Reviews for Suunto t3 and t3c

I'm a longtime fan of Suunto products and love my Suunto Altimax altimeter watch. That being said, I find the T3C to be a disappointing product for several reasons. Although it does work well as an HRM, and I like the menuing, there are some problems that prevent me from recommending it. 1)This unit is made in China (not Finland) and doesn't have the same quality feel as the Suunto wrist computers. 2)The watch band (wrist strap) that comes with the unit is completely unsuitable for an athletic watch. It's polished, stiff, black plastic, and uncomfortable to wear. The replacement strap available from Suunto is perfect for this watch, should have been included and costs $20. Additionally, the strap is unique to Suunto so you cannot use a velcro strap or another brand. 3) The watch face scratches VERY easily, unlike the Suunto wrist computers. You will want to buy an Invisible Shield screen protector, and they cost $10. So plan on spending $30 more just to get this unit in useable condition. Bottom Line: I wouldn't buy it again...

Until today the Suunto t3c watch is a very good training tool. I am using it for Kettlebell training and it works great. Just do your excercises until you have reached the right training effect, in the right heart rate zone...I hope you suunto people have a solution to wear the watch on your belt because I can't do the watch around my wrist when doing snatches and cleans.

I got the Suunto T3C as a replacement for an ageing Polar and was particularly drawn to the TE feature. This I am very pleased with. HOWEVER, I feel the watch design regarding the screen is a fundamental flaw... It is raised, which causes a couple of issues. First, and most importantly, this allows light to come in from the side and makes the display VERY DIFFICULT to read - especially at oblique angles (e.g. when cycling). Secondly the screen is made of some cheap material that smudges and scratches easily. I've belatedly ordered a Zagg protector. TE is great, it's very useful to have an idea of how hard to push within a session, but I really am disappointed with the screen and the impact this has on usability. Buyer beware!

While it does take time and patience to figure out how to use all the functions of the Suunto t3c watch, the process is well worth it. The watch has pretty much all the functions one could possibly want and once you get accustomed to the settings, switching between the different modes is easy. With the bike pod , a foot pod and the heart rate belt I can go through the entire triathlon knowing exactly how well I am doing and when I should push harder. I have used this watch for triathlon training and racing and have taken it to all sorts of climates while climbing/mountaineering. This watch has held up through cold water, hot runs and freezing temps. In the two years that I had the watch I did have a glitch with a backlight once forcing me to send it in, but that only highlighted just how good the Suunto warranty is - I got a replacement within two weeks.

I used this watch a couple of times with some success before the heart rate belt broke. Sent it for repair, before I got the belt back, the watch got filled with water(from the shower). Sent it to be repaired, it has been more than a month, apparently the watches are backordered. They would not say how long until I get one. To make a long story short, the watch could be useful, not as much as you think, and be very, very careful, treat it like an antique watch, no water, no bumps, etc. Also, if you send it for repair and you don't get it back, contact them, they did not even send me an email telling me they received the watch or that they were backordered.

i just bought my suunto t3c 2 weeks ago and started using it. at first i was really excited but i can't figure out why my heart rate is too high even if im just standing up it keeps on moving. all the personal information is correct. im just disappointed with the complications and hoping theres a solution to it.

Comments from The Staff:

We are happy to help with any confusion. Call us at 800-891-8490 or visit us at SuuntoWatches.com and click on 'live help'.

Jami
Brand Merchandiser

I'm not sure why I read all these negative reviews, this is 1 great training tool and it looks good to boot! I read reviews on every training watch I could and finally chose the black T3. I found it for a great price and bought it. Initial impressions; I've been using it for the last few weeks and have to say it's excellent. I usually set it on heart rate and toggle through the lower display to see my zone. You can easily see from the displays around the watch what your TE is. The split display works great, I never have any issue seeing it. Nor have I had any issues seeing anything on the watch. You can review your run's in detail later on. I just bought the foot pod to add to my training plan. I have nothing bad to say about this watch at all. It's extremely user friendly, fully featured and nicely expandable.

First impression, Suunto t3c's are attractive and functional at the same time. However, the LCD on the black polish version is so dark and the digits were barely visible. Even in well lighted areas, I still have to tilt the watch up and down several times to find the best angle to read the digits. Oh... don't get me started on the easily scratched screen. To top that off, umm.. the light function is more like "what light?" Sorry, Suunto maybe you should consult Casio or even... Timex!