Adventure Watches

Best high-tech watches for trail running, hiking and climbing

Designed for outdoor enthusiasts, adventure watches are loaded with features that make them good options for hiking, climbing and trail running. In this category, the Origo Granite Peak Titanium Sleek (*Est. $175) earns good reviews at a great price. In terms of features, the Origo Granite Peak does it all: It includes an electronic weather center that displays weather forecasts and temperature, a digital compass, barometer, altimeter to track elevation changes, a chronograph for lap and split time, a 99-lap memory and a backlight. It's also water-resistant up to 165 feet (50 meters), but you can't upload your data to a computer. In its 2009 Gear Guide, Trail Runner magazine recommends the Origo Granite Peak Titanium Sleek for off-roaders who need lots of information on the run. The magazine's editors love the many features, but they find the heavy weight -- 3.5 oz. -- is somewhat of a downside.

The Origo Granite Peak adventure watch also scores highly in testing by Men's Journal magazine, earning the highest score in its accuracy test. Overall, the editors of Men's Journal recommend it for mountaineering. The adventure watch has yet to attract many owner-written reviews, but several reviewers at BackCountry.com praise the watch. And at Amazon.com, one lone reviewer says the watch "does what it says," even if the watch band is somewhat stiff. The Origo Granite Peak Field Sleek (*Est. $135) is the same watch in black stainless steel instead of titanium. The Origo watch doesn't include GPS, which sets it somewhere in between basic running watches and Garmin Forerunner GPS watches.

If price is no object and you want an adventure watch with GPS, the Suunto X10 (*Est. $550) impresses with numerous features and top-notch reliability. Suunto is well known for its high-tech watches, and Dave Phillips at CNET calls Suunto "one of the most technically advanced sports watch companies in the marketplace today." Reviewers agree that the Suunto X10 is a serious watch loaded with features, including GPS navigation, an altimeter, barometer, chronograph and compass; it can also record 500 waypoints and up to 50 routes. It is water-resistant up to 100 meters, and the watch data can be uploaded to the Suunto Trek Manager (PC only) or Google Earth. In a test of six sports watches, Men's Journal gives its highest rating to the expensive Suunto X10, praising the reliable satellite reception and easy-to-use interface. The Suunto X10 also wins a Best of Adventure Gear 2009 award from National Geographic Adventure magazine. Gear reviewers are clearly captivated with the Suunto X10 -- the gear site Navigadget.com finds the watch has lots to like with few drawbacks, and the watch gets a lot of buzz on other gear and gadget sites. Overall, Navigadget.com likes the long battery life and massive list of features, but it does find that the buttons can be difficult to push.

Derrick Spafford reviews the Suunto X10 adventure watch for Snowshoe magazine and finds it surprisingly comfortable to wear. Not only does it pick up satellites very quickly, but the Suunto X10 also displays accurate speed and distance information under large trees. He acknowledges that you have to read the user manual for this watch, because there are just way too many features to figure it out on your own. Be sure to set aside a good amount of time to read the manual -- it's 95 pages.

Suunto also gets good reviews for the less-expensive Suunto Core (*Est. $330). Like the Suunto X10, it's packed with features like an altimeter, barometer with storm alarm, compass, thermometer, chronograph and depth measurement, but no GPS. It comes in only one size, and sports a variety of fun colors, including a snazzy orange-and-black design or classic stainless steel. Unlike the Suunto X10, which is water-resistant up to 100 meters, the Suunto Core can only be used at depths of 30 meters or less. Running Times likes the rotating bezel, which makes it easy to use the compass and follow a bearing. While some reviewers posting to REI.com like the watch, others question if it is really worth the high price.

For even less, the HighGear Axio Max (*Est. $150) also gets good reviews. The HighGear Axio Max scores a mention in Trail Runner's 2009 buyer's guide, where the magazine's editors call the watch a "great value." It comes in black, brown or green, and sports an altimeter, barometer, digital compass, digital thermometer, chronograph, 10-run memory and six alarms. It is water-resistant to depths of 50 meters. Unfortunately, this new sports watch has yet to attract many user reviews.

Timex is also making a move into the adventure watch market with the new Timex Expedition WS4 (*Est. $140). This watch is getting a lot of buzz, and reviewers who have evaluated pre-production models say one thing -- it's "absolutely gigantic." That's how Crunchgear.com describes the Timex Expedition WS4, and Shannon Davis at Runner's World jokes that he wears the watch for "building upper body strength" because it's so large. Still, John Biggs at Crunchgear.com says you shouldn't be put off by the large size. He likes the easy-to-read digital display, multi-lap stopwatch, Indigo backlight and look-at-me colors (like bright orange). Overall, Biggs says the Timex Expedition WS4 is "one of the coolest outdoor watches to come out of Timex in years."

Popular Mechanics also picks the Timex Expedition WS4 as one of the best pieces of outdoor gear for 2009, largely because of the widescreen display. It boasts an altimeter, barometer, compass, thermometer and chronograph (but no GPS). Like most adventure watches, it has a variety of alarms and is water-resistant up to 50 meters. The watch was released on May 1, 2009, and as of mid-May, the Timex Expedition WS4 was selling out.

The Freestyle Nomad (*Est. $120) is another option for outdoor enthusiasts. This adventure watch includes an altimeter, barometer, chronograph and compass (but no GPS), and it comes only in men's sizes in white, black/yellow or black/silver. It is water-resistant up to 30 meters, and it comes with a limited lifetime warranty, which is much more generous than the warranties on most sports watches. Men's Fitness magazine picks the Freestyle Nomad for its stylish design. Several owners also write detailed reviews of the Freestyle Nomad for BackpackGearTest.org. Overall, these reviewers are pleased with the watch and find it comfortable, with an easy-to-read display and accurate readings as long as it's calibrated properly. On a negative note, the reviewers acknowledge that the Freestyle Nomad is big and bulky -- a common complaint for adventure watches.