The Adventurer is a GPS sports watch from TomTom designed to show you the way, track and record progress, and monitor vital statistics.
The main draw to the Adventurer for us is the ability to navigate using. gpx files. Uploading files to the watch is easy and intuitive. Once connected the MySports app shows you all of your previously logged data and allows you to transfer .gpx files from your computer.
Out on the trail we found following a route relatively hassle free, the GPS is accurate and the watch generally keeps up with the pace. The trail is highlighted by a black line, which when fully zoomed out shows your progress along the trail and a start and finish point. Zooming in shows a more detailed trail but there's no map background, so you'll still need to refer to a paper map every now and then to place yourself in the landscape.
There are a handful of other modes available on the watch including cycling, trail running and skiing, these combine different sensors depending on activity. If you're chosen activity isn't available (there are no watersports for instance) then you can opt to use the 'freestyle' mode which goes for a catch-all approach by switching everything on.
Navigating menus is easy via the four-way button, we found this easier than a touchscreen on such a small device as the buttons are big enough and spaced far enough apart to work when prodded at indiscriminately. There's nothing sinister or complicated about setting up the watch or using it on a day to day basis, TomTom should be applauded for this in a world where you often feel like you need a software engineering degree to make a smart device do what you want it to.
Battery life is dependent on activity but expect anything from 5 hours when using GPS to 10 days' basic activity tracking. For multi-day adventures where you're relying on the watch for navigation you should expect to pack a portable charger and possibly even hook it up before the day is up.
TomTom have built smartphone connectivity into the Adventurer so it can sync with the Mysports app, this constantly tracks and uploads your data but of course is a drain on the battery of both the watch and the phone connected to it so we prefer to extend battery life by leaving it disconnected and syncing via the computer.
The Adventurer is water resistant to 40m so you don't need to worry about it getting wet in the rain or when wearing it on paddling adventures. In the time, we've had the watch it's also proven itself to be robust, taking minor knocks and bangs without any visible signs of damage.
There are usually some compromises of comfort with a sports watch but we find the Adventurer comfortable to wear thanks to the curved strap and light weight. It's also good looking in a bright and striking kind of way, you wouldn't wear it formally but as a day to day watch it looks cool and quirky.
At £269 the Adventurer shaves a good chunk off the price of the competition from the likes of Garmin and Suunto and doesn't feel like any less of a watch than the Fenix 3 or Ambit3, we'd definitely recommend checking it out if you're in the market for a new multi-activity sports watch.
