Suunto's latest offering looks like a wristwatch but it's more like a mini-computer that you wear on your arm. It has an altimeter, barometer, compass, stop watch and climbing log -- oh, and it happens to tell you the time too. If you like to spend your spare time skiing, kayaking or scaling the highest peak you can find, the Vector could be a worthwhile investment.

The altimeter shows current altitude, plus vertical ascent or descent rate and time. It has a maximum range of 9,000 metres. There's also a 24-hour memory that automatically stores information and lets you follow your vertical progress.

The main barometric pressure display shows atmospheric pressure, temperature and time. A `difference measurement' function lets you set the meter to zero and then observe temperature and pressure changes. The automatic four-day memory stores up the changes so you can spot weather trends over previous days. If you know your correct altitude, the Vector can compute the pressure at sea-level and vice versa. …