I have a Nike Triax Elite (HRM and SDM). I like it a lot. The watch is the best looking out there, IMO. And, the display is nice, plus it is rotated toward you compared to normal watches. The HR strap is comfortable (more "supple" rubber than others ive looked at) and well designed. I'm sure the stand alone HRMs are the same in these regards.

I have a Nike Triax HRM and have had problems with it, roughly coinciding with one year of use. I sent the HRM and strap into customer service to repair/replace. First, they claimed that it was not covered by warranty even though the warranty is for two years. Then, they supposedly sent me back a new HRM even though they clearly sent me back the same strap (can't duplicate that year's worth of sweat smell in the lab). I say supposedly because it still doesn't work. I also got a complete run around from the customer service people. I'm going to send the watch and the HRM back into the service department right after Christmas to see if they can get the problem fixed, but I am not very hopeful. I think that I may be looking into Polar HRMs in January.

I'll second CTL's opinion. I had one and it broke after 6 months. Big pain to get it fixed.

I've been really happy with my Timex, although they offer only a 1 year warranty as opposed to Nike's 2.

Hello, I've had the opposite experience. I can never get Timex HR moniters to work, been through about three of them. At best they all would pick up for about 10 minutes, then nothing. Couple that with the fact that the strap is not usable with anything else (not even another timex watch) PITA.



Styrrell

So it seems as if no HRM really works that well. I have had several Polars and cant really give them any good summary. Granted they worked in the beginning, they didnt last long. I guess I will just use the old finger on neck techinque. :) When that doesnt work anymore, then I know I have real problems.

I share your pain. I thought i had scored a great deal on ebay on a slightly used Nike Triax cv10. It worked exactly once before all the buttons froze. I'm now trying to get my money back. Dammit, I liked the thing. The chest strap was very comfortable, the watch looked great, the SDM seemed accurate.

The timex models dont seem to have all the HR info I would like (such as max HR) and the watch band and chest band are crappy. Hello Timex, velcro bands come off when a wetsuit sleeve is forced over them-- and I hate to shell out 300+ for the new Polar. Having said that, I hear from our local tri shop that they are flying out of the door. Conversely, the local running shop guru swears by the Nike.

Negative vote here. My wife has one. It stopped picking up after about 3 months, so I changed the battery in the strap, possibly the watch too. Fixed it temporarily. Then I changed the batteries some more. Eventually it wouldn't read heartrate at all. She called for warranty repair, and they said it was no longer covered because I had changed the batteries! You have to realize that they have a great big battery holder on them that you can about open with a quarter, it's clearly designed for end user replacement. Well, she bought a SECOND one, and it was no better. So I bought her a polar. Turns out the non-coded polar strap worked fine with the Nike watch, so she has been using that combination successfully for about a year. I'd avoid them though. Polar seems to be pretty reliable.

Can't speak for Nike but I have had my Timex for 3 years and it is still tickin. Plus I have received shockingly good customer service from them as well - twice! Once when the idiot jeweler put the back plate on upside down. Called their customer support number and got a REAL person immediately. I explained the problem I was having and he identified the issue right away. Second, this summer I wanted to get a new elastic strap for the monitor and couldn't find one locally, so I phoned customer service again and they sent me a new one - free! 2 1/2 years later! I find sometimes takes a while to "warm up" sometimes, but that is probably due to dry skin not transmitting the message properly. Once I get a sweat on, no complaints!

I have a Polar 600 series now, but am not happy with it.

So what is it that you are not happy about your Polar.

I've sold all three and I'd stick with the Polar. Nike's are very nice ergonomically and they look the best but they aren't that dependable. Timex are again bang for the buck and good looks above Polar but they have some major issues especially with the chest strap breaking and that you can't get a new strap with out sending it back for warranty. Polar's work well for a heart rate monitor, not perfect, but better than anything else out there. Feature set is solid, best chest strap hands down and with the new Wearlink strap they have improved on that yet again. Not the best looking but hey, it's a heart rate monitor not a fashion watch. Who knows, maybe big huge digital watches with bright red buttons will be in one day, wear it to dinner start a fashion trend. Plus Polar's warranty is two years and they have excellent service.

BTW, best watch I've ever owned (wearing it now) is the Nike Triax Speed. 3+ years, the ultimate display, easy to use, light, comfy. The best