Polar FT80 Heart Rate Monitor Watch Black
| Brand: | Polar | ||
| Average Rating |
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Optimizes strength training by providing guidance on how to long to rest between sets, delivering the information in an easy-to-read graphical display (see image above) more info
Love it
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I do not have much to say on the features, which are abundant and as far as I can tell described correctly on the web site.
When I bought the watch I was somewhat afraid that it would have the data transfer issues and so far everything works great. The other two scares, that the display was too dark and the watch was too big to be worn comfortably turned out to be unfounded as well – for my taste at least.
Given that I needed a watch and a heart rate monitor at the same time (and most heart rate monitors are too ugly to wear as a watch) I figured that the FT80 would be a good deal – I would have spent roughly the same money anyway. Colleagues and friends have commented on my nice new watch, so I guess that this strategy worked out.
POLAR FT80
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
In late April 2009 I purchased a Polar FT80G1 (FT80 with the GPS sensor). At first I loved the unit and it worked fine (great looks, cool features). After about a month of use the monitor became inconsistent, e.g. halfway into a run the HRM just stopped showing HR only 00, other times the GPS would stop providing distance information, sometimes the GPS would work but the HR would stick at 00. The manuals state that the wrist unit and transmitter batteries should last 1yr+. I had the batteries changed on each unit yet the problem persists. Other times I would be running indoor on a treadmill (using a fat burn or heart rate program) and at times the treadmill would stop because my HR was too low – treadmills at my gym thought I was dead so they turnoff(my gym is less than six months old – LIFETIME FITNESS so the equipment is new and well maintained.
Prior to purchasing the FT80 I read reviews complaining about the display. I agree that the display is hard to read in low light, but super at the gym or in full sun. The face of the FT80 is easy to scratch and impossible to remove the scratches, which in a low level light situation makes reading the display a workout in and of its self. The FT80 looks great; the first month of use was wonderful. Thereafter it has been one big disappointment after another. I have been a Polar customer for about 10 years, and have always been impressed with the Polar products I have owned. I moved up to the FT80 from the F6 that I used for about four years and never had a problem with at all. This afternoon I FedEx’ed my F6 back to Polar to have the battery replaced. I emailed Polar to learn of the return policy for FT80 – having paid over $400 less than five months ago I hope they will do something.
I would absolutely not recommend this product to anyone.
Richard Miskewitz, Mountainside NJ
Great Workout watch
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I’ve had this watch for about 2 months now and I’m very happy with it. The screen can be a little difficult to see indoors in certain lighting but for the most part its a non issue. I use it for biking, tennis, nautilus,kayaking, and daily walking. I find it to be a great motivator. My only issue is with the software link. It can be a pain but for the most part I have found a way around it. No matter what error I get from the system I find that if I just ignore it and continue to place my watch on the link system it eventually goes through. I have managed to transfer data even when it says “fatal system string error”. I just leave the message there and put my watch on the link again. I have had it transfer data every time. If you say okay to the message it just shuts the whole system down and then you have to restart your computer and start the transfer again. I basically work out every day of the week and I always transfer my data after I finish a workout I have never been unsuccessful in transferring my workout data. It might take 5 minutes because I have to keep putting the watch on the link and clicking retry after it says connection lost but I always get it through and probably 80% of the time it goes through on the first try.
Overall I think this is a great watch, It looks great. It fits great I have really small wrists so I was pleased with its sleek look and more tapered fit.
A flawed hero
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
The FT80 (plus chest strap, plus GPS tracker) will help you achieve your fitness goals. At least, it has helped me achieve mine. I haven’t bothered to explore all the bells and whistles: rather, I have focused on using it to track my aerobic exercise. It does this by recording the duration and exertion of my routines, compares them to its customized weekly goals (in my case, about five hours per week), and tells me what I’m doing wrong.
There’s a little more to it, but in essence you just do N hours/wk of exercise, let the watch figure out if you’re exerting yourself too much (or not enough), upload the info from the watch to Polar’s website, and rinse & repeat. You could do this with a cheap $80 Casio watch and chest-strap, but you would have to punch the numbers into the website, instead of uploading them with the weird-looking docking station (I swear, it looks like something for warming a very small pot of coffee).
My first FT80 died after a month, so I sent it back to the manufacturer. Polar kept me informed from start to finish, charged me $0 for repair (as is appropriate), and only took a couple of weeks to return it in full working order.
The synchronization issues, which have been mentioned in other reviews on Amazon and elsewhere, are still ongoing. I have to unplug and reconnect the docking station from time to time. However, the data still makes its way from the watch to the Polar website, so I’m happy.
The face of the watch is easy to scratch and the wrist strap is not very flexible. Then again, the watch isn’t built for looks. I wear a $20 Casio most of the time. Even if I didn’t, I wouldn’t wear this watch on a daily basis.
Its best feature in my opinion is actually in the chest-strap: it transmits my heart rate to the treadmill at the gym. This causes the treadmill to adjust its incline in order to keep my heart rate in the right zone. This keeps me from wearing myself out. So, before I know it, I’ve run for an hour, burned a thousand calories, and not torn anything. (I am nursing a groin injury.) So, for coaxing me into the gym and keeping me there without encouraging me to overdo it, this package has my vote.
Aside from the synchronization issue and the initial fault (covered under warranty), it’s an excellent watch. The GPS tracker is good too. I am happy with my purchase. It helps me keep myself on-track with my fitness goals, it is utterly unforgiving of my ‘lazy days’, and it helps me to maintain the weight and the level of fitness that I need. I believe Polar’s Quality Control Department made a serious error by allowing this product to be released for general sale when it was still exhibiting these issues, but the watch is still an excellent product in my opinion.
Disappointed
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
I am extremely disappointed with this unit. The display is barely visible under the best of illumination and invisible in many cases. The real problem is in the communication between between the watch and the computer. In spite of the sleek and stylish looking “Polar Flowlink” the transmission of data from the watch to the computer fails more often than not. In my case, I got to communicate the first time I linked it, after that I always got an error message. After five days I decided to return the unit to Amazon. I am not the only one that has had this problem, Polar knows about this failure, but… continues to sell the unit. Shame on Polar!