From the time of the first liquid-filled field compasses in 1936 through the days when torches were carried to light the Olympic flame in Helsinki in 1952, Suunto's products have evolved to set new standards within the sport instrument business. After developing stable and accurate marine compasses in the 1950's, Suunto went underwater. In the 1960's it became the world's leading manufacturer of dive compasses.

Suunto's first dive compasses were a success. Later a whole family of diving related products have been developed around them, including mechanical pressure gauges, depth gauges and combo consoles that can be equipped with a variety of different gauges and instruments when needed.

 After developing stable and accurate marine compasses in the 1950's, Suunto went underwater. In the 1960's it became the world's leading manufaturer of dive compasses.

The initiative for designing a diving compass came from the divers themselves. A British sport diver attached a Suunto compass to his wrist, and found that the device also worked underwater.

Suunto built its first dive compass based on the design of its marching compass. Rinsing holes were drilled in the compass casing, ensuring that salt crystals didn't jam the rim of the compass.

The SK-4, Suunto's first dive compass, was a durable and reliable piece of equipment, which was affordable to all divers and clearly improved diving safety.

Sales of the compasses started well. Among its users was French explorer, ecologist, and researcher who studied the sea and all forms of life in water, Jacques Cousteau, whose diving-themed films are known throughout the world.

Among divers, Suunto started to become a well-respected brand. Equally importantly, with the diving compasses, Suunto started doing business in completely new countries. By 1968, Suunto products were exported to over 40 countries.

In the 1980s, Suunto became the world leader in manufacturing of diving instruments.

Suunto developed a depth gauge, a diving cylinder pressure meter, and a compass to match the range, as well as a display console that attaches to the air tank's high-pressure port with a high-pressure hose. The most significant product innovation of the decade, however, was the SME Dive Computer that completely revolutionized the sport.

Previously, the diver had to calculate the safe duration of a dive and decompression time with help of diving tables. Now, a small computer and its algorithms could help take care of safety.

Thanks to the SME Dive Computer, diving became an easier, safer and more fun sport. The threshold for taking up the sport became lower, and the sport gained huge numbers of new followers.

Following the launch of the new diving devices, enormous new markets opened up to Suunto, at the end of the 1980s. There were over three million divers who formed quite a tight-knit community. The word spread effectively around among the divers.

In the 1980s, the business of Suunto became even more global. The products were exported to over a hundred countries. The subsidiaries in the USA and Canada were also manufacturing units. Moreover, Suunto expanded through business acquisitions. Among the 1980s' acquisitions were diving suit manufacturers Ursuk and Seaway, and the world's leading diving vest manufacturer, Sea Quest. Precision mechanics component specialist Décolletage was acquired from Switzerland.

 The technological and economic developments of the 1990s provided new opportunities for Suunto. In addition to diving instruments, potential new opportunities were also sought on land.

The Suunto Spyder dive computer was being developed at Suunto during the mid-90's and it was launched at 1997. The shape and size of its design was well suited for use on land as well as in the water.

A dive computer that fits on your wrist, combined with an electronic compass, provided the foundation for Suunto's next market conquest, and proved to be much more significant than was first realized, since it created the path for the Suunto Vector.

Seventy-year-old Suunto is continually advancing on its original innovations, from liquid-filled field compasses to cutting edge, hi-tech dive computers. From the original Suunto marching compass, a new, legendary class of first-rate dive computers was born. It began in the 1960s in England, when a professional diver happened to use a field compass underwater. Creatively inspired, he contacted Suunto and suggested certain modifications that would eventually bring compasses to an entirely new level. Needless to say, his suggestions were well received and happily implemented by Suunto, but nobody could have guessed what was to follow.

Nearly four decades and various dive instruments later, the millionth Suunto diving computer was completed in November 1st 2005. This achievement was celebrated at Suunto's head office with a speech of CEO Juha Pinomaa, who congratulated Suunto staff for this remarkable achievement.