Suunto n3 Smart Watch

by Suunto

Product Features

• Stocks, news, personal messages, and more--delivered wirelessly to your watch
• One of the first devices to use MSN Direct, a wireless subscription service
• Automatically updates to the correct local time when you travel
• Customizable data channels and watch faces
• Rugged body, water resistant to 100m

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

The Wrist Net watch with MSN Direct receives information wirelessly, so you’re in the know while on the go. Find everything from stock quotes to the latest news, all at a glance. Along with a glanceable, seamless connection to your world, there are tons of watch faces to choose from, for just the look you want. Set-up is easy: simply charge up, activate your watch online, and set up the content channels you want. A subscription to MSN Direct--available in top cities across the U.S. and Canada--is required to take full advantage of all watch features.

Information delivered to your watch includes:

	Stock quotes: Get updates on the stocks you care about, as well as information on the major high-volume stocks and indices.		News: Get headlines and the full text of local, national, international, business, entertainment, sports, health, and travel news stories.
	Time: Wrist Net watches display the current time, automatically updated for different time zones, and include a chronometer, an alarm, and a timer. You can choose from a wide variety of watch faces for just the right look.		Weather: Get the latest reports for cities all over the world. Local city weather information includes current conditions, a three-day forecast, sunrise and sunset information, humidity, barometric pressure, and ultraviolet (UV) index.
	Text messages: Receive messages from friends and family through MSN Messenger version 6.0 or later.		Sports: Continuous sports updates keep consumers current on game times, scores, pre- and post-game stories, and standings for their favorite collegiate and professional sports teams.
	Daily Diversions: Currently, consumers can select from Word of the Day, Quote of the Day, Born on This Day, and This Day in History.		Horoscope: Consumers can receive a personalized horoscope based on their specific time and place of birth.

FAQ

What's included?
Wrist Net Smart Watch, Reference Guide, Quick Start Guide, Charger, and AC Adapter.

What is MSN Direct?
MSN Direct is a new, specialized wireless service that delivers personalized information through an FM network. Watches with MSN Direct provide you timely, glanceable information conveniently available at the flick of a wrist. Stay connected to the information that matters to you most, including news, weather, stocks, personal messages, appointment reminders, and more. Find the latest info and get a subscription at www.msndirect.com.

How do I set the time on my watch?
MSN Direct uses an atomic clock (an extremely precise timekeeping device that uses atomic measurement for absolute accuracy) as its time standard, and broadcasts this time to your watch over local FM radio waves. You do not need to set the time your watch will automatically receive the time and remain accurate. If you travel to another time zone, your watch will update to the correct local time, as long as you are within an MSN Direct coverage area. If you are outside an MSN Direct coverage area, you may need to manually set the time on your watch.

How will I know when my watch is activated?
To activate your watch with the MSN Direct service, go to the MSN Direct Web site -- www.msndirect.com -- and click Activate. Follow the instructions on your screen to activate MSN Direct and personalize the content you want to receive. Once you complete this process, the service will send a Welcome message to your watch. When you receive the Welcome message, your watch has been activated. After the message arrives, your watch will continue to receive other configuration information to complete its initial setup. The activation and configuration process is complete when the channels on your watch match those you have selected on the Web site. This initial process may take several hours to complete. To see the available channels on your watch, press the Channel button repeatedly.

How do I replace or recharge the battery in my watch?
The battery in your watch is rechargeable, not replaceable. To recharge your watch, simply place it on the charger supplied by your watch manufacturer. For more information, see the user manual that came with your watch. Recharging your watch may take up to 2 hours. For best results, we recommended that you recharge your watch daily.

How often do I need to recharge my watch?
Your watch battery will run 3-7 days on a single charge, depending on usage. For best results, we recommend that you recharge your watch daily. You can recharge your watch at any time. There is no need to wait for the battery to drain completely. For more information about your watch battery capacity and recharging your watch, see the user manual that came with your watch.

What happens when I leave an MSN Direct coverage area?
When you travel to a different MSN Direct coverage area, your watch is automatically updated to the new time zone and information such as local news and weather are updated for your new location. And no matter what, your watch will always work as a watch, continuing to tell time. Information you already received will remain on your watch.

How do I view more information on a news story?
On the MSN Direct Web site, click the Channels tab, click News, and then click View Latest News. To view an entire article, click Read Full Article for the article you are interested in. To sort alphabetically by headline, click Headline at the top of the list. To sort by date, click Date. To sort alphabetically by news category, click Category. Note: You may see articles on the MSN Direct Web site that you never saw on your watch. These articles may have cycled through your watch before you had a chance to read them. If you want to increase the number of news articles stored on your watch, go to the News Settings mode of the News channel.

Does my watch automatically adjust for time zones and daylight savings time?
Yes. MSN Direct references an atomic clock (an extremely precise timekeeping device that uses atomic measurement for absolute accuracy) as its time standard, and broadcasts this time to your watch over local FM radio waves. Your watch should automatically receive the time and remain accurate, without needing to be set by you. If you travel to another time zone, your watch should update itself automatically with the correct local time, as long as you are within an MSN Direct coverage area.

Product Description

Suunto 51-N3 Wristop Computer Watch - Customize your n3 on the web and get the information you want sent directly to your wrist Stopwatch, lap and split times Interval timer Programmable alarms Time and date display Dual time

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 2.5 x 1.9 x 0.6 inches ; 12.8 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00016LAEI
• Item model number: 51-n3
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #415,308 in Sports & Outdoors (See Top 100 in Sports & Outdoors)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

67 of 68 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A pretty "smart" watch, January 13, 2004

By 

Diddy Mao (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Suunto n3 Smart Watch (Apparel)

This watch is part of the first wave of Microsoft's Smart Personal Object Technology (SPOT) devices. Buying this watch is also buying into Microsoft's new MSN Direct service launched just last week (without it, this watch would really just be an expensive digital sports watch). I'll comment on both (briefly):

The watch sports an oversized face, providing ample real estate for delivery of information through its digital display. It is styled in much the same way as many of Suunto's other sports watches, though because it has fewer features that those other models, it also has a 'cleaner' design. The face is covered by a mineral crystal (which, as watch aficionados know, is far from scratchproof) and ringed by a gold-toned bezel which, according to Suunto, also doubles as the antenna. The watch has all the standard digital watch features (e.g., time, chronograph, date, etc.), but because it is made to connect to the MSN Direct service, it doesn't need to be set manually (more on that later). The watch is clearly made for sports, with 330m of water resistance and a rubber strap. It looks like it could withstand quite a beating (though I haven't tried to test that theory). While oversized watches are currently 'in', one con for the watch has to be its size. It is fairly thick, somewhat heavy, and certainly bulky. For those that wear suits or dress clothes, don't get rid of your dress watch just yet -- and for those with small wrists, you're going to look (and feel) like you're walking around with an egg strapped to your wrist.

The thing that really sets this watch apart from traditional digital watches is the MSN Direct service. MSN Direct uses the FM broadcast spectrum to send data to your watch. The data sent to your watch can be customized via the Internet, so that you can really custom your watch experience. The data includes various 'faces' for the watch, weather, stocks, news, etc. There is also supposed to be a sports channel, but it is not yet available as of this writing. You can choose to display the information you want to see or you can set the watch the present a 'slide show' of sorts, with information changing from one channel to the next. Unfortunately, the watch information updates itself ever so often, so you can't really get information on demand. However, for most purposes, this is really sufficient. You can also receive messages via MSN Messenger, allowing the device to act as a word pager. What's the catch? Well, in order to receive any information, you have to subscribe to the MSN Direct service by paying $9.95 per month or $59 per year (on top of the $299+ that you paid for the watch).

As with any first generation device, most people who will buy this device will be the early adopters, and while it's a fairly neat device, it's not for everyone. As a digital watch, it's decent, but a bit bulky and some may be turned off by its size and price. As an information device, it's definitely very cool, though the fact that you cannot receive sports information will probably cause those looking to replace their sports pagers to pass on the device. As the devices and services evolve, we may see watches that are slimmer and/or more stylish, and we may also see more information services offered through MSN Direct -- those are reasons that those with patience (or those that lack gadget envy) may want to pass on the device. For all others looking to impress their friends with the coolest new gear in town, this is probably what you're looking for.

Don't forget that there are other SPOT watches available by Abacus and Fossil. If you don't like the size or sportiness of the Suunto model (or if you're frightened by the price), you may want to check out those models as well.

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Technology ..., February 6, 2004

By 

Ron Sullivan (Philadelphia, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Suunto n3 Smart Watch (Apparel)

While an interesting idea, so far I can only recommend this gadget for junkies only. Plainly put, it's really just not ready for the 'average joe' consumer yet, for a couple of reasons. Most obviously is the cost. For what ammounts to a really high end pager, it's a really expensive piece at close to three-hundred bucks. However, if you have the money to spend and want a "new toy" the 'n3' does have two glaring advantages over it's Fossil counter-parts.

First (and most obviously, in my opinion) it's waterproof. Although I'm certainly not an expert, I'd imagine a watch that's completely electronic would have a real weakness to the elements. Suunto (designer of various diving and hiking watching) seems to have taken as many precautions as possible to make the watch impervious to weather.

It's second advantage is building the watch's antenna around the face. In each of the Fossil alternatives, the antenna is built into the watch band, making the band almost indespensable (not to mention easily breakable).

So if you're in the market, amoung the handful of available products out there, Suunto's n3 is clearly WAY ahead of the curve. Hopefully the more SPOT watches catch on, the lower the price will go. As it is now though, between the watch and the subscription costs, it really is FAR too expensive to qualify as a must own.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Works great! Needs more content, January 16, 2004

By 

Pete Stoppani "pstoppani" (Redmond, WA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Suunto n3 Smart Watch (Apparel)

As far as the MSN Direct service goes, it is very easy to setup and works very well. I especially LOVE being able to get my Outlook appointments on the watch; over air! The service is great and has lots of potential. I'd like to see more content, like F1 Racing stats, comics, personal portfolio summary (I don't want indvidual stocks, I just want to know how my portfolio is doing)...

The watch is of appropriate quality, size and styling for a Suunto; either you like it or not. If not, Fossil has some fine choices too. I got the Suunto because it is waterproof and has a lap timer.