Highgear Summit Altimeter Watch

This watch will put out for you, though the barometer needs a bit of attention to keep it honest. Right now as I'm wearing it there's a few splotches of salt on the inside of the watch face. It's water resistance apparently went to hell on me 2 years in. However, after drying the sucker out for a couple hours it works like new with some salt splotches courtesy of the wiring inside. The compass works fairly well, though it gets confused sometimes (indicating a calibration is due). Temperature gauge will only be accurate when you take the watch off and place it on something that doesn't have a radically different heat capacity than the medium you're in (i.e. hold it in the atmosphere for a spell). Weather forecasting feature is nice, and sometimes comical when inaccurate, for example it's raining today, hmmm that's funny because there's no ceiling. But I imagine these complaints are true for most watch-borne weather stations, you just have to keep calibrating the suckers. All in all it's a burly piece that has taken the abuse I've put it through. Finally this watch, like most altimeters, will leave you with many hilarious comments, like "wow I can hardly read the time on that thing!"...priceless.

Don't get me wrong, the functions on the watch are quite easy to use, and they are pretty accurate. The biggest issues I found with this watch are one, the plastic housing where the straps meet the face. They are too weak to handle one year of outdoorsy activities. I'm on me second watch waiting for my third. And two, I'm waiting on my third watch because Highgear's warrenty/repair service is slower than molasses. If this third watch cracks in the same place, I'll spend the extra money on a Suunto.

I really enjoy this watch, it does everything that I need and it is very accurate on predicting the weather as well. The price is very nice for everything you get as compared to some other brands which are very expensive. I reccomend this product. It is very big and people will say "wow thats a big watch" but i think thier jealous

I bought a Highgear Summit watch in July of 2005 and was excited with the triple sensor features. In the fall, we hiked through the Grand Canyon and I was anxious to review the elevation changes throughout the hike. Five days later on the trail up the South Rim the altimeter ceased to function. I called Highgear and explained the situation and they authorized a return. I received a new watch a week later (November 2005) and all seemed OK. In July 2007 I started to experience problems again. Now the barometer would not change and since the altimeter is tied to the barometer that too was incorrect. I procrastinated calling Highgear and with an upcoming vacation planned to the Tetons in September 2007 I wanted to have a functioning altimeter. However, the watch then signaled a low battery by beeping and flashing a number of times and went blank. I replaced the battery and nothing. Total blank. I tired the complete reset maneuver (holding all four buttons simultaneously) and still nothing. When I called Highgear and explained all the problems, the customer service person was nice and did a lot of searching to find my original contact in 2005 and the authorized return. She informed me that the replacement watch was within the 2-year warranty and likely they would replace the malfunctioning watch. I was told I would get an email with the RMA. That never happened. A week passed and no email. I called again but never got through to a person as the customer service number immediately transferred to voicemail. I left my contact information repeatedly but never received a call back. Upon returning from the vacation, I called again and customer service still transferred directly to voicemail. I called back but choose technical support and talked to a technician. This person was either having a bad day or did not like taking support calls. His first reaction was that I did not know how to change the battery. His second reaction was that I was using an expired battery as a replacement. When I insisted I had a fresh battery he then informed me I would get an email with an RMA (sound familiar) and to send the watch back with a copy of my receipt and Highgear would either replace or repair after they evaluated the watch. When I told him that the watch had been replaced by Highgear in November 2005 and that a previous customer service contact indicated the replacement watch was within warranty he just repeated his instructions without any comment about the prior replacement. I never received the email with the RMA and at this point no longer interested in any Highgear solution. Pros: The watch is attractive and I received a lot of compliments on its look. I liked the large size and large numbers. The backlight feature was strong and there were times I used it as a quick flashlight in a dark tent. Cons: The mechanism failed in two watches in two years through normal wear and tear. Customer support and technical support do not follow up on their commitments. Here' the bottom line: The watch was not cheap and should have more durability than I received. I could understand one watch having a problem but for two watches to fail in two years seems very odd and a bit concerning. Since I am in the market again for another watch, I have read more reviews on triple sensor type watches and have learned that all seem to have issues, regardless of manufacturer, mainly in the barometer and altimeter features. Perhaps it may be too much to ask a timepiece to accommodate the triple sensor technology.

I bought this watch as a replacement of my Suunto Vector, which the compass failed twice seems common fault. I like the Summit the display is clearer than the Vector with more information display at the one time, but there are few annoyance. Firstly as mention by others, the light button serve multiple and the light will not stay on long enough preventing us to use the watch in complete darkness, secondly, it is impossible to show the month in any mode other than the set mode, thirdly, the altimeter seems too sensitive or unstable as compared with the Vector. The last one is not an annoyance but quite funny to me, I don't see how useful is the dual time clock which can set different year as well !

This watch, functionally, works great. It has pretty much everything you need at a great price (vs. Suunto). The gripes I have though outweigh the positives. The first is setting the alarm at night. The set button is the same as the light, and the light is never on long enough to set the alarm. The other is the size. At first, it's sweet having a huge watch, then you try to put your pack on and the straps get stuck on it. Or you bend your wrist and it pushes the buttons. Annoying.

The Highgear Summit has lots of fun features and seems well built and reliable. It's huge, a genuine beast, almost too large for long sleeves, but still comfortable. My only gripe is that it's easy to inadvertently press the mode button. You should probably try this watch on before purchasing it.

i was surprised at how accurate it was when i first got it. after i dropped it on my wood floor the barometer, altimeter, and thermometer stopped working. this watch is very fragile. i suggest you read the first part of the 9th review it is very accurate. i just used it up in the sespe wilderness of California. even though it was snowing my watch said it was 88 degrees after being off my wrists for 30 minutes. after all its a good watch if you're going to be super careful with it and protect it from everything. i thought this watch really did not impress me.

My son loves his watch! It was the first thing he asked for on his Xmas list and it hasn't disappointed him. Only negative thing is the current room/outside temp. reading. It does add 10-15 degrees on the reading because of your body temp. So you don't know the correct temp. unless you took the watch off.

The functionability of this watch rocks. It tells me everything I need to know--even the build in the 3-hour barometer based weather forecast seems pretty accurate. I've had a few problems with the waterproofing, (apparently not great in salt water) and the altitude doesn't stay all that accurate if you change altitudes a lot. Otherwise, it's great.

This is a great piece of equipment. Paying $300 for an altimeter watch is no longer necessary. The altimeter stays pretty accurate over time and weather changes and I couldn't be happier! Yeah, it's big, but we're mountain hippies not supermodels, right?

Had this watch for about a year now and it has been a great help whenever and wherever I happen to be. My biggest complaint is that you can't set the alarm in the dark. The set button also activates the light (which you need for setting the alarm), so once you get to the alarm function the light is activated when you hold down the set button but it doesn't stay on long enough for you to reset the alarm. In order to have light again you have to hit the set button again which saves the time you weren't able to see to fix into the alarm. *Ugh* just use your headlamp! After hitting the default reset buttons on accident last winter the compass has not worked right since. Unfortunately the directions weren't that much of a help with recalibration. Not a big deal as I prefer my manual anyway. Altimeter is delightful and accurate, but needs to be recalibrated every once in a while. Barometer worked amazingly well during ski season, but for some reason hasn't worked that well since - not sure if it's me or if the weather is getting smarter. The watch has never faultered once, but I don't think the build quality is the greatest. Oh yeah, it's FREAKIN' HUGE!! If you ever get lost you can easily use this thing as a signal mirror or dinner plate (if you lost that too).

This watch is awesome I have had it for just a few weeks now, and I especially love the Barometer. 2 weeks ago we were up in the Wind Rivers, and it was perfectly accurate. As we got into the cirque of the towers I thought for sure we were going to get pounded with rain but the watch only said cloudy, and it didn't rain. The next day it did say rain, and it was clear in the morning but a few hours later we had some severely rainy weather. This is the easiest weather gage there is. Most other watches you have to track how the numbers are changing and figure what kind of weather that will bring.

I was skeptical at first about how accurately altimeters measure altitude, especially those that use a barometer to do it. However, I have found this watch exceptionally good at measuring altitude with a precision that is within a 1:24000 topoline. Just as long as you calibrate either the barometer or altimeter-which is accomplished easily by topomaps, GPS, or other means-the watch will work fine (You shouldn't rely on a single instrument anyways to get around in the wilderness). The temperature I have found to read just fine, even though the Summit is on my wrist when it measures temp, it always measures ambient air temps and not that of my body (again, double checked by a thermometer). The 6 hour forecast actually works (as long as it is calibrated correctly)! The only downside to this watch is the compass. I have found that the compass bearing oscillates quite a bit unless the watch is level and motionless. But the oscillations eventually dampen and the bearing can be accurately read (again, measured against another compass w/same declination), good enough to find your way through thick Rhododendrons and briars, and the declination is a sweet little addition. All in all a great field watch without breaking the bank, and backcountry shipped my purchase expediently good job people!

After 1 month... PROS- Fits great! The wide range of functions suits my needs. Easy to learn the set-up/calibration of it's many functions once you do it. CONS- I have only a minor complaint... the ALTIMETER has to constantly be calibrated.

This watch is great. For all the functions you get with this watch for the money spent, it is a great value. I do wish the thermometer worked while it was on your wrist. The temp is accurate within 15 minutes of taking the watch off. It is very easily read due to the large display. The size of the watch is comparable to watches similarly equipped. The altitude accumulation function is my favorite function. The compass is super accurate. I think you will like it.

I had seen the $500 Suunto and thought about how to use all the neat gadgets, but really didn't have the moolah. I thought that this represented the best deal for the price, and it probably does. However, the watch stands about 3/4 of an inch above your wrist and is as big as a WWF Championship Belt. Well, not really, but I am a little guy. This would not be a real concern for a watch built for outdoor functions, but they don't include a watch band expander so that you can wear the watch outside your clothing. I mean, why do I want to freeze my wrist so I can find the temperature of my wrist rather than the outdoor temp?

It’s just a pretty cool watch in general, especially if you can get it with a discount! I found the 'temperature' functionality a little useless since it’s not accurate when you're wearing it—so what's the point of that? The altitude functionality is cool, but you have to set it up daily, or else daily changes in pressure will mess it up. The compass is pretty accurate and is probably the most useful tool on there. I LOVE the big numbers/display. Overall, a good watch for the price.

I recently bought the Summit watch as a less costly alternative to some of the others on the market. So far, I am very pleased. The watch is very functional and easy to use.

This is a very good watch. It has a very durable case and strap. The compass works great and is very accurate. The altimeter is not that accurate at least on my watch. It haas been known to change altitudes when you are standing still. The barometer is extremely accurate and very helpful with a little knowledge of predicting weather using barometric trends and the trend chart goes back a whole 24 hours. The watch is kind of bulky compared to most average sized watches. Definitely a steal compared to Suunto watch with the same features.

This is a very good watch. It has a very durable case and strap. The compass works great and is very accurate. The altimeter is not that accurate, at least on my watch. It has been known to change altitudes when you’re standing still. The barometer is extremely accurate and very helpful with a little knowledge of predicting weather using barometric trends and the trend chart goes back a whole 24 hours. The watch is kind of bulky compared to most average sized watches. Definitely a steal compared to Suunto watch with the same features.

Best watch I have ever owned. I take it everywhere with me. It is very durable. You may have to calibrate the altimeter, compass, and barometer in case it is off. Once you set it it is extremely accurate. It is also very stylish and I have gotten many comments about its looks. It is really fun to use too, my friends always come up to me and check the weather trying to see if it is wrong but it hasn't been wrong yet!!!