The Useless Chase of Technology

Christoph Graf von Dettling

It seems with everything companies are in a huge rush to create something new to make money or save money with little regard for consumers - sadly Suunto is no different. There is no way I’m going to be analysing data on a bloody smartphone. Who would? A computer screen offers much more space for the analysis for data - such analysis that befits the sort of Suunto devices that collect so much. I really wish I would have known about the demise of Movescount before buying this stupid Spartan. I would have gone with another maker and would have stuck with my Excel spreadsheets. The constant change of technology is senseless and so frustrating!!! But I’m sure it makes sense to Suunto’s botton line and that’s all that matters.

Brad_Olwin

@Christoph-Graf-von-Dettling For deep training analysis I did not find MC sufficient. The stress analysis was nonexistent. So I would rather use a third party app to plan and analyze training. The app is better for that than MC. My 2 cents worth.

ColdBeer

@Brad_Olwin I agree with @Christoph-Graf-von-Dettling , because: we have a platen for 90% of training analysis… The option to solve that faults would be to work on the features are lacking… Suunto is proposing to stay with a new platform of 40% of features and let people work with 3rd party services. A bit craziness IMHO

@Brad_Olwin The app is better than what than MC exactly?
Than MC app, that is 100% true.
Than MC web, i beg to differ./

Also, a vendor supplied solution such as MC web has a certain consistency and does not depend on the whims of the third party service.
True, paid TP may be better than MC web, so let;s kill MC web and… profit!!

Brad_Olwin

@ColdBeer @Yannis-Belouris I hear you both and understand. The current status of SA and the 3rd party sync for me is better than MC. But I pay for TP, for those that want better training analysis without having to pay I get it. Wait for a year (I know but all will work as it does now)…there will be new hardware and software from more than one manufacturer. That is probably a better time to have this discussion. I expect major improvements in SA as the navigation features are not sufficient for me.

Maarten Thys

@Brad_Olwin How to upload data to a 3rd party application (an by that I mean a PC based application, all be it that it has to be accessed by a website, like movescount), if I cannot upload my moves to them.

I am an Ambit 2 user.
As far as my understanding goes:
I upload my data using moveslink, which goes to movescount, which then gets uploaded to lets say Strava or whatever else.

Or am I missing something?

What is the best way to follow the news on this subject and where can we show Suunto that we would not like movescount to disappear?

Brad_Olwin

@Maarten-Thys Suunto has another statement out. They certainly have heard from their customers about pre-Ambit 3 support. I suspect in the near future they will provide us with more information.

Maarten Thys

@Brad_Olwin Where can I find that statement?

@Maarten-Thys https://forum.suunto.com/topic/2382/april-transition-update/61

Maarten Thys

@Yannis-Belouris Thanks, I got that email in my inbox. Anxiously awaiting the May updates, because the website (https://www.suunto.com/Content-pages/digital-service-transition/) still mentions:
Ambit, Ambit2, M-series, T-series and Quest Collection watches
These Suunto products will not be compatible with Suunto app due to no mobile connectivity (Bluetooth).

We are excited to offer you the ability to transfer your Move history from Movescount to Suunto app and continue your experience with Suunto. We will inform you once the transfer is available.

I can interpret this in a number of ways.

Worst Case:

Yes all old moves are transferred from Movescount to Suunto app, but after the transition my Ambit 2 is unusable to do uploads/downloads of data/routes - forcing me to buy a new watch (Suunto… or competitor even… without really loosing data, because all my data is now currently also in Strava, linked to Elevate/Stravistics, and I can download my history from Movescount, upload it to Runalyze…) - To be clear, this is not what I want to do because I am still a Suunto fan.
I still think the Ambit is better tailored to my needs than let’s say a Garmin or Polar (That have either too many fancy bling features or not enough).

A bit less worse, but maybe still not the best case

Loose history of Movescount - transferred to Suunto App (again there are backups as mentioned above)
Connectivity with cable that still syncs activity to Strava, maybe even Runalyze (if a phone can do it, why not a pc…or pc with bluetooth to suunto app, but that is a lot of steps…)
A way to upload gpx to the watch via cable
I do not need to be able to create routes on Movescount as there are a lot of other ways I can make a gpx file, some with better full topographical maps then available at Movescount, but I need a way to put it on my watch.
(Currently I just always use a 3rd party routebuilder or Strava (to see segment), export gpx and then the only thing on movescount I do is Import + check the “use in watch” marker)

Let us wait what May will bring us.

Dimitrios Kanellopoulos

@Maarten-Thys you should ask as well a way to configure your watch + a way to reset it etc.

Maarten Thys

@Dimitrios-Kanellopoulos Yes, you are correct - Creating/ Editing sport modes - this is what I could come up with in the first 5 minutes, I am probably forgetting stuff.
Working on software myself, I know how things go - you get the first brainstorm by a few people, something gets developed, its giving to some testers (who weren’t there when the spec was written), they suggest some additional usability improvements, … Eventually you have a release and still users will come up with new and inventive ways to improve things.

Another remark was “what if Strava sync fails?” - a post on Strava shows many people didn’t get a Strava sync for half a week or more.
I have only had this on a very few occasions with movescount were it took longer than a few hours before it uploaded.
With Movescount I could then still export as GPX or other Strava compatible file and do the upload manually - Suunto App cannot provide this.
Other reasons to export GPX - share route with friends, who may or may not be using Suunto watch, some may even be using a standard GPS device. Again not possible with Suunto App.
So, or you need a web application were you can access data, or have an offline application were data is stored ( where user can choose to delete, take back-up for himself, access watch parameters such as the sport modes, … - basically anything Movescount can do at the moment)

pgrey

@Maarten-Thys Or simply just being able to “install new Sport Modes”, or change/set your physical characteristics (height, weight, age, HR zones, etc).

None of this is in SA, and none of seems to be planned for the Ambit3. As of now, as far as I can tell, when the service goes down, you “have whatever was set, on your watch, from that point forward, period”.

Think about that “resale proposition”, eh? There will be ads like “Ambit 3S, with user 5’8”, 158lb, 50’s, with HR zone 5 172-184, and the sports installed: cycling, alpine skiing, hiking…".
It’s a bit like selling a piece of clothing, it all has to fit the buyer, just-so, or it’s not much use to them…

Egika

@Maarten-Thys the current iOS beta of the Suunto App can export GPX files - no problem here with this function

@Egika I thank you if you could tell me where this function is in Suunto App (1.9.0 (7062))
Greetings.

Bulkan

Well movescount is not for analysis, it gives you data but no data for analysis. In that case use WKO4 or ColdenCheetah.

I find very useful change the sports mode in the fly with my phone, create routes with my phone if I am in a new place…

But I agree with you in the “only phone solution” is not as good as phone+computer. We need a web page. Sports-tracker have it I don’t get why Suunto won’t.

Bulkan

@Nutet in the last beta there isn’t GPX export, at least in the public beta.

Egika

@Nutet depends on where you are in the app:

a) in route planning: open the route and in the map section there will be a “share” button. You then share a link that will download the gpx file.
b) recorded activitites: open the activity, the tap the three dots in the top right corner. Tap “save route”. Then proceed with a)

sartoric

@Egika
iOS only atm

@Egika Thanks for your answer. This action had already been done, but the saved route data is different, the distance is never the same, and the file shared-route.gpx is totally useless to work because there is a lack of data, for example, the total time of the exercise. It is a pathetic file!
I hope they solve it someday, but I am really disappointed.