Watching this since I am in the same boat than you and I am trying to decide between the Vantage M, Coros and 735xt. I haven't find any reviews of the Polar exclusively for triathlon use.

Ironically I’m exactly the same except replace 735xt with 935. I’m forgetful and would really love mega battery life.

I know the 935 is the “best” of them but I just don’t want to pay Garmin prices I think they’re just too high. But before I jump ship last thing I want is to spend $300+ on a watch just to come crawling back.

---

I still lapped everyone on the couch!

Surprising amount of crickets. Bump

---

I still lapped everyone on the couch!

I have the vantage M (since black Friday) and I'll try to answer all your questions.

-battery life is tremendous. It's amazing. Even better than my wahoo bolt and lezyne super gps headunits. I think I could actually get 30 hours with gps on and the optical HRM. I don't usually use the OHRM during workouts though; normally the wahoo tickr.

-auto sync with my phone works great. I have a Moto E plus (android).
-smartphone notifications are scheduled for the update released "early February." The other updates were on schedule.

I don't miss the ANT+ connectivity. My vantage M calibrates assioma just fine and I have the wahoo tickr and a polar H7. Works great with both.

I wear the watch 24/7 and the only thing I really miss is not having navigation.

I love having instant and after the fact heart rate while swimming in the pool.

How is the GPS in use? I know it’s winter so I’m sure use is limited. But does it seem accurate and consistent? Does it connect quickly?

---

I still lapped everyone on the couch!

I've had extensive use of the gps, other than no openwater swims. I don't zwift exclusively in winter, just primarily. I xc ski and run outside. I'd say it's as accurate as the 935 (which isn't great). Reception is quick, yeah. It's not as accurate as the v800 or my tomtom multisport, which were both great.

If you want accurate instant pace for running, get a stryd footpod.

Does it charge during workouts like the Coros and 935 can?

---

I still lapped everyone on the couch!

I got the V and besides a few very annoying glitches that seem to be software-related, I really really like it. The battery life is outstanding. The swim tracking is pretty good. I don't care about smartphone notifications, so that is less important to me..... the screen is really good. And I love how it backlights up when you flip your wrist up to look at it (when running at night this is AMAZING).

So yes, so far, mixed reviews :) It will talk to my new power meter (Assioma).

-Eric

Sorry for the onslaught of seemingly dumb questions. But the swim tracking. Does it track drills too? This is one of the reasons I’m looking to replace my VAHR. Battery life, no tri mode or open water (I use a 910xt for racing and open water), and it doesn’t track my swim drills very well.

---

I still lapped everyone on the couch!

Hello Eric
I'm with a suunto spartan ultra and I'm wanting to go to the polar vantage v
Could you tell me a little more?
Do you know the spartan?
What do you think about the change ?
Thank you

No, you're all good. So yeah, there is open water (GPS) and pool (accelerometer) modes for swimming. You get data like this:

Is that what you mean?

The only time I've had the slightest problem is when doing kick sets (the watch has no idea you're kicking :) )

-Eric

I'm not familiar with the Suunto, sorry. What specific questions do you have?

-Eric

I jumped ship from Polar long ago. They are kind of like the Racermate of the HR/Sports Watch market. I had an Accurex II and a few others along the way. They were pretty much the only game in town at the time. The problem is they are too arrogant in their beliefs and they don't listen to their customers. Way back in the day most gym equipment supported Polar non encoded (and sometimes encoded) signals. Great, except their top of the line watches used W.I.N.D. only. I told them, they needed an HR sensor that transmits both. Nope, not needed according to them. I had to jury rig one together myself.

Fast forward to today. They just don't support ANT+. Sorry, but I've done development work with both ANT+ and BLE and ANT+ is easier to work with and just a flat out superior solution for fitness sensors. Pairing might be great when you want your headphones to only communicate with your phone, but it's bad when you want to use several applications/devices to pickup and display the same sensor readings. At the very least, you need to give your customer a choice. Don't arrogantly pick one and force it on your customers.

I dont know why you are working so hard to avoid garmin...

Eta: it seems like all your posts are like, "I want something that is just like a garmin... Has all the features, reliability, accuracy, etc. Just see than little garmin logo? I don't want THAT."

But the hr data from dcr review of the new garmin hrm-dual has vantage m data in it. Looks like shit. Seems more like a random heart rate number generator than a monitor. I wouldn't touch it.

Eta: I also want nothing to do with BLE only devices.

It has 100% to do with price. To get everything I want it puts my in the 935. And that has me spending $419 as the cheapest I’ve seen. At least from a reliable retailer. And I just have a hard time shelling out over $400 for a watch. To be honest I have a hard time shelling out $300 for a watch. So since Garmin doesn’t want to accommodate with a mid range watch that has an oHR, that has a long battery life. I’ll at the very least take a long hard look at all the other watches.

End of the day Triathlon is an expensive sport. I try to look and save money where I can without sacraficing what’s important to me functionality wise.

---

I still lapped everyone on the couch!

I get THAT. That's exactly why I have a 920xt. I bought it two years ago, refurb for $200 (which was and is a lot of money for a watch)...when it was a few months from aging out of the top spot of the product line. That's why I STILL have a 920xt. That's why I'm looking at buying a replacement battery for it, to get ANOTHER 2 years out of it.

Good luck in your search. Nothing I've seen says that oHR is a direct replacement for electrical, yet. I wouldn't die on a sword for it, that's for sure. Even the "best" oHR devices seem to come with a lot of caveats, and work arounds and funky nuances. I don't spend a lot of time looking at it, but when I have random chances to look at comparative traces such as the DCR HRM-DUAL review...nothing about the data says, "yeah, gimmie some of THAT!"

Again, no way I would every buy a watch (or other head unit) that didn't support ANT+. I like the idea of dual BLE/ANT support to give me sensor selection freedom...but, if I can only have one..ANT+ is mandatory on the head unit. The MANY-MANY pairing / monitoring feature of ANT+ is non-negotiable.

I agree oHR isn’t a replacement and I use a strap. But I supplement with oHR on my vivoactive. It’s just me personally what I do. But I’m forgetful and lose stuff, having big chunks with no HR at all pre-VAHR, or just bonkers readings every which way on cold dry days I was actually relieved and semi-pleased to get an oHR. Otherwise I’d already have a 920 easy peasy lemon squeezey. I also monitor my rHR especially when I wake up and over sleep to try and get a baseline when I’m over reaching. I’ve measured rHR against palpating and it seems to work fine.

---

I still lapped everyone on the couch!

I have to agree with you on price. I have a 935 and while it's good it is not a $499 watch. With that being said, i'd stay far away from Polar as you will end up spending a lot more when you replace it.

I bought a 42mm Coros Apex. The battery life is insanely good.
The firmware is really good with a few tweaks I'd like to see.
They seem to roll out frequent updates though.
Some of the user manual still has Chinese characters too!

Bang for the buck though... not sure it can be beat.

I tried the triathlon mode. It even tracks transitions and allows you to do custom race setups like duathlon or Bike, swim, run or whatever..

I’m actually really looking close at the Coros. Probably my #1 choice at this point. But I want to cover all my bases. When I do stop annoying people on slowtwitch about a watch I want it to be for a very long time.

---

I still lapped everyone on the couch!

PM me. I actually owned the spartan trainer and the vantage M for a month, then returned the spartan trainer. I have a detailed comparison I messaged to another user. Given the choice between the Suunto 9 and the vantage V I think I would go with the Suunto. But I'm happy with the Vantage M instead of the spartan trainer.

I've been using a Vantage V for about a month after having an original fenix 5 since its release (the last version w/o wifi since I work in a facility that doesn't allow wifi devices). As a long-time fenix user, it seems like for every feature on the Vantage that I really like, there seems like there are at least 2 or 3 things missing. It's hard to describe, but from a software stand-point, it just doesn't seem to be a finished product. From what I can tell, Polar users seem to be anxiously waiting for the next firmware update to see where it's heading.

I looked at the Coros too but I really like Polar flow, the vantage M is cheaper, and good triathlon watches need 4 or 5 buttons. Not one button and a touchscreen. Not three buttons and a touchscreen. Not one and a dial. 5 buttons-up, down, select, back, and light/calibrate. I run and bike and ski with gloves. No way I'm turning a dial while skiing up a hill or when swimming.

If I had more money I would have bought the 935 or the Suunto 9.

Yeah, that's a good way to put it. For every + there's several -.

-Eric