Customer Reviews

Brunton Nomad V2 Pro Digital Compass with Barometer/Altimeter

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I love this tool and used it regularly on a recent motorcycle tour of Colorado. The barometer showed local atmospheric conditions and helped us with daily route planning and it was fun to use to the altimeter and see just how high we were - over 12, 000 feet in Rocky Mountain National Park. The compass came in handy on our hikes.
This is not a difficult tool to use and the displays are easy to read. It appears to be made of the usual Brunton quality. I didn't give it five stars because of the included instructions. Finding this hard to read document riddled with typos and confusing layout included with this sophisticated instrument struck me as bizarre.
Instructions aside, this is one useful gadget.

I'm frankly amazed at how many features are packed into the Nomad V2 Pro - and they all seem to work flawlessly! Plus, the V2 can be configured to display functions such as altitude, barometric pressure, temperature and time in various combinations or units of measure. Though I have yet to test it at high altitude, the V2 seems durable, accurate, and with a display that is easy to read. There is no "off" switch but the unit seems to use very little power. My V2 was in operational mode when I bought it and I don't know how long it had been sitting in the display case at my local REI store quietly ticking away, but I have yet to replace the battery! (There's a good reason why it's always "On". As with any electronic altimeter/barometer/compass, powering it down would necessitate recalibration each time the unit is to be used.)
One caveat: The printed instructions are definitely a challenge - murky and containing several typos that will have you pressing the wrong combination of buttons or looking for buttons that don't exist. (You'd think by now that companies such as Brunton would have figured out that lousy instructions are DEADLY to consumer acceptance of otherwise very cool products!) At any rate, the four buttons on the V2 that control functions ARE logically laid out and this makes calibration a fairly straight-forward process once you've figured out the drill and then practiced it a few times.
I'd highly recommend the Brunton Nomad V2 Pro to anyone who is serious about trekking or navigation. And were it not for the ineptitude of the printed instructions I would be raving about it!

They might have spent more on documenting the setup instructions of this instrument. A multi-column micro-font single sheet of paper is just plain cheap!
The altimeter isn't much help because it requires constant calibration, as does an altimeter in an aircraft. The difference is that aircraft altimeters are designed to be calibrated, this one is not.

The Brunton Nomad V2 Digital Compass with Barometer/Altimeter is very rugged, easy to read and fairly easy to use once you figure it out. Like many multi-function electronic items, the instructions are a bit of a nightmare to decipher. It took a while to figure out that the instruction sheet is divided vertically into about 3 sections and written horizontally across the width of the page. There are no lines to help guide you. The other main thing to know, and this is not the fault of the manufacturer, is that elevations on maps or on city signs as you enter are usually referring to the elevation at the local airport which may be a few hundred feet higher or lower than where you are located ... so unless you want to go to the airport to set your altimeter, just be aware that the altitude shown on your V2 will be a few feet off one way or the other ... only critical if you're flying. Otherwise it's great for driving, hiking or climbing.

I have not used it in the field yet but it appears workable and durable. Everything came on time and in expected condition from seller.