Suunto Spartan Sport Wrist HR

Name: Suunto Spartan Sport Wrist HR Review! Better Than Garmin fenix 5 GPS Watch?
Uploaded: 2019-03-12
Description: The Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR is a great fitness tracking watch and customers love it. The watch comes with 80 pre-installed activities on it so it is ready to start tracking right out

Editor rating: 8.6 / 10

User's rating: based on 2 user ratings

1 star

2 star

3 star

4 star

5 star

100%

Add your Rating

By Jessica Brown

All Suunto Watches

Suunto Spartan Sport Wrist HR Review Facts

See more facts

The Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR is a great fitness tracking watch and customers love it. The watch comes with 80 pre-installed activities on it so it is ready to start tracking right out of the box. You can track your heart rate, steps taken, distance, altitude, sleep, calories burned, pace, and so much more. This watch will literally track almost any activity you can think of. Keep in mind, though, that it’s using a wrist heart rate monitor so it might not always be the most accurate, so be careful if that is what you are purchasing this for. The watch is super comfortable and lightweight, and it is not overly bulky or heavy so it will not get in the way of your daily routines or sports you participate in. The watch is customizable through the Suunto Movescount app that works in conjunction with the tracker itself. The Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR is, unfortunately, a little pricey and not at all budget-friendly, so if you are looking for an affordable tracker then you may want to consider looking elsewhere. If you are willing to pay the higher price, customers recommend that you give this one a try, as they say, you will not be disappointed.

Editor's Pros & Cons

Pros

Fantastic battery life
Strong and sleek design
Water resistant up to 100 meters
GPS navigation
Sport specific training modes
Comes in a variety of colors

Cons

Heart rate monitor is not always accurate
Expensive

See How

What are buyers saying?

We have spent 4 hours analyzing a total of 600 reviews.

These reviews are then categoried into "Positive" and "Negative" feedback.

Below you will read a summary of them:

Positive

This is pretty much good all around equipment. The face is clear and readable and the GPS synch is near perfect. It seems very durable and is great with the smartphone apps. Great looking watch with a little extra to it.
The tracking is very consistent and the Satellite is within the 30 second connect range. It is very well built and is quicker than the Fenix. The watch needs some work with the touch screen and the software is a bit slow. Think they will get that fixed with an upgrade though.
They definitely upgraded the ugly old interface I am used to with the Garmin. The watch looks great and works miracles. Only thing I would say is it doesn't show temps like the older models.
Compared to my old Ambit 2, it is great. Way better than I was expecting. The touch screen is good, the software upgrade fixed all the issues I was having with the watch as well. This battery kicks Apple’s butt, lasts for days. The screen is super bright and I am able to read it really well. This watch just works, everything is great and I am super happy with my purchase.
I would say the screen could be a bit brighter. The watch is minimal for the work out apps and tracking. Wish this was more and could get more information from the day. I am really loving the GPS feature and it is what makes it stand out among the others for me. IT is better than fitbit, an upgrade from that and right in the middle from all the other super fancy, expensive other brands. Get the screen protector if you wanna keep the screen undated.
I found this watch to be just what I needed with a touch screen. A lot of negative reviews from people who didn't research the watch. It is a basic smartwatch with GPS not a iWatch. I love the HR Monitor and the GPS is really consistent and works quick. The battery life last long than other watches as well, lasted me a few days. The watch is a good size average. Very much worth the money.
The band seems nice, flexible and fairly soft. The watch is a larger than I was expecting but very light and comfortable. I do wish that I didn't have to go online to see all the stats from my sleep and other tracking apps. GPS is really nice and very accurate and fast..
I use this watch mostly for swimming and it is great. I would say FITBIT is way better as far as software and the GPS eats the battery life. It lasts about days with all things running.
Pretty large watch but if you can get past that then it works just fine. It is very user friendly and tracks all my sleep and activities during the day. It is really good in the battery department. The pink color isn't that bad either, very soft looking.
Very accurate watch. May need to be just a bit more bright but the backlighting is easy to hit. It works great and looks good too.
I like that the GPS s so quick to pick up. This watch is a great upgrade to my old Ambit and the software is wa faster. It does everything I need it to do plus some.
I compared this watch with a lot of other watches before deciding on this one. It is a very leveled out multi-sport style watch. I love the HR monitor and the sturdiness is great. It looks good on. I would say it is better than the garmin with the GPS and far more superior than alot o other name brand models in the price range. The touch screen and the easy access buttons are very nice and user friendly. I highly recommend this watch.
Nice gerthy watch. I have a big wrist ad this doesn't look small on me. The battery life is way better than any other smart watch I have tried, especially the Fitbit.
I hate being connected to my phone all the time so the social interface of other watches isn't what I was looking for. I love the HR monitor on this watch and the activity apps are great. I love that I can take it scuba diving with me. The battery life is phenomenal. I am an extrem guy and love that this watch really is able to handle it all.
This is a real outdoors kinda watch. Tracks everything really well and the GPS is on point. Faster than even Garmin who is known for their GPS. The strap did come off once and I had to fix it. Nothing crazy, I recommend it for sure.
The GPS on this is extremely accurate and very fast to connect. Works great with my MTe HR app is also really great. I am a fan of this and glad I bought it. Does exactly what it was made to do. No issues at all.
I had some syncing issues in the beginning but they worked out. It really has a large range of sports coverage and movement apps. I like that it makes a movie of everything after I am done. Super cool.
GPS maps really well, I am very happy about this. Has a great set up for when the satellite isn't as good like Urban areas. Has some very detailed stats and gives suggestions on improvements. It is super easy to use and read and the accessibility is gold. I am very impressed with the battery life as well It is warranted based off 300 charges, or one year whichever is first, very different..
I am thoroughly enjoying this watch. It had some serious mixed reviews but I went with it and happy I did. I love the cover version I have. It really gives me a detailed yet simple sleep tracking and the Movescount is great. The GPS is really fast and point on. I am 100% a fan of this watch. Buy it, you will be pleased. I was very skeptical to buy this watch because of the inconsistent reviews.
The manual for this thing is very easy to read and follow. I was happy about that. It is a pretty big hunk of watch and has a nice plastic band. It is a very readable watch with a nice back light. I like using the Suuno app, they made that real easy too. This would be the perfect triathlon watch, it has so many tracking apps.

Negative

I had to return this watch twice for one, that was annoying. I cannot find anywhere to actually synch my data. It continually dies when half charged. My work outs were showing up days after my workout. Couple day delay on tracking is not good for something that cost as much as this. The Suunto app doesn't really offer much either and I do not seeing it helping with goal setting and accomplishing. Save your money.
The heart rate monitor, for starters, is pure trash. It couldn't keep up if it was attached directly to my heart. I always gives me a resting heart rate gauge when I am obviously running and it is up there. I am not able to keep up with a correct track for my workouts due to this and this is why I bought the watch.
I did some research before buying this and they led me astray. This watch dies too fast and the HR monitor does not work properly. The end!
After 3 months, the whole watch just stopped working. It will not boot up or anything. No explanation and they said it cannot be fixed. That would equivocate to $100 a month for a watch.
Bluetooth syncing stopped working after a month. It just will not connect. Personal activity tracking just stopped tracking and I cannot get it to any more. Language sitting and other personalization apps started resetting automatically to the original settings, erasing everything. I have tried everything , this thing is garbage
I couldn’t get this thing to charge anymore after a month. I returned it for a replacement and it has been 2 months and I have not received it. I am so over this watch!
I would say this is one for the bad investment list. I thought this was an upgrade to the last one, this doesn't even have a heart rate zone trainer like before. I am not impressed.
Like others have been saying, the HR monitor does not work and this is a main reason for having this watch. I replaced it and the new one had the same issue. This watch is not worth the money at all. Don't waste your time and money.
I didn't want to wear a heart strap so I bought this watch for the HR. It is horribly wrong. It is also very unreliable, only working sporadically. Do NOT buy this garbage.
Not only does it not have the features and compatibility the competition has, for the price they should be able to get them to work properly ad at least check your HR right. I really think it is a pure software issue and they need to fix it because this watch is horrible for the steep cost.

7.3

Activities

The Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR is a multisport GPS watch that can be used for a plethora of activities. The watch comes with 80 pre-installed sports modes so it is ready to go right out of the box for almost any sport or activity you can think of. Whether you are running, cycling, or swimming this watch has you covered. If you are someone who likes to do a lot of activities outdoors then this watch is going to be perfect for you as it was meant to take a beating and keep on ticking.

No matter what kind of activities you participate in, whether indoor or outdoor, whether on land or in the water, the Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR will track your activities and more.

Basic Features

The Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR comes with a plethora of features for you to take advantage of. The first, and probably most obvious, is the heart rate monitor. The watch will track and measure your heart rate while doing your everyday normal activities, as well as your exercise routines or sports. The watch will take your heart rate data and combine it with your steps taken to give you a rough idea of your activity levels, resting heart rate, and calories you have burned. Customers have commented, however, that sometimes this does not give you a completely accurate heart rate reading so that is something you will want to keep in mind when purchasing and using this product.

In addition to the heart rate monitor, this watch also features an advanced touchscreen display that gives you a wide viewing angle and will also give you better visibility when you are outdoors or in a brightly lit room. The watch is water resistant up to 100 meters so you will be able to use this if you are swimming or doing other water-related activities.

Advanced Features

The Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR has a lot of more advanced features that you may not expect from a sports watch like this one. The watch comes with built-in GPS that will help you navigate outdoors; it will help you retrace your footsteps with what they call the breadcrumb view and a digital compass. The watch will also help guide you through new unfamiliar terrains. If you are not in need of the GPS feature of the watch you have the ability to turn it off or turn the frequency down a little bit to extend the battery life. You are in control.

The Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR will measure your pace, distance, speed, heart rate, calories, and altitude for you in the background without you having to do anything special to start tracking those things. If you are using this with external power or bike censors you can track your running or cycling power and cadence and if you are swimming you will be able to keep track of your distance and pace. This watch really will help you track almost anything.

Accuracy

Some customers have commented that the Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR does not give you the most accurate heart rate reading and they find that disappointing. You are going to get a relatively close heart rate reading with this product, but it seems like it is not always going to be accurate so if you are using this watch to get an accurate reading, you may want to consider a different option.

Other than the heart rate monitor, the rest of the activities this watch tracks seem to be fairly accurate. Customers have mentioned that it appears to be tracking the steps they take accurately and they are pleased with that fact.

Connectivity

The Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR connects to your mobile device via Bluetooth Smart and customers have not had many problems when it comes to actually getting this watch to connect. The watch also connects to the Suunto Movescount App which is what you will use to see everything the watch has tracked for you, as well as share your progress with friends, set goals, and customize your watch.

Apps

The Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR works in conjunction with the Suunto Movescount App for your mobile device. This app is compatible with other apps, such as Strava, MapMyFitness, TrainingPeaks, and many more. Through the Movescount app, you will be able to customize your watch to best suit you and your needs. You can keep track of your activities and also look through the history of your past activities. You will have the option to personalize your movements and activities by adding feelings, photos, and descriptions if you want to. The app will also allow you to share your progress with friends and family. You can explore new routes around you and take yourself on an adventure. This app allows you to belong to a community of people like you who are just trying to make their movements count around the world.

Comfort

Customers have commented that they think this watch is rather comfortable. The watch face is not too big or bulky so it sits better on their wrist and does not get in the way of their daily activities like some other fitness trackers and heart rate watches will do. Reviewers have stated that the watch is fairly light which also adds to the comfort level of this watch.

Style

Customers love the look and style of this sports watch. The Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR is not too big and bulky on the wrist which is nice because it will not get in the way of your everyday activities. The watch also comes in a plethora of colors so you can get something that is going to best fit your personality and style. When purchasing the sports watch you can choose between black, blue, copper (with a black band), forest, gold (with a white band), green, or pink.

Durability

The Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR was built to last, with its rugged construction, stainless steel bezel, outdoor grade color touch screen, and mineral crystal glass watch face. This watch was designed to be a sports watch and it is used for numerous outdoor activities; therefore, the watch is not going to be easily broken or ruined by participating in these activities. The watch is also water resistant up to 100 meters (300 feet) so you will not have to worry about water damage. This sports watch really is built to last.

Face

The face of the Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR is nice and customers seem to love it. It is a good size, and it does not sit too big or bulky on the wrist which customers seem to like. It is pretty lightweight, another thing people enjoy because it does not feel like a weight is hanging off of their wrist.

Suunto boasts that their Spartan Sports Wrist HR uses a great color touch screen that is state of the art. The screen will give you a wide angle to view which gives you great visibility, even if you are outdoors. The face itself is made out of a mineral crystal glass to help ensure the face will not easily break or scratch.

Band

The band on the Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR is made out of silicone, which is not uncommon for sports watches, fitness trackers, and smartwatches. The silicone bands are great because they are lightweight and generally more comfortable for the wearers, especially when they are on long runs or participating in other strenuous activities. Another advantage of the band being silicone is that it is water resistant so if you are someone who sweats a lot or you are to take this swimming with you, you will not have to worry about the band getting ruined. This sports watch does allow for interchangeable bands, so if you want a change or the old one is getting worn out, you can easily switch it.

Sizes Available

Unfortunately, when you purchase the Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR it only comes in one size. That being said, if you find that the wristband is too long or too short you can purchase a replacement band in varying sizes to ensure that you get something that is going to fit you comfortably. Customers have commented that the band on this particular watch is longer and thicker than other Suunto watches, so that is something to consider when purchasing this product.

Ease of Use

The basic features of the Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR are fairly easy to use and are pretty self-explanatory to anyone, whether you have used a sports watch or fitness tracker in the past or you are new to these kinds of products. The more advanced features, however, can be a bit more difficult to use at first, but once you have done it a time or two it becomes relatively easy. Overall, customers state that this watch is fairly user-friendly, especially once they had time to play with it a little bit and get a feel for it.

Power Source

The battery life of the Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR depends on a plethora of variables. If you have your GPS set on high accuracy and the brightness of the screen turned all the way up the battery is not going to last as long as it would normally. That being said, if you have this watch set to the best GPS setting it should last you about 8 hours and if you take the GPS setting down a notch you can make it last about 12 hours. If you turn the GPS off altogether and are just using this for the smartwatch features and maybe tracking a run or two, it could last you up to week. The length of the battery ultimately depends on what you are using it for.

The watch comes with a USB charging cord which is a magnetic clip that will attach to the back of the watch. It usually only takes a couple hours to get a full charge, so you will not be without the watch for too long.

Price

The cost of the Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR is on the high end and it is definitely not budget-friendly. The MSRP of this product is $499 which is on the high end for other sports watches that are similar. This is a good watch and customers say that it is worth the money they paid for it; however, if you do not want to spend this kind of money on a sports watch, there are cheaper options out there.

Accessories

When you purchase the Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR you will receive, in addition to the watch itself, a USB charging cable and an instruction manual. There are no other accessories that come with the watch that you will need for it to operate right out of the box. That being said, there are other accessories that you can opt to use with the watch for more accurate tracking and the ability to track other stats that are not available using the watch alone. You can choose to use an external censor and link them up with the Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR to allow you to better track your power and cycling and it gives you the option to track your cadences.

Key Features

-Battery life up to 12 hours with GPS turned on
-Comes with 80 pre-installed activities
-GPS route navigation
-Water resistant up to 100 meter
-Steel bezel and mineral crystal glass
-An outdoor-grade color touchscreen display
-Comfortable and stylish
-Tracks heart rate, steps, sleep, distance traveled, calories burned, and much more

Bottom Line

The Suunto Spartan Sports Wrist HR is a nice and comfortable sports watch that customer seem to really like. You can choose from many different colors when purchasing this so you can make sure that you can get something that will fit your style and personality. This watch is going to allow you to track a plethora of activities, coming with 80 pre-installed activities all ready for you to use. If you are looking for a good sports watch and this fits in your price range then you have come to the right place. Customers have stated that they will recommend this product to others who are in the market.