Review: Suunto Ambit 2S

The Ambit 2S is Suunto’s newest GPS offering. It’s a subtle variation on its sibling, the Ambit 2. The 2S is more focused on endurance sports, doing away with needless features for runners, such as the barometric altimeter. Those familiar with Suunto products will be happy to hear that the 2S can run five apps at once, and that users can build and personalize their own apps with Suunto’s software. The 2S also has extensive cycling and swimming functions.

The 2S wears well on the wrist and its bulk is on par with other fully featured GPS watches. It has a shorter battery life than the Ambit 2 due to its slimmer and lighter design, which is a welcome trade-off for most runners.

The Ambit 2S is also handsome, with a quartz mineral crystal and a brushed steel bezel. The accompanying heart rate monitor is among the most comfortable on the market and the GPS connects very quickly. We especially appreciated the multiple info options and the high resolution screen. The Ambit 2S does just about everything in addition to looking and feeling good, making it a sound choice for those indeed of a fully featured GPS watch.

$450 with heart rate monitor, $400 without.