BEST HIKING AND OUTDOOR WATCHES
Posted by Evan Murray on February 9th, 2022
BEST HIKING AND OUTDOOR WATCHES
KOROS VERTIX 2
Price at time of review: 9.99 / £599.99
The best hiking and outdoor watch for adventurers and ultramarathoners
With an incredible 140-hour GPS battery life, the Coros Vertix 2 offers a serious level of endurance to take what you get from Garmin\'s top-of-the-line Fenix ??7 series watch.
With such a colossal battery life, it is designed for multi-day trekkers as well as ultra-marathoners and those with a keen interest in performance levels.
Vertix 2 includes dual GPS, mapping, music and EvoLab, a powerful new set of training information that can potentially compete with Garmin and Polar.
Like the Apple Watch rafiqsonsonline.com/product-category/mens-watch/ and the new Fitbits, the outer panel also has an electrocardiogram (ECG) sensor to take heart rate variability readings. You will not find this ECG technology in Garmin counterparts, although Coros technology is not approved or intended for medical use.
At 9.99, it\'s slightly cheaper than the Garmin Enduro and about the same price as the cheapest variant of the Fenix ??7 series.
On paper, the Vertix 2 claims up to 140 hours of GPS battery life and up to 240 hours in UltraMax low power mode.
Even when you enable GPS for all dual frequency systems to get better accuracy, you still get 50 hours. However, we didn\'t see any evidence that this mode significantly improves accuracy in our extensive testing.
Standard use of GPS with music reduces your adventure time to 30 hours, while the smartwatch\'s rafiqsonsonline.com/product-category/womens-watch/ claimed total use is 60 days, with expedition mode increasing that time to 65 days.
In our tests, the Vertix 2 pretty much met the requirements. Over the weekend, using smartwatches barely drained the battery by 2-3%. It took 15 days to burn 50% of the workouts, including over 10 hours of GPS tracking workouts, including both indoor and outdoor sessions. That means at least 30 days of battery life when training for an hour a day.
Fitness data includes real-time training load, VO2 Max, pace and intensity recommendations as threshold pace and heart rate estimates, baseline fitness tracking, current fatigue level, exercise impact, and recovery time recommendations. It will also evaluate your running performance level and give you a marathon level for benchmarking.
It\'s more of a watch than most need, but if you\'ve got big wrists, deep pockets, and a serious commitment to bigger adventures, this is an undeniably capable multisport tool with the feature set - and the price - to rival the leading top-of-the-line. street clock.
GARMIN ENDURO
Price when reviewed: Starting at 9 / £699.
The best hiking and outdoor watch for adventurers and ultramarathoners
Before the Fenix ??7 series came on the scene, it was the Enduro that had the longest battery life. Although they no longer hold that title, they are still a great watch option for ultramarathoners and trail runners.
The Enduro is available in a stainless steel case or a more expensive and lighter titanium case with an optional UltraFit nylon strap to help reduce the weight of the watch.
They share many similarities with the Garmin Fenix ??6X and 7X watches, including the same 51mm case size and 280 x 280 transflective display.
You get most of the same features as the biggest Fenix ??6 series, minus the music player and topographic map.
It introduces the new Trail VO2 Max and rest timers for its super power mode, which has since spread to other Fenix ??watches and the Forerunner 945.
And you can also add rest stops and assistance time during endurance events, which shows that this Garmin sports watch is targeted at a specific target market.
What you get is great battery life. Garmin promises up to 70 hours of GPS, which expands to 80 hours when you use its solar charger. Promised up to 65 days in power saving mode.
According to our tests, it also meets these figures. So if you opt for the titanium case option, you\'ll get a lightweight watch with a big screen that can really be used from a distance.
