# Ambit battery charging clarified by Suunto.....



## Mystro

The question was asked to Suunto:
"The manual states not to charge the Ambit until the battery is fully depleted.. Many of us contact the Ambit to our computer to transfer waypoints, etc.. even when our watch is fully charged and the Ambit goes into charging automatically. You can't connect the Ambit to the computer without charging it...What to recommend here? I thought a lithium ion battery doesn't have a memory*."

Thank you so much!

We will be modifying the instructions in the manual since you are correct in that you can't attach the Ambit to your PC without charging at the same time. So there will be clearer guidelines in the future.

Regards,

The Suunto Ambit team*


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## Red PeeKay

Mystro said:


> The question was asked to Suunto:
> "The manual states not to charge the Ambit until the battery is fully depleted.. Many of us contact the Ambit to our computer to transfer waypoints, etc.. even when our watch is fully charged and the Ambit goes into charging automatically. You can't connect the Ambit to the computer without charging it...What to recommend here? I thought a lithium ion battery doesn't have a memory*."
> 
> Thank you so much!
> 
> We will be modifying the instructions in the manual since you are correct in that you can't attach the Ambit to your PC without charging at the same time. So there will be clearer guidelines in the future.
> 
> Regards,
> 
> The Suunto Ambit team*


Errrr, okay, so maybe I'm missing something here. What did Suunto suggest?? Or do you have to wait until they issue the "clearer guidelines" some time in the future?? Don't think they answered your question there Mystro!


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## Mystro

What they are saying is, You can't just charge the battery when it is depleted because any time you transfer data your watch is going to be charging. A lithium ion battery doesn't have a charging memory.
The point I was bringing to their attentions was: if you use the Ambit as intended, it is impossible to only charge a battery when it is depleted. They will have to remove the "charge the battery only when it is depleted" out of the manual.


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## cobrapa

I wondered that as well, they just answered my question on their website this morning about the lithium ion battery. Nice they are going to update the manual.


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## Lost-again

I must admit I had the same question and did ask via [email protected] if they could add the ability to use the likes of moves stick to transfer data, to avoid charging all the time. I don't see too big an issue here because the battery should cope, but the question has not been fully answered. The warrenty clearly states that battery is 12 months ( failure only on battery) or 300 charges, whichever comes first. Is that 300 connections or full charges? If I recall from my IPhone, it recommends yo do a periodic full discharge and re- charge to ensure long life and calibrate the battery meter.


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## Mystro

I am treating the Ambit like my iPad/iPod touch, etc..... I have 3 year old iPod touch I charge all the time and the battery is still strong. I suspect they had to come up with some number of charges and time frame to put in print for the warranty. Suunto's warranty is the best I have ever seen. I am not too worried if or when I have to have the battery replaced.


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## submersible

Hi Mystro,

The Ambit looks exciting, but somehow the battery life and longetivity issue is restraining me to pick one up. 
Do you need to send it back to Suunto to reinstall a new rechargeable battery when the 300 charges are up or whichever is early?
The way I see it is if we really need to go to the backcountry with the Ambit for a longer period, a solar charger is a MUST?


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## or_watching

2 cents (and really not trying to sound snarky). 
I only post this because "backcountry" to many means something specific and includes objective risks about personal safety. 

backcountry rule #1: bring the 10 essentials
backcountry rule #2: leave only footprints
backcountry rule #3: The Ambit isnt one of the 10 essentials
backcountry rule #4: Assume anything electronic you plan to depend on will either fail, get wet, or run out of juice. 

Depending on your travel circumstances: consider the pros and cons of a battery-based charger vs solar. 

Personally, I'd always have some charger for an extended outing since I'm likely to forget to turn off the GPS or something boneheaded.


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## cobrapa

or_watching said:


> backcountry rule #4: Assume anything electronic you plan to depend on will either fail, get wet, or run out of juice.


Good thing it's waterproof (errr, resistant.) Where can I get a waterproof usb battery pack? That shouldn't be all that hard to make.


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## Mystro

If you are going backcountry and only using the watch as ABC and use the GPS only for navigation, You should be good for at least 3 weeks between charges.



submersible said:


> Hi Mystro,
> 
> The Ambit looks exciting, but somehow the battery life and longetivity issue is restraining me to pick one up.
> Do you need to send it back to Suunto to reinstall a new rechargeable battery when the 300 charges are up or whichever is early?
> The way I see it is if we really need to go to the backcountry with the Ambit for a longer period, a solar charger is a MUST?


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## dosenfisch

submersible said:


> The Ambit looks exciting, but somehow the battery life and longetivity issue is restraining me to pick one up.
> Do you need to send it back to Suunto to reinstall a new rechargeable battery when the 300 charges are up or whichever is early?
> The way I see it is if we really need to go to the backcountry with the Ambit for a longer period, a solar charger is a MUST?


The 300 charges are just some kind of reference value. The battery might work for years, just losing capacity over time. I have 3 old Toshiba laptops from the mid 90s and the Li-ion batteries still work (runtime >1h after 18 years).


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## Lost-again

I don't see battery life as an issue on the ambit. It exceeds most, if not all of its competitors and has proved excellent in my testing to date. It far exceeds my x9 which struggles with 5 hours on a 1s and little better on 1min, but even the x9 will last weeks if you only do a spot location every now and again, which is how I use it for navigation. Ideal for those "where am I now" occasions when you have wandered off track or in cloud or white-out. The 15h life @ 1s is better than most for sport. The 300 cycles is also not an absolute life and if my x9 and iPhone is anything to go by, it is likely to still be performing many years beyond this.


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## buzz819

submersible said:


> Hi Mystro,
> 
> The Ambit looks exciting, but somehow the battery life and longetivity issue is restraining me to pick one up.
> Do you need to send it back to Suunto to reinstall a new rechargeable battery when the 300 charges are up or whichever is early?
> The way I see it is if we really need to go to the backcountry with the Ambit for a longer period, a solar charger is a MUST?


I asked this to Suunto a little while ago;

*How many charges will the battery take?*


What is the expected amount of charges that the battery can take?

As in, how long can we expect to last with this watch without replacing the battery?

Thanks

*Answers*


NUMBER ONE CONTRIBUTOR

The battery in the Ambit is designed to last the lifetime of the product but it is possible to have it replaced at a Suunto service center if necessary.

Buzz


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## twelveone

Can anyone confirm if existing logs are lost when the battery runs out? I forgot to bring my charging cable on vacation, and I'm not convinced the battery will last all week. I've been running every day so far and am hoping I won't lose all the logs by the time I get home to sync.


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## Gerald Zhang-Schmidt

The problem with logs and running out of battery is not a problem with the battery, apparently. The danger is going beyond the memory capacity, meaning that the oldest log will get erased (written over, to be more exact).

When the Ambit's battery dies, the log that was active while it died still gets stored - I just tried that out, got it to run for 15 hours 30 minutes with GPS fix of 1 sec (no HR or PODs) until it died (without my noticing until later, without any lap, pause, save exercise on my part in between)... and the log was saved and got transferred to Movescount without any problems.


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## twelveone

So if there's no active log when battery dies, i.e. if I have it in normal abc mode when it runs out, will I lose all previous logs?


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## Mystro

No, it is stored.


twelveone said:


> So if there's no active log when battery dies, i.e. if I have it in normal abc mode when it runs out, will I lose all previous logs?


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## twelveone

Great, thanks for confirming.


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## submersible

More Qs.
1. Is there built in software that prevents the battery from overcharging once its full or left in charging mode overnight ? 
2. Would battery life be shortened if it is completely depleted?
3. Is there a sleep mode where it be switched off and switched on as desire?


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## cobrapa

Yes, No, check the service menu for sleep mode. 

Pretty much all devices with LiIon and newer battery tech now use small dedicated battery controller chips, or have them integrated. They handle preventing overcharge and shutting off the device when the battery gets low enough that it shouldn't be drained anymore.


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## paduncan

submersible said:


> More Qs.
> 1. Is there built in software that prevents the battery from overcharging once its full or left in charging mode overnight ?
> 2. Would battery life be shortened if it is completely depleted?
> 3. Is there a sleep mode where it be switched off and switched on as desire?


If you leave the watch still, it will actually shut the screen off (not sure if this is sleep mode, but certainly conserves battery). Touch the watch and it wakes up. Very cool feature.


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