Suunto Vertical 2 Review

The Suunto Vertical 2 marks the end of an era, replacing the original Vertical's memory-in-pixel (MIP) display and solar panel with a 1.5-inch AMOLED screen that's much brighter in direct sunlight. Scratch-resistant sapphire glass, along with stainless steel or titanium bezel options, makes this a rugged watch.

Accuracy

The Vertical 2 uses Suunto's upgraded optical heart rate sensor paired with dual-frequency GPS, and both performed well across our testing. On our known 2-mile course, the Vertical 2 measured within ±0.03 miles of the actual distance, confirming that dual-frequency positioning is reliable across open terrain and in areas with limited line of sight.

Heart rate accuracy showed a clear pattern across our three comparison runs against a Polar Verity Sense armband. During the first 15 minutes, the wrist sensor read an average of 3-4 BPM lower than the armband – this type of “warm-up lag” is common with wrist-based optical sensors as they calibrate to skin contact and blood flow. Once it warmed up, accuracy during steady activity was excellent. The mean difference dropped to essentially zero, with 90% of readings falling within 5 BPM of the control. Suunto cited improved HR accuracy as its primary goal for this generation, and the data support that claim. Athletes who need precise heart rate data from the very first step should still pair an external sensor, but for the vast majority of training efforts, the Vertical 2 delivers reliable readings once it locks on.

Activity Use

Like other Suunto watches, the software on the Vertical 2 received a meaningful overhaul. Notably, you can run three SuuntoPlus apps simultaneously: useful ones include a triathlon mode, heart-rate zone intensity monitoring, and expanded running dynamics – tools that will help you measure things like cadence and ground contact time. The brighter AMOLED screen also makes this watch much easier to use outside. Data fields are vivid and legible in all lighting conditions, and the map rendering benefits dramatically from the color depth. The navigation overhaul brings larger directional arrows, clearer points of interest, and a very useful north-up option to the full offline topo maps. However, it's still pretty difficult to see the trail well when you zoom in on the map.

Everyday Use

The Suunto app delivers the same clean interface users love, with an improved feature set that includes sleep phases and AI Coach training recommendations. Again, the brighter AMOLED screen is a significant upgrade, making everyday interactions with notifications and widgets that much more pleasant. However, the three-button layout means scrolling through menus and data pages requires repeated button presses – user experience would be much better if it had a rotating crown you could use to cycle through menus. Another annoying and ongoing issue with this range of Suunto watches is that you cannot silence alert sounds without enabling full Do Not Disturb mode. At 3.0 ounces for the stainless version, the Vertical 2 is also on the heavier side. It may not seem like much, but when you're wearing it all day, you'll definitely notice the extra weight compared to a 2-ounce watch.

Extra Features

The flashlight is the feature to highlight – this feature, alone, is worth the $100 premium over similar Suunto watches. Unlike a bright white screen as a “flashlight”, the dedicated LED light is bright and actually useful for things like navigating camp, checking gear in the dark, or signaling in an emergency. The flashlight remembers its last brightness setting, which is a small but appreciated touch. Another nice upgrade, exclusive to the Vertical 2, is the ability to disable touchscreen gestures. This helps avoid accidental interactions and is hugely helpful in the rain, which can make a watch go crazy. Like other GPS watches designed more for athletics than smartwatches designed for everyday ease of use, the Vertical 2 has no music storage, no NFC payments, and no speaker or microphone.

Wearability

The stainless steel version we tested weighs 3.0 ounces, making it one of the heaviest watches in our lineup. Sapphire glass and metal lugs give it a rugged, expedition-ready aesthetic that shouts “durability,” but you'll pay a weight penalty. The titanium option, of course, is lighter but more expensive. The three-button layout is easy to use with gloves, but less fluid than watches with twistable crowns to navigate menus. Suunto typically includes two strap lengths, and swapping them out is simple.

Battery Life

The Vertical 2 is Suunto's flagship adventure model, and the numbers back that up. We measured 66 hours of battery life in All Systems mode, the best among GPS watches we tested with AMOLED screens. Charging from empty to full takes approximately 72 minutes.

Should You Buy the Suunto Vertical 2?

This is the watch to choose if your days often start in the dark, travel through terrain that demands real navigation, and if you do that for multiple days in a row. Compared to other watches with similarly bright AMOLED screens, the Vertical 2 stands out for its best battery life, a genuinely useful LED flashlight, and expedition-grade build quality. For the athlete who pushes into remote terrain, the Vertical 2 delivers top-tier performance.

What Other GPS Watches Should You Consider?

The Suunto Race 2 shares the same software as the Vertical 2, and its rotating crown makes it easier to navigate menus and data. Even though it's more affordable, it lacks the super-useful LED flashlight and has a noticeably shorter battery life. The Coros Vertix 2S nearly doubles the battery life of the Vertical 2 with a similarly rugged construction, but its MIP display is not nearly as bright. The Garmin Enduro 3 offers the best battery life of any watch we tested, and includes useful smartwatch features like music and payments, but it costs nearly $1000.

Previous Next