This sports watch rivals my Garmin in features and battery life for hundreds of dollars less

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Many of the advanced sports watches I test seem to be going more toward the “smart assistant” route, with hands-free communication, payment solutions. But others are doubling down on health and fitness tracking, like Polar and Suunto, two brands that have made some of my favorite smartwatches I’ve tested in the last two years.

The new Suunto Vertical 2–> is one of them — building upon the features of the Race 2 with an integrated LED flashlight, vibrant AMOLED touchscreen display, and improved battery life. 

Also: I tested the best sports watches in 2025: Here are the latest and greatest watches, no matter your budget

Earlier this year I had the opportunity to test the Suunto Race 2 and found it to be one of the best sports watches available today. For $100 more, the new Suunto Vertical 2 provides a more rugged build and some additional improvements. In addition to the extra cost, the Vertical 2 measures in at 1 mm thicker than the Race 2 while maintaining the same 86 gram weight for the stainless steel model.

One design difference I’m not a big fan of is the switch of the center right button’s rotating dial to a button. I enjoyed scrolling through my data with the dial on the Race 2, and with the new button on the Vertical 2 I found myself swiping up and down the touchscreen more often. 

When you are in the middle of an activity, swiping on the display may be easier than spinning a small dial, so it’s only a minor annoyance, but still necessary to mention. 

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Ever since Garmin launched a sports watch with an LED flashlight, I’ve worn a Garmin on one wrist just about every day. I find myself using the LED flashlight almost daily for a variety of purposes, and it has become a must have feature for my watches. 

We saw Amazfit launch the T-Rex 3 Pro with a LED flashlight, and now Suunto joins the party. Unfortunately, Suunto needs to do a bit more work on the utility, since activating the LED flashlight results in a default brightness of 50%. 

Also: Amazfit just got the one Garmin feature I use every day – and now I’m conflicted

Screen swipes or button presses are needed to switch the flashlight from 50% to 75%, 100%, 25%, red light, SOS mode, breathing white light, or red alert light. There are no options to set a default light mode and no way to enable certain modes for various workouts, such as breathing white light mode when running to help make others aware of your presence as you run. Given that the hardware and basic functions are just fine, a simple software update would go far to improve the feature. 

It’s not clear to me what battery magic Suunto is performing, but even with the always-on display and the highest location tracking accuracy, the Vertical 2 should last for up to 65 hours. For comparison, the similarly sized 47mm Garmin Fenix 8 Pro with the same level of location tracking accuracy and always on display has a reported battery life of just 23 hours. 

The Fenix 8 Pro offers quite a bit more connectivity and is also priced twice as much as the Suunto Vertical 2. Thus, if you are looking for a sports watch with an AMOLED display and long battery life the Vertical 2 is perfect for you.

Also: One of the most underrated smartwatches I’ve tested just set a 55-hour battery life record

Suunto experienced questionable heart rate accuracy in the past, but that was fixed with the latest sensor in the Race 2 and thankfully that same sensor is in the Vertical 2. Heart rate accuracy has proven to match closely with my arm and chest mounted sensors, and the Vertical 2 additionally supports connections to those external sensors if you prefer to use them instead. 

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The model I was sent for testing includes the Pine Green watch band, seen above. I like the color of the band, but realize it’s probably not for everybody. Also, the pin that you insert into the opening on the buckle is tough to insert, and I didn’t enjoy pushing so hard down into the underside of my wrist to secure the strap. 

Instead, I purchased a Suunto fabric band since I find those types of bands much more comfortable to wear at night while tracking sleep and while working out.

Also: Best blood pressure watches: I tested the top models that actually work

The Suunto Vertical 2 supports the SuuntoPlus app store, but the majority of apps are utilities for different sports, watch faces, and partner collections rather than apps like you see on Garmin, Apple, or Google smartwatches. It also supports basic smartphone notifications and if you have a connected Android, you can reply to messages.

One thing to note during my evaluation period is that there is an issue with the Suunto smartwatch app connecting to the Suunto Vertical 2 on the new iPhone 17 models. Suunto has a notice that it is working to resolve the issue, but I simply used my Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 to test the Vertical 2 for this review and that was a seamless experience. 

ZDNET’s buying advice

Based on my years of using the LED flashlight on Garmin watches, it’s a no-brainer for me to pay the extra $100 to get the flashlight on the Vertical 2<!–>. I used it daily during my review despite the work needed to make the flashlight utility more efficient for regular usage. 

The battery life is also outstanding, and given how long the watch keeps going, it’s one of the few with an AMOLED display I’m comfortable enabling the always-on display. Suunto continues to impress and in addition to great hardware, offers a great app with lots of coaching, guidance, and detailed tracking to satisfy those focused on improving their performance.