Suunto Ambit3 Model Comparison: Which Ambit3 GPS watch is right for you?

Suunto is one of the top brands when it comes to GPS sportwatches. If you’re into running, cycling, swimming, hiking, or a combination of these sports, Suunto has just the watch that would include the features you need for a certain sport. The Ambit3 series has different models targeted for different athletes or fitness enthusiasts. 

It’s All in the Name

Suunto uses suffixes to distinguish each model from each other. 

• Ambit3 Run is aimed for running
• Ambit3 Sport is aimed for triathlon and multisport such as running, swimming, and biking
• Ambit3 Peak is aimed for triathlon/multisport, hiking, and outdoor navigation
• Ambit3 Vertical is right between the Sport and the Peak. It doesn’t include some software features of the Peak but it adds others the Peak lacks. As the suffix implies, the Vertical is aimed for those who regularly hike or climb.

Suunto Ambit3 Run

The Ambit3 Run has all the essential features that you would like for running. It’s just like the Ambit3 Sport but without the multisport functionality. Unlike its rival sportwatches, the Ambit3 Run has navigation functionality which lets you follow a route or route to a point of interest (POI).

Suunto Ambit3 Sport

The Ambit3 Sport offers world-class GPS sportwatch functionalities for swimming, cycling and running, as well as a strong feature set for hiking, navigation and the outdoors. You can sync it with your mobile phone using Bluetooth Smart, and record heart rate underwater while swimming. 

Suunto Ambit3 Peak

The Ambit3 Peak is the high-end multisport outdoor GPS watch that in a way that it has all the features of the Sport but includes a barometric altimeter and longer battery life (30 days in time mode). It provides route navigation and track back, weather trend indicator, storm alarm, and sunrise/sunset times.

Suunto Ambit3 Vertical

The Ambit3 Vertical is the newest entry among the bunch. It’s slightly different physically in a way that it does not have the satellite hump found on the wristband of the Ambit1/2/3. You can view current vs route elevation profile on the watch, dashboard ascent graphs/details, and 3D distance.

Unlike the Sport and Peak, the Vertical adds in vibration alerts and GLONASS GPS capabilities. You also get the barometric altimeter available on the Peak and the same battery life like that of the Run and Sport (14 days in time mode).

Other useful features the Ambit3 range has to offer

All Ambit3 models except for the Run offers you the ability to change sport mode during exercise and create preconfigured multisport modes. This lets you easily switch from one sport to another during a triathlon.

You can use Bluetooth Smart connectivity to pair the Ambit3 Sport, Vertical, and Peak with compatible footpods, bike pods, cadence pods, and bike power metres. In addition, the Ambit3 series brought other minor features like the ability to use your phone as a display for the watch and activity monitoring. This lets you have an idea about your movement throughout the day but doesn’t measure your daily steps or distance traveled, nor does it track things like sleep. 

 

Feature Comparison Table