SUUNTO X9 GPS

[flyinfishman 0]

Anyone tried one of these yet?
700.00 retail and it also has an altimeter.

http://www.suunto.com/suunto/main/product_short.jsp?CONTENT%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673939862&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=9852723697223384&bmUID=1094760551954

[KrisFlyZ 0]

Quote

Anyone tried one of these yet?
700.00 retail and it also has an altimeter.

http://www.suunto.com/suunto/main/product_short.jsp?CONTENT%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673939862&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=9852723697223384&bmUID=1094760551954

Suunto has a cheaper and sleeker X9i now. If anyone has any experience with either(X9 or X9i) of these watches, please post. My other choice is the New Garmin Edge 305. The garmin is cheaper but the problem is that a bulky unit is likely to be left on the ground.

Kris.

[LouDiamond 1]

You realize you're replying to a post thats almost 2 years old right?


Even with the X9i being cheaper now( $500 compared to the original $700) it is still way over priced for what it does. Some of the major drawbacks besides price is that it is not WAAS enabled, has a short battery life, is fairly hard to figure out without reading the manual and uses propriortary software to download the data.The data from the Suunto watch is stored as an *.mdb file. Unfortunately you can only download the data to the computer through SAM(their SW).You can read a review on it HERE

Unless you have money to throw away or have this watch issued to you at work like some of us, I'd tell you to spend your money on a regular GPS receiver like an Etrex or Foretrex. The Edge likewise isn't a good choice for WS flights for several reasons, size/shape being one of them.

"It's just skydiving..additional drama is not required"
Some people dream about flying, I live my dream
SKYMONKEY PUBLISHING

[980 0]

I don't think you want to pay the high sticker price on one of these.

They might update the GPS display every second, but the best they do on recording intervals for data (GPS and barometric altimeter) is 10 seconds.

I think that's quite a long interval, even for skydiving, especially at that price point you can get a GPS with barometric alti that will record data in 1 second intervals or less.

cya
sam

[LouDiamond 1]

Quote

the best they do on recording intervals for data (GPS and barometric altimeter) is 10 seconds.I think that's quite a long interval,

Good catch, I meant to mention that in my post. Thats another good reason to pass on this model.

"It's just skydiving..additional drama is not required"
Some people dream about flying, I live my dream
SKYMONKEY PUBLISHING

[KrisFlyZ 0]

Thanks Scott , Sam,

I already read that review and watched the video(dlmag...it was kinda funny) review as well. You guys are right, the GPS Suunto seems like a total waste.


Kris.

[KrisFlyZ 0]

Decided to purchase the Edge 305 for the following reasons.

1) Barometric Alti
2) Just 10 grams heavier than the Foretrex.
3) Thinner and smaller than the
Vista(Size: 4.4"H x 2.0"W x 1.2"D (11.2 x 5.1 x 3.0 cm))
Edge(1.75"W x 3.7"H x .9"D).
4) The unit has a mount that can be fixed to the helmet much like a camera mount can be. Once this is accomplished, taking the GPS on a jump is easy and hands free(for most part anyway).

Kris.