Suunto 9 Peak Multisport GPS Watch Review

From triathletes to trail runners, the Suunto 9 Peak GPS watch is designed for almost all athletes, regardless of their discipline. This model is an evolution of the Suunto 9 Baro, a watch praised for its comprehensive features and quality, but the 9 Peak adds versatility and discretion by being thinner, lighter, and more compact. Is it the ultimate GPS watch, and is it a useful tool for cycling?

By Guillaume Judas – Photos: ©3bikes.fr/DR

In its titanium version, as tested here, the Suunto 9 Peak weighs only 53 g, with a thickness of 10.6 mm and a case diameter of 43 mm. It is therefore a GPS watch with very comprehensive features and a touch screen that adopts a very sleek style, and it will be perfect for small wrists both in the city and during intense effort, whether cycling, running, or swimming in open water. It incorporates most of the functions of the Suunto 9 Baro, but with a slightly smaller screen and slightly less effective definition. It’s a shame, however, that the display doesn’t take up the entire screen, unlike some competing products. The 22 mm wide silicone strap is very comfortable, especially with a metal tip that secures the closure. It is also replaceable. Navigation between the different menus is done via three buttons on the right side of the case, and then via the touch screen. While, like all products of this type, hoping to understand all its subtleties and different accesses with only three buttons in a few minutes is an illusion, navigating all the product’s functions remains quite intuitive.

Very comprehensive features

In addition to, of course, all the basic functions one can expect from a multisport watch, which need not be detailed here (such as time data, stopwatch, 80 sport modes, barometer, 100m water resistance, VO2max estimation, recovery assessment, workout programming, connected watch functions with notifications, music control, etc.), the Suunto 9 Peak stands out with some interesting specific features:

• A new generation wrist heart rate sensor. The Finnish brand announces it as more accurate than previous models, but in practice, it can never completely replace a heart rate strap, especially if you need to follow a training plan with precise intensities. The reliability of this type of sensor depends on several factors, including how tightly the watch is worn. For our part, we found more accuracy and responsiveness by switching arms and placing the watch upside down (with the case on the inside of the wrist). This function remains interesting for checking resting heart rate.

• A pulse oximeter. This measures blood oxygen saturation, which is useful for assessing altitude adaptation and managing efforts accordingly, or in case of suspected illness (such as pneumonia, for example). The figure is primarily indicative, and accuracy is sometimes random with a few percentage points of difference compared to a real measuring device placed on the fingertip.

• 25 hours of battery life in GPS mode with position tracking every second. And up to 170 hours in Tour mode with tracking every hour. The watch also has 14 days of battery life in watch mode and 7 days in connected watch mode.
• Ultra-fast charging in one hour. A truly valuable feature when wearing the watch daily.
• Reliable and fast GPS. Easy to acquire when leaving home, GPS, Glonass, Galileo, QZSS, and Beidou signals offer precise localization. While the Suunto 9 Peak does not have mapping, it allows you to follow a pre-loaded route, tracking turn by turn. It also allows you to retrace your steps in reverse, return to the starting point, or navigate to previously saved points of interest. With the Snap to route function, the watch also offers more accuracy in places where GPS signal can be lost (in the city, or in confined areas), in terms of route tracking and thus distance and speed calculation, but on the condition of following a pre-downloaded route on the watch.

• Weather functions. For multi-day forecasts or to warn of storm risks during mountain outings.
• A Ghost runner function. To compete against yourself or another runner in running.

The Suunto 9 Peak can be connected to various external sensors, for cycling for example, with the possibility of linking a heart rate strap, a power meter, or a cadence sensor. Or a foot pod for running. But beware, it does not support the ANT+ standard, and it is necessary to use a sensor that uses the Bluetooth communication standard.

The Suunto 9 Peak on the bike

With all its features, the Suunto 9 Peak can be the ideal product for athletes who practice several activities, especially triathletes, who regularly switch from one discipline to another, whether in training or competition. The Suunto is also suitable for all outdoor sports, including mountain hikes, with specific altitude functions. Regular use of the watch also allows you to master all its parameters without having to search too much in the menus. What about specific cycling use, for example? In terms of data quantity, accuracy, and readability, a watch is inherently less practical than a dedicated bike computer.

To remedy this, Suunto offers an optional handlebar mount, to keep the watch in view on the cockpit. But this is only compatible with round handlebars, whereas many modern bikes are now equipped with aerodynamic cockpits. This setup also requires wearing a compatible heart rate strap (which communicates via Bluetooth with the watch), and does not allow you to benefit from the wrist sensor. Moreover, as we were able to verify, its accuracy is uncertain during intense effort, and it only serves as an indication compared to a strap connected to a Garmin bike computer, a Hammerhead bike computer, or the Suunto watch. The same applies to the pulse oximeter, which is sufficient to detect a serious physical problem, but not precise enough to measure adaptation capabilities to altitude.

However, as for the classic functions expected from a GPS bike computer, we are not disappointed. On the road, speed and distance are accurate, and the GPS track faithfully reproduces the route taken. Regarding distance calculation, we observed a difference of 60 meters over approximately 47 km compared to the Garmin Edge 820 connected to Strava, and 31 meters over 76 km on another ride. In detail, zooming in on a section of road where we passed twice (out and back from a ride), with a stop at the car wash on the way back, the two tracks are very close and remain very effective for anyone wishing to use GPS to calculate a distance. For elevation, it’s again about thirty meters each time compared to Strava data with the Garmin, but in this case, the Suunto’s integrated barometer seems more realistic in detail than the Garmin’s, whose weaknesses are known. As proof, we note the same positive and negative elevation gains with the Suunto, for identical start and end points. Finally, regarding heart rate display (with the same strap connected to both devices), there may sometimes be a very slight display lag of one or two beats, but without disturbing the quality of the training.

As for following a GPS track, it’s manageable, but you shouldn’t expect the same ease as with a dedicated bike computer, due to the lack of mapping. At an intersection in a clear area, there’s no problem: the watch indicates the direction to follow and reacts quickly. But in the case of a tight roundabout with many exits, it can be more complicated to find the right way. The same applies in undergrowth during a Gravel or MTB ride, where you can easily hesitate between several paths. In this case, the system is more suited to running or hiking speeds.

The Suunto 9 Peak is not intended to replace a cycling GPS computer, in terms of readability, practicality, or display options. It is rather a multisport tool, designed for adventurers, which offers the calculation precision expected from a high-end sports watch. Battery life, fast charging, lightness, and discretion on the wrist are among the other advantages of the Suunto 9 Peak. The price is commensurate, but remains similar to that of the competition.

=> SEE ALSO: Buy the Suunto 9 Peak, on sale from €469

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