Outdoor lovers around the world like to know what goes on in the environments they are moving around in. For whatever activities they take part in whether it be trail running, hiking or rock climbing, it’s nice to be able to predict weather changes or just to know how much they have ascended on a mountain climb.
Now there are many instruments out there to aid outdoorsmen with weather and directional information for their chosen activities. The multifunctional sports wristwatch is one such instrument that covers most bases for outdoor sportsmen.
Some brands of adventure wristwatch are high tech and loaded with superbly accurate functions for hard core explorers, while others are simpler and carry basic functions that are fairly accurate and relay this information to the user. The difference between the two is that the high tech ones are usually quite heavy and carry a hefty price tag, whereas the basic ones are lighter and usually very affordable.
We’ve compared the top models in each class in our comprehensive Best Hiking Watch review.
The LAD Weather Hiking Watch is an adventure wristwatch for people on the go who want a timepiece that is light and easy to use with the basic functions found on adventure watches, without it being too technical.
It’s a Great Value ABC Watch
After rummaging through quite a few possibilities we settled on the LAD Weather ABC outdoor sports watch.
Compactly and neatly designed with the outdoor sportsman in mind, it has all the necessary outdoor functions that the high tech sports watches carry, just easier to use and less technical. As a bonus it is very affordable.
It’s definitely suitable as an everyday timepiece thanks to its elegant and compact design, not being as bulky or heavy as some of the other sport watches available. There are a few different color options available.
Weather Predicting Function
The barometer on the Lad is fairly accurate and it gives you a good prediction of current weather as well as pending changes in the weather. In this mode it shows the current air pressure and also saves a graph of the changes over a 34 hour period. One click of the barometer button and all this information is displayed on the face.
The german made sensor uses changes in atmospheric pressure to predict these changes in the weather and a thermometer gives a reading accurate to within one or two degrees. Current weather and temperature are displayed on the face in the normal time mode.
Navigation & Altitude Information
It has a built in altimeter which displays as an altitude graph. This automatically updates on the hour and stores this information graphically over a 34 hour period.
In tracking mode it measures relative altitude by plotting your ascents and descents from the start of a hike to the finish point. This is a handy feature for trail runners and hikers to use as a reference to previous trails they have completed.
The digital compass on the LAD is simple to read and understand. It displays with a directional pointer which changes immediately as the watch is rotated. It also gives the angle value in this mode and it’s pretty straight forward and easy to use.
Other features
Some other features that we love.
- Lap timer useful for athletes
- Countdown timer
- Calendar
- 30 meter water resistant
The Lad Weather outdoor sports watch is a real gem for those who want basic information and aid for their sports without going bankrupt. The easy to use functions on this watch make it perfect for young and new outdoors enthusiasts who don’t want to be bogged down with too much technical data.
The attractive design and smaller compact casing makes it a suitable unisex watch for men, women and teenagers.
Besides the accurate sensors, the price is the main selling point. It’s good value for money while maintaining an excellent standard of quality.
I have recently purchased a Lad weather sensor master and absolutely love it. Question!, what is the average battery life on this watch? Thanks, Steve Hollingsworth.
Hi Steve
Great question. I haven’t been able to find a definitive answer yet. (We’ll do some more digging.)
In the meantime you can practice saving battery life by using the Power Saving Mode:
This “Sleep” mode turns off the LCD display so that the battery can last longer.
To activate the Power Saving Mode, hold down the “Lap/Reset” button (in Current Time Mode) for about 5 seconds and the LCD display will be turned off.
To “wake up” the display again, simply press any key and it will turn back on.
Hope this was somewhat helpful. 🙂