Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I have now had the Polar FT60, together with a GPS unit, for about 9 months.I initially got it when I got frustrated with trying to come up with regularly increasing routes for my marathon training long runs using Google Maps.In short, it does the job: it has all of the normal HR monitor features of most running-oriented Polar watches (hear rate, calories, training programs, etc.), and it tracks your mileage, pace and speed.
But it does all of that in a not particularly elegant way.Here are my gripes with it:
(1) The monitor displays only one essential measurement at a time: for example, HR, distance, speed, etc.So you cannot, for example, see your heart rate and mileage at the same time.In fact, the two readings are something like 4 or 5 clicks of a very awkward button apart.
(2) Speaking of awkward, the buttons are awkward, as they tend to be on most (in my experience) Polar watches.
(3) The screen is very dim.You have to be in good light to be able to read it.The backlight is downright useless.It might work alright in complete darkness (I haven't tried), but it does nothing at night on a city street.
(4) The GPS navigator often tends to take a long time to link up to a satellite.I live in a big city, so I can imagine there are interferences, but it is the worst performance from a GPS navigator I have seen.Once on a trip to London, I stood on a street corner on a chilly morning and waited for the thing to locate a satellite and just gave up and went on a run.At some point, it did figure out where it was.
(5)It's not a huge problem, but I do find it a bit annoying that the GPS unit is a separate piece of plastic that you have to strap to your arm.I don't find it to be particularly heavy or constricting, but I do find it annoying that you have to keep up with one extra unit (particularly for when you have to travel) and its battery gauge is unreliable (so I have run out of battery (AAA) out on a run - not the end of the world but annoying).
(6) And, finally, it does not sync with Macs AND you have to buy a separate USB communicator unit.I can't comment on the quality of the syncing interface or the exercise log software because I have never bothered buying the sync unit because I do not want to have to fire up Windows on my Mac just for this or to be restricted to using it only on my office computer.
I understand Garmin Forerunner 310XT is not perfect (my wife has one and has recently had some syncing issues), but between the two, I would pick the Garmin, which doesn't have most of these issues:
(1) the monitor is large, clear and displays several readings at the same time (there is definitely room for that);
(2) its buttons are water sealed and have a nice easy click to them;
(3) the monitor is bright and the backlight is extremely bright;
(4) it seems to home in much more quickly (at least that's my experience on our runs together) and if it detects that you are not where you were last time, it asks if you have traveled more than 500 miles, which I guess helps it find a satellite; the GPS unit also seems to be more precise - one of my tennis partners wears one and the unit even told him how much he had run in a match; whereas my Polar unit "robbed" me of 300 m on a recent 10K run in Central Park;
(5) the GPS unit is built into the watch; although the downside is that the watch itself is much bigger, but it's still pretty light; It would also be appropriate to mention here that the Garmin uses a rechargeable battery that is recharged by putting a USB-powered clip on the watch.One downside is that I believe it's limited to 12 hours of power.
(6) the Garmin syncs with Macs and PCs and has a pretty cool interface that allows you to see your performance (for example, speed or HR) superimposed over a map that shows elevation.This would have been nice when I recently trained for an Alpine half-marathon.
As I mentioned above, my wife did report problems syncing lately.Also, the Garmin is a much larger watch.Finally, a couple of people I know do not wear their Garmins for swim practice, whereas I have found no issues with my Polar watch.
All in all, I would choose the Garmin over the Polar unit and, in fact, plan on doing just that.
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Product Description:
The smartest way to better fitness, the Polar FT60G1 men's heart rate monitor watch helps you stay motivated and improve your conditioning. The FT60G1--which comes with a G1 GPS sensor that measures your speed and distance during outdoor sports--works by first checking your daily condition, and then guiding you to the ideal training intensity for your age and fitness level. Knowing your heart rate not only helps you reach your personal fitness goal, but also improves your physical condition in general, as it's vitally important to train at the appropriate intensity level. If you exercise too hard, you may quit before you reach the real benefit, but if you work out too leisurely, you'll struggle to lose weight at all. The FT60G1 helps overcome these problems by encouraging you to map out a complete fitness routine.
The FT60G1 is packed with innovative training features to help you toward your exercise goals. First off, the watch includes a Polar Star personalized training program that adapts to your workout habits. By giving you weekly training targets and providing constant feedback, the watch guides you without being too strict, helping you reach your goals more efficiently. The watch also displays heart rate info in several ways, including as a percentage of your maximum heart rate, as beats per minute, and within a graphical target zone indicator. And should your heart rate exceed or dip below your target zone, the FT60G1 will sound an alarm that helps you return to form.
Users will also love the variety of proprietary Polar functions, including ZonePointer, Polar OwnZone, and Polar OwnCal modes. The ZonePointer is an audible and visual feature on the display of your FT60G1 that shows you where your current heart rate sits within your target heart rate zone. The Polar OwnZone mode, meanwhile, provides a customized target zone for individual exercise sessions. Finally, the Polar OwnCal mode shows your energy expenditure during one exercise session, as well as your accumulated kilocalories during several exercise sessions. You can also set daily and weekly exercise goals in terms of calorie expenditure, helping you achieve both short-term and long-term goals.
It's the G1 GPS sensor that really helps the FT60G1 stand out in a crowd, however. The sensor, which includes a SIRF-III chipset, not only makes it easy to measure your speed and distance, but also offers support for the WAAS system, thereby improving position accuracy to within 3 meters. The shock-resistant G1 runs for up to 10 hours with a pair of AA batteries, or up to 30 hours with an optional lithium battery.
Other watch features include a built-in fitness test that measures your aerobic fitness at rest in just five minutes; a ZoneLock mode that lets you activate a target zone in the midst of training with the press of a button; an OwnCode mode that prevents crosstalk from other heart rate monitors nearby; a recording mode that tracks your average and maximum heart rate, calorie expenditure, distance, and total exercise time, and then puts it in an exercise file (with 100 total files); water resistance to 30 meters; a 12/24-hour clock with a day/week indicator; a built-in backlight; an alarm with a snooze; a low battery indicator; and a Polar FlowLink connection for transferring data between the FT60G1 and a computer. Sporting an attractive black housing with a red display, the watch carries a two-year warranty.
Manufacturer's Warranty
The original purchaser of this heart rate monitor is backed by a limited warranty that states that this product that the product will be free from defects in material or workmanship for two years from the date of purchase.
About Polar
The first EKG accurate wireless heart rate monitor was invented by Polar back in 1977 as a training tool for the Finnish National Cross Country Ski Team. The concept of "intensity training" by heart rate swept the athletic world in the eighties. By the 1990s, individuals were looking to heart rate monitors not only for performance training needs, but also for achieving everyday fitness goals. Today, the same concept of heart rate training is being used by world-class athletes as well as everyday people trying to lose weight. Polar is the leading brand among consumers, coaches, and personal trainers worldwide and the company is committed to not only producing the best products, but also being the leading educator on the benefits of heart rate based exercise.
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