Polar hrm vs garmin

[FanieFiets]

Solly, do you need gps or just accurate measurement of the distance, speed etc?

 

That sunto looks damn fine!

[solly]

Solly, do you need gps or just accurate measurement of the distance, speed

 

Just accurate SPd,distance,heart rate ,cadence and time. All at once

[Tankman]

I want a comp that displays the most info and does not need charging all time. Which of these shows all the aspects like hr,speed,cadence,distance on one screen

 

Garmin Garmin Garmin

 

Ànd the Garmin does all that. The display screens are customiseable, on the Edge 500 you have 3 different screens with up to 8 pieces of different info per screen.

 

Polar uses Sonar link or Infrared old and outdated technology to download the workouts, which has never tickled my fancy.

 

3rd party software is also much more Garmin friendly and easier to integrate with than Polar.

 

The battery life on Garmin is really not an issue, I download my workouts every other couple of days (via usb ) and it charges while downloading. You should be able to get about 20hrs ride time out of it. If you plan on riding longer than 20hrs in one go, pm me, I know how you can charge the unit with and external power source while in use.

[Bike Lore]

Garmin Garmin Garmin

 

Ànd the Garmin does all that. The display screens are customiseable, on the Edge 500 you have 3 different screens with up to 8 pieces of different info per screen.

 

Polar uses Sonar link or Infrared old and outdated technology to download the workouts, which has never tickled my fancy.

 

3rd party software is also much more Garmin friendly and easier to integrate with than Polar.

 

The battery life on Garmin is really not an issue, I download my workouts every other couple of days (via usb ) and it charges while downloading. You should be able to get about 20hrs ride time out of it. If you plan on riding longer than 20hrs in one go, pm me, I know how you can charge the unit with and external power source while in use.

 

what the hell!!?!! You need to worry about the battery life? That is crazy talk. it is bad enough worrying about memory every 3 months or so But battery life? Last time i had my polar watch battery changed they swapped my heart rate monitor for under R200 and gave me a new housing for my watch. Thing looks like new now.

 

Gee wiz, I am thanking my chops for a polar now.

[Tankman]

Hannes you don't need to replace the battery in the Garmin, just charge it!

 

You also don't need to send it away like Polar for two weeks to be done by an authorized dealer ... just use any old usb cable, plug n play!

[rouxtjie]

I am afraid the tankman is right...had both, prefer my garmin....BUT and this is a big BUT, you have to get some proper aftermarket software(Sporttracks...training peaks etc.)

 

Polar's service does seem to be better though, if they can build a unit that has integrated GPS, doesn't lock me into their format(yes I know there are converters but it's a schlep), fix their HR strap issue(which I think they have done...but need to confirm) and come in at the same price point as a garmin give or take....well I would consider one...they are better looking units to be honest

 

Oh and the battery life on the garmin isn't a problem...did a 3 day stage race on one charge...no issues and I have mine set to 1sec data capture intervals so it should be draining the battery vs the smart recording.

[FanieFiets]

Solly, do you need gps or just accurate measurement of the distance, speed

 

Just accurate SPd,distance,heart rate ,cadence and time. All at once

 

You have a tricky one. I think the garmin edge gives a lot of info at once, but according the website the battery lasts 18 hours. My gf watch was supposed to last 8 hours but actually did only 6 hours and after 18 months when the battery failed she heard that the battery cant be replaced......new watch.

 

I do not know the model well but this Polar seems to fit into what you are looking for. http://www.polar.fi/en/products/maximize_performance/cycling/CS500plus

http://www.polar.fi/sites/default/files/CS500plus_frontleft_2.png

 

Price is just over R 2K from bikeinn.

Honestly I do not know what the issue with the infra-red is. I put my wat next to the stick, it uploads.....what do I care what what technology it use....it works. On the software side i am also bit confused why people say garmin software is better as polars software is from what I know much better. You can compare anything you like, put it on a graph, compare. The the only think that I know sportstracker has, is the age of your equipment. Sportstracker is 3rd party however and available for polar. garmin, suunto, mobii or whatever.

 

Bryton may also be an option or Mobii (think it is a RSA brand). I do not know the models however.

[petatodd]

Any advise on which hrm to go for??

Go for the one that makes you faster...

 

Garmin don't give you Vitality points for training... Just saying.

It is possible to load Garmin files into polarpersonaltrainer.com and get Vitality points but it is easier to do a few rides and let SA-Active.co.za give you the points. 15,000 for activity is so low anyway, just 3 or 4 events

[rouxtjie]

.....

On the software side i am also bit confused why people say garmin software is better as polars software is from what I know much better. You can compare anything you like, put it on a graph, compare. The the only think that I know sportstracker has, is the age of your equipment. Sportstracker is 3rd party however and available for polar. garmin, suunto, mobii or whatever.

Not what we are saying, if anything the out-of-the-box software bundled with the Polar's are much better FACT...Garmin connect is very lightweight at best and training centre plain hondnaai. But the data comes alive with Sporttracks3 or Trainingpeaks...and because those software packages support the garmin formats natively its a breeze to import and work with...Its not impossible with Polar's data, but there are conversions needed.

 

If you think sporttracks's only advantage is the "equipment life" you are wrong...do yourself a favour download the trial version and download training load plugin and maybe the speedwall plugin and see what I mean...ons praat weer

[LOOK695]

Been using Polar for years and am very happy with the product and aftersale service. Don't have problems with my HR strap. Also like the fact that I can download all my rides on too my computer. Have not used Garmin, but seems a good product

[FanieFiets]

 

If you think sporttracks's only advantage is the "equipment life" you are wrong...do yourself a favour download the trial version and download training load plugin and maybe the speedwall plugin and see what I mean...ons praat weer

 

Different strokes for different okes. I did download sportstracks and didnt get the feel for it. Honestly there is nothing that I can think of that I would one more out of my polar software, if I miss anything, please let me know as I am super analytical and spend hours comparing stuff.

 

Other catch 22 is that I have about 6 years of data on more polar software that I do not want to lose. Guess I can import it to sportstrack?

This is also a big gripe with polars new watches. They are moving away from the pc-version to a 100% online version. Guess has advantages, but you will then lose all the data to date. Plus I am not always connected to the web if I quickly want to have a look at something.

[KiNgL]

polar rs800cx

 

www.bikeinn.com

decent prices and on sale

[rouxtjie]

Different strokes for different okes. I did download sportstracks and didnt get the feel for it. Honestly there is nothing that I can think of that I would one more out of my polar software, if I miss anything, please let me know as I am super analytical and spend hours comparing stuff.

 

Other catch 22 is that I have about 6 years of data on more polar software that I do not want to lose. Guess I can import it to sportstrack?

This is also a big gripe with polars new watches. They are moving away from the pc-version to a 100% online version. Guess has advantages, but you will then lose all the data to date. Plus I am not always connected to the web if I quickly want to have a look at something.

Sporttracks takes a bit of time to get used to, but once you get going, I find that few other compare for its price point. Same as you, I love analyzing and comparing...might have to do with the fact that I build data warehouses for a living but anyway. Here are some of the things I love tracking

 

CTL / ATL(chronic and accute training loads...basically the effect workouts have on fitness and fatigue)

TSB(training stress balance indicating my taper dates for a set race, this moves according to my history...very handy)

TRIMP scores(what workouts score ito fitness gains)

Training influence(what influence workouts have ito gains relative to target date...like sani2c start date....ie when I should train hard or not for maximum gains)

Comparing climbs and their difficilty rating ito steepness...longest....hardest over different places I frequent

Speedwall for exporting to Google earth and doing fancy 3D overlays...very cool and addictive

Overlay for comparing workouts and climbs that I have done before...like eg, how much quicker am I riding breedtsnek climb vs 2 months ago.

The list goes on and on, there is a plugin for everything.

 

Just check it out, I know there are guys that have managed to convert Polar data for Sporttracks3...

[Lucky Luke.]

I recently moved from a Polar CS500 (after many years of Polar HR monitor usage) to Garmin 800.

 

Thoughts:

 

Garmin = forward thinking technology, use your data wherever you like, no issues using with my mac, much better interface, customise display of workout data on the device, industry leaders for GPS

 

Polar = shockingly broken software and worse than useless Apple compatibility, regular loss of workout data during transfer, cannot use data on most sites (Strava, Endomondo etc), heads firmly up 4rse, no signs of improvement in four years of usage.

[The Ghost]

Here's a question... Do any of the GPS HRM manufacturers have an iOS app?

[rouxtjie]

Here's a question... Do any of the GPS HRM manufacturers have an iOS app?

Garmin does...called Garmin Fit....all it really is Apple front-end for your garmin connect data...so if you haven't uploaded your data to Garmin connect...it won't feature in the app. That being said its good enough to quickly check stats of workouts but not in-depth analysis, you can basically check key stats with graphs(speed, HR, elevation and cadence) as well as a plotted geo map, oh and lap details

 

check it...i find it usefull for quick reference