on a full charge. I use it in a number of shorter bursts and it's OK like that. Not the watch for endurance athletes but for everyone else, its solid.

Great GPS watch. does have a large face, so not for those with small forearms, otherwise it will look like you have a ship porthole attached to your wrist. Very comfortable and durable during whatever activity you are conducting. Occasionally while you are wearing it you will accidentally touch the next display screen button with the back of your hand, but doesn't cause too much of a problem.Battery life is surprisingly good, depending on the applications you have running. If you are simply use it as a watch to conserve battery it will easily last a week without needing charge. Using all features plus full GPS tracker will prob drain battery in about 8-10 hours, however if you are still out on you run by then you are considerably lost...prob should have used the compass feature a bit earlier..

I am writing this review after using the watch for a week. Firstly the battery, based on my usage (8 hours of GPS tracking) I would say it lasts around 5 days which is in keeping with the manufacturers guidelines.I put the watch to the test with an 8 mile ascent of Whernside in the Yorkshire Dales, I have to say that the altimeter is superbly accurate, more so than a standalone GPS that I own. The compass is also very handy along with the GPS recording feature which would be very useful in unfamiliar surrounds or poor weather conditions. The watch certainly looks the part too and unlike some competitors can be worn for everyday use.The step counter is one of the main reasons I bought this as its a more robust bit of kit (unlike fitbits et al) and this brings you to a massive drawback - at the end of each day your step count resets to zero and although Suunto provide an app for android and iPhone it does not send this information to the app. This is a massive missed opportunity by Suunto and surely they must correct this omission?If they do that then it's a 5 star review but until then it's just an average 3.

Product arrived on time and as described. Relatively easy to set up and having used for a couple of weeks now it keeps good time and all options work well. Only slight problem is that watch does not always connect to Suunto app first time but other than that a very good watch.

Brilliant. Combined with the Suunto app, very useful indeed. Easy to charge, quick gps lock on, user friendly interface. Can't fault it for the price.Only downside is the lack of full manual in the box.