Suunto Ambit lands

The eagerly awaited Suunto Ambit watch – also known as the “Outdoor athlete’s watch” or “GPS for explorers” – will land in SA at the end of the month, where keen customers have already almost ensured a sell-out at retail. The special features and advanced technologies were recently explained and demonstrated at a launch at Groot Constantia in Cape Town.

Lance Stephenson of the Epic Bike Shop in Cape Town, in the middle with Christo Snyman and
Amy Linell of Suunto distributor Ultimo, was one of the retailers attending the launch

Although the features can probably fill a book and meet the needs of any outdoor enthusiast, it is actually user-friendly and relatively easy to use and understand, explained Ryan Sandes, who had been training with the watch for two months. He liked the fact that you can customise it for your needs, that the battery lasts long enough to use in a 10hr race, regularly picks up satellites and therefore gives accurate readings in remote locations, and that you can have three readings simultaneously on the screen without having to adjust, and six reading with the press of a button (he found the distance and elevation readings especially handy for trail running).

Suunto athlete Ryan Sandes

Sandes’ girlfriend especially enjoys plotting his progress on the movecounts.com website where all data can be downloaded, viewed, analysed and even compared and shared with friends or coaches. This feature was introduced last year at OutDoor Friedrichshafen show for the Suunto Quest. See here for demonstrative video.

The Ambit has 48 features that can be used by mountainbikers, trail runners, hikers, climbers, paddlers and any other outdoor enthusiast.  It will also be promoted through a variety of events, says Amy Linell of local distributor Ultimo.