S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data

[kabzior]

@Dimitrios-Kanellopoulos said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

However you cannot create new routes. That needs internet afaik. But. You can import a gpx on offline mode (just tested and made sure). If another app can work offline and create a gpx based eg in predownloaded topo etc maps that should work. I think gaia gps does this. I might be wrong but I am confident (have not used it the last 6 months referring to gaia)

OK, I get it, thanks for that, it makes sense since SA does not have offline maps.
However I mainly use site called mapy.cz/en for creating routes (there is an outdoor version of map), I find it to be extremely accurate in terms of even the smallest pathways deep in the woods (at least in Europe). They offer phone app with offline maps and gpx export, and everything is 100% free. So I already tested that creating a route offline and exporting it as gpx file to SA works like a charm, at least on iPhone (that is why I do not use Locus).
I must say this is a huge advantage over Garmin as I was said that Connect App will not work at all when phone is off the Internet.

Anyways, just pulled the trigger on Suunto 9 Baro White, so I guess you will be seeing me here in the future, praising or complaining, time will tell

@Fenr1r said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

How many hours-worth of storage on the other data freq settings, please? Hiking for 5-7 days, the OP might not need/prefer 1s recording. (And I wouldn’t mind knowing.

I prefer 1s since all I care about is accurate tracking and altitude, but I also wouldn’t mind knowing, just out of curiosity (and maybe I will turn off HR to save some space if it makes a difference).

[Dimitrios Kanellopoulos]

@Fenr1r said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

Hiking for 5-7 days

I doubt about the storage on 1s if you record 7*18=126h. Here is the deal if I am correct.

When you use the ultra (or any non-1s gps based mode) I think it still records at 1s things like HR , Altitude and other internal stuff (abs pressure etc). Then depending also if you use a RR (Belt = more storage needed) etc can easily max out the capacity.

Perhaps a suggestion, is to sync offline with the app 1nce per 2 days and go “worries free”

Unfortunately I have not the ability to know the exact numbers, and I am asking this for you

[Fenr1r]

@Dimitrios-Kanellopoulos said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

Unfortunately I have not the ability to know the exact numbers, and I am asking this for you

Thanks. The OP seems happy with the answer on 1s and that’s the important bit. As for my curiosity, should we try to get @Brad_Olwin to ask? He seems to have the magic touch in obtaining storage vs settings stats.

[General_Witt]

@kabzior said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

1. Can navigation along a predetermined route be started at any time while recording activity (according to the instructions yes) and the watch will recognize that I have already walked part of the route and recalculate the altitude profile, ETA/ETE and the remaining distance?
2. Are the above-mentioned data displayed during the activity (I saw a screenshot with the altitude profile in the manual, it looked great, but I did not see the remaining distance and ETA/ETE)?
3. Can the watch be synchronized with the application if the phone does not have internet access?
4. How much memory does the watch have, or rather how many activities can be registered before it runs out of space?

1 Yes. You can change routes as you go and you can even create a route on the app and sync it to the watch while recording an activity.
Altitude, ETA and ETE (I use them a lot), provided your pace is constant, are very accurate and reliable to calculate exactly when you’ll reach a mountain hut or some other waypoints along the way.
2 Yes. You can display 7 fields of data (plus the real time) in each watchface, and how many watchfaces you want. If you hike or trek even the 7 fields watchface is big enough to be readable.
3 Yes, but some functions are limited.

I use my S9 Baro mainly for trekking, hiking and alpinism.
After hundreds of activities completed I can tell you that my main pro for the S9 is reliability. My watch has endured temperatures ranging from -30 degrees celsius to 45 degrees celsius, has been used in rainy and snowy days and never failed or turned off.

[kabzior]

@General_Witt said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

I use my S9 Baro mainly for trekking, hiking and alpinism.
After hundreds of activities completed I can tell you that my main pro for the S9 is reliability. My watch has endured temperatures ranging from -30 degrees celsius to 45 degrees celsius, has been used in rainy and snowy days and never failed or turned off.

Thank you very much for sharing, this is exactly the same scenario in which I am going to use the device, therefore your opinion is extremely valuable to me.
By the way, a few additional questions if you don’t mind:

1. I see in the manual that “Sport modes have their own alti-baro profile setting. You can change this setting in our online account. The options are automatic, barometer only, or altimeter only.” Which option would you recommend for mountaineering?
2. How does FusedAlti perform in cold winter in high mountains? Under a jacket, under gloves, does this affect the barometer readings?

I am already preparing the routes, waiting for the purchased S9B to arrive and I noticed that after creating the route in SA it can no longer be edited, it’s a pity. Especially that I didn’t add any waypoints on the routes, only start -> end. And now I wonder whether to create them from scratch with points added, because you mentioned this:

Altitude, ETA and ETE (I use them a lot), provided your pace is constant, are very accurate and reliable to calculate exactly when you’ll reach a mountain hut or some other waypoints along the way.

so, I am thinking - is it possible to display on the navigation simultaneously (not necessarily on the same screen) ETA/ETE/distance to the next waypoint and to the end of the route simultaneously? Because I think it would be nice to know when I’ll get to the mountain hut for tea, but not at the expense of information how much until the end of the route

Anyway, your experiences and what you wrote confirm that I made the right choice, thank you once again.

[sartoric]

@kabzior said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

I see in the manual that “Sport modes have their own alti-baro profile setting. You can change this setting in our online account. The options are automatic, barometer only, or altimeter only.” Which option would you recommend for mountaineering?

This is automaGically managed by the watch now. This option was available when Movescount was used
Someone miss it, someone doesn’t.

How does FusedAlti perform in cold winter in high mountains? Under a jacket, under gloves, does this affect the barometer readings?

Usually it works well, but of course, as the sensor is “insulated” it could be a bit off sometimes, depending on how you wear the watch (sensor holes closed). There is a topic about this , search for it

so, I am thinking - is it possible to display on the navigation simultaneously (not necessarily on the same screen) ETA/ETE/distance to the next waypoint and to the end of the route simultaneously?

Yes it is. You have several “distance” fields you can add to the screen
I have a screen with ETA / ETA next WP / time / sunset time … really useful on log hikes or when the sh*t starts hitting the fan

[kabzior]

@sartoric said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

Usually it works well, but of course, as the sensor is “insulated” it could be a bit off sometimes, depending on how you wear the watch (sensor holes closed). There is a topic about this , search for it

I will, thank you. To be honest last few days has been like doing nothing else than reading this forum
And does the temperature affect battery life significantly? Since I do not care so much about HR (in opposite to alti) maybe it would be better to wear it on jacket. On the other hand winds in winter are quite strong and this also affects alti as I read here on forum, I guess I will have to check it myself.

Yes it is. You have several “distance” fields you can add to the screen
I have a screen with ETA / ETA next WP / time / sunset time … really useful on log hikes or when the sh*t starts hitting the fan

WOW, damn, this gear is getting better and better every day… And they haven’t even sent the watch yet
It’s like a hikers dream come true - you get functions that are absolutely essential, even though you didn’t even know they existed in the first place

ps - and to think I was so close to buying the Garmin Instinct …

[General_Witt]

@kabzior said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

1. I see in the manual that “Sport modes have their own alti-baro profile setting. You can change this setting in our online account. The options are automatic, barometer only, or altimeter only.” Which option would you recommend for mountaineering?
2. How does FusedAlti perform in cold winter in high mountains? Under a jacket, under gloves, does this affect the barometer readings?

1 It’s all automatic and “invisible” now.
2 I always wear the watch under a pair of thick jackets during winter (e.g while skiing) and almost never had any issue with the GPS and the barometer.
This watch had terrible altitude inaccuracies when launched, but firmware after firmware it is now very accurate.
I haven’t noticed any battery duration reductions in cold weathers.

And now I wonder whether to create them from scratch with points added, because you mentioned this

It depends on the route. I use waypoints a lot to highlight a cave, shelter of any type, drinkable water and other useful locations during my activities.

is it possible to display on the navigation simultaneously (not necessarily on the same screen) ETA/ETE/distance to the next waypoint and to the end of the route simultaneously?

It is possible and I show them in the same watchface to get all the “time” informations I need in the same place.
I’ll show you a photo of what I use during mountaneering and hiking.

[General_Witt]

@kabzior said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

ps - and to think I was so close to buying the Garmin Instinct …

Garmin Fenix has some pros like the pulse oximeter, that you don’t really need for mountains lower than 5K meters, and colored maps on the watch, useful when you want to deviate your original route for a new path and you don’t want to put your phone out to read the map. Both not a deal breaker, at least for me.
The Garmin software on the other hand, while better than Suunto because is richer and has way more infos at your disposal, it’s also extremely confusing and somewhat clunky to use.

[kabzior]

@General_Witt said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

This watch had terrible altitude inaccuracies when launched, but firmware after firmware it is now very accurate.

So it is true that one should by a hiking watch no sooner than one year after it is released…

I’ll show you a photo of what I use during mountaneering and hiking.

WOW, that is outstanding! This will be really useful for me, thanks.
And if you have more points on your track, the watch shows the time/distance to the closest one, and then after reaching it, it switches to the next point?
It is a really PITA that one can not import a route with points in it or edit the route that is already in SA

Garmin Fenix has some pros like the pulse oximeter, that you don’t really need for mountains lower than 5K meters, and colored maps on the watch, useful when you want to deviate your original route for a new path and you don’t want to put your phone out to read the map. Both not a deal breaker, at least for me.

I considered Fenix at the beginning, but firstly I already have a house mortgage (and I managed to buy S9B for 1/3 of the Fenix’s price), secondly, I always, absolutely always have a paper map with me, and additionally a phone with an offilne map, so I really don’t need the maps on my watch. I wanted the altitude profile and the remaining distance, hence the decision to buy Garmin Instinct and not Fenix. But Instinct has a lot of problems with the altimeter (and bad barometer placement), and Suunto has that FusedAlti that blows out of the water other watches (like DC Rainmaker’s review, he took S9B to Stelvio pass which is 2760m and log showed recorded elevation… 2760,1m… jawdrop).

At first everyone advised me against Suunto - something still is not working, software problems, general mess … In many reviews too, poor application, not everything is as obvious and simple as with Garmin etc. So I was looking for Garmin. But when I saw this FusedAlti I started to take a closer look. I read the forum, downloaded SA even though I didn’t have a watch, I checked how it would suit my needs. And it turned out that what I wanted works great. Maybe not as natively and immediately as with Garmin (I create a route in Komoot, it syncs with the Connect app and the web version and that’s it), but the gpx import works without any problems (both from komoot and from mapy.cz), creating a route in the application is much better in SA than in Connect, and on the computer for years now I watch everything on Strava anyways (plus I discovered SQ just now). So by putting in a little effort, I got what I think is a much better product that meets my expectations.

[sartoric]

@kabzior said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

And if you have more points on your track, the watch shows the time/distance to the closest one, and then after reaching it, it switches to the next point?

Correct

It is a really PITA that one can not import a route with points in it or edit the route that is already in SA

afair this should be available sometime in the future

[General_Witt]

@kabzior said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

And if you have more points on your track, the watch shows the time/distance to the closest one, and then after reaching it, it switches to the next point?

Yes, correct.
Waypoints are even visible in the route map watchface, that is the one you’ll keep on the watch while hiking, provided you keep the scale under 500 meters.

It is a really PITA that one can not import a route with points in it or edit the route that is already in SA

As far as I know they’re working on it and in general to make the process of route creation and waypoints addition smoother and simpler.
It’s still involuted at the moment but somewhat usable.

I considered Fenix at the beginning, but firstly I already have a house mortgage

Fenix 6 series is objectively a better watch but it’s not 2 years old like the S9 and I’d not value it 3 times the S9, not even 2 times.
Take the battery duration, S9 is still on the Fenix 6 level and the display of the S9 is brighter and more readable in direct sunlight imho. Altitude reading is also better on the S9.

I wanted the altitude profile

That is done very well in the S9.
The altimetric profile is simple to read, it shows sea level altitude and the remaining ascent of your route.
Unfortunately not the remaining descent (just the remaining ascent) when you’re going down.

Garmin Instinct

S9 is not even comparable to the Instinct.
Sapphire glass, better materials, better battery, better display (the one in the Instinct is so small), better mountaneering functionalities, overall S9 is a tier1 sportwatch, while Instinct is a tier2.

At first everyone advised me against Suunto

A lot of people come here on the forum when they have some issue with the watch, and rightfully so, but the problems described are often exaggerated. If you like to be flooded with data, some bugs and a lot of niche features you go Garmin, if you like fewer useful features and a reliable watch you go Suunto.

[kabzior]

@sartoric said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

Correct

@General_Witt said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

Yes, correct.
Waypoints are even visible in the route map watchface, that is the one you’ll keep on the watch while hiking, provided you keep the scale under 500 meters.

It’s like Christmas in August

@sartoric said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

afair this should be available sometime in the future

@General_Witt said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

As far as I know they’re working on it and in general to make the process of route creation and waypoints addition smoother and simpler.

So, I find process of creating new route or editing freshly imported one on SA very easy and comfortable, so it would be just enough for me to be able to edit tracks saved in SA.

But I found some post here on forum that one can send route with WP to SA from QS and it works… well, it works indeed, WP are there… nevertheless I think just editing would be enough for me, here are my results if this experiment:
https://forum.suunto.com/topic/4682/import-gpx-to-sa-with-waypoints/12?_=1597509783219

@General_Witt said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

Sapphire glass, better materials, better battery, better display (the one in the Instinct is so small), better mountaneering functionalities, overall S9 is a tier1 sportwatch, while Instinct is a tier2.

Oh, did not notice sapphire… nice.
And forgot to mention, I was considering Instinct Solar, not regular Instinct. Not that solar is such a breakthrough, but in this version they added new GPS unit, new HR sensor and power management, so to do Instincts justice it now has better battery than S9B (30h without solar / 38h with solar vs 25h). But it’s all now water under the bridge, S9B should be here on Tue

[kabzior]

@General_Witt said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

Waypoints are even visible in the route map watchface, that is the one you’ll keep on the watch while hiking, provided you keep the scale under 500 meters.

OK, so the watch is here, so far I’m delighted. I do the first tests, as long as walking around the city can be called test

I have some rookie questions:

1. The POIs that can be seen on the map and that can be displayed on the watch with ETA/ETE data, can one somehow see their list in the navigation mode (in the sense of how many are left and what is their order)?
2. I understand that one can have max 4 screens that can be customized in SA (the last of which is always a map). And the additional fifth screen? Shows altitude profile?
3. Is it possible NOT to lock the touch screen in activity mode? Firstly, it would be more convenient for me to scroll the screens right / left as needed, not only in one direction with the middle button, and secondly, I could activate the backlight (because I do not want the auto mode).
4. Does the POI-reaching notification in the form of vibration and/or sound depend on vibrations and sounds enabled for other actions? I don’t want vibration when pressing buttons, but I do want vibration when reaching POI.

And finally I would like to sincerely thank everyone who contributed to this thread, thus convincing me to buy this watch model. Praise you, it was a very good choice!

[kabzior]

Cannot edit any more, 3rd found (custom battery modes) and 4th found in settings.

[Brad_Olwin]

@kabzior said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

@General_Witt said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

Waypoints are even visible in the route map watchface, that is the one you’ll keep on the watch while hiking, provided you keep the scale under 500 meters.

OK, so the watch is here, so far I’m delighted. I do the first tests, as long as walking around the city can be called test

I have some rookie questions:

1. The POIs that can be seen on the map and that can be displayed on the watch with ETA/ETE data, can one somehow see their list in the navigation mode (in the sense of how many are left and what is their order)?
2. I understand that one can have max 4 screens that can be customized in SA (the last of which is always a map). And the additional fifth screen? Shows altitude profile?
3. Is it possible NOT to lock the touch screen in activity mode? Firstly, it would be more convenient for me to scroll the screens right / left as needed, not only in one direction with the middle button, and secondly, I could activate the backlight (because I do not want the auto mode).
4. Does the POI-reaching notification in the form of vibration and/or sound depend on vibrations and sounds enabled for other actions? I don’t want vibration when pressing buttons, but I do want vibration when reaching POI.

And finally I would like to sincerely thank everyone who contributed to this thread, thus convincing me to buy this watch model. Praise you, it was a very good choice!

1. This can be done for waypoints, don’t confuse with POI, which is a different thing. If you have a route loaded with waypoints you will see these in the map. The navigation will tell you how far to the next waypoint at the start and at each waypoint you will get the distance to the next but it is not displayed all the time, only as a popup.

2. If you have a route loaded you will get the route altitude profile, which I find very useful, this will show the profile, the elevation and the remaining elevation gain on your route.

3. You can set a custom battery mode to your liking and allow the screen touch to be responsive. I personally keep the screen touch off as I don’t find sweaty fingers very precise and don’t want sleeves or rain affecting the screen.

4. In settings you can distinguish between buttons, alerts and alarms for vibration and tones.

[kabzior]

@Brad_Olwin said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

This can be done for waypoints, don’t confuse with POI, which is a different thing. If you have a route loaded with waypoints you will see these in the map. The navigation will tell you how far to the next waypoint at the start and at each waypoint you will get the distance to the next but it is not displayed all the time, only as a popup.

Yes, WP not POI, my mistake. I have a route with WP, they are displayed on my map, they are (or rather there is, because it applies to just one, the closest one) also on one of the screens where watch si showing me distance and ETE to that closest one. 100m before reaching next WP I get a notification. So far everything great. My question is: can I somehow check how many WP are left on this route? Some list of those WP?

If you have a route loaded you will get the route altitude profile, which I find very useful, this will show the profile, the elevation and the remaining elevation gain on your route.

Yes, just as I tought, thank you for confirmation, this will be very useful indeed… just now I’m in a completely flat city so could not properly test it and was not sure what it is

[Brad_Olwin]

@kabzior So far no, you cannot check the waypoints other than zooming in or out on the route, which gives you approximate distances as you can see the waypoints on the route loaded in the watch.

[kabzior]

@General_Witt said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

The altimetric profile is simple to read, it shows sea level altitude and the remaining ascent of your route.
Unfortunately not the remaining descent (just the remaining ascent) when you’re going down.

Just for the record, thing I discovered today - once you have touchscreen activated during activity you can tap on the altimetric profile to change between remaining ascent/descent

[General_Witt]

@kabzior said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

@General_Witt said in S9 Baro Pre-purchase questions - navigation and displayed data:

The altimetric profile is simple to read, it shows sea level altitude and the remaining ascent of your route.
Unfortunately not the remaining descent (just the remaining ascent) when you’re going down.

Just for the record, thing I discovered today - once you have touchscreen activated during activity you can tap on the altimetric profile to change between remaining ascent/descent

Waaaaaat?!?
Going to try it tomorrow.