Survival Watches

While the name suggests a zombie apocalypse type of scenario, a survival watch is nothing as dramatic. It’s only a sophisticated tactical tool that helps you navigate strange and unfamiliar terrains.

As such, if you’re the kind of person who likes to mix it up and escape the master wheel of the 9-to-5 jobs or the routine of the city, you will need the help and guidance of such a timepiece. These watches are solid, rugged, and resistant to the elements. So, come what may, you will always have a reliable assistant on your wrist!

Luckily, there are lots of cool designs on the market. However, given that it can be confusing to choose from the sea of options, materials, and high-end features we reviewed some of the best survival watches. We also created a useful buying guide, where we explain the most important features.

Best Golf GPS Watches

G-Shock Rangeman GW-9400 Survival Watch

Timex Expedition Gallatin Survival Watch

Citizen Eco-Drive Promaster Diver Survival Watch

Suunto Traverse Alpha Survival Watch

Luminox Recon Pointman Survival Watch

Suunto Core All Black Survival Watch

G-Shock Rangeman GW-9400 Survival Watch

Highlights

The Rangeman is one of the larger G-Shock models on the market and, if you add the classic case protection, it’s also one of the bulkiest. However, the large face accommodates a series of extremely useful features and has an integrated solar cell that keeps the watch going with regular exposure to everyday light. In fact, there is a battery status indicator right in the middle of the watch’s face (the L-M-H / Low-Medium-High bar).

In addition, once you set the timezone, you don’t have to worry about setting the exact time. The watch communicates with the closest Worldwide Atomic Time transmitters in order to keep extremely accurate time. The GW-9400  is designed to communicate with six such transmitters all over the world.

The watch features 11 modes, among which you have the regular timekeeping mode (with 12h and 24h formats), world time mode (timekeeping in a different time zone), stopwatch (it can go on for 1,000 hours), 24h countdown timer, alarm (5 of them), and more.

Lastly, the watch comes with triple sensor technology with a built-in compass, thermometer, and barometer. It can also save some of the information so you can check it at a later date and it can be influenced by outside elements. The controls are easy to understand (each button on the side of the case has multiple functions), but it’s best to play with them until you learn how to make all the settings.

Specifications

Material:Mineral Crystal Lens, Resin Band and Case
Size:5.4cm
Weight:5.93oz

Specifications

Pros

  • Extremely durable build
  • Lots of features and modes
  • Solar-powered mechanism
  • Extremely accurate when it communicates with one of the pre-set transmitters
  • Large face that accommodates a series of information

Cons

  • It has a bit of a learning curve
  • It is rather bulky
  • The illumination could stay on longer

Why We Chose This

This is a true G Shock military watch that’s durable, easy to conceal in nature, and lightweight. It also has a ton of useful features for military applications, it’s highly accurate (as long as it can communicate with one of the six towers), and the information is not crowded. Overall, it does a fantastic job and can be used by a wide range of people whose job or hobby takes them in the outdoors.

Survival Watch Buying Guide

Design

In a survival wrist watch, the design is not the most important feature. After all, when you’re lost in the wilderness, you don’t care if your watch fits the outfit or it has an elegant vibe to it. But, in this case, the design makes reference to the overall ruggedness of the watch and its build. While anyone with a bit of imagination and field experience can use an analog watch to navigate by the position of the sun, only someone with a survival watch can use it to chart detailed courses using a map. As such, your timepiece should be resistant to the elements, various shocks, scratches, and needs to provide an easy to understand interface.

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