Suunto - Race Titanium Charcoal

You can pair both on the Race 2. You cannot on the Race 1 (only on sensor of each type).

I switched from Coros Apex to Suunto Race Titanium, while the Suunto is beautiful and has good gps functionality and battery life the HR is bad even for wrist based. Really disappointing the customization options and interface of the Suunto is way worse. If I had it to do over I would go Coros or Garmin.

Gone from fenix 6 to 165 for lower weight, now Race S titanium and it feels so much nicer to the point I forget I'm wearing it. App wise Garmin has too much and Sunnto has too little for me. Only one watch face installed, but more can be downloaded but its limited No gear tracking Not real challenges or proper badges, good motivation for me Sunnto has so many activities to use where as my 165 was vastly limited for no good reason other than to get me to buy a more expensive watch. Love the "chores" activitie and makes more put more effort into stuff like gardening I will stick with Sunnto as I love the actual watch and the app does cover the essentials, also nice to give a big "F You!" to garmin for the paywall crap and overpricing!

Suunto Race (Ti version). Really enjoy it. Accurate, durable, long battery life, screen is easy to read and the navigation is intuitive and quick.

Above you said you just want to track your activities, primarily runs. For that, I think Suunto is great and I think the plethora of stats you get from an activity are better than Garmin. I also prefer the look of the watches and the simplicity of the user experience. They do have some quirks, but all of them do, just have to see what works for you. I personally use the Race Titanium and really enjoy it. While I usually use a HR chest strap, I find the OHR to work pretty well most of the time. It just requires you to wear it above your wrist and tightly synched. When it doesn't work, it's usually because it's not tight enough and has moved around, and at that point, it locks onto my cadence. If you're looking for the best interval training functionality, tracking of your reps at the gym, etc., then Garmin may be the better choice. They're somewhat filled with faff and once I used the 2 buttons plus the scroll wheel of Suunto, it cemented how ridiculous the 5-button layout Garmin uses is. That said, they do work well, and I've used them and found them to be accurate. I briefly had a Coros a few years ago, and while well made (Apex Pro), I didn't really get along with it. I suspect the new models are much nicer. As others have said, any of these options should do what you're after, depends on what specific functionality you're looking for, ease of use, customization, etc.

I have had every Garmin since the Fenix 3. Recently picked up the Race. Not sure I’ll go back to Garmin. The watch itself feels years ahead of Garmin. The Fenix line has more or less had the same case since its inception. Suunto app is more user friendly and cleaner IMO. Currently testing a Coros Nomad. If that doesn’t suit my fancy I will definitely be picking up the Race 2. (Still In the return period on the Race 1)

I really like the Race 2 but man, the bugs and quirks are real…especially the data discrepancies between the watch and the app. After 9 days, I’m thinking it should go back. It just doesn’t seem like it was ready for prime time and I’m not sure I trust they’ll support it or fix it. Just as the title states, I have an offer to buy a brand new in the sealed box Forerunner 970 for only $630. I never thought I’d go back to Garmin but their reputation for activity tracking and support is strong. I want to love Suunto but I’m not there. I know this is a Suunto forum but I’m sure there are Garmin folks in here (current or former). What do you think?

Yeah… I get the Suunto love here lol. I really like what Suunto has going on and the Race 2 is very well built. I’m just not sure about the data discrepancies and Suunto’s reputation for device support.

I went back and forth 20 times on what to do. I was going to go back to Garmin and get the 970 but just told myself that I've been with Garmin for years and left them for reasons that have not changed. I really like the Suunto and want to give them the chance. I am staying with the Race 2 Titanium. I just hope they sort out the data discrepancies and bugs in near term firmware updates.

I agree about Garmin’s direction. Some of their product decisions don’t make sense (ie, Instinct 3 with gen 4 sensor). I ended up returning the Race 2 Titanium but will most likely get the stainless steel Race 2 and stick with Suunto. With a discount code I can get it from Suunto for $425…that’s a great deal. I just hope that Suunto will fix some of the data discrepancies and fully support the watch for years to come.

Had the 970, returned it and now very happy with the Race 2. Only thing the Garmin does better for me is notifications.

Honestly, I'm not a big fan of Garmin's current direction – especially with the higher prices, subscription model, and the idea of reusing old CPUs. The Race 2 is genuinely really responsive on the map screen! I went with the titanium one, but I'm honestly not sure if paying the extra £100 is really worth it.

I agree with you! I mean with the discount code I got I paid $424 USD. Where else are you going to get a watch with sapphire crystal glass as well as all of the other features for that price? After a week now I’d say it’s hard to beat for me at least.

It has HRV but not during activities but very few devices can do that, even high end models from Garmin. If you want that the take a look at Suunto with ZoneSense.

The Garmin Fenix 7 pro solar titanium is on sale for prime day from $900 - $500. I have a Suunto Race Ti and it’s pretty great but if I were to go back in time I’d definitely get a Garmin Fenix Edit: pricing was off