Altimeter Watch Guide: GPS And Barometer Altimeter Watches

Altimeter Watch Guide: GPS and Barometer Altimeter Watches

Posted by Eddie Birdhouse on Mar 19, 2010 | Subscribe
in Jewelry, watches
as Apparel, Camping, clothing, GPS, Hiking, Jewelry, Outdoor Gear, watch, watches

When it comes to the technology behind how altimeter watches work, you are limited to essentially two choices – those that calculate altitude by GPS and those that use barometric pressure.

The original altimeters (discovered by French physicist Louis Paul Cailletet) used barometric pressure to calculate altitude. While the methods for gathering barometric pressure have changed with technological advances, the calculation itself has remained constant. Most altimeter watches apply a simple formula to the barometric pressure to determine elevation above sea level. In the last few years, the invention of GPS watches has introduced a new alternative to the traditional altimeter watch. As the name implies, GPS altimeter watches us longitude and latitude to communicate position to a satellite, which in turn returns various map datum, including altitude.

GPS systems are becoming smaller and smaller. In 2010 there are several watch manufacturers that have produced GPS watches (a good example is the Suunto X10). While these watches are bulky compared to your everyday writs watch, they are considerable smaller than most GPS units. The way a GPS enabled altimeter watch works is very simple. The watch communicates with a set of satellites that triangulate position. Based on that position, the satellite sends information to the watch, including altitude. The benefits of this type of altimeter watch are that you never have to recalibrate your altitude and your positions should be as accurate as the terrain you are in (flat terrain is more accurate than mountainous or canyon terrain).

Most altimeter watches using barometric pressure have a built in software component that uses the watch barometer to calculate altitude. While the exact function that the watch uses to determine altitude is beyond the scope of this article, it is important to remember that barometric pressure changes rapidly as weather changes. Because of this, during outdoor activity it is important to use known positions to calculate altitude and recalibrate your watch if necessary. While there are literally hundreds of watches out there using barometric pressure to calculate altitude, some of the more popular brands are HighGear, St.Moritz, and Suunto.

The entry price point for GPS enabled altimeter watches is around $250. While a bit more expensive than the barometric pressure altimeter watch (lowest price of around $100) often GPS altimeter watches come with many features, such as trip distance, not in their barometric counterparts. When looking for a watch compare carefully the individual watch feature set that best matches your needs.

Learn more about the types of altimeter watches by visiting Eddie Birdhouse’s site and learning about your altimeter watch needs.

categories: Watch,GPS,Outdoor Gear,Apparel,Clothing,Jewelry,Hiking,Camping