Neglected S7!!! Very disappointing from Suunto
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@binoworld-uk said in Neglected S7!!! Very disappointing from Suunto:
@chrisa Finally someone understands the shortcoming of the S7 and how easily it can be come a great watch. The lack of updates will certainly see people looking elsewhere for other brands. I wrote to Suunto about this, and the response was. Sorry to disappoint you, but The S7 development is on ICe 🧊
It’s not new, these already talked various times here. If S7 is not more powerful it’s because is a decision from Suunto, and I agree with this, I think the same.
Everyone knows that S7 with software improvements it’s better in various aspects than all the others Suunto models with the exception of battery life, but this could’t be a problem depending of the type of use.
Like I said in another thread, knowing Suunto, I downgrade from S9B to S7. I imagined a S9B+wearOS, even when in the moment of my purchase this was not like this. I staked that this could change with the future fw upgrades. This happened when added the tiles for HR, etc. But later no more
A powerful S7 could cause troubles in the product line?
It’s like have a BMW S1100RR and have mapped from the ECU to use a single cylinder
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@flypg I have to agree that the S7 could be a killer device if few more features are added, and it will be disruptive hence why I think Suunto needs to make a decision about the future of the S7. Discontinue it, updated it or release a successor.
I use my S7 as I absolutely love that OLED screen, but I can’t help the fact that it’s missing some essential feature like HR zones and Baro/Storm alarm, more stock watch faces, HRV tile….
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@binoworld-uk I agree with what is said here, it would be nice to have some updates. The critical one for me is customizable HR zones.
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@brad_olwin so the million dollar question, is Suunto listening at all?
Perhaps we can all make some noise demanding some updates? Not sure how effective this could be, but I think worth perusing.
Cheers
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@binoworld-uk said in Neglected S7!!! Very disappointing from Suunto:
Perhaps we can all make some noise demanding some updates? Not sure how effective this could be, but I think worth perusing.
They’re a private company and the work they do needs to be justified by potential sales/profit. Making noise won’t make much difference if their device isn’t selling enough to justify the investment.
I suspect it’s no coincidence that updates stopped after Google announced Wear 3 and basically gave the middle finger to all existing Wear manufacturers by making it Samsung exclusive and being extremely vague on things like supported chipsets.
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@aleksander-h I agree, but they are not doing themselves any favours by staying quite.
I get the point that WearOs is potentially the problem for Suunto however, the Suunto platform could do well on it’s own if they decide to invest in developing the watch further. In life nothing grows without investment. So, yes noise won’t be effective unless somebody with half a brain at Suunto gathers everyone and say here is our next move with S7
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@binoworld-uk Actually I think there will be no bigger update anymore
. As far as I understand it, no other brand besides Samsung gets Wear OS 3 atm, so I think Suunto is not on the verge of developing a new S7 right now and since they do not upgrade the S7 anymore and you can only purchase the two matte titanium versions here in Germany for cheap 289 € (all other models of the S7 are only sold as refurbished ones - and almost all of them are out of stock) it seems that Suunto is selling off the remains it has in stock. -
@aleksander-h maybe the investment of the S7 - but what about the investment in the Suunto brand itself.
As others have pointed out - AW is moving more and more into health and fitness.
Fitbit continues to extend its health features.
Garmin is heads and shoulders ahead of the everyone when it comes to mid to high entry level watches - they do have a gaping hole at entry level. Basically the FR55 and vivomove sport, and vivosmart 5 (a basic running watch that is features behind the competition- Polar/Coros, a hybrid watch - which is in its own little niche; and a smart band tracker that is expensive compared to most others). What is Suunto’s offering - the S3 that doesn’t really exist anymore and is worse than FR55. In the mid range everyone is behind the curve now due to FR255 & Instinct 2 with what they both offer. FR955 at the bottom end of the top range also offers far more than anyone else.
Polar and Coros offerings are good at low to mid range; and offer better at low than Suunto and same at mid-range.
Wear Os - has GW4 which really can’t compete in health and fitness - sure it has the field beat in smarts but that is it.So where does Suunto stand - from my perspective I would be sweating if I was in head office, as it does not look good. They need something to elevate them/differentiate themselves from the better offerings on market - and if they aren’t going to look after their “Brand” by supporting their products which includes the S7, I struggle to see them surviving over the next 5-10 years. Which would be a shame.
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@jamie-bg I think s5p is very compatitive, especially considering its current cost of 250 euros. s9p vs other offerings is exactly the same deal as s9b vs other offerings once was. Other models already had much more bells and whistles. I think suunto might release new hardware in fall/winter: maybe new s3 or diving stuff, maybe some entirely new line.
I would think that suunto’s future is so bleak as you say, but we’ll see. -
@jamie-bg You hit the nail on it’s head there Jamie!
Sales Director & R&D team would certainly be made redundant if Suunto situation doesn’t change in the next 1/2 years. I give them max of 3 years to turn it around. Fingers
It’s important this conversation/feedback reaches Suunto management team. For sure, we as customers see all this form a different lens to the CEO & MD at Suunto.
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@jamie-bg said in Neglected S7!!! Very disappointing from Suunto:
@aleksander-h maybe the investment of the S7 - but what about the investment in the Suunto brand itself.
As others have pointed out - AW is moving more and more into health and fitness.
Fitbit continues to extend its health features.
Garmin is heads and shoulders ahead of the everyone when it comes to mid to high entry level watchesI disagree after having used an Epix2 for the last 4-5 months. More of a personal opinion about what someone uses a watch for. I still prefer the S9P to the Epix2 for a number of reasons that I won’t go into here. And, I like the Epix2, it is a nice watch but I disagree with your statement.
Vector/T6c/Ambit 3 Peak/S5 Copper/S3/S7 Ti/S9 baro Ti/S9P Ti/S9PP Ti/Vertical Ti/Race Ti/RaceS/Ocean/Wing
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@dmytro I agree - the S5 Peak is just great for its price. Besides being a very nice watch, it delivers really trustworthy data. I have no need for a barometer here (~500 to 900m above sea level) and I must say, that I am really satisfied with the GPS elevation metrics.
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@chrisa you’re saying the altitude is fine on flat terrain and smal ~50m hills also? Just curious because my S9 suffers quite a bit in these precise settings. But it’s great in the mountains.
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@chrisa Sorry, but I got to disagree on the 5 Peak’s elevation metrics. I have one (currently being shipped to Suunto for connection issues), and the elevation is way off every time I use it. I’m in the Eastern U.S. mountains, and routes that my 9 Baro and my wife’s Coros Apex reliably peg as 300 feet of elevation (intermittent hills), my 5 Peak was measuring at zero elevation.
The GPS accuracy was great on roads, but compared to my 9 Baro, it didn’t measure up well on trails.
I’m not disappointed in the watch, since I bought is as my non-activity-day watch and to sleep with, but I bought it private party sale at a discount. So the value was there for me. That said, I’m not sure this is the watch to raise Suunto’s game much.
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@dmytro actually it works great for me
be it ascend and descent or absolute elevation.
Using GPS + QZSS + GALLILEO
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@chrisa huh, cool stuff. Would be interesting, if other people can confirm/comment accuracy increase of s5p vs S9 both in GPS and elevation. If elevation measuring has improved so much, my next watch might as well be a midranger.
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@dmytro I can’t really tell. I don’t climb high mountains and if - and how good - it works in areas where GPS coverage is bad due to rock formations in alpine environments. But here in a German „Mittelgebirge“ it works good enough for me.
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@chrisa ye, in high mountains I can’t complain about S9 actually - it’s near perfect. Yet in the flatland which is called Munich I either get 2/3 real elevation while climbing small hills, or an additional 100m while going through completely even terrain.
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@brad_olwin
Would be interested in your points, as you make a comment then don’t justify it, so difficult to see how you can match/say S9B is better than Epix when you don’t justify.
PS - per my commentary a more equal comparison based on cost is FR955 vs S9B - I class them both as mid-range price tier - not top end price range tier; and still think due to the additional features FR955 still beats S9B.
So would be really interested in how you think the S9B is a better watch (I know it is from a battery perspective but struggle from any other perspective). -
@jamie-bg S9B costs 200 euros less than Garmin forerunner 955. Price wise a better comparison would be S9P which is still 50-70 euros cheaper.
I think s9B is more durable too - military standard for some models.Sidenote: Of course, it doesn’t make any difference for the user, but suunto’s are made with renewable energy too, so by buying from them you’re encouraging other manufacturers to go eco.
