First questions about the Race 2
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@Dimitrios-Kanellopoulos I wasn’t referring to creating your own POIs. I know those exist and use them frequently. We were referring to POIs and landmarks that are native to the on-watch maps. Things like road names, peaks, towns, etc. that are visible without having to create your own POIs in the app. This is one step below routable maps and what other companies have started to add to their mapping experience.
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@duffman19 this would be awesome feature, because if you have offline map downloaded, and it is just “blind” map without any labels, it is hard to use it for any navigation when you are lost.
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@Tomas5 is not only about labels.
Actually all brands are putting some POIs by default. I.e: when you are in the maps, you can not only see street names, but water fountains, bus/train stations, pharmacies,…there are some interesting use cases. The most interesting one for me is just the water fountains while trail running. I like a lot to train in the mountains and see there’s a fountain near. The rest is not that important for me but I understand that It could be for hikers and people that does a lot of mountainering.At the end, Suunto has the mountains in the heart, and the Race and Vertical watches cost between 500 and 800 euro…If there are cheaper watches that can fix all the navigation things we were talking about, Suunto should (of course)
And now even more, when Suunto’s watches are better than ever. Perhaps we see a fix soon and the Vertical 2 , has everything in by default. I have a very big interest in that watch
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Maybe I am not educated enough but please enlighten me how you use these small screens for navigation where labels are useful and important?
I use only the loaded track and follow it. If there is a complicated junction the map helps me to decide which way to go. Zoom level is 25-100m. I use it this way. No more no less. This simple.
Do you check the street or track labels while walking/running/cycling? If I zoom out to get a broader view the labels are disappear on my Garmin. They are not useful any more. I always have a phone on me where I can check the map with every feature’s name. I used twice on device route planning but it was pain in the but. It was a Garmin Edge 830 and a Fenix 7X. Phone is more useful. Usually I plan my tracks at home. If on site route planning is needed I always used my phone to do that not my Garmin.
Now I have Race 2. My only pain is it is not possible to send new track to the watch without internet connection on iOS. I asked support about it. They sent me a long answer. On iOS there is some file handling limitation. Android is ok in this regard. If it will be solved it would become a more outdoor watch.
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@szleslie this is valid point, i see it only like last case scenario. I can imagine that you are in mountains, not sure how to continue with hike. No internet connection and you have offline maps in watch. So you can look around for some known point, maybe some peak, lake, or something that will help you to get better orientation. And than another scenario, you have created path in phone and on the route there may be some interest point like waterfalls, lakes etc but you didn’t create POIs for each. So it can just help you estimate how far it is to this points. Currently i don’t have watch with offline maps but i can imagine this scenarios to be usefull. Phone is best in backpack, watch is on wrist available all the time to check.
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@szleslie POIs are not labels, POIs are icons. Then, there are the labels of the streets.
I.e. a water fountains is just a raindrop
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@Tomas5 You are right. I was thinking where can I use it this way. I came up with same. There are conditions where paper maps and phones are not easily usable if at all. Last chance back up solution can be a watch with full maps with labels and everything and on device routing. It is better than nothing.
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@dreamer_ I agree. It is useful for some. I think it is not important for me at the moment. Maybe in the future. Who knows. I am a cyclist first than a hiker (more of a short walk than a hike). A simple map is enough for me. Repeat, for me:). I tried local tourist map with colour coded tracks and it was useful on my Garmin. Unfortunately it was painfully slow, the map rendering. Suunto is much better in this regard. Every watch needs some compromises.
If Suunto will add more map features in the future, please make them optional. Switchable labels, POIs etc.
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@szleslie I agree. My Epix Pro gen2 is not good for hiking because the mapping is incredibly slow.
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You guys make great points. I don’t think anyone is really using a watch to make high-level navigation decisions (at least I hope not). Suunto’s barebones maps are really great for giving just a bit of context when you are following a pre-planned route.
But having just a few simple POIs baked-in would be really great for the examples you gave above. Things like shelters, water, trailheads, parking lots, cliffs, peaks, and the like (“mountain” focused POIs) would be awesome for quick diversions or emergency situations. And making them an optional layer (good point @szleslie!) would be great so you can still enjoy a simple, uncluttered map experience when you don’t need them.
Having a POI icon layer (no labels, just icons) would be a great way for Suunto to differentiate themselves from the competition while keeping things clean and simple.
