****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
I own several Suunto product and love their design; the All Black Core might be the coolest looking of them all. However, the Core is just waaaaay too big. Comically big. This does allow it to have a large, readable display, so if that's what you're going for then I suppose it might work for you. However, I imagine most people are buying the Core to use as a (semi) daily wear watch and for that purpose I just don't believe it works well for most people.I purchased the All Black Core and it's closest competitor, the Casio PRW 3000, at the same time for a back-to-back test. Both were nearly identical in price. Both black plastic/resin with negative displays (white numerals on black background). Allow me to summarize my take on the Suunto Core, using the Casio as a reference point:The Core's alti, baro, compass features work well and seem very accurate as far as watches go. However, I don't find it to be significantly more accurate than the newest Casio ABC sensor package.Overall screen readability for me was pretty good, but not great, on the Suunto--slightly better than that of the Casio (both models I tested were negative displays).I was very disappointed with the backlight on the Suunto Core. The brightness was disappointing and it lacks an auto-on feature (or at least I couldn't find it in the menus or manual). For those unfamiliar, the backlight on the Casio PRW 3000 can be set to automatically turn on for a few seconds when you raise your wrist up to look at the watch. This sounds pretty trivial but I find it to be an amazingly useful feature. What's better, is that the Casio is solar and it uses this to be smart with the auto-on feature. If the solar panel senses that there's enough ambient light to charge the watch, then it figures you don't need the backlight to automatically turn on to read the time. Genius!Now that I've mentioned solar...the Suunto is battery powered compared to the solar-powered Casio. That, to me, is enough to warrant choosing the Casio over the Suunto. Yes, this might not seem like a huge deal, but if you're wanting a tool that you can rely on, why wouldn't you have solar? I suppose you could preemptively change the battery in the Suunto every once in awhile so you know it'll always be good to go. And yes, the Suunto does allow you to change the battery yourself, using a coin to open the battery compartment, instead of taking it to a jewelry counter. However, every time you open and close the back you're running the risk that it doesn't get sealed up quite right and the water resistance will be compromised. So, imagine this: you put your Suunto Core and your Casio PRW 3000 in a desk drawer and leave them for awhile. Then one Friday night: "Big camping trip tomorrow morning! I'll wear my Suunto Core!", only to find that its battery is dead and your local shop is closed. Then you pick up the Casio and lo and behold, it knew you put it in a drawer because the solar panel detected complete darkness for a long period of time. So it went into power-saving mode to preserve battery life. With one button push it comes back to life and is ready to go. Oh, and even if it had run all the way down you could just wear it outside for a few minutes and it would be juiced back up.So, just to summarize: the Core looks cool, until you put it on and realize it's the size of a dinner plate (compared to the tea cup saucer-sized Casio). In isolation as a watch and an outdoor tool, the Suunto does a fine job. However, when compared to its best competitor it just doesn't stack up.This watch is outstanding. It is slightly more complex watch than other ABC (Altimeter, Barometer, Compass) watches I have owned in the past. It performs well in the class room, on the road, in the field, and when I go to sea (Merchant Mariner).Let me start with the Altimeter function. I have not used it much. I set my station to sea level and leav it there so I do not get a radical flux when I use the barometer. It has been accurate when I use it hiking in local instances. i.e. only in a certain area, only a certain amount of time.Next the Barometer. I love this function! I use it at sea and on land.Pro's (for me): accurate, especially when I keep it calibrated. It is within .5 Mbars, hasn't failed me and storm alarm warns me of impending weather...I should have already known (NAVTEX and Weatherfax)Cons: When I am traveling cross country the storm alarm loves going off. My guess would be rapid pressure changes as I drive through land based systems. Or it could just be the ambient pressure of the positive system in the car.Lastly the Compass! OK, I do not solely navigate with this thing when I camp or hike, and I surely would not expect it to be a replacement for the ships Gyro. That being said, I find it an accurate aid and a steady enough compass for light orienteering on the trails. I use it as a supplement to my hand held compass. I will also say that once I set it (exactly as Suunto recommended) I haven't had much variation. I was able to set my deviation which helps a ton. I thought that was a nice feature. (found on Charts, Internet, etc...for your area)OK, after the ABC's of this thing, let me give a short overview. This watch is sexy, cool, well built and functional. It does what it says it does. It features a sunrise, sunset function which allows you to select a hemisphere and substation, letting you get to within 5-10 minutes of actual sunrise or sunset. These are after my checks with the "pubs" and trusty Casio fx-115MS (Another Highly recommended bit of kit). Regardless, A great watch if you can stomach the $$$. I can assure you that if you understand that this watch will not make you a special forces operator, a diver, a sailor, or anything other than on time. OH! That reminds me, Chronometer Error! My watch has been consistently fast 1 minute every month. I don't cry about it, I just re adjust my watch. This is advisable to do regularly anyhow. I do it on the US TIME.gov web sight and I'm right as rain for no more than 5 seconds out of my day once a month. Lastly, the menus are super user friendly on this watch and sometimes selecting things can be a pain, however it is nothing terrible. BUY THIS WATCH! It might not stand up to a hammer if that's what you're thinking but it will last the life of the user if taken care of properly. P.S. Buy back up batteries.Bro loved itBest watch ever! Great gift for my hubby. Love it!Great watch, all of the functions work well and as advertised. Battery is super easy to change and the functions are easy to navigate through and call upon. Does everything my $1500 Tissot Expert does at less than half the price.The only thing I dislike about this watch is that the black paint around the face scratches easy and it shows chips and wear. Its shiny metal underneath so it stands out.Ill start by saying I really like this watch, the reason I didn't give it a higher rating is I've had several issues with the center control bottom getting stuck down so the backlight gets stuck on and I can't change the time or funtions. Suunto customer service has been great but considering this is suppose to be a rugged outdoorsy watch its a bit disappointing.tres bien
