Suunto is a Finnish company that specializes in high-end sports watches, compasses, diving computers, and luxury watches designed for world travelers.
The company was established in 1936 and its headquarters are in Vantaa, Finland. Most of the products are designed in Finland and manufactured in Suunto’s flagship factoryon the outskirts of Helsinki. Suunto watches are designed to endure extreme conditions, a good fit for anyone who leads an active lifestyle.
When you buy a Suunto watch, you can choose to subscribe to an exclusive community of athletes.
This is a great way to keep your motivation going. Our Suunto fitness watches review covers a few different series of their sports watches, as well as a few heart rate monitors.
Suunto Fitness Watches Comparison Chart
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1. Spartan Trainer
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2. Spartan Sport Wrist HR
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3. Spartan Ultra
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4. Spartan Sport
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5. Ambit2
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6. Ambit2 R
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7. Ambit 2 S
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8. Ambit 2 Sapphire
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9. Ambit 3 Run
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10. Ambit 3 Sport
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11. Ambit 3 Peak
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12. M1
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13. M2
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14. M5
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15. Suunto 3 Fitness
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16. Suunto Quest
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17. Suunto 9
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Suunto Spartan Series
If you want an extremely durable and rugged outdoor watch, the Spartan series could be the right choice. These watches were tested in real use by athletes before their release. If you enjoy watches of a chunky, utilitarian design, the Spartan collection is a good fit for you.
Each of the models comes with pre-installed sports modes, which means you can select your sport and receive accurate tracking data about your progress. The Spartan series can keep track of the laps you swim, and it’s also a good fit for skiing or cycling. You can use it to measure your progress in any triathlon, and we recommend it to fans of outdoor sports. These watches connect to any app of your choice, including the Suunto app.
Generally speaking, Suunto watches are a serious investment, but the Spartan Trainer watch is an excellent choice for athletes who have a limited budget. It has GPS tracking, which makes it a good choice for treks in the wilderness where you might go off the beaten path.
This watch is slim and shares the firmware of more expensive Suunto models. It stores up to 20 sports modes, and it can access 80 modes, including triathlon and swimming. There’s also a custom mode for your exact needs. You can use this watch to create graphs of your progress.
The Spartan Sport HR is another excellent bargain. It covers all of the features mentioned above and it also measures your heart rate and offers calories burned feedback.
It creates graphs of your cardiac activity, as well as your speed and altitude. If you need an even higher heart rate measuring accuracy, you can use this watch alongside a Bluetooth heart rate sensor.
This model is in a higher price range, but it comes with all the bells and whistles. The Spartan Ultra is a great choice if you need a watch that you can use for an extended amount of time.
It performs well for 18 hours in standard mode, and over a full day if you’re willing to switch to battery save mode. We highly recommend it to anyone interested in the Ironman Triathlon.
This watch can help you monitor your heart rate even while swimming. It has a treadmill mode and gives you access to 80 sports modes. There are various navigation options you can use for hiking, skiing, and other outside sports.
The Spartan Sport is another model that comes with heart rate monitoring. The recovery analysis function is easy to use, and it gives you an idea of the best recovery time before starting taking on more reps.
If you enjoy marathons or hiking, you might make use of the heatmapping function this watch has to offer. It helps you locate other participants in your vicinity.
You can choose between a few stylish watch face designs. It is water-resistant, and the battery lasts for 12 hours in training mode.
Suunto Ambit Series
If you’re a planner and like having all the information at your fingertips, Suunto’s’ Ambit series of GPS sports watches can be the best option for you.
They’re especially good for tracking your recovery after your exercises to maximize your gain.
There’s a Quick Recovery Test that you can use, which utilizes the collected data from your workouts and then grades your recovery in the form of a percentage.
The Ambit series is a great option for nature enthusiasts, from mountain climbers to freerunners and beyond. It comes with a sophisticated app that lets you plan your routes, as well as heatmaps and a photography function.
The Ambit2 collection of watchesare no longer in production, but even the basic Ambit 2 sports watch still measures up to other GPS watches.
This one comes with heart monitoring, a 24-hour battery life, and excellent navigation options.
There’s a barometric altimeter and the watch can measure your vertical speed. Additionally, you can make use of the internal temperature sensor.
If you’re planning a wilderness adventure, this older Suunto model could be ideal if you come across a good deal.
This watch is designed specifically for runners. While it’s not as multifunctional as other Suunto models, the Ambit 2 R is a great option for many athletes.
It has a specialized speed measuring function that can give you information about your running cadence.
You can also rely on it to provide you with information about your daily running target, so it’s a good option for long-term planners. It uses integrated GPS tracking to help you find your way on long trails.
Here’s a utilitarian sports watch with an exceptional battery life. It can last 50 hours of use, and 25 with the GPS turned on.
There’s also a built-in digital compass and altimeter, and you can use it to store up to a hundred waypoints.
Some extra features are missing from this model, such as Bluetooth connectivity. The only way to connect this watch to your smartphone is to use a cable.
The Ambit 2 Sapphire replaced the glass of the basic Ambit 2 with a domed sapphire crystal, as found on high-end luxury watches.
It’s very durable and can withstand extreme cold and heat. This model comes with both a barometer and a weather forecasting option. There is also a 3D compass designed for mountaineering.
The Ambit3 collection adds a few important innovations. It offers excellent connectivity options and a streamlined, eye-catching design. The Ambit 3 Run is made for runners of all stripes, and it has an accurate GPS and impressive battery life. If you’re willing to settle for a GPS update of one minute, the battery can last 100 hours.
This watch tracks your running cadence and helps you plan interval workouts. You can use it to track your sleep quality and your recovery progress. This model also lets you take photos and share your results instantly on social media.
As you may know by now, the Sport version of the Ambit 3 adds sensory stimulation in terms of colors. If you’re looking for a sporty unisex watch in bright colors, you’ll be happy with the Ambit 3 Sport. It comes with excellent Bluetooth connectivityand a high-quality heart rate monitor that you can use underwater. Of course, the battery life is the same, as well as the planning options.
Out of all the models covered in our Suunto fitness watches review, this one has the best battery life. Its battery can lastup to 30 hours if you want to use the GPS with a five-second interval.
If you’re happy to let it update every 60 seconds, the battery life is a stunning200 hours. This watch also provides you with weather forecasts, and it can help you calculate your recovery time based on how well you’ve been performing. You can use it to take calls and receive messages or push notifications.
Suunto M Series
The M Seriesof heart rate monitors are efficient and reasonably affordable. If your priority is heart rate tracking rather than performance tracking, this collection should cover all your needs.The design of these monitors is simple and discreet. Unfortunately, they’re no longer in production, probably because many Suunto watches have heart rate monitoring built-in.
This heart rate monitor hasn’t quite kept up with the times. While it runs on a lithium-ion battery, it has no connectivity options.
For privacy reasons, some people prefer self-contained gadgets that can’t connect to the internet. If that’s the case for you, you might enjoy using the M1 during your workouts. It’s a comfortable fit, and it provides accurate heart rate monitoring and calorie tracking.
The M2 comes with a chest strap, and people in cardiac rehab can use it for real-time heart rate monitoring.
It is available in a number of comfortable and intricate bracelets, so you can even use it as a fashion accessory.
The dual chest transmitter belt is also comfortable to wear. While this isn’t the best heart rate monitor Suunto has to offer, it has some interesting customization options.
Here is the heart rate monitor you should go for if you want to know the training load of your workout sessions during recovery. You can customize it to any sport and use it to plan ahead. Once again, you get a dual chest transmitter along with the monitor, as well as the so-called Movestick, which lets you store and upload exercise data.
While it’s not as adaptable as the smartwatches in Suunto’s current collections, you can shape it to your workout regime by setting targets for yourself. This heart rate monitor is a particularly good fit for anyone trying to lose weight.
The Suunto 3 Fitness is a sophisticated smartwatch collection designed to help you combine recovery with living an active lifestyle.
It tracks the quality of your sleep and helps you stay on top of things throughout the day. As it measures your stress during recovery, you can use it to recognize the moments when you need to stop and take a break.
The best thing about this watch is the adaptive training guidance, which creates seven-day plans for you to follow.
Your performance and heart rate are monitored constantly, and the watch helps you to better pace yourself. You can use it for any kind of workout, swimming included, and it receives calls and messages too.
Here’s another discontinued heart rate monitor that you might want to take into consideration. Some aspects of this watch are outdated, but the Suunto Quest is still an admirable option for anyone in recovery, including professional athletes. It uses a CR3032 coin cell battery, which has its pros and cons.
It supports different types of workouts and has separate running and cycling modes. In addition to keeping track of your heart rate, the Suunto Quest measures distance and speed, and everything is clearly presented.
There’s a recovery feature, which helps you create a workout plan that canhelp you get your stamina back without risking your health in any way. While it doesn’t have the connectivity options found on Suunto’s newest smartwatches, you can customize it using the Movescount feature.
The final model in our Suunto fitness watches reviewis a hardy, versatile sports watch for dedicated athletes. If you train for endurance and need a watch that can keep up, the Suunto 9 might be your best bet.
Depending on the functions you want to make use of, thebattery can last up to 120 hours of active use. Best of all, it can switch battery modes without prompting, as it has a smart system that adapts to your circumstances.
You can use the Suunto 9 under any condition, including up to 100 meters underwater. It comes equipped with weather alarms and storm alarms.
This watch is perfect for runners and other sportspeople who need amazing accuracy. The built-in GPS, gyroscope, compass let you chart your track down to the last detail. At the same time, it provides constant heart rate monitoring for you to maximize your exercises and recovery.
