Started trying to figure out if I could get a watch that is also a compass.

[nicolas17@social.treehouse.systems]

@mcc I have a watch with a compass but it runs a whole OS and needs battery charging daily and I assume that's not what you're looking for >.>

[demize@unstable.systems]

@mcc my solution to this is an actual literal compass

which, yes, is a vintage WWII compass manufactured for the US military, but it’s just a brass shell like a pocket watch, it’s pretty far from “MANLY RUGGED OUTDOOR MILITARY WATCH FOR MEN”

unfortunately I’ve yet to figure out a good way to carry it once winter ends and I can no longer keep it in my breast pocket

[mcc@mastodon.social]

@nicolas17 the best case scenario for me would be a needle floating in liquid

[munin@infosec.exchange]

@demize @mcc

carabiner to a belt loop is how I'd do it

[demize@unstable.systems]

@munin @mcc I want to clip it to the strap attachment on the little bag I carry but I’m not quite sure how I want to do that

can’t really just let it dangle either because the lock doesn’t work (because it has a watch crystal, not a compass crystal) and I don’t want the needle to spin and bounce around too much

[tynstar@nerdculture.de]

@mcc
Male here, but I had similar issues, mainly that all smartwatches seemed to be just way too large for my taste, looking silly on my wrist.

For this reason and others I ended up buying a Pebble 2 Duo. It has a compass.

Maybe that watch, or (given that it's out of stock) - its successor Pebble Time Round is suitable for you? They definitely do *not* look rugged.

#Smartwatch

[mcc@mastodon.social]

@tynstar does the pebble compas seem accurate?

[cxiao@infosec.exchange]

@mcc i have had the BIGGEST problem with finding watches as well, that are a) not smartwatches or something that needs smartphone to operate, b) not too masculine, c) not too feminine, d) not bulky AF

this is already very hard but becomes WAY harder if you want actual practical features like a compass I settled for a very basic casio (one of the ones from https://www.casio.com/ca-en/watches/casio/) but none of these have compass feature I think

[cxiao@infosec.exchange]

@mcc For fitting with outfits, swapping out different watch bands does help a lot (even if the body is large and ostentatious)

[tynstar@nerdculture.de]

@mcc
I haven't used the compass functionality outside of my flat yet. But yes, the compass seems fine.

Also, two things make it more usable than any smartphone compass app I ever encountered:

1) The calibration process is easy: it displays a 2D animation of a ball moving inside of a circle, with instructions saying to tilt the clock in all directions until all segments of the circle are filled. Instead, phone apps always do that weird "do this sweeping infinity sign motion through the air like an 8". No user feedback, leaving me wondering if I'm actually doing it right. Consequently, after calibration I never know whether the sensor is shitty or I fudged the calibration.

2) In addition to the normal compass view (when the watch face is parallel to the ground), there's a second one with better precision: if I hold up the watch so its face is upright, it displays only the direction, degrees and some ruler-like lines (kind of like the HUD compass in some video games like Skyrim).

[raphaelp@types.pl]

@mcc have you looked at diving watches? they're rugged but they sometimes have a less RUGGEDMANLY look than the faux tactical style, especially the high-end-ish ones can have a more simple not-quite-but-almost minimalist look

they'll have lots more features though
and also $$$
but might be worth a look

[thilo@fromm.social]

@mcc I wanna say "yes"; it comes with proper calibration and makes use of the sixaxis sensor to compensate for tilt.

Cursory testing suggests horizontal positioning (when I bend my head down to check the watch) is more reliable than vertical (lifting the wrist to eye level). But then I don't have a "real" compass available to validate.

It's worth mentioning that the pebble devices are extremely hackable, so there's always the option to improve things.

[bonkers@nerdculture.de]

@mcc @msbellows it still helps figuring out the rough orientation.

I usually rely on the compass in my mobile, and it orients the map accordingly.

[bonkers@nerdculture.de]

@mcc something like this, maybe?

https://a.aliexpress.com/_EIH3UYs

[th@social.v.st]

@mcc @msbellows how will you know where you are if you don't stare at the sun?

[gkrnours@mastodon.gamedev.place]

@mcc @thilo once, a new phone asked me to calibrate the compass by doing 8 shaped movement with the phone. Since then, when my arrow on map app seems to not match my phone in the street, I do that a coupke time and usually compass reading get better.

[gkrnours@mastodon.gamedev.place]

@mcc not watch related but I found that carabiner clip (not for climbing) + compass once. Theses days, it's on the shoulder strap of the bag I use to carry my laptop, holding a pokemon plushie.

[utterlymundane@hachyderm.io]

I am a few years out of the game, as it were, but this was my go-to for sports device comparison: https://www.dcrainmaker.com/product-comparison-calculator . You do need some way to prefilter or a very wide monitor. I was a Garmin partisan when I ran; and still have a multiple generations old Fenix that runs just fine; second hand from a reputable seller or something like REI’s returns resale would probably be fine. My wife liked her garmin V.. Venu? when she had it.
@mcc

[utterlymundane@hachyderm.io]

@mcc the other thing is those reviews are satisfyingly thorough, so you will probably have a very solid idea if the features actually work; he will run through various settings with multiple devices, and compare the GPS traces, for instance. (I haven’t checked, but if you told me he had picked up a pressure chamber to test barometers I would simply nod and say “that sounds about right”.)

[ingalovinde@embracing.space]

@bonkers @mcc @msbellows and also instead of looking at the sun one can instead look at the direction of shadows (might be easier to do in many cities)