Customer Reviews

Suunto X6HR Heart Rate Wrist-Top Computer Watch with Altimeter, Barometer, and Compass

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

 

 

This is an excellent heart rate monitor with the standard features (max, min alarms, time in and out of zone etc...) its also an excellent stop watch. I download the data using Suunto's Activity Monitor software - which allows you to export the data to Excel! Plotting HR versus altitude is very useful for training.

I only have a few minor complaints: (1) Battery life is terrible - this thing (and the chest strap) eat up 4 batteries a year. (2) When battery life starts to fade interference is a big issue - fortunately the data can be edited so you can remove "spikes". (3) PC interface is serial cable - should be USB. (4) Suunto software is veru buggy and crashes all the time (no data lost fortunately)

The features on this watch are fantastic. It is an excellent heart rate monitor, compass, alitmeter, and barometer. However the serial PC link is terrible and stops working frequently. I have had my X6HR for one month and it no longer connects to the PC (the main reason I bought this watch in the first place). For some reason, Suunto still uses a serial connection, claiming on their website that this is the latest technology (more like the cheapest). If you plan to use this watch for its PC data transfer function, be very cautious and keep an eye on the warranty. Also the Suunto Activity Manager software is terrible and crashes frequently. I haven't lost any data (yet) but its very annoying.

Great multifunction watch. Have it since 2003.

You can change the battery yourself!

Upload to PC works fine, but companion software does not allow for some analyses which I would like to do, such as integrate number of heart beats over the work out.

Also, a bit ckunky for everyday use.

Today would go for the T6

I own this watch and I cannot get the software to load on my PC without it crashing. It worked once while I was on XP but since upgrading to Vista it is a complete disaster.

When it worked the software was hardly usable.

While the T6 may be a good watch - the idea is to be able to use the downloaded data for your training program. The way the software works this is simply not practical.

I cannot in good conscience recommend this watch (due to the software) for anyone who want to manage their training data.

There are better solutions out there one of which is cycleops for cyclists. I have no idea what to use for a runner may be one of the polar products.

Suunto should be ashamed of the lousy software. I know a few people from Finland and they are a proud people but you would not know it from this piece of software. I hope Suunto reads this and will do something about it. Pity for such a nice watch to be hamstrung by junky software.

BTW I downloaded the latest software v2.20

I love this thing. It would be hard to live without. All the features work exactly as described. Instructions are simple and clear. Great product.

I got my Suunto X6HR while at an adventure race in Borneo in 2002 and have used it extensively since. I have found the watch to be an overall great training and racing tool over the years. I would agree that battery life is not the strongest feature (my experience has been two per year for the watch and one a year for the chest strap - the battery life is significantly reduced if connected to the computer often). I have raced with this watch, trained with it and just worn it around town and have found it to be one my favorites (I have about eight watches in all!) One issue that does iritate me about it is the altitude setting goes back to zero each time the battery is changed and the process to bring it back up to 6660 (my home altitude) requires several minutes of button pushing/holding. Overall, this has been a great watch for me and I would recommend it to a friend.

I wear my X6HR in a regular environment (office, home), nothing near extreme condition. However, in less than a year, I foung the rubber band of the heart monitor is broken in many placed and the rubber became brittle with many hairline cracks. This is clearly a quality issue with the material used for the watch. In a trip to the Keys, FL, I found that the little rubber ring that holds the band of the watch in place broke in two piece much like what happed to the heart rate monitor band. The band itself also has many small cracks. I am sure the band will break in half sooner or later. The LCD on the watch also became fuzzy when I wear it around beaches. This is supposed to be a watch that you can bring to an expedition, yet it failed miserably in a everyday environment. If you are looking for a tough watch, look elsewhere. My Casio G-shock never gives me any headache that this watch gives.

The watch delivers everything you want from a HR monitor + outdoor adventures and is very simple to operate.

The X6HR has a great range of functions. However, the user interface and reliability of the product need serious work before its steep pricetag can be justified.

- Bezel buttons give no positive feedback, so you need to look closely at the screen to confirm button presses.

- The HRM function seems both unreliable. Heart rate occasionally drops out or spikes to double for no reason. I've parallel tested with a $30 HRM, which seems more reliable.

- The compass function is unbelievably poorly designed. Instead of drawing a compass on the face, or indicating N/S/E/W points around the bezel, the watch tells you the number of degrees you are facing, or prints N, NW, W, SE, etc on the screen. This is a completely counterintuitive way of displaying the information.

- The PC connection software looks like it was written in the 1990s- provides little functionality and poor usability.

This watch had great promise... but it has proven very disappointing in design.

This is a nice hiking companion but it is not a training tool. You do not have any information regarding calorie or TE after the exercise. For training go to T6, T4 or T3. For hiking with PC cabality this is a good option. The Polar S625 can do a better work for hiking with additional trainign capabilities.