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Reviews > Electronic Devices > Watches > Suunto Advizor > Kathleen Waters > Field ReportField Report: Suunto Advizor Wristop Computer Contents: Tester Biographical Information <back to top> Name: Kathleen Waters Backpacking Background: My husband and I started hiking in 1998 after an eye-opening climb up Hahn's Peak in Colorado. Hooked, we return to Colorado often. We've hiked/snowshoed glaciers, rain forests, mountains and deserts in exotic locations, including Iceland, Costa Rica, Slovenia and Death Valley. At home in Michigan, we plan for 2-3 hikes of 6-8 mi (10-13 km) weekly and one weekend hike monthly. Weekday hikes take place in Pontiac Lake Recreation Area, a mixture of heavily-wooded moderate hills and flat terrain. Weekend hike locations vary. My hiking style is comfortable, aiming for lightweight. Current pack averages 25 lb (11 kg) including food and water.
Product Information (from tester) Weight: 2 oz (57 g) For a more detailed description of the Suunto Advizor Wristop Computer, please see my Initial Report. Field Conditions/Completed Tests Results <back to top> During this portion of my field testing of the Suunto Advizor Wristop Computer, all my hiking took place in the familiar terrain of Pontiac Lake Recreation Area with supplemental heart monitor testing on my indoor Trekker treadmill. Elevation range was very limited from 177 ft to 800 ft (54 m to 244 m) and temperatures over late spring varying from 35 F to 81 F (2 C to 27 C). During the past two months, I wore the Wristop constantly for several weeks just to get the feel of it. As big as it physically is, I quickly got used to the Advizor on my wrist and was pleased to see that it was not a distraction. In early spring's cool weather, there were times I had to position the Advizor over the top of some of my tighter long-sleeved shirts/jackets, but for the most part, I was able to wear the Advizor under my clothing. The only discomfort I ever encountered wearing the Wristop was in very warm weather when my wrist became sweaty and sticky feeling - but then again, so did every other part of my body! In the worst situations, the Advizor fared quite well looped around one of my pack straps. I'm not the world's most graceful hiker, so an initial concern of mine was that the size of the Wristop would cause me to "bump" it more often than a traditional watch and thus damage the device. I am happy to report that so far, there is nary a scratch or scuff mart to be found on the face of the Advizor, despite more than a few close encounters with errant branches, packs, zippers, etc. As of yet, the tough strap shows no signs of wear either. I've also experienced the waterproofness of the Suunto Advizor on several occasions while swimming in the lake, when caught in a rain storm and of course, sweating! I have not and probably won't ever exceed the 100 ft (30 m) depth limitation though. The Wristop keeps perfect time. I love that in "time" mode, I can see not only the hours and minutes, but the day of the week, the date and the seconds as they tick down. The Advizor is a great watch. Setting the three different alarms turned out to be very easily accomplished following the directions in the owner's manual. However, the alarm is VERY weak and unfortunately, there is no provision for changing the volume level. I have a genetic hearing disability and wear hearing aids. While I can hear thunder or a garbage truck miles away and normal conversations just fine, high pitched sounds escape me. The Advizor alarms are very high pitched and the volume level is very low. Even when I tried wearing my hearing aids to bed, which I don't normally do, the Advizor's alarm did not wake me in the mornings, nor did the alarm awaken my non-hearing impaired husband sleeping besides me. Wide awake, the first time I tested the alarm, I set the time for 10 minutes later. Ten minutes passed and I heard no alarm. I thought perhaps I missed a step in programming, so I re-read the instructions and set another alarm for 10 minutes later again. At that point, my husband was in the room listening to me mutter under my breath. Ten minutes passed and again, I heard no alarm. However, my husband, standing next to me, did hear the alarm, oh so faintly! Lifting my wrist wearing the Advizor up towards my ear, I was able to hear the alarm when my wrist reached about 6 in (15 cm) away from my ear. Because of this, the alarm functions of the Suunto Advizor Wristop Computer are of no use for me. Learning to use a compass was a feat that I've been wanting to master. During my field testing of the Advizor I spent quite a bit of time at it. The Advizor's compass functions are both easy and hard to use at the same time. My husband and I practiced "sighting" where we picked an object in the distance and calculated it's location with reference to our location. He used a regular compass and I would use the Advizor. We also practiced picking a direction and walking a course. First one of us and then the other to see if we would end up in the same place. It took me a minute or two to get the hang of it (through no fault of the Advizor!) but I was quickly able to chart a path with the Wristop and end up in the same spot as my husband. The hardest part for me staying on course was because the Advizor fluctuated 10 degrees or so while I trekked through fields and forests. Trying to keep the bubble level steady was very difficult standing still and almost impossible while walking. I don't have a lot of confidence in the accuracy at this point in testing. I hope that will change will practice. I found it odd that while the Suunto Advizor is in compass mode, after 45 seconds the display goes into a "sleep" mode. While I suppose, this saved battery drain, it forced me to constantly have to "wake" the Wristop so that I could continue my testing. I would gladly sacrifice battery longevity if I could only deactivate the "sleep" mode and have a continuous compass display. The feature that sets the Suunto Advizor apart from the Suunto Vector is the Heart Monitor mode. I tried using the monitor chest strap while on a hike exactly twice. It drove me crazy. In order to keep the strap in the proper position, I had to fasten the elastic tightly. The hard material of the heart monitor sensor coupled with my backpack chest strap was too annoying for my comfort. Since I don't generally hike competitively for time and/or distance, and since I can't hear the lower and upper heart rate alarms anyway, I don't see a whole lot of use for the heart monitor on the trails for my purposes. So, my testing of the Wristop's Heart Monitor has been mostly on my trusty Trekker treadmill. I have an incline treadmill that will simulate -5 to 50 degrees. I utilize pre-programmed section "hikes" which varies the incline and speeds of 1 mph (1.6 kph) to 5 mph (8 kph). I usually spend an hour a day on the treadmill 5 days a week. Depending on my mood and energy level, I wear a backpack weighing about 25 lb (11 kg). Despite the non-audible alarms, I have found the Heart Monitor to be a great aid to my training on the treadmill. I can clearly see the numbers on the Advizor and I particularly like the calculation of how much time I spend in, above and below my target zone. Since my programmed time on the treadmill is variable, this feature let me know exactly how productive my training was on a per session basis. So far during my field testing, I haven't had much cause to use the barometer and altimeter modes of the Suunto Advizor Wristop Computer. This was due to my hiking being confined to my local trails. I have, however, noticed that the temperature measurement is not accurate when worn on my wrist with generally a 5 F (2.78 C) to 6 F (3.33 C) difference. The temperature was right-on when the Advizor was worn on my backpack strap or stashed in my tent storage pocket. Also, to use the altimeter, I will have to make another trip to the airport to re-set it with a known altitude. Sometime, somewhere, somehow, I managed to mess up the settings. I must have pushed the wrong button when attempting something! Summary to Date <back to top> Using the Suunto Advizor Wristop Computer has been frustrating for me. However, the frustration I've had may have been due to my in-the-field testing being limited to local trails and my personal combination of inexperience using measurement devices coupled with my vision and hearing impairments. There are so many steps I need to remember to accomplish the tasks I want to perform. In trying to provide multiple features, the Suunto Advizor, in a small package, uses 4 buttons and various combinations of "push" and "hold" to access those features. It gets confusing! But, hopefully, "practice makes perfect." The next two months will be much more active for me and I am looking forward to the next phase of my testing in unfamiliar territory where the compass, barometer and altimeter will get a thoroughly good workout! Continuing Test Plan <back to top> If all goes well, this will be my last year living in Michigan, then it's "westward ho" and off to Colorado! That said, there is still lots to see here in the Great Lakes State and I am looking forward to at least one 2-3 day hiking trip a month all the way through early fall. Over the July 4th holiday, I'm planning a weeklong trip to Beaver Island in Michigan. I am also planning in late July, to be in Colorado for a very belated birthday weeklong trip to the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Hiking will mostly take place in terrain that will include the sandy lakeshore dunes of Lake Michigan in western Michigan, the rockier shore areas of Lake Superior in Michigan's Upper Peninsula and the Wet, Green, Sangre de Cristos and Rocky Mountain ranges of Colorado. Elevation will range from 177 ft to 13,000 ft (54 m to 3962 m) and I anticipate that temperatures over the remaining days of summer will vary from 58 F to 84 F (14 C to 29 C) in Michigan and 56 F to 88 F (13 C to 31 C) in Colorado. I'm sure to experience cold, wind, rain and heat in Michigan. In the Sangres in Colorado, I expect to add some snow to the mix of weather conditions to be encountered.
Some questions still to be answered Altimeter:
How does the Advizor's measurements compare with published altitudes? A GPS?
How useful is the logbook? Chronograph: Can I find a practical use on the trail or in camp for the countdown timer? I will also report any other issues that arise during the testing period. Kathy Waters Read more reviews of Suunto gear Read more gear reviews by Kathleen Waters Reviews > Electronic Devices > Watches > Suunto Advizor > Kathleen Waters > Field Report | |||||||||||||||||||||
