Amazon.com Reviews
Average Rating: 4.0 out of 5 Stars
The following review received 15 helpful votes out of 15 total votes:Review Date: 2008-01-15"Core Wonder"The watch works great for me. I would advise not to read to much into the other reviewers who have said bad things about the watch. Heads up guys when the weather changes and you return to a ref point; say home after coming down from the mountain the watch may show a different alt. if the pressure and temps have changed a lot. , thats the way it works as pressure changes so to will your base alt setting. unless you have the GPS version :) I suggest people read the book before talking and sounding silly. The Core is a great add on to my collection. I have the GPS version as well. This watch is a bit slimmer and not so G.I. joe looking. Good for on the trail or down town.
UPDATE: The watch has started acting up only after 8 months of daily light use. The mode buttons work some days and not others. The TL and BL
mode buttons all of a sudden stop working. I'm guessing the alignment with the pins you push and the contact pad inside the watch get miss matched. Really? For 200 + dollar watch and I cant get the simple stop watch to work. If I flick it with my finger it realigns back up and them I'm able to use the buttons. Just yesterday I got on the tread mill to start my Cross Fit work out and started to sprint; I hit the start button again and again and again, &*(^% guess Ill use the free clock on the wall. Suunto has to do better than this before I buy another watch from them. Can't belive I'm looking at G-Shocks now!! Oh and the cover on my GPS watch has come off as well. Not looking good Suunto!! ONE STAR NOW 5 stars The following review received 12 helpful votes out of 16 total votes:Review Date: 2007-10-31"Very satisfied overall"First impressions and looks:
I received this watch some weeks ago, and have worn it on my wrist since.
The watch itself is bigger than I imagined; a diameter about 5cm and height about 1.5cm. At very first I was afraid this would be too large and cumbersome wearing on all day long, but fortunately this proved wrong when I first put it on my wrist. In fact, the size and looks (esp. the buttons and the links that attach the watch to the strap) of this watch make it very masculine and tough-looking on a male wrist. I've got several compliments on how good-looking and masculine it is from both female and male friends.
Steel strap: It took me a long time to decide on which wrist strap option to choose, but I'm very happy I ended up with the one in steel. It adds a little to the weight, but I don't notice the weight on my watch while wearing it. I like the concept of just clicking the strap on, instead of each day wondering how hard I should tighten the strap (as is the case with plastic straps). The surface of the steel is smooth and polished, so it's almost impossible not getting any scratches using this all day long. Because it's steel, however, the scratches are only _superficial_ and not visible from a distance.
Glass: The glass is very clear, and being made of mineral crystal glass, it doesn't scratch at all. That's a good thing!
Okay, enough about the exterior. Functions:
Time mode:
This is the mode I almost always use. The time (hours and minutes) is shown in BIG numbers, which is great to quickly tell time. In the lower part of the display you can choose between information like seconds, weekday+date, sunrise+sunset, [nothing], stopwatch and countdown timer. This is great, but I would actually love if it would be possible to have two of these visible simultanously - by putting one of them in the top of the display. I suppose it's not that way for saving batteries(?).
By the way, seconds are shown analoguely by an indicator in the circumference for a few minutes (not sure how many) after any button is tapped.
Another improvement I could think of, is a faster way to set an alarm or set the countdown interval. To set it, you must press the mode-button for some seconds to enter the menu. Then "time-date" --> "alarm"/"countdown" --> then set. Fairly fast, but it could be annoying pressing the mode-button for some seconds in some situations.
Altimeter/barometer mode:
I have barely used this. It's obvious that, unless you're alti-/barometer is a GPS, you would have to calibrate it. If you want precision, you would have to calibrate with either current altitude or current barometer pressure every now and then - the more often you calibrate, the more accurate output you get.
One way of using this daily, is to calibrate it at home and lock it on altitude. This way, you will be able to read out the precise barometer pressure every time you're at home. Other uses are only interesting next time I go mountain trekking and such, so I can tell how much there is left to the top.
Compass mode:
Haven't been using this much either. I have tested it, though, and it works. I think of it as an emergency/backup compass to use when I'm totally surprised and haven't brought any other forms of navigation aid. For all other uses I bring my GPS and an analog compass instead. I find analog compasses are easier to read than digital ones, where numbers are changing fast up/down.
Backlight:
Every watch should have one. This is great, although the contrast should be a little sharper (the numbers are bright enough, but the background lights up as well). It's no problem to read, but I've seen better (I had a Timex once).
---
TO SUM UP:
I'm very satisfied with this watch, thinking of both design, readability and functions. I bought this mainly because it's a digital watch of (hopefully) good quality, while the other functions (alti/baro and compass) are nice to have. (I do, however, look forward to try the depth-meter next time I go snorkelling/free diving). The watch meets my expectations well. I'm holding back one star because of the few improvement potentials I've mentioned above, and because this is a pricy watch. 4 stars The following review received 11 helpful votes out of 13 total votes:Review Date: 2008-06-17"Yet another quality product from Suunto!"As a collector of watches, several of which have been Suunto models, I was drawn to the style of the Core model watches, and the yellow in particular. I like big, bulky watches--but even so, I don't like them to be heavy, and I am grateful to note that while this is a bigger-than-average watch (not as big as the Suunto X-Lander, however) it is comfortable and not TOO large and its actually quite comfortable on my wrist.
One draw for the Core series for me was the fact that it actually had a depth meter--albeit a rather weak version of one. Previous Suunto watches I've owned while CLAIMING they were water resistant to 30meters, were actually in danger while just walking into a steam room with excessive humidity. Otherwise, they all worked flawlessly. I used to be a sport diver, but the last couple of decades have proven to take that particular hobby and put it on the back burner. I have other watches that can take much more depth than I can handle, so this isn't much of a major deal for me...but it IS a nice addition.
After the initial set-up, my Core has worked great (as I expected it to) and I have been profoundly impressed with it ever since. I DID have a bit of a problem calibrating the compass. On my previous models (Observer, X-Lander, X6HR, Vector) setting the compass was rather simple and easy. The directions made it clear which buttons to press to get to the calibration mode and what button to press once you were ready to start the whole action. With the Core, the directions got you to the calibration mode, but failed to let you know which button to press once you got there to actually begin the calibration. I managed to pull it off, but to be totally honest, I am not certain exactly how I did it. I pushed so many combination of buttons that one of them actually (finally) worked--but I am at a loss for which one did the trick. If I find out, I'll add it to end of my review later with an update.
I REALLY like the sunrise/sunset mode which is new to me (none of my previous models have that option). I also like the storm warning alarm option, which is again, really cool. If I could add one thing to this particular model--and that shouldn't be too difficult with the large screen it comes with, I would add an actual visual of clouds, rain, partly sunny or clear. My Highgear Axis has that, and is correct at least 75% of the time (WAY more accurate than my local TV Weatherman). Aside from that, its a minor gripe at best.
One of the primary reasons I have any Suunto is for the accurate altimeter. I have owned 4 different watches that have this feature, and NONE of them are the equal to ANY of my Suunto watches when it came to accuracy. When hiking any place that allows me any degree of altitude difference, I can ALWAYS count on ANY of my Suunto's to bring me correct data at the end of my trek. Invaluable for the true outdoor hiking enthusiast. If accuracy is not that important to you, try a cheaper Nike altimeter-watch that, despite their so-called Zero Drift technology, has almost always been wrong in my experience. When accuracy counts, I stick with Suunto, pure and simple.
Some people complain that the built-in temperature gauge is messed up or only accurate AFTER 20minutes OFF your wrist...well, show me a watch that ISN'T affected by body temperature and I'll buy it because as far as I am aware, they ALL have to be removed from your wrist to take correct temp readings. Get used to it.
Again, this watch isn't for everybody. If you aren't an outdoors-type of person, there really isn't a need to drop the extra $$, which is honestly rather comparable if you wish to purchase something that works as good. Some complain that the cost is way too high, but again, if you factor in all that the Core can do--which is admittedly a LOT, the cost is understandable.
For those who have had bad models that have broke on you rather quickly, please do NOT give up on Suunto. The vast majority of Suunto consumers have great experiences (as the reviews here on amazon attest), so keep at it and Suunto will win you over eventually I am confident.
Good luck hiking and thanks for reading! 5 stars The following review received 9 helpful votes out of 15 total votes:Review Date: 2007-12-03"a bit disappointed"I specifically chose this watch because of its altimeter and thermometer functions.
The altimeter:
It is not as straight-forward as I thought it would be. Its readings change every now and then depending on the weather. So for example you calibrate it to read 40ft above sea level in your place of residence, it may go up to 120ft the next day if it rains. How do you expect to get an accurate altitude if you happen to visit a new area? The instructions may say that you must have know the weather pressure for the day to get an accurate reading. I believe that this particular information is not as easy to obtain since weather announcements usually involve the temperature and the climate for the day only.
I was happy when the altimeter was fairly accurate when I brought it with me up the mountains, only to get disappointed again when my altimeter gave me a negative 200ft below sea level reading when I returned to my place of origin. (it was at 80ft on the day I left)
The Thermometer:
It is hard to tell if it is giving you the correct reading, for the simple reason that it is always higher than what your local weather forecast claims. The temperature definitely increases when you wear it. Of course, I would like to know the actual temperature by just looking at my watch and not have estimate it by deducting 4 or 5 degrees to account for my own body heat.
I just don't know if this watch really works this way or I just happened to purchase a defective unit. Hopefully someone who bought this same model could verify or refute my observations. 2 stars The following review received 8 helpful votes out of 10 total votes:Review Date: 2008-04-17"Nice design, HORRIBLE QUALITY"I purchased a Suunto Core in March 2008 and it broke after 10 days of use. I receive a replacement which was defective out of the box, so I returned the second watch and received a THIRD replacement, but alas, it was also defective. All three watches suffered from the same defect -- the knob that allows all adjustments to the watch would not work, so I could not use most of the functions or even change the time on the watch. Buyers beware! 1 star |
