Polar Wearables
Polar V650 and V800 - A Cycling Computer and a MultiSports Fitness Watch
Let’s start off with the Polar V650 by bicycling computer. The V650 includes a daylight readable screen, GPS and Bluetooth connectivity. Users just strap the device under the handlebars of their bicycle and hit the red button to begin or end an exercise. It’s also weatherized meaning users can go riding in all weather conditions. Like most of Polar devices, it also pairs via Bluetooth with a range of sensors, which can record pedal and heart rate. Overall, it's a solid well-designed device with the best screen out of all bicycling computers on today's market.
The Polar V800 multi sports watch on the other hand doesn't target any specific kind of exercise. It involves a great deal of manual input from users. Users need to mark when an exercise begins and when it ends although the watch takes care of the rest. Users can also customize their workout routines for better biometric data accuracy. it doesn't track sleep patterns like the Basis Peak but when paired with Polar’s Bluetooth sensors it can provide greater accuracy than any pulse / blood oxygen tracker.
Both V650 and V800 require very little effort to configure. Both Polar devices can pair over Polar’s mobile app and over the desktop. However to modify or customize user exercises requires using the web interface. Overall, the software suite offers users a great deal of utility and relatively simple means of setting up and configuring the wearable.
After completing the configuration process, I strongly recommend also pairing the heart rate sensor. Polar’s H7 heart rate sensor is conductive so it requires pre-wetting before usage. The H7 offers one of the most accurate heart rate sensors on today's consumer market. So are the polar V800 and V650 worth buying? I would recommend the V800 for exercise fanatics who want precision and control over their workouts. The V650 cycling computer on the other hand can be replaced by Smartphone for most of its functions. But if you need all-weather protection and daylight readability it stands out as a worthy purchase.
So there is yet another activity tracker on the block this time from Polar and I really didn't see it coming. They just released the Polar Loop 2 that was basically a minor update to the original Loop. They also have the A300, VA100, M400 most of which are activity trackers and some of those are also GPS watches. Polar also has a line up of heart rate monitor watches FT1, FT4 and FT7. Then out of nowhere, they just announced the A360 that is an activity tracker with an optical heart rate sensor built in. It’s going to be able to track your heart rate during pretty much all your activities e.g. when you're in a spin class, at the gym, while running, if you're cycling or doing a cross fit workout.
What is really nice about Polar is that they allow you to have different sport profiles - so you'll be able to track your spin class or your effort level during your spin class, during regular workouts, during Cross Fit while you're running, while you're cycling and that's really nice. We saw that transfer over from some of the other GPS watches. The market is really crowded obviously there's like a million activity trackers out there. However, this one seems somewhat cool it reminds me a lot of the Samsung gear Fit. it doesn't have a curved display but it is full color and it looks like can get a lot of information on it.
You can get like heart rate graphs, I love having all the different colors and it seems pretty neat. In addition, the bands are interchangeable, so if you get the white one originally and then you want to switch it out and get a red one later on, you can do that easily. it will also have smart notifications so when you get a text message or an email or whatever, it's going to show up on your wrist.
it is a cool-looking device I will say. It looks sleek; the locking mechanism looks really nice. For now, it comes in lime green, blue, pink, black and white. it is waterproof so you can go swimming with it. I do not know if the heart rate sensor is going to work while you are swimming. It is going to have pretty sweet battery life at least according to the website, two weeks with 24-7 activity tracking going and that includes one hour per day of training. now that's with smart notifications off but still I mean maybe like 12 days or something like that of battery life.
It's going to work with the Apple health kit and Google fit and MyFitnessPal of course and you'll be able to wirelessly sync your data to the Polar Flow application. The one thing about the Polar Flow app is that sleep tracking is still very lackluster but overall it's a really good application. Finally, it looks nice to me and definitely is a cool-looking device. It’s got that full color display that I really like. Looks like it's going to be comfortable with interchangeable bands, great battery life, waterproof, optical heart rate sensor, all-day activity tracking and sleep tracking, smart notifications. It’s a little funny that it came on the heels of the loop too but you know it's not super cheap.
Polar A360 Activity Tracker Launched
Polar M400 - Smart Sports HRM Watch
It’s becoming more of a trend for companies to include GPS in their activity trackers. Polar did the reverse and actually included activity tracking in their latest GPS running watch. While you won’t see any smart phone notifications on your wrist, this watch can track your active time, the steps you take, distance you travel , calories you burn and even your sleep at night. The GPS and other sensors give an extra boost allowing you to track your distance, pace, time and altitude while running. The watch is very smart. It knows when it’s being worn, when you're sitting, standing, walking, jogging or resting.
There is Bluetooth on board so you can connect with your mobile device or a heart rate monitor. It’s fully waterproof so you can shower with it or even go swimming and it charges with a normal USB cord rather than some specialized dock like most trackers on the market. There’s also a special feature on Polar's website that lets you re-live your past runs in the form of a mini movie. This includes details about your time and pace and even shows street view photos from your route. It’s a little gimmicky but I still think it's pretty cool.
The watch itself is a little big for a lot of work environments. However, this gives it great battery life. With an active GPS signal, you can expect to get about nine hours, which should be more than enough time for most people to finish a marathon. When used only as a watch and activity tracker, that battery life jumps up to 24 days. I’ve got about 15 days of usage with a mix of light jogging, about 20 and 30 minutes five days a week and daily activity tracking, but your results will vary based on how often you use the GPS.
I did have trouble maintaining a GPS signal in New York City and that's something you should definitely consider before buying this watch. Without the GPS, you can't get your pace or distance which makes the M400 simply an expensive stopwatch. The polar M 400 is available now and starts at two hundred dollars in the US, 134 pounds in the UK and 230 Australian dollars.
