GPS Running Watches / Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) vs Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm)
Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) vs Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm)
Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel)
The AMOLED that finally posts MIP-class multiband battery — 65 hours, free world maps.
Wins overall by 1.0 points
Quick Verdict
The Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) is the stronger all-round pick, ahead by 1.0 points. The AMOLED that finally posts MIP-class multiband battery — 65 hours, free world maps.
The Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) and Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm) are both current-generation GPS Running Watch models, and the Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm) is $199 cheaper than the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) ($399.99 vs $599). On Navigation & Maps, the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) leads (8.6 vs 2.8/10) — real routable offline topographic maps versus a breadcrumb line, plus how painful it is to get maps onto the watch.. On Display, the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) leads (9.4 vs 6.4/10) — brightness, resolution and daylight readability, weighing AMOLED sharpness against MIP's always-on-for-free behaviour.. On Value, the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) leads (8.6 vs 7.0/10) — what the watch delivers per dollar against everything else in the comparison at the moment of purchase.. Overall, the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) scores 8.2/10 across our 8 scoring categories versus 7.2/10 for the Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm). Below, we break down the full spec sheet, category-by-category scores, and exactly who should buy which one.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Spec | Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) | Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $599.00 | $399.99 |
| Release Year | 2025 | 2025 |
| Display | 1.5-in 466x466 LTPO AMOLED, ~2,000 nits, sapphire lens, optional always-on | Monochrome 176x176 transflective MIP, always-on by design, no touchscreen — readable in direct sun and costs almost nothing to leave on |
| Smartwatch Battery ( days) | 20 | 28✓ |
| Always-On Display Cost | Suunto does not publish a separate always-on smartwatch number; DC Rainmaker measured about 50 h of real use with dual-frequency, always-on display and navigation all running against a 65 h claim | There is no always-on penalty: MIP is always on. With 3 h/day at 50,000 lux the solar lens makes smartwatch mode effectively unlimited and stretches multiband GPS from 24 h to about 60 h. |
| Battery, Single-Band GPS ( h) | 75 | Sources conflict: 40 h (the5krunner spec sheet, 45 mm, no solar) vs 50 h (garminrumors spec wiki, lower bound of its 45/50 mm range) |
| Battery, Multiband GPS ( h) | 65✓ | 24 |
| GNSS Bands | Dual-band L1+L5 Sony chipset. Four published tiers: 65 h Performance (dual-band), 75 h Endurance (single-band all systems), 110 h Ultra (single-band, wrist HR off) and 250 h Tour (GPS only, 2-minute logging). | Multi-band dual-frequency L1+L5 (GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, BeiDou, QZSS) with SatIQ — DC Rainmaker confirms every Instinct 3 got multiband |
| Onboard Maps | Free worldwide offline maps in 32 GB, downloadable over Wi-Fi without pre-loading, with turn-by-turn (which must be enabled manually for third-party routes) and automatic climb guidance. Practically limited to roughly 10-12 stored routes despite the 32 GB. | None. No offline maps and no route storage to speak of — DC Rainmaker called shipping a $400-plus outdoor watch without maps 'pretty hard to swallow'. |
| Music Storage | None. No on-device storage and no streaming; Bluetooth headphones are supported for turn prompts only. | None. No music storage, no streaming, no Wi-Fi — phone music control only. |
| Training Platform & Subscription | Suunto app is free with no subscription tier; analytics are Suunto's own | Garmin Connect is free and every core training metric — Training Readiness, Training Load, Training Status, HRV Status, Body Battery, recovery time — is Firstbeat-derived and free on the watch (Garmin bought Firstbeat in 2020). Connect+ is $6.99/mo or $69.99/yr and adds only AI wellness prompts, 3D maps, Trails+ routing, extra badges and nutrition logging — nothing a training plan depends on. |
| External Sensor Support | Bluetooth with multiple simultaneous saved sensor pairings — no ANT+ | ANT+ and Bluetooth chest straps, pods and power meters |
| Data Export | Free .FIT export and automatic sync to Strava, TrainingPeaks, Komoot and 300+ partner apps | Full .FIT file access over USB/MTP plus free automatic sync to Strava, TrainingPeaks, Runalyze, intervals.icu and others through Garmin Connect. |
| Warranty | 24 months | 12 months |
| Colors | All Black | Black |
Category Scores
GPS Accuracy
The Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) is marginally ahead, 8.8 to 8.6. A gap this small rarely decides a purchase on its own, though it counts if trace quality in cities and under tree cover — multiband L1+L5 hardware plus what independent testers measured in the real world. is your priority.
Battery Honesty
The Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm) leads clearly here, 9.2 against 8.2 — a 1.0-point margin on how much of the headline battery claim survives the mode you would actually train in: all-systems plus multiband, always-on display, music playing. The number on the box is almost always the slowest, least accurate mode.. If that is what you are buying for, the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) does not close the gap elsewhere.
Training & Recovery
The Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm) is marginally ahead, 7.8 to 7.4. A gap this small rarely decides a purchase on its own, though it counts if depth of load, readiness and recovery analysis, and how much of it is free rather than gated behind a subscription or an extra chest strap. is your priority.
Heart Rate
The Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) is marginally ahead, 7.6 to 7.2. A gap this small rarely decides a purchase on its own, though it counts if optical wrist accuracy during intervals and burst efforts, and whether the watch pairs with ANT+ and/or Bluetooth chest straps as a fix. is your priority.
Display
The Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) leads clearly here, 9.4 against 6.4 — a 3.0-point margin on brightness, resolution and daylight readability, weighing AMOLED sharpness against MIP's always-on-for-free behaviour.. If that is what you are buying for, the Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm) does not close the gap elsewhere.
Build & Comfort
The Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm) leads clearly here, 8.2 against 7.0 — a 1.2-point margin on case materials, lens (sapphire vs glass), weight on the wrist and durability ratings.. If that is what you are buying for, the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) does not close the gap elsewhere.
Value
The Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) leads clearly here, 8.6 against 7.0 — a 1.6-point margin on what the watch delivers per dollar against everything else in the comparison at the moment of purchase.. If that is what you are buying for, the Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm) does not close the gap elsewhere.
Best For
Choose the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) if…
- • Navigation & Maps matters most to you — the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) scores 8.6/10 here (real routable offline topographic maps versus a breadcrumb line, plus how painful it is to get maps onto the watch.).
- • Display matters most to you — the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) scores 9.4/10 here (brightness, resolution and daylight readability, weighing AMOLED sharpness against MIP's always-on-for-free behaviour.).
- • Value matters most to you — the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) scores 8.6/10 here (what the watch delivers per dollar against everything else in the comparison at the moment of purchase.).
Choose the Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm) if…
- • Build & Comfort matters most to you — the Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm) scores 8.2/10 here (case materials, lens (sapphire vs glass), weight on the wrist and durability ratings.).
- • Battery Honesty matters most to you — the Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm) scores 9.2/10 here (how much of the headline battery claim survives the mode you would actually train in: all-systems plus multiband, always-on display, music playing. The number on the box is almost always the slowest, least accurate mode.).
- • You want to spend less — it's $199 cheaper.
Pros & Cons
Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel)
Pros
- +65 h of dual-band GPS on an AMOLED watch — no other AMOLED here comes close in the accurate mode
- +Free worldwide offline maps in 32 GB, downloaded straight over Wi-Fi with no cable and no charge
- +A bright LTPO AMOLED behind sapphire, plus a bezel-integrated flashlight, for $599
- +DC Rainmaker rates GPS accuracy excellent across difficult terrain
Cons
- −87 g in the steel version reviewed here — the titanium at $699 saves 13 g
- −No music storage of any kind on a $599 watch
- −Only about 10-12 routes can be stored in practice despite 32 GB, and turn-by-turn needs manual enabling for imported routes
- −Real-world dual-frequency runtime with always-on and navigation running measured about 50 h, not 65 h
- −Bluetooth only — no ANT+ sensor support
Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm)
Pros
- +MIP plus solar is the one combination here where the headline battery figure is close to what you actually get
- +Multi-band L1+L5 GNSS at $399.99, in a 10 ATM, MIL-STD-810 tested case
- +Solar can push smartwatch mode to effectively unlimited and multiband GPS from 24 h to about 60 h
- +No always-on display penalty at all — the screen is transflective and permanently visible
Cons
- −No offline maps and no music storage, on a watch that costs as much as an Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro that has both
- −Storage is the reason: sources conflict badly — the garminrumors wiki says 32 GB while DC Rainmaker and Tom's Guide report roughly 120-128 MB on Solar models, too small even to hold a firmware update alongside courses
- −Multiband drops runtime to 24 h without sun — a quarter of the 100 h Max Battery GPS headline
- −Older Elevate Gen 4 optical HR sensor, not the Gen 5 in cheaper Garmins
- −Monochrome 176x176 MIP screen looks a decade old next to every AMOLED rival, and there is no touchscreen
Shop by Need
FAQs
Is the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) or Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm) better overall?+
Based on our 8-category scoring, the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) comes out ahead overall. See the full breakdown in the scores section above — the right pick still depends on which categories matter most for your use case.
Which is better for Navigation & Maps, the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) or the Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm)?+
The Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) scores higher on Navigation & Maps (8.6/10 vs 2.8/10) — real routable offline topographic maps versus a breadcrumb line, plus how painful it is to get maps onto the watch..
Which is better for Display, the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) or the Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm)?+
The Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) scores higher on Display (9.4/10 vs 6.4/10) — brightness, resolution and daylight readability, weighing AMOLED sharpness against MIP's always-on-for-free behaviour..
Which is better for Value, the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) or the Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm)?+
The Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) scores higher on Value (8.6/10 vs 7.0/10) — what the watch delivers per dollar against everything else in the comparison at the moment of purchase..
Which is better for Build & Comfort, the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) or the Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm)?+
The Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm) scores higher on Build & Comfort (8.2/10 vs 7.0/10) — case materials, lens (sapphire vs glass), weight on the wrist and durability ratings..
Is the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) worth the price difference over the Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm)?+
The Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm) is the cheaper option at $399.99 versus $599. Whether the pricier model is "worth it" depends on how much you value its lead in Navigation & Maps.
What's the warranty on the Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) vs the Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm)?+
The Suunto Vertical 2 (stainless steel) ships with a 24-month warranty; the Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (45mm) ships with a 12-month warranty. Always confirm current terms on the manufacturer's site before buying.
Should I wait for the next model instead of buying either of these?+
If either model is more than two years old, a successor may be close — check the "Latest Model" link on each product page. Otherwise, both are current, well-supported options and there's no strong reason to wait.
Cheaper Option
Garmin Forerunner 170 (43mm) — $299.99
Premium Option
COROS VERTIX 2S (50mm) — $699.00
Specifications and prices for both products last verified . Scores are calculated from published specifications — see how we compare products.