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Review on ๐Ÿ“ฑ Enhanced Performance: Digital Watches with Altimeter, Barometer, and Compass Functionality by Ron Coleman

Revainrating 5 out of 5

This is a cool gadget. Worth the money and very useful.

I love this thing. I see it as a useful tool when hiking, camping and mountaineering as well as in my daily life. You will definitely want to keep the instructions as this watch has many features. It has standard metric units and US units for all of its settings, but it came to me with default metric units. The instructions aren't written in the clearest of English, but are functional enough - read the product description on the Revain site and you'll have a rough idea of what the instructions look like. I'll go through the features in order of most used to least used: Time: The clock seems to be running fast. I don't bother with such things and just reset the time as needed. It has the ability to program a second time zone, which is useful for me as I seem to live in a different time zone than the rest of my personal and professional life. Backlight: Works, but only stays on for three seconds, presumably to save battery. So it's good for reading the time quickly in the dark, but that's about it. Barometer: Once calibrated, it was accurate compared to the National Weather Service data. The device tracks previous readings and provides trend data as a single barometric pressure isn't very useful unless you know if it's going up or down. This is a cool feature of the watch, useful for predicting the weather in places where smartphones don't always work reliably. However, the weather forecast "function" on the watch itself is obviously not going to be reliable, especially if you've traveled somewhere recently and messed up the barometric pressure history. Altimeter: I'm no expert on this technology, but after some research it turned out that this device calculates altitude based on barometric pressure readings and therefore suffers from problems inherent in all devices with this type of calculation, ie changing weather conditions will cause the altimeter reading to deviate despite the static altitude. This is not a disadvantage in itself, but a limitation of this type of device. So the planes switched to radar and GPS, but that's a $70 watch. Once the device is calibrated with a known altitude, it can tell you the relative altitude and help you estimate your altitude. I would say that this feature is more of a curiosity or backup for specific devices. Temperature: Yes, it can show the temperature around it, and what other reviewers don't seem to know is that when you put it in your pocket, it will show you the temperature in your pocket. It does seem reasonably responsive though: I put it in the freezer when I first started writing this review and it currently reads what I imagine the approximate temperature in my freezer to be. If you're going outdoors or somewhere else, the exact temperature isn't very useful information anyway. Alarm clock: it doesn't wake me up, but it works. Compass: I haven't played around that much. Like the altimeter, I would use this feature as a backup for specialized gear rather than the main compass. Pedometer, chronograph, timer and pacemaker: They seem to be working as they should. I didn't swim with him but he was pretty wet with sweat and snow while I skied and hiked on New Year's Eve with no problems. I'm not afraid to take this watch kayaking in the summer. The accessories included in the kit โ€“ "ropeโ€ and carabiner โ€“ are cheap but functional. I think this is a great watch for outdoor enthusiasts or those who love gadgets like this. However, this is high performance equipment with many features. So if you want something that just shows the time, this isn't it. It's probably not for mountaineering or any other activity where your life is on the line, but for the rest of us it's a cool gadget. Update June 2019: The clock is still running. Still on the original battery. I wear it every day whether I'm working, hiking or kayaking. The back is worn from this use but the front glass is still in perfect condition. I carry it in my pocket and attach it to my waist with a cheap pocket watch chain, which makes it easy to access and prevents it from getting lost or dropped. Time: I have yet to adjust it to about 2 minutes a week. This is accurate as it is always 2 minutes ahead of the week. A little cumbersome but easy to set up. Barometer: not deviated at all. When compared to NWS atmospheric information, clock readings are always within 0.01 inches of mercury. Not bad. Real-time barometric readings and knowledge of local weather conditions and patterns have saved me from getting caught in hills/woods in the rain a few times since purchase. I'll say it needs to be calibrated according to where it's located because it shows relative atmospheric pressure - I've been up in the mountains recently, about twice my house height, and my barometer was very, very wide away. Altimeter: As before, this is calculated from relative atmospheric pressure, so it needs to be calibrated locally to have any chance of accuracy, and needs to be recalibrated frequently. I prefer to use the relative altitude function - it zeroes the clock and any deviation from this has to be added to or subtracted from a known altitude on the map or whatever gives a relative altitude change. I'm a botanist so this information is more of a curiosity to me than a mountain survival tool. Pedometer: I've started using it and it seems pretty accurate compared to my wife's phone. I don't really pay attention to other features. I seriously enjoy this thing. Believe it or not, it's nice to be able to leave my phone at home and still be able to check the time without having to strap something to my wrist and collect sweat and dirt. The clock is definitely doing its job for me and it's a heavy piece of kit so I'm not worried about that. Update July 2019: Watch hit by nasty liquid โ€“ fell a meter and a half on tiles. At the time the watch appeared to be intact, but today it has started to wobble a bit. I switched to a battery to eliminate this problem - the task is simple but involves tiny parts, so it's best left to adventurers with the right tools or a jeweler. The screen started flickering and doing weird things again after I changed the battery, but a fairly aggressive nudge stopped it. Seems to be working fine again. All settings were erased when I changed the batteries - again, I recommend following the instructions. The battery is a publicly available CR2032. The OEM battery was a Maxwell, not some mysterious cheap battery. Six tiny Phillips screws, like those on glasses, hold the back of the case in place. Don't lose the screws or the tiny O-ring, otherwise the water resistance of the watch will be affected. A pen or something similar is also needed to pry open the tiny latch holding the battery in place. July 2019 Update 2: Turns out the clock popping off the counter and onto the tiles damaged the barometer and temperature function, which also ruined the altimeter. special feature. Such a shame. It still tells the time, but now I have to decide what to do - buy a new one or not. This is a pretty heavy watch just to keep track of time and I miss those features. I don't blame the watch, because it was an unpleasant autumn. Update March 2020: I bought a new watch in July and it has been working flawlessly ever since. I've mostly reverted to wristwatches for everyday use, but watch2 is always with my woodland stuff. The Watch2 keeps accurate time and otherwise works the same as the first. My original idea for a watch still stands: it's a cool, useful, and fun tool. It is durable for the most part, but can be damaged if dropped. I like mine.

Pros
  • Easy to use
Cons
  • Quick start guide