Race S Tempting Me Back Into Suunto...

andrewjknox

Hi guys,

I’m close to pulling the trigger on this model (Courtney edition because I think she’s amazing )…

I actually use two watches (+ Oura Ring for sleep tracking & Coros HRM armband for optical HR tracking):

Coros Pace 3 (daily driver, road runs, easy trails, workouts, rowing on Concept2 + gym)
Garmin Fenix 7X (ultrarunning, mountain adventures)

The one I’m looking to replace is the Pace 3. Think it’s a great watch but I’d like a slightly brighter and bigger screen. The Race S also looks a lot nicer for wearing throughout the day. The maps and climbing guidance look great for when I’ve got road or easy trail races and a GPX route loaded. But before I did, couple of niche questions:

Smart notifications: All I want are incoming call alerts - don’t want to be seeing everything. Can I toggle calls only? Don’t want things like WhatsApp message alerts etc)
Step count: I’ve never really cared about this before, but I’m trying to improve my day-to-day movement and track it (hit 500 steps every 45 minutes at the computer). I’ve heard there’s a bug around this where it’s not working correctly with walking, though okay with running?

Finally, just a couple of ecosystem questions and not relevant to my Race S decision:

Is there a publicly available view of what Suunto features are working on/planning? Or if not, does anyone here know? Don’t care about release dates, they’re never a good idea anyway That’s a great thing about Coros, they’re fantastic here.
Is there a way to get grid references (UK) on Suunto watches? I use this feature heavily on my Fenix when I’m going by map - I setup a shortcut on the watch to give me a reading to adjust my bearing.
ClimbPro is class on the Fenix. Probably my favourite feature and the one I was surprised by how much I use it and now don’t want to lose. I use it to time my fuelling and adjust my effort based on where I am on the climb. Don’t need that level of granularity on a Race S, but I’d love to see the Climb Guidance get built upon.

Cheers for reading!
Andrew

Fenr1r

@andrewjknox said in Race S Tempting Me Back Into Suunto...:

Is there a way to get grid references (UK) on Suunto watches? I use this feature heavily on my Fenix when I’m going by map - I setup a shortcut on the watch to give me a reading to adjust my bearing.

Not directly onto the recent watches. You can only view your current location in coordinates.

You need to use your paired phone and create a “POI” in Suunto App, either by

A. Tapping on the precise location on the map in Suunto’s App.

OR

B. Creating a POI anywhere and editing its coordinates - after you’ve converted your OS coords to the dec. Lat/Lon Suunto requires.

Then sync watch and phone and you’re set.

andrewjknox

@Fenr1r Thanks for confirming re: the grid reference. I’d need it directly on watch (and easily accessible) and not involve a phone at all. On my Fenix, I long press a button I’ve configured as a shortcut, and get the co-ords on screen immediately.

Fenr1r

@andrewjknox You’re welcome. If that facility is a deal-breaker, Suunto may not be for you at the moment.

andrewjknox

@Fenr1r That was more of a follow-up question really, I don’t need that for the Race S but it would be great to have that in the future / on a roadmap somewhere.

Edited my original post to make that clear, realised it wasn’t when I reread it

Fenr1r

@andrewjknox Righto. Re: roadmaps - Suunto doesn’t do them. If you read this Forum avidly enough you may pick up (and/or misinterpret) hints from certain contributors but that’s about as far as it goes.

As for the on-watch OS coordinate entry: it was deprecated some watches back and suggestions here haven’t had a lot of traction over the intervening years. Its radial cousin, Bearing Navigation, did get a bit of a fanfare-free improvement, however.

So if you don’t hope in any particular regard, you won’t be disappointed.

andrewjknox

@Fenr1r There are roads marked on the watch right? I don’t need road names though. Typically I create a route, I’ve probably never been there and I rely on the watch to navigate and won’t have my phone (usually).

Surprised on grid reference though, as it’s just displaying data in a different format (e.g. British National Grid - BNG) using data it already has, i.e. lat/lng. Sounds like an app idea if not implemented natively?

Fenr1r

@andrewjknox said in Race S Tempting Me Back Into Suunto...:

There are roads marked on the watch right?

Yup.

I don’t need road names though.

Fortunate: there are no labels at all. Although your synced and active Route and POI symbols will appear.

In case you venture off roads, it’s also worth pointing out that contour lines disappear above the watch’s 200m/face zoom level. This might be changed but it has been some months in the works and the UK may or may not be in the next tranche. Whenever that occurs.

Surprised on grid reference though, as it’s just displaying data in a different format (e.g. British National Grid - BNG) using data it already has, i.e. lat/lng. Sounds like an app idea if not implemented natively?

To clarify: the watch will show your current location in BNG (and other formats) quite happily. No interaction other than saving that location. The App won’t work with anything other than dec. Lat/Lon.

andrewjknox

@Fenr1r

To clarify: the watch will show your current location in BNG (and other formats) quite happily. No interaction other than saving that location. The App won’t work with anything other than dec. Lat/Lon.

Ooo, that’s great - all I need, displaying (for map reading) and saving (marking water sources, places to eat, toilets etc for future reference)

I’m just reading about Suunto ZoneSense - that sounds so good… shame all my chest heart rate straps have died (after a battery change, I appear to compromise the rubber seal, then my sweat (boy do I sweat) gets into the electronics and thus begins the slow death of the monitor. Happened on every chest strap I’ve owned.

Fenr1r

@andrewjknox said in Race S Tempting Me Back Into Suunto...:

chest strap

Not my dept. but lots of threads here if you Search the Forum. Maybe some perspicacity.

Maximilian Mustermann

@Fenr1r @andrewjknox I’ve just tried the following and it worked no problem:

Went to “Settings”, “Navigation”, “Position Format” and changed to the Swiss CH1903 format. BNG-UK is available as well.
Chose “Map”, “Your Location” and the position is indeed displayed CH1903.

andrewjknox

@Maximilian-Mustermann Cheers for that @Fenr1r later confirmed it was indeed possible to display coordinates using a configurable format.

Egika

@andrewjknox as for your other questions:

Yes, you can select to get call only notifications. You do this in the app:

Step count has no bug. It works well for walking and running. As the watch is on your arm, it might or might not interpret other wrist movements as steps. So the basic idea is not to actually count steps, but use this metric as a general movement indicator.

There is no public roadmap, as in the past it caused more trouble if certain features did not make it in time or at all, that had been announced. But the FW is constantly updated also with new features.

Climbing guidance is great in Suunto Race S. It has all the needed data and notification.

andrewjknox

@Egika Fantastic, all I need to know, thank you for the details. I’ll be buying this watch in that case!

I’ll finish off that Suunto lecture video tomorrow on ZoneSense re: using HRV as a training tool

sky-runner

@andrewjknox I was in a similar situation of being intrigued by Suunto Race S. I ended up mostly switching from Garmin Fenix 7X to Suunto Race S and using as everyday watch and for all my current training despite a few glaring shortcomings when compared to Fenix 7X. I must admit that I really enjoy its light weight and comfort, especially once I’ve switched the original band to a hook and loop nylon band (Abanen brand).

Still, it likely will not be sufficient for me for longer ultramarathons or summer adventures in 2025. I am looking to buy either an another Suunto model (such as an improved Race or Vertical with better HR sensor) or perhaps a new Coros watch with Amoled display and a longer battery life of either of them is released. If not, I’ll have to either use my old Garmin or buy another Garmin.

Brad_Olwin

@sky-runner With a 50h battery life on Ultra mode the Race S should be enough for all ultras 200k and less. The only missing feature would be maps, which I really don’t need in a race. The route, altitude profile, Climb Guidance will work. Plus, if you wear a belt you will get ZoneSense.
Something else you might like is the nutrition feature Näak has implemented, I have found it very useful and much better than a food or drink reminder. I have had issues with nausea and the Näak food and liquid calories seem to work better for me.

andrewjknox

@sky-runner Even though I’m not looking to replace my Fenix 7X (just my Pace 3), I reckon Suunto will have something based on the success of the Race series soon enough - larger battery with sapphire glass. Perhaps an increase in watch face size to 51mm? The “Race X” perhaps?

I think then I’ll go full Suunto as I don’t need a shed-load of the Garmin features. Of all the brands, it’s the one I’d love to go all-in on and support them.

Main requirements for me on that kind of watch are mapping, battery life, sapphire watch face, large watch face, a climb pro/guidance feature and accurate sensors. Sort of indifferent between AMOLED & MIP in fairness though the former would be nicer. I’m never going to have one watch to rule them all as it’s not possible given the opposing requirements between a daily driver and a mountain adventure.

I’ll have to check out that nutrition feature @Brad_Olwin in more depth, thanks for the heads-up

PS: Ordered the watch last night even though I’m recovering from a triple hernia surgery and no running until late January - too excited to start using it!

gerasimos

@Brad_Olwin you mean in ultra battery mode you have the route line - breadcrumb but not maps , like suunto 9?

Brad_Olwin

@gerasimos Yes exactly like the 9 plus with the added benefits of climb guidance.

gerasimos

@Brad_Olwin thanks!