Who's got a favourite surf watch to share? suggestions?. Mine is a GShock, tide, G-Lide. Good tide info you can set on coordinates by phone, always handy for known the tides !

I like the analog watches from Timex

I got an Amazfit T-Rex 2 about a year ago, it's a smartwatch so can track walks, surfing etc also has tides, temperature and so on, one of the best features is its battery life, I can go two weeks without charging. Receive texts but can't send them or use it to make payments but that doesn't bother me.
pretty happy with it really

No need for a watch for tides, I just check the time of the next tide before getting out of the van, and it is sufficient.

What I look for in watches:
- lisibility: old eyes pre-dawn means that I cannot read digital watches, so even less something with the ergonomics of an airplane cockpit!
- lisibility: white hands on a black background work best
- light
- thin
- plastic (so not to damage the board)
- no distractions, such as the indication of the day of the month, a hassle to maintain.
- battery easily replaceable (4 screws), with a standard-size joint
- and the crown away from the wrist, I hate it when the crown digs in the top of my hand.

The best I found is the Rip Curl Cambridge.
It even has inside a support for the mechanism to resist shocks (unlike the Nixon watches)

www.ripcurl.com/us/mens/watches/cambridge-silicone-2-0-watch.html?754=1408



PS: for a long battery life, use the "Renata" Swiss batteries.

Apple ultra. Can use Dawn Patrol, Strava or Hoolan to record sessions.

I quite like my Rip Curl Search 2 GPS watch.
Which was an upgrade from the original Search GPS watch (that ended up failing, and Rip Curl provided me with the new Search 2 for the cost of the replacement part that they no longer had - exceptional customer service, in my eyes).
Tides, GPS, surf session data, links to Surfline.... although not particularly well. To be fair, links to Surfline Sessions well, just not the forecast/conditions particularly well.
I've heard that they're coming out with version 3 in the near future.
Version 3 may be 'smarter' - if that's needed?

I bought a cheap digital watch for ?15 from Decathlon 10 years ago with big numbers on it.does nothing else but tells the time. Still going strong.
I like the look of the one Colas has.

Select to expand quote

hilly said..
Apple ultra. Can use Dawn Patrol, Strava or Hoolan to record sessions.

If I had the coin that'd be the one

+1 for the ripcurl gps, love how it keeps all my stats

Select to expand quote

riverider said..
+1 for the ripcurl gps, love how it keeps all my stats

Hey river, that distance is it real or is it because of you standing up paddling, I mean to say a kilometre wave in Tassie?

Select to expand quote

micksmith said..

riverider said..
+1 for the ripcurl gps, love how it keeps all my stats

Hey river, that distance is it real or is it because of you standing up paddling, I mean to say a kilometre wave in Tassie?

Hobart points, pretty small at the end, but surfed all the way

Garmin Fenix 7 Saphire Solar are bullet proof and provide a huge amount of data, battery life is 26 days depending on GPS use but it is a matter of weeks between charges.

Select to expand quote

Slab said..
I bought a cheap digital watch for ?15 from Decathlon 10 years ago with big numbers on it.does nothing else but tells the time. Still going strong.

Yes, I have one as a backup in my van (I hate it when I find the battery dead just before a session, as I only wear a watch while SUPing), keeping it with the crown pulled out so that the battery is not used, in a bag with a dissecant.
Its mechanism is exactly the same as the Nixon Time Teller that costs nearly ten times more...
Explaining why Nixon is the most profitable surfing wear/gear company :-)

The RipCurl mechanism is similar, but with a wide flange that fits the whole watch, preventing jiggles in shocks.
This is the white plastic part in this picture (of a similar watch):
The Decathlon and Nixon have the black part alone in the watch body, meaning it will be less shock-resistant.


PS: watches joints hate temperature changes, avoid taking showers with them.

Select to expand quote

colas said..

Slab said..
I bought a cheap digital watch for ?15 from Decathlon 10 years ago with big numbers on it.does nothing else but tells the time. Still going strong.

Yes, I have one as a backup in my van (I hate it when I find the battery dead just before a session, as I only wear a watch while SUPing), keeping it with the crown pulled out so that the battery is not used, in a bag with a dissecant.
Its mechanism is exactly the same as the Nixon Time Teller that costs nearly ten times more...
Explaining why Nixon is the most profitable surfing wear/gear company :-)

The RipCurl mechanism is similar, but with a wide flange that fits the whole watch, preventing jiggles in shocks.
This is the white plastic part in this picture (of a similar watch):
The Decathlon and Nixon have the black part alone in the watch body, meaning it will be less shock-resistant.


PS: watches joints hate temperature changes, avoid taking showers with them.

Always shower with my Ultra no problem

Select to expand quote

hilly said..

Always shower with my Ultra no problem

theslenderwrist.com/watch-in-the-shower/

When I wore my watches in the shower, nothing happened immediately but I got condensation inside after some months/years.

Select to expand quote

colas said..

hilly said..

Always shower with my Ultra no problem

theslenderwrist.com/watch-in-the-shower/

When I wore my watches in the shower, nothing happened immediately but I got condensation inside after some months/years.

Had mine almost 2 years all good.

Select to expand quote

DaveSandan said..
Garmin Fenix 7 Saphire Solar are bullet proof and provide a huge amount of data, battery life is 26 days depending on GPS use but it is a matter of weeks between charges.

I've got the Fenix 7 Solar pro too, great watch. Warranty replacement for my Fenix 5 when the battery started to die after years of use. Out of warranty replacement cost AUD$202, Garmin is a great company to deal with.

I had a Garmin Fenix 3since 2016 and it was excellent. Super tough and reliable and great battery life (weeks). I used the built-in apps for recording sessions and viewed the results on the Garmin Connect web site. From there it was easy to export the data into a spreadsheet to make custom graphs or view it in Google Earth or whatever.

The only problem was that eventually salt crystals would build up under the buttons and they would stop working. A quick soak in warm water would dissolve the salt and it would work fine. Eventually the battery life dropped down to a day or so, and the buttons would continually cark it.

I bought a Fenix 7X Solar Sapphire. The buttons died after a couple of months. Soaking in warm water didn't help. Garmin sent me a new one and the same thing happened so I returned it for a refund and bought an Apple Watch Ultra.

The Apple is pretty good. Battery life is only a day but it's easy to pop it on a wireless charger at night.

Things I don't like about the Apple:
- The watch gets jammed between the end of the wetsuit sleeve and the back of my hand. That pushes the buttons and it can cancel recording, switch to a different screen, try and call SOS. It sucks.

- You have to use an app to get decent session recording and I don't love any of them (Waterspeed, Hoolan, etc). You can use the built-in cycling app but it's a pain to get the data out and do anything useful with it.

- The apps control what you can see and the size of the fields on the screen. It annoys me that I can't just choose what I want to see and how big it is.

PS Sapphire glass is essential if you want a smart watch to last. Ordinary glass will break at the slightest touch against something hard.

Select to expand quote

Gorgo said..
I had a Garmin Fenix 3since 2016 and it was excellent. Super tough and reliable and great battery life (weeks). I used the built-in apps for recording sessions and viewed the results on the Garmin Connect web site. From there it was easy to export the data into a spreadsheet to make custom graphs or view it in Google Earth or whatever.

The only problem was that eventually salt crystals would build up under the buttons and they would stop working. A quick soak in warm water would dissolve the salt and it would work fine. Eventually the battery life dropped down to a day or so, and the buttons would continually cark it.

I bought a Fenix 7X Solar Sapphire. The buttons died after a couple of months. Soaking in warm water didn't help. Garmin sent me a new one and the same thing happened so I returned it for a refund and bought an Apple Watch Ultra.

The Apple is pretty good. Battery life is only a day but it's easy to pop it on a wireless charger at night.

Things I don't like about the Apple:
- The watch gets jammed between the end of the wetsuit sleeve and the back of my hand. That pushes the buttons and it can cancel recording, switch to a different screen, try and call SOS. It sucks.

- You have to use an app to get decent session recording and I don't love any of them (Waterspeed, Hoolan, etc). You can use the built-in cycling app but it's a pain to get the data out and do anything useful with it.

- The apps control what you can see and the size of the fields on the screen. It annoys me that I can't just choose what I want to see and how big it is.

PS Sapphire glass is essential if you want a smart watch to last. Ordinary glass will break at the slightest touch against something hard.

Just curious if you're a hard nut on your equipment or if it's just bad luck, just that others with those watches swear by them.
and why the hell can't Apple make batteries last more than 34hrs before charging?

Select to expand quote

micksmith said..

...

Just curious if you're a hard nut on your equipment or if it's just bad luck, just that others with those watches swear by them.
and why the hell can't Apple make batteries last more than 34hrs before charging?

I usually get 230-250 sessions a year and sessions average 1.5 hours each, so my watches get a fair bit of use (and that's how I know how many sessions and the average time ). I don't notice any bashing of my arms so I doubt if any impact is involved. It's generally just immersion in salt water.

I'm pretty competent and don't fall that much kite foiling so the watch really only spends at most 5 minutes in the water during a session so even the immersion is not all that much.

I think it's just poor design of the buttons. They should be made in such a way that they're resistant to salt building up underneath.

I had conventional Apple watches for a while and they failed very quickly. The Ultra is lasting really well. The Apple watches have relatively poor battery life because they are doing so much more than the Garmin and doing it pretty much all the time. The screen is bright and always on. The Apple is a smart watch first and a sports watch second. The Garmin is 100% a sports device that is also a pretty decent smart watch.

If you're not recording a session then a Garmin is pretty much a bog standard watch which is how they get a month or so out of a charge. If you're recording sessions and using apps the battery life drops down to hours.

Garmin Epix. Solid, reliable easy link to Surfline cameras to capture videos. Links to our e bikes and scales. Great general purpose activity/fitness watch.

Select to expand quote

Gorgo said..

micksmith said..

...

Just curious if you're a hard nut on your equipment or if it's just bad luck, just that others with those watches swear by them.
and why the hell can't Apple make batteries last more than 34hrs before charging?

I usually get 230-250 sessions a year and sessions average 1.5 hours each, so my watches get a fair bit of use (and that's how I know how many sessions and the average time ). I don't notice any bashing of my arms so I doubt if any impact is involved. It's generally just immersion in salt water.

I'm pretty competent and don't fall that much kite foiling so the watch really only spends at most 5 minutes in the water during a session so even the immersion is not all that much.

I think it's just poor design of the buttons. They should be made in such a way that they're resistant to salt building up underneath.

I had conventional Apple watches for a while and they failed very quickly. The Ultra is lasting really well. The Apple watches have relatively poor battery life because they are doing so much more than the Garmin and doing it pretty much all the time. The screen is bright and always on. The Apple is a smart watch first and a sports watch second. The Garmin is 100% a sports device that is also a pretty decent smart watch.

If you're not recording a session then a Garmin is pretty much a bog standard watch which is how they get a month or so out of a charge. If you're recording sessions and using apps the battery life drops down to hours.

Yep agree with that I had a Garmin and recording long sessions it had similar battery length as a an Apple Watch. I take my watch off every night and just chuck it on the mag charger easy as. Garmin plug in is painful.

Select to expand quote

Gorgo said..
I'm pretty competent and don't fall that much kite foiling so the watch really only spends at most 5 minutes in the water during a session so even the immersion is not all that much.

Just guessing there: could it be that if it get salt water from time to time (falls, spray) but have the time to dry up in-between, it accelerates the formation of salt crystals?

Apple Watch + Dawn Patrol app

My only complaint is that with time the battery life really starts to dwindle.

Select to expand quote

colas said..

Gorgo said..
I'm pretty competent and don't fall that much kite foiling so the watch really only spends at most 5 minutes in the water during a session so even the immersion is not all that much.

Just guessing there: could it be that if it get salt water from time to time (falls, spray) but have the time to dry up in-between, it accelerates the formation of salt crystals?

Yes, my Garmin watch buttons eventually fail due to salt buildup underneath, but they have always provided a warranty replacement for a small cost. In 9 years of using the Fenix series I've had 3 replacements, started with the Fenix 3 and now have been upgraded to the Fenix 7.

Just about to buy a new surf watch as my Apple is slowly dying.

if price isn't a consideration is the Garmin fenix? 8 47mm SOLAR the go ?????

Don't waste your money on the solar, just get the regular version. Solar barely improves battery live if it works at all (in my case only after a restart when used indoors for a bit).

Select to expand quote

Rossall said..
Just about to buy a new surf watch as my Apple is slowly dying.

if price isn't a consideration is the Garmin fenix? 8 47mm SOLAR the go ?????

I have the Fenix 7 Solar and looked at getting the 8 but it still does not have ECG so I am waiting on that feature. The new Solar is 50% better than the 7 Solar and clearer glass, if you go non solar you get the AMOLED screen with less battery life so I would go Solar.
As far as salt build up on buttons goes I have never had that happen as I wash my watch in fresh water each time, leave salt it will build up, look after it and it won't When you spend this kind of money you don't abuse the. Thing.
Option two is going for the Enduro 3 which does it all but no Dive Function and its $250 cheaper.

Select to expand quote

colas said..

Slab said..
I bought a cheap digital watch for ?15 from Decathlon 10 years ago with big numbers on it.does nothing else but tells the time. Still going strong.

Yes, I have one as a backup in my van (I hate it when I find the battery dead just before a session, as I only wear a watch while SUPing), keeping it with the crown pulled out so that the battery is not used, in a bag with a dissecant.
Its mechanism is exactly the same as the Nixon Time Teller that costs nearly ten times more...
Explaining why Nixon is the most profitable surfing wear/gear company :-)

The RipCurl mechanism is similar, but with a wide flange that fits the whole watch, preventing jiggles in shocks.
This is the white plastic part in this picture (of a similar watch):
The Decathlon and Nixon have the black part alone in the watch body, meaning it will be less shock-resistant.


PS: watches joints hate temperature changes, avoid taking showers with them.

That's due to the steam, not the temperature change.

No, the steam-in-the-shower is a myth.

The damage comes (on the long term) from the temperature changes, by contraction/expansion of the pieces and joint, and promoting local (tiny) condensation in some places inside the watch on cooling.

Granted, this also happen in normal use by getting in and out cold water during sessions, there is just no need to also add stress by hot showers.

This is similar on why you do not let dry a wetsuit in the sun, even hough they are exposed to the sun while SUPing.

Select to expand quote

colas said..
No, the steam-in-the-shower is a myth.

The damage comes (on the long term) from the temperature changes, by contraction/expansion of the pieces and joint, and promoting local (tiny) condensation in some places inside the watch on cooling.

Granted, this also happen in normal use by getting in and out cold water during sessions, there is just no need to also add stress by hot showers.

This is similar on why you do not let dry a wetsuit in the sun, even hough they are exposed to the sun while SUPing.

I have worn my watches in the shower forever. No issues at all, urban myth I think. If a modern watch costing over a grand AU can dive to 100m but cannot go in a shower I would be very surprised.