Poor water Resistant and easily aged strap

By I.H Ranked #310 - Running Watches July 29, 2009

I got my Suunto Observer Titanium in 2002. It looked cool. On its back, it was marked 100m/330ft water ressistance. I had another 100m water resistant watch, SEIKO SPORT 100 (the first digital watch with 100m water resistant in the world). The SEIKO SPORT 100 was purchased around 1976 and I wore it everyday until I got my Suunto Observer. I wore the SEIKO SPORT 100 for skin diving down to 10 meters depth and then Scuba diving down to 30 meters depth in the sea for 26 years. The only maintenance was replacement of the battery every 2-3 years.

Two weeks after I got my Sunnto Observer Titanium, I wore it to a shallow pool, teaching my daughter how to swim. Back home, the Suunto Oberver stopped working because water leaked in! I brought it back to the dealer who shipped it back to Suunto in Finland. Two months later I got it back with a warning: Don't push any buttons in the water. C'mon, I pushed my SEIKO watch thousands of times under water. Both watches stated 100m water resistant.

Within one year after I received the repaired watch, the rubber band (Titanium Strap) degenerated into pieces. I thought because I wore it to the beach and salty air and sea water erosed the rubber.

I then decided to replace the rubber band with a $5 sport and elastic band (but it's quite ugly). So today I am still wearing my SEIKO SPORT 100 watch, with every parts come from the original watch I purchased.

Which one is a better watch?

View Details: Suunto Observer Altimeter Watch

Helpful Votes: 0 Yes | 1 No