I would say look at one of the older Garmin Forerunners, or perhaps the Garmin Venu (new Forerunners might be out your price range). The Instinct is more outdoorsy, IMO, but could also fit the bill okay. Suuntos are kinda behind, the newest models are suppose to be quite nice as they're trying to bring themselves on parity with Garmin, COROS, and Polar, but might be out of your budget. I don't know enough about the current COROS and Polar offerings to give any advice on those, but they're pretty reputable, worth a look-see to see if they have anything that matches your budget and use case.
The Coros Pace 2 runs about $200 and every review says it worth way more. That may be a good option depending on the type of activities your wife does.
Also, take a look at the DC Rainmaker YouTube channel. He does excellent reviews of fitness watches.