SUUNTO 9 2023 Review

What’s in the box

• Suunto 9 Peak Pro
• Charging cable
• Quick start guide

Hardware specs

• Weight: 55 g / 1.94 oz in Titanium, 64 g / 2.26 oz for stainless steel
• Case material: Glass fibre-reinforced polyamide
• Bezel material: Titanium grade 5
• Dimensions:  43 x 43 x 10.8 mm / 1.69 x 1.69 x 0.43″
• Glass material: Sapphire crystal
• Strap material: Small/Med silicone with 22mm lugs fits wrists 125-175mm or 4.92-6.89 inches
• Water resistance: 100m
• Display resolution: 240×240
• Display size: 1.2 inches
• Battery: Lithium-ion
• Battery life: 30 days in time-only mode, 40h with continuous GPS
• Charge time: From zero to full in 1 hour, 10 min charge equals 10 hours of training
• GPS systems: GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, BEIDOU, QZSS

Design and features

The Suunto 9 Peak Pro looks like it can take a beating, and for good reason; it underwent testing that adhered to MIL-STD-810H, the strictest of all military standards.

Suunto has determined that the amount of carbon dioxide emissions produced during the life of a single watch is 7.5kg CO2e and has partnered with Tree-Nation to swiftly counter these emissions by planting trees in Southeast Africa, making the watch environmentally friendly. Suunto’s operations in Vantaa, Finland take advantage of 100% renewable, carbon-free power and heating.

Suunto’s focus on nature translates directly to its products. This is a watch designed to be outdoors. The design of this watch looks more like a regular watch instead of the rounded rectangular shape that has been widely seen in other smartwatch designs of late.

The 9 Peak Pro has a unique look due to its titanium bezel and sapphire crystal, two materials usually seen on higher-end watches. The bezel has an angular profile of 90 degrees, so I occasionally noticed that it snagged on clothing and jackets. Not a big deal but something to note.

Aside from the tactile screen, there are also three metal buttons that you can use to carry out any action. Clicking the buttons provides a satisfying feeling and the feedback is nice to the touch. The buttons were more convenient to press while the vehicle was moving quickly compared to the touch screen.

The menu system is easy to navigate and pretty intuitive. The top button increases, the bottom button decreases, the middle button chooses and a long press will take you back.

At first, the screen wasn’t as bright or intense as other smartwatches, but it was still visible in most conditions. It was difficult to read in direct sunlight, but you could manage it when you found the right angle. Despite the lack of brightness, the great battery life was a good tradeoff.

The battery power is sufficient for one month in time mode or 40 hours nonstop when the GPS is turned on. It can reach 100% battery capacity in just one hour, which is quite fast. It only takes 10 minutes to charge your device, and that will give you 10 hours of usage – really helpful if you are going out for a lengthy jog, but you are low on battery.

You will be able to tell if your battery is running low because when you start an exercise, you can see how long the battery will last with the three battery options available – Performance, Endurance, and Tour – which reduce specific capabilities (GPS, heart rate, display timeout, vibration, and Bluetooth) to conserve energy. Additionally, you may customize these settings according to your preference.

Performance

The GPS capabilities of the Suunto were truly outstanding and this is what it does best. The Suunto 9 Peak Pro works with all four of the Global Navigation Satellite Systems, these being GPS by the United States, GLONASS from Russia, Galileo from Europe and BeiDou from China, together with the regional Japanese QZSS.

At a maximum, it can interact with 32 satellites simultaneously. Coros utilizes all five navigation systems (GPS, GLONASS, and Galileo) to make comparisons, while Fitbit only operates with GPS and GLONASS. Most Garmin products integrate GPS, GLONASS, and Galileo.

Coros and Garmin make their higher-grade watches with double-frequency GPS, while the Suunto 9 Peak Pro has a single-frequency GPS only. Accuracy of up to 5 meters can be achieved using a single frequency while using dual-band enables accuracy to the centimetre level. You can find a more detailed description of frequencies here.

There are 95 diverse physical activities to choose from, ranging from ice skating to mermaiding. If a specific exercise you’re looking for isn’t listed, you can create a tailored workout with personalized adjustments.

Sunnto states that the depth gauge can be used up to 10 meters, however, since the GPS does not work underwater, it will have to be triggered when the user surfaces for air when snorkelling. Considering Suunto’s history with dive computers, this is a nifty feature for those who spend plenty of time in the water.

Navigating is relatively uncomplicated since the watch doesn’t come with any maps. The app allows you to design routes that can later be loaded into the watch, which is a really helpful element. Unfortunately, the compass seemed to require constant calibration.

When selecting navigation then when selecting the route. The 9 Peak Pro will notify you when it’s time to turn and will give an alert when it’s time to stop, however, if you find yourself in a mess at multiple trail junctions, a map may assist you in getting acquainted with the landscape and help determine what direction you should take.

Like most smartwatches, this one has a backlight that turns on when it detects movement, and it is possible to adjust the brightness of the backlight in three different ways. The luminosity, when the standby lighting switches on, and if the illumination activates when you move your wrist.

When you rotate your arm to look at the watch, the backlight can be set to turn on automatically, but the display will not react to touch.

The length of time the backlight is active is pre-set to eight seconds, however, a shorter duration will lead to higher battery efficiency.

If you enjoy having a wide range of watch face alternatives, you won’t be happy. Right now there are only eight options available and the only way to customize it is to alter the colour of the second part.

At this point in time, you need to bring your cell phone and some money with you if you want to listen to music while running and then get some coffee afterwards. There are no payment apps or watch music storage capabilities available now.

The Suunto 9 Peak Pro allows you to manipulate the music and adjust the volume from your phone, however, it is not capable of storing the music.

After using the Suunto for 12 days, and tracking 28 activities that included almost daily activities that involved GPS usage for multiple hours, the battery dropped to 5%, which required a recharge.

It doesn’t really matter if you are stationary and the watch is sitting on a table or bureau, but if you run out of power and need to attach it to a backup battery source while travelling, you’ll have to secure it to your person with a hair tie or rubber band when putting in your pocket or backpack so it doesn’t disconnect.

It is important to be aware that the only way to view your exercise routine and health tracking info is through the mobile application. It is impossible to accomplish it on the computer. Apart from inputting your weight in the user information, no feature exists that tracks your body weight or enables you to establish a goal for weight loss.

It is possible to transfer data to third-party applications like Strava, TrainingPeaks, komoot, and more since Suunto has established partnerships with more than 200 of these apps, but there is currently no way to do this through the Suunto app itself.

Movescount and the App

The watch is synchronized with SUUNTO’s website Movescount.com through a dependable magnetic connector and USB port. All of your information is kept here, prepared for examination and distribution. If you link up to the smartphone application, the connection will be established via Bluetooth.

The SUUNTO application can be downloaded onto both Android and Apple devices.

Moves count on the computer and through its accompanying app allow you to analyze the data in detail. This software collects a great deal of information, so even the most enthusiastic analyst will be content.

This spot allows you to evaluate your training and results and lets you construct trails to move along and sync activities to the watch. You can also switch paths and areas of interest.

Running Power

To get started, all you need to do is go into the watch menu and choose the foot pod and then you can begin!

Sports Modes

There are a large number of sports activities to choose from; more than eighty! The settings of the watch can be changed on the computer, and the changes will be synced when the watch is plugged in.

Most modifications cannot be done on the watch and it is acceptable as it is. Doing it on the desktop is more expedient and simpler. You have the option to choose the format of your data display for each of the sports modes.

Daily Metrics

The SUUNTO 9 works as a constant wearable, tracking the number of steps taken, the duration of sleep, and the heart rate as the main indicators to give you the data needed to understand how your resting and activity habits are developing.

This data can be obtained quickly by scrolling down the screen or by pressing the bottom button. It is possible to observe essential pieces of information and a tracking log displays the metrics from the last few weeks in an uncomplicated chart.

Training tracking

Moving beyond simply tracking everyday activities, the 9 has proved to be a great device for recording one’s athletic training sessions.

I used the Spartan Trainer HR as my regular watch before testing the 9, and I was familiar with the menu setup. It became my favourite watch compared to my Garmin or TomTom.

It also took over from the bike computer. Many will find that all of their training needs can be satisfied, their competitions tracked and the results easily shared with others.

Updates

In the last year, the SUUNTO program has been revised to be a consistent and user-friendly platform. Recent enhancements to SUUNTO have enabled people inspecting it now to access more functions than those who did so two years prior.

Periodic revisions have been applied to the firmware to add features and enhance user experience. When you pair the watch with the computer, the connecting software will tell you about any updates available, and the updating is a straightforward process that only requires one click.

It was essential for me to use the Triathlon Race Settings when participating in the competition. At the commencement of the swim portion, a long press of the top button would activate T1, allowing the watch to be prepared for the subsequent part.

Give one more powerful push as you finish on the bike and continue doing this until you make it to the end. All three legs are timed and your transitions are logged. It could not be easier.

The watch can be set to record the length of a swimming pool, and it accurately tracks the distance. The 9 is an ideal device to use while swimming in open water and has been proven to accurately track the distance travelled when worn on the wrist.

Heart rate Monitor

The Valencell 1.2 heart rate monitor is incorporated into the rear of the watch. This has proved consistent in use so far.

Occasionally there have been difficulties with the wrist but for the most part, it has been dependable. Usually, wristbands can be unreliable and must be very snugly fastened on.

Battery Life

The 9 is a major hit because of its impressive lifespan, which is turning out to be true!

There are various modes to facilitate these extra recording times and they are quoted as 25 hours in Performance mode with the best GPS tracking and full functioning activity, brightness etc rising to 50 hours for Endurance and up to 120 hours for Ultra and you can select your own custom options too!

It is clear that this extra recording time has some limits to its features, but it is still an amazing opportunity for those who require more time than usual.

Additionally, you can choose the mode during recording to suit your needs; if during your training session, you take a different route, you can still record it but with a lower consumption of power. Very clever! The watch urges you to pick the most suitable setting.

Altitude

The device offers both GPS and Barometer readings, as well as altitude and temperature measurements. Just so you know.

FusedTrack

An intriguing capability when GPS is very limited is the FusedTrack feature. The timepiece takes GPS readings at intervals of 60 or 120 seconds, and the blanks in between are completed by utilizing the wristwatch’s acceleration, gyroscope, and compass functions.

This is not perfect, but it is the best way to conserve battery life at this time; you have to give something up for this purpose, and this is the most suitable option.