Reviews > Electronic Devices > Watches > Silva Tech4o TraiLeader 1 > Test Report by Ray Estrella

Tech4o TraiLeader Watch
Test Series by Raymond Estrella
INITIAL REPORT
April 11, 2008

TESTER INFORMATION

I have been backpacking for over 30 years, all over California, and in many of the western states and Minnesota. I hike year-round, and average 500+ miles (800+ km) per year. I have made a move to lightweight gear, and smaller volume packs. I start early and hike hard so as to enjoy the afternoons exploring. I usually take a freestanding tent and enjoy hot meals at night. If not hiking solo I am usually with my wife Jenn or brother-in-law Dave.

INITIAL REPORT

The Product

Product Description

The Tech4o (a re-naming of Silva, the compass people) TraiLeader 1 is a watch that may be better named Sybil as it has so many faces…

While I expected the TraiLeader to be big (I have owned two other brands of wrist worn units) the diameter surprised me. It is pretty wide. But it is thinner than I expected, which I will count as a blessing. If I formatted the picture below correctly it should be life-size.

This multi-use watch is the leader (get it?) of the company's Performance series of watches. The ventilated polymer band wraps around a stainless steel case. The case holds the electronics package that make this a cool piece of multi-function hiking gear. The back of the case has a battery access port that can be opened with a coin.

I will describe the features of the TraiLeader, but may not go into heavy detail on all of them. (We all know what a watch is, do we not?)

The TraiLeader has 4 buttons that are used to maneuver through the various menus and functions. They are labeled on the bezel. As I am looking down at it they are as follows.

Upper left button: ESC, displays Time or Trail menu, returns to previous screen

Upper right button: ST/STP, toggles display up, increases values, view alternative displays, starts/stops timers.

Lower left button: MODE, selects modes (functions), confirms selections, enters settings modes

Lower right button: LAP/RESET, toggles display down, decreases values, changes units, starts/stops speed & distance mode, enters laps and resets timers

The "stem" is the button for the backlight.

It uses two separate menus, a Time menu and a Trail menu.

First of all it is a time piece. In the Time Menu mode it can be used to show Time, Date, Day, 2 Alarms, 50 lap Chronograph, 6 Timers, and a Dual Time Zone display. Because the focus of my reports will be on the TraiLeader's use for backpacking most of these functions will be used but not talked about in great detail. (I do not have much need of a lap counter in the back country.)

The Trail Menu has the features that I am interested in and will be using the most.
One feature that I am not familiar with but will be watching closely is the accelerometer. As I know nothing about them I will give Silva's explanation of how it works.

"The accelerometer sensor works by first detecting changes in the user's movement (acceleration) that are translated into varying degrees of electric current within the sensor. These electric currents are instantly decoded by the Tech4o watches into highly accurate measurements of speed and distance and displayed on the watch face."

I have used both analog and digital pedometers in the past for walking and running that use a pendulum and counter, that when programmed with the distance of my stride gives an approximation of distance covered. This seems to be something similar as it asked me to put my stride length in. I have some accurately measured walking routes that I can check this against on flat ground. I also have some known distance hikes that I do regularly to see how well it performs when the elevation change is drastic.

The function that I will use the most based on the use of my present weather station and multi-function unit is the Altimeter/Barometer feature. I have been hiking with an altimeter for about 16 years. I have found that on the mountainous types of trails that I frequent an altimeter is a much faster and more accurate tool than a compass for identifying where I am. Let me explain the basics of how it works.

The barometer measures air pressure. Once calibrated and left in a single location the barometer will track the changes in the air pressure. Based on this some "weather forecasting" is possible. An example of this is a camp site that Dave and I made in the Domeland Wilderness one time. After hiking in beautiful weather we made camp where I calibrated my unit and left it in the tent. Five hours later I noticed that the barometer had fallen drastically. I told Dave that I thought we were in for some bad weather. In the middle of the night an unforecasted storm hit bringing rain and snow.

The altimeter is actually just an extension of the barometer. Air pressure lessens as we go up in elevation due to the affects of gravity (the pressure goes up as we descend). When in altimeter mode the unit translates this change in pressure into a gain or loss of elevation. To be accurate the unit needs to be calibrated at spots on known elevation. I always set mine when I top out on passes or at lake shores.

The TraiLeader has a bevy of sub-functions that I can use with the altimeter including ascent/descent calculators, altitude graphs, logs and an altitude alarm to stop me from ascending higher than a predetermined level. I have found that I do not use these features very often in the field but like to play with them at airports.

The digital compass looks pretty nice as I play with it writing the initial report. It picks up single degree changes as I rotate it. I have one of Silva's oil filled magnetic compasses that I will check it against. The TraiLeader allows me to take a reverse bearing, something that is very useful for orienteers doing triangulations, but I usually just use the altimeter to help figure where I am. It offers an easy to adjust declination feature, which I like. I set the declination for my area, but as I also regularly hike in other states the ease of changing it is welcome.

The thermometer is another function that I will use a lot. I like monitoring the temps at my sites and in my tent, especially on my winter trips. I will check it against Dave's stick thermometer to see how accurate it is.

The screen can be set up to display three different sets of information on each. After playing around with it I have decided to have the main Time mode display with the time centered, the date below and a weather icon above. The main Trail mode display is showing altitude centered, the time below and the temperature above. As I hike I may swap the upper display for an elevation graph so I can see a representation of my gain and loss. (I spend so much time pogo-ing my altitude the graph is a lot of fun.)

There is a lot more that the TraiLeader can do but I do not want this report to turn into a mind numbing techfest. The easy-to-navigate website listed above has a plethora of information about all of the features found on the TraiLeader. But I am going to save my time and apply it to getting outside and using this cool watch. Won't you please come back in a couple of months to see how the TraiLeader fared in the field?

My thanks to BackpackGearTest and Tech4o for allowing me to test the TraiLeader.

Reviews > Electronic Devices > Watches > Silva Tech4o TraiLeader 1 > Test Report by Ray Estrella