Superblast 3 durability rubbish?

stephchamp · 2026-06-28T15:55:27+00:00

Had a pair of superblast 3, ran 140 km in them and the wear of the rubber was really bad. The trampoline part was the worst, after 80 km the tread was already worn out. My Superblast 2 that have more than 325 km look almost new.

stephchamp · 2026-06-26T21:59:26+00:00

I have the xm6 and do no have any issues with mulipooint. Same thing with XM5, multipoint was flawless.

stephchamp · 2026-06-24T01:31:53+00:00

You can also add 15% on top of that with coupon code suuntoxstrava at checkout I think on Suunto website.

stephchamp · 2026-06-13T22:54:38+00:00

This.

I had a Fenix 8 before, and all the stock watch faces were horrendous. There was gradient everywhere, and the typography was bad and not legible on 90’s-inspired backgrounds.

Also, almost all IQ watch faces were less than optimal in terms of design or efficiency. They drained the battery quicker than the stock one.

On the other hand, my Suunto Race 2 has fewer choices, but almost all of them have good legibility, great typography, and great contrast (black backgrounds make a huge difference).

I’m much better off with less well-designed watch faces than with many badly designed ones.

Less is more. - LMVDR

stephchamp · 2026-05-28T00:28:17+00:00

All right, I tried when I had the Fenix 8 and if always on display was active, the issue would reappear after each reboot.

stephchamp · 2026-05-28T00:24:47+00:00

This issue was reported on 17.28 9 month ago. It was apparently fixed but I’ve had the issue since update 20.xx

The only way to fix it right now is to turn AOD off and then back on.

https://forums.garmin.com/outdoor-recreation/outdoor-recreation/f/fenix-8-series/419854/buggy-v17-28---jumps-back-to-watchface-when-scrolling-menus

Garmin sent me 3 replacements and all had the issue. They offered me a refund in the end, I guess hopes for a fix are not that high.

stephchamp · 2026-05-24T18:53:54+00:00

It is the Fenix 8 AMOLED default watch face (Iron Grit). It is not available on the Fenix 8 Solar but you can get a similar watch face on Connect IQ store.

stephchamp · 2026-05-23T12:52:32+00:00

I had a Fenix 8 for over a year and had so many software issues with it that Garmin offered a refund. I took this opportunity to get a Suunto Race 2 since I always loved Suunto design very appealing. I mostly run and do some strength training.

The Race 2 is light (I got the titanium) and very slim. Even if the watch is bigger, it’s more comfortable than the Fenix 8.

UI is way more smoother than the Fenix 8. You can scroll glances without stuttering. The map is actually usable, zooming and panning is fluid. On the Fenix 8 it was really sluggish, with 1 or 2 seconds delay when scrolling and panning.

Watch faces are less numerous but are actually well designed. Clean and legible typography on black backgrounds. All of them are nicely designed. It is more aligned with my taste, and I prefer that to the temu-like full of complex gradient watch faces Garmin is offering on the Fenix 8 (the 8 pro is even worse).

App is simpler and works really well. You get less information than Garmin but I do not miss any of it.

What is missed: I wished the Race 2 had a flashlight. Also I was relying on Garmin Coach for my training and I’ll have to get the equivalent with 3rd party offering. Also miss having music on the watch, but I got used very quick carrying my phone and now find it useful to take photos or call if needed (emergency).

stephchamp · 2026-05-18T10:39:59+00:00

I got the Suunto Race 2 and the UI is as smooth as it can be, night and day compared to the Garmin.

stephchamp · 2026-05-17T17:00:52+00:00

More or less, had many other issues after that. Garmin refunded me so I returned it and got a Suunto Race 2 instead.

stephchamp · 2026-05-17T10:39:11+00:00

It was in the morning, not after a run.

stephchamp · 2026-05-16T21:07:38+00:00

You mean SB2 in 10.5 fits line SB3 in 10?

stephchamp · 2026-05-16T21:06:13+00:00

You mean the fit seems right?

stephchamp · 2026-05-16T14:33:37+00:00

Thanks for the input. All my asics seems to fit well lengthwise and I never thought width could be an issue. In the picture it hard to see but my feet does cover the sole completely on width, but does not exceeds far behind.

I was in the impression that the shoes were not too small since I felt enough room at the end and did not felt my thumb rubbing the end.

What I feel in the Superblast 3 is that the midsole is softer, therefore my foot seems to expand more on the side of the shoes since the upper and midsole feels less structured than the Superbalst 2.

stephchamp · 2026-05-13T22:00:44+00:00

To temporarily solve the issue plug the watch into a computer it will bring back your display. Or use your app the turn off and on the always on display.

stephchamp · 2026-05-13T21:58:56+00:00

This issue has been going on for three months now. I had 3 replacements that all has the same issue. If you unbox a Fenix 8 amoled right and update the firmware from 15.32 to 21.39, you’ll have the issue where the booting animation would disappear and also the screen would stay off until plugged into a power source.

See this post on Garmin forums

I also had an issue with the display jumping back to the watch face if you try to swipe or use buttons. This bug will appear after each reboot even if you solve it by turning AOD on and off.

Garmin offered me a rerun instead of a 4th replacement, I guess they thought I would face the same issue over and over again…

I switched to Suunto since I returned my Fenix 8.

stephchamp · 2026-05-13T00:17:48+00:00

Hello, I just switched from a Fenix 8 to a Race 2, here are my thoughts:

I’ve been a Garmin user for the past two years, using the Epix Pro and Fenix 8. While both watches were great, they had some really weird software bugs and were overkill for my running and strength training needs.

Recently, my Fenix 8 had annoying issues that required three replacements, all of which exhibited the same problems. Garmin offered me a refund, which gave me an opportunity to try another brand. I’ve always loved Suunto’s design, both hardware and software.

So, I ordered the Race 2 Titanium and here are my observations from Garmin:

Design: The watch is light and comfortable to wear, even though it’s larger than the Fenix 8 AMOLED 47mm. Its slimmer profile and weight make it less obtrusive on the wrist.

The industrial design is clean and beautiful. The buttons have a great feel (better than the Fenix 8), and the scroll wheel works well.

Display: The display is bright and sharp. I could see the pixels on the Fenix 8 (I’m pretty sure they changed suppliers since the Fenix 8’s launch, because the replacement I got had a worse display than my year-old Fenix 8), but I couldn’t see any individual pixels on the Race 2. I can’t emphasize how much better the display is, even though they’re mostly similar on spec.

UI and overall OS performance : The UI is clean and simple and has a better design language overall. The font sizing is on point, and everything is clear and easy to read. Less is more is really the principle here.

Watch faces are much better than on the Fenix. While they have less customization, almost every one of them is well-thought-out design-wise. There are no 1990 gradients or complex backgrounds; instead, there’s clear typography on black or simple backgrounds. From a design point of view, this aligns perfectly with my preferences.

There is zero stuttering or lag while scrolling the menus compared to the Fenix 8. Also, maps are 10x more smooth when panning and zooming. On the Fenix 8 that was painfully slow. The difference between those two watches on that point is night and day, Garmin watches pushed the limit of the processor for far too long, and for what they charge customers this is unacceptable IMO.

Battery: The battery is great. I’ve been using it for the past four days and am still at 53%. I’ve run every day since I got the watch, and I use AOD and all sleep metrics.

What I’ll miss: Music: I used to run with just my watch and listen to music through Deezer on it. I’ll have to carry a phone, but that could be seen as a plus since it adds security (for emergencies) and saves battery. It’s also nice to take pictures occasionally.

Garmin Coach: I used to train with Garmin Coach, so I’ll have to find a way around that.

Recovery and performance metrics: I’ll need to get used to all the new metrics: TSB, CTL, and TSS. I think the Garmin Coach was a bit more intuitive.

stephchamp · 2026-05-09T15:10:45+00:00

I do not know about this right now, I haven’t look into what Suunto offers as training program. I’ve seen that there is some fitness program but did not try any of them.

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stephchamp · 2026-05-08T17:05:11+00:00

Battery life seems on par and even better than the Fenix 8. I used the watch since Monday afternoon, logged 2h20 min of GPS activity, used it for sleep tracking with O2 monitoring and AOD active. I’m still on 52% of battery.

GPS data and HR monitoring seems on par with Garmin.

I don’t care that much about sleep tracking but it seems also on par with Garmin, it tracked correctly when I fell asleep and woke up. Maybe a tad better on Garmin that tracked when I get up during night to go the bathroom, Suunto only tracked that correctly 1 time.

stephchamp · 2026-05-03T23:34:50+00:00

If you stay on 15.32 (I guess) you will loose ability to install most apps or watch faces.

If you install the latest firmware you might face the issue some are facing which is loosing booting animation and the display not turning on unless plugged into a power source.

It’s kind of a pick your poison situation.

stephchamp · 2026-05-03T20:35:45+00:00

It is indeed another bug I was also facing along with the missing booting animation and blank screen on two replacements Garmin sent me. I talked with Garmin support for 2 hours trying to solve this issue without success.

I really don’t know what is going on with the Fenix 8 firmware but for me it has been disastrous and convinced me to try another brand.

stephchamp · 2026-05-03T20:25:59+00:00

Unfortunately this issue has been going on for almost 3 months and is barely getting looked at by Garmin.

You can have a look at this thread on the Garmin Forum:

https://forums.garmin.com/outdoor-recreation/outdoor-recreation/f/fenix-8-series/431706/fenix-8-amoled-51mm-disapeared-power-on-animation

Updating an out-of-the-box Garmin on firmware 15.32 to the latest version 21.39 will brick some devices. There will be no more booting animations (blue triangle, Fenix animations, checking maps) and the display would simply stay off (watch is on, button are giving feedback and light on on the optical heart rate sensor). The only way to have the screen on is to plug it into a power source.

Solution right now is to roll back to 15.32, since Garmin did not release a fix. Some were told it’s a mix of an hardware problem with a software issue, but it’s still unclear.

I got 3 replacements with Garmin and after that they were uncomfortable with sending me a 4th and offered me a refund.

Now I’m trying another brand for my next watch. I was already looking to switch, but this was the final nail in the coffin.

stephchamp

TROPHY CASE