The Suunto Spartan Ultra is a rather peculiar smartwatch. Sure, it does the normal sports and fitness tracking (if you don't mind the absence of heart rate tracking in the presence of a heart rate monitor), along with its in-built GPS, but this smartwatch could be thought of something akin to the TAG Heuer Connected Carrera (sans Android Wear and the price tag). The handmade-in-Finland Suunto Spartan Ultra comes with a polyamide casing with glass fibers, a grade-5 titanium bezel (optional style), and a scratch-resistant sapphire glass, not to mention its 100-meter water resistance. You can take the Spartan Ultra in the shower and the rain without worry, since the device is built to last in just about any environment you can think of (for underwater navigation, it'd be best to use a watch with a lot more water resistance).
Though the Suunto Spartan Ultra is tough on the elements, it's also rather tough on the price -- steep, that is. By steep, I mean $700 or $800 steep ($800 if you prefer the grade-5 titanium bezel model), a price that's half that of the Connected Carrera but still doesn't run a wearables platform. So, with that said, you're paying a high price tag for the build materials. If that's the main priority you have in a smartwatch, then the Spartan Ultra is the one for you.
The Suunto Spartan Ultra will launch in August, with more details about the watch to come next month (at the www.suunto.com website), so stay tuned to Smartwatch.me as we bring you coverage when the time arrives.
