Strange Display Behaviour

VoiGAS

Hi, I think I found two hidden display features. Settings to reproduce it for the training. Display AOD on, Brightness medium, lift to wake off.
Now the strange thing: I would have thought now it is necessary to push a button to activate the watch, but there are two other methods:

Touch ( don’t push) the middle button/crown. The light goes on
Expose it to strong light ( window or torch) and the brightness increases!

So it seems like the Race S crown is touch sensitive and also has some kind of ambient light sensor. Strange, but that gives us great posiibilities for future firmware if its true and not just a spooky effect on my model

Edit:
Ambient light sensor seems to be a known feature at least in the Race:
https://forum.suunto.com/post/130374
Still, the “Touch Crown” could be a new finding…

herlas

@VoiGAS AFAIK there’s no such physical light sensor, it’s software-based on the SR and SRS.

VoiGAS

@herlas How could such a thing work based on Software? It reacts on direct light from a torch indoor

herlas

@VoiGAS weird right? I read somewhere Suunto AMOLED watches do not have it, rather, it’s controlled by software somehow. I can be wrong but at least there’s no evident light sensor on any part of the screen like in SV and other MIPs.

far-blue

I’m pretty sure the Race S does have some sort of light level sensor. I’ve dusted off my head torch now the nights are drawing in and when the torch shines straight on the display it appears to get brighter to compensate.

Bastienhere

I’d say 99% of AMOLED smartwatches or sport watches would have an ambient light sensor, otherwise the auto brightness function wouldn’t exist haha.

Although not common that the screen would turn on from a bright light - i think it’s a pretty cool function.

As for the touch crown, pretty interesting

halajos

@herlas not having a light sensor that’s visible from outside doesn’t mean the Race doesn’t have one. It may be built right into the display. It’s just impossible to sense light without a light-sensitive physical device

Stefano M64

The brightness of the Race adapts to the ambient light, so, yes, there is definitely a light sensor somewhere, likely behind the amoled screen.

VoiGAS

@Stefano-M64 Too bad it doesn’t adapt enough to make the AOD visible during daylight. But maybe a software update can solve this, it even doesn’t react to the brightness setting.
But one can use the other hidden sensor for a workaround. Instead of using the painfully slow raise to wake I managed to wake it by touching the Touch crown with the back of my hand. Its a little strange and only works with the watch sitting low. But it activates the screen much faster.

VoiGAS

Update for the light sensor: If you have the sun on the side you wear the watch (like running west at noon if you are wearing it left) the light sensor adapts very well. Maybe even overadapting to the sun, the AOD is really bright in this cases.
Running back east (watch is not in direct sunlight) it is underadapting and very hard to read.
So I think light sensor and display could do a lot better if this algorithm is tweaked a little bit to respond better to daylight