Author Topic: Pro trek watches  (Read 3435 times)

waddy

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Pro trek watches
« on: 12:49:38, 20/11/07 »
Does anyone own a pro trek watch, do I really need one? Or are they just toys?
If I decide to get one which one should I get???????? :-\

I have found what seems to be a cheap supplier...I think?


Sorry for all the questions
I would be gratefull for any advice on this matter..

Many Thanks :)

                         Waddy


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« Last Edit: 14:14:52, 20/11/07 by Chris »

darksky

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Re: Pro trek watches
« Reply #1 on: 16:26:14, 20/11/07 »
Sorry cant help you on this matter..,but i myself am after a nice watch and there are some really smart ones out there and expensive too, i'd like one that has a compass that actually works on it..,but hey if you like it buy it thats what i say just shop around first eh? let me know what you decide.
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Mr. Blister

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Re: Pro trek watches
« Reply #2 on: 17:05:42, 20/11/07 »
Hi there, Waddy!

I hadn't heard of these, so did a Google.  I have to say they look fairly pointless to me, another expensive gismo for us walkers.  Now then, I don't do a lot of high level hiking so have no need of an altitude or air pressure meter ..

I'd be cautious .. but if it had a milometre on it, now that would be something.  ;)

summitzero

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Re: Pro trek watches
« Reply #3 on: 18:55:05, 21/11/07 »
Dont have one of those but i do swear by my Suunto Vector.  ;)
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howardfernlover

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Re: Pro trek watches
« Reply #4 on: 19:09:48, 21/11/07 »
I guess you're thinking of what you'd like for Christmas, eh?

I've worn a Casio "Alti-thermo" wristwatch for years, and to be quite honest most of its features (except two) are just gimmicks.

The temperature can be way out - it has to be set to compensate for your body heat when wearing the watch, but if you're very hot this will affect the reading, conversely if you're out in an icy wind, it will go down too much.

There's a bar chart that shows how much you're climbing or descending, well, that's obvious, you shouldn't need a chart to tell you that!  And do you really need to press a button to record what height you're at and at what time?  I use my own memory for that.

The altimeter is useful, but only if you remember to set it when you're at a known height (from your map) before you start a climb.  I nearly always forget to do this.

The other thing I find useful is a graph that shows the barometer trend over the last 26 hours, so you can tell if its going up or down, but that is only any use at home, because when you're in the hills, barometric pressure decreases with altitude, and as you're going up and down, the graph ends up all over the show.

summitzero

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Re: Pro trek watches
« Reply #5 on: 19:12:23, 21/11/07 »
Sorry mean't to welcome you and say hello  O0

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Solofool

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Re: Pro trek watches
« Reply #6 on: 22:44:42, 21/11/07 »
I too have a suunto watch but it is never on my wrist, interesting on a frosty night on dartmoor watching temp plumet to -3, always handy for an additional compass, altimeter does actually work and is handy on featurless places like Dartmoor, but in the main tis an expensive gimmick and i would not mis it. Although makes me lfeel like a pro attached to my shoulder straps (although more than likely look a prat).

Mr. Blister

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Re: Pro trek watches
« Reply #7 on: 17:18:56, 22/11/07 »
I guess you're thinking of what you'd like for Christmas, eh?

I've worn a Casio "Alti-thermo" wristwatch for years, and to be quite honest most of its features (except two) are just gimmicks.

The temperature can be way out - it has to be set to compensate for your body heat when wearing the watch, but if you're very hot this will affect the reading, conversely if you're out in an icy wind, it will go down too much.

There's a bar chart that shows how much you're climbing or descending, well, that's obvious, you shouldn't need a chart to tell you that!  And do you really need to press a button to record what height you're at and at what time?  I use my own memory for that.

The altimeter is useful, but only if you remember to set it when you're at a known height (from your map) before you start a climb.  I nearly always forget to do this.

The other thing I find useful is a graph that shows the barometer trend over the last 26 hours, so you can tell if its going up or down, but that is only any use at home, because when you're in the hills, barometric pressure decreases with altitude, and as you're going up and down, the graph ends up all over the show.

Excellent summary!

Not for me, I think .. Not sure if you intended to dissaude or not, but you've certainly helped me make my mind up.  ;)

summitzero

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Re: Pro trek watches
« Reply #8 on: 01:07:45, 25/11/07 »
Solofool

Hello and welcome to the forum

Dune a good few nights on Dartmoor myself.

You missed out that the watch also tells the time  ;D ;D O0
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howardfernlover

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Re: Pro trek watches
« Reply #9 on: 17:22:18, 25/11/07 »
No, it wasn't my intention at all to dissuade anyone from buying one, I was just being bluntly practical. I think you've got to look at the features one by one, and ask yourself how indispensable each one is, and how valuable an aid it would be to you when you are out walking.

The compass could be roughly useful if you were out on a short casual stroll, but for anything more serious I wouldn't use anything less than a Silva with which I can take bearings and walk on them. Solar power? The battery in my watch lasts for 3 or 4 years. Being waterproof is good, but lots of watches are waterproof these days.  Shockproof? If you do rock climbing, maybe. We all have careless accidents at times, but how often do you break a watch?
 
I've already covered the drawbacks of the way the barometer and altimeter work (I didn't mention how many times I've sat on a beach and alarmed my wife by looking at my watch and announcing we're 10 metres below sea level).  I'm not aware of any improvement in the technology since I bought mine. Forever checking it against the height on a map and re-setting it soon becomes a boring chore.

If only there was a watch with built-in GPS - now that would be something!
 

summitzero

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Re: Pro trek watches
« Reply #10 on: 12:50:35, 26/11/07 »
You could get yourself a N95 8G phone, with built in GPS  ;D ;D
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howardfernlover

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Re: Pro trek watches
« Reply #11 on: 13:44:03, 26/11/07 »
Yes, but not as convenient as having GPS in one little unit in your watch, permanently on your wrist; also costly to a skinflint like me, with tariffs, connection fees etc.  It will come soon, I'm sure.

And before anyone points it out, there are already GPS 's that can be worn on the wrist, with a special wrist strap.  Don't ask me the make or model, but I have seen someone, a botanist, with one like this.

Time for me to confess that I carry a GPS with me for no other reason than to obtain accurate locations for ferns that I record, and so do several other botanists and wild flower enthusiasts I know, too.  You jot everything in a notebook at the time, then later you can enter it all into a database in one go.  The alternative is, you sit at the pc with your notebook, a 1:25,000 map and a romer, and try and remember precisely where you were on the map when you saw something.  (For the uninitiated, the records end up being collated for county floras, or they can be used by ecologists or councils when dealing with planning applications, etc.)  You can also go back with your GPS to re-find something, in a dense wood for example.

I prefer to find my way around with a map and compass, and there has only been one occasion when I have got a bit lost and used my GPS to get a grid reference to work out from my map exactly where I was.

In the meantime, has anyone got the right time?

howardfernlover

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Re: Pro trek watches
« Reply #12 on: 20:11:35, 26/11/07 »
Well, no sooner had I written that a watch with built-in GPS would be sure to come soon, that I found one by looking on the Net!

It is a Suunto X9i but I would have to win the Lottery before I could buy one, because it is £299.

 

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