Sensors full of Bubbles, Plastic peels off.
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@fv4500 They replace the whole back (my S/N changed when i sent mine for replacement), and they re-certify the waterproofness, written in the repair form.
It looks like that’s the difference between a simple “IP rating” (that looks to be more or less only valid when the device is brand new, and they don’t test each devices before shipping), and “ATM rating” where each device is tested and certified (but don’t quote me on that)And yes , there is something clearly wrong in the design, my replacement sensor is already bubbling like hell (watch ordered in May 2023, repaired in August 2023).
And they have “exceptionally high” repair delays, that are “exceptional” since June (yeah, basically they are not doing anything to address this “exceptional” problem)@Tieutieu said in Sensors full of Bubbles, Plastic peels off.:
My few experiences with support (2 baro sensor replacement on A3P) have always been great.
My only experience was pretty bad, lack of communication, incorrect announced repair estimate (in the first email they said 5 days), dismissive CS agent, etc…
The only good thing for them is that the delivery guy went to fetch my package directly at my door and was shipped to the repair center in less than 24 hours -
@Elipsus my experiences with support where 4 years ago and it was perfect (in France). But I can see it has probably changed, at least past months.
Sorry for you that you had the issue twice (that said, many A3P had barometric sensor failures like mine ; I guess the time we get perfects watches is not here yet) -
@Elipsus thanks for the details, I didn’t knew the difference between the two.
If yours was repaired and is already bubbling since August 2023, then it’s clear that the coating process is the same and no improvement is actually implemented. They just replace the faulty back cover with the another of the same (most probably gonnabe-faulty). Sad… Probably makes sense to use the warranty just at the end before it expires. -
@fv4500 Hi everybody, mine was shipped in August, new SN. It hasn’t had that issue since and I’ve used it really a lot.
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@AntoniusGaius @AntoniusGaius OK folks, so as I promised I made some comparison of HR accuracy of my new sensor on 9Peak Pro and Ambit 3 Peak with Suunto Smart sensor. It is on 10K run. In last third is visible that the values are almost identical. It was after some adjustment of the watch strap on my wrist. After this I stopped control both watch and only run nicely
. Before this are some differences visible but nothing terrible. Mostly in the moments I manipulated with my sleeve to look on the watch to compare values with second ones (it was -1 degree C) So in general I must say that measurement seems to be really accurate at the moment. Very tiny bubbles are present but it is actually not spreading and it is not in reading zone so it does not affect the accuracy. I’m satisfied with this results and it is for my purposes sufficient enough. I will probably use the strap only for run trainings to better control the HR zones and have better understanding what my old body does during it 
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Hello all,
Thanks for all these updates. As I can see reading all the last messages, even the “repaired” watches start to “bubble” again in numerous cases.
My watch is also affected by these bubbles (see first messages). For NOW it does not affect the HR sensors. So my position would be to wait that Suunto finally manage to find a more robust material for the back case of their watches. I have still more than 1,5 year of warranty running, so I can afford to wait a little bit. The only thing that would change my position is if the bubbles start to impair the HR area… (and in case, I have an “old” S5P for the repair time if needed).
Cheers
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@vincent-mayousse said in Sensors full of Bubbles, Plastic peels off.:
So my position would be to wait that Suunto finally manage to find a more robust material
mine after replacement (4 months a go) works like a charm, so I would suggest to no wait any longer you can’t be sure you have no real problems
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@westie said in Sensors full of Bubbles, Plastic peels off.:
@vincent-mayousse said in Sensors full of Bubbles, Plastic peels off.:
So my position would be to wait that Suunto finally manage to find a more robust material
mine after replacement (4 months a go) works like a charm, so I would suggest to no wait any longer you can’t be sure you have no real problems
Did they change the whole back case? Does your watch have a new serial number? If so, what is-it (at least the first 4 numbers) ?
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Just one thought. Many people here discuss about the warranty and what will happen if the bubbles reoccur after the end of the warranty period.
Remember Spartan Trainer? Some batches had an obvious construction problem due to which the plastic watch case broke and the strap got detached.
Suunto (at least internally) acknowledged the issue and if you read the warranty conditions, you can still find there “We have extended the 24-month warranty for the Suunto Spartan Trainer if the strap is detached from the case.” (https://www.suunto.com/Support/Warranty-information/Sports-Watches-Dive-Computers-and-Precision-instruments/)For me, this brings hope for solution even after the end of warranty period in case of obvious construction flaw…
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@vincent-mayousse yep, yep, 2311.
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@westie you’re a lucky dude, my watch was repaired in August (so, 3 months give or take) and is already bubbling like crazy
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Same issue. And sent it to the dealer (in Shenzhen China, not to Finland). They said they will not fix this and replaced a new watch for me.
This is the old bubbling watch. Just bought it in October without any dangerous usage.
Just received the new watch yesterday. It seems with no bubbles. Hope this will not fail.
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After about half month later, it starts to bubbling again.
And as they said they just replaced a new watch (They don’t fix them), I think it will happen again if I send this to them. Maybe they don’t have the recently produced watch (In China here which I don’t know).
I have to leave it alone. Hope it will not affect a lot. -
@alfredzhong Ouch, bad luck! If I were you I would send it back again, why stay with a defective unit as long as it is covered under warranty?
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@robis I’ve contact the customer service and sent the pictures. They said they will tell the engineer and give me a solution.
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IMG_4369.jpeg -
@alfredzhong it happened a friend of mine too, now seems ok after several months. Anyway considering it’s a known problem I guess Suunto would replace it even if out of warranty
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截屏2023-12-25 14.01.02.pngThe customer service replied to me.
Translation: The engineers said that there’s really a batch of watches which had problems with the coating of the OHR sensor. Now we will order a batch of backshells from the Finland. It will take 2~3 months. We will contact you for replacing it when the goods arrives. After that it will not happen again.Luckily there’s a solution.
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@alfredzhong glad to read that!!
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Hi,
My second (replacement) sensor is developing small bubbles all over the surface.
I had to send my watch to Suunto in August because it failed completely (wouldn’t turn on) and also had bubbles in a very small area. Suunto replaced the sensor and backplate. 3 months later, the bubbles are back (many more of them) but the watch is still working.
Has anyone kept using their watch for a long time with the bubbles present? Did it eventually cause the watch to fail (like mine the first time)?
I’m asking because I’m supposed to be using the watch as my primary navigation device in a multiday race starting on 14th January. So I don’t have time to send it to Suunto (took 4 weeks last time). But I don’t want to find my watch has failed in the middle of a winter night on a remote hillside.
Thank you!
