Suunto traces it roots back to 1939 when Tuomas Vohlonen invented the liquid-filled compass that was essential to Finnish troops during World War II. We chose their X9i GPS as a 'Best Of" because it's so darn cool. Unlike the other two picks in this category, this one is wrist-mounted, yet it's not some big hunk of plastic that makes you feel you have a geeky piece of Star Wars gear on your arm. To the contrary. They bill this as the world's smallest and lightest wrist-mounted GPS system. (And, yes, it does function as a watch, too, so you not only know where you're at but what time you’re there.) The X9i interface will be familiar to anyone who uses a mobile phone. And you can download maps and routes from your computer into the unit. This amazing device also serves as an altimeter, a barometer, thermometer and a stopwatch. In short, even if you're not the outdoorsy type, this unit is worth wearing just for the cocktail party talk it will inspire.

From independent research, we selected the X9i GPS as a 3LUXE "Best Of". To see our other two Handheld GPS selections visit our Handheld GPS Overview.

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