I am looking for a new chest strap monitor. Just had my 2nd Garmin HRM Tri die on me in just under 2 years. They are nice when they are working but at almost $100 I think they should last longer then 9-10 months.
I am looking at the Wahoo and Polar. I have read reviews on all of them and people seem to have issues with those as well.
Any advice?
My Polar H10 has been awesome, and I’m not a Polar fan in general. Fits great, always “just works” and both picks up my heart rate and connects to whatever it’s supposed to connect to. Even before I start to sweat a lot.
The only negative is the battery seems to only last a month or two vs. my old Garmin one where the battery would last a year or so.
Polar H10 is great and is capable of a lot of different metrics (hrv, respiration rate). Ive had mine for 2 yers and no problems. Battery lasts about 2-3 months
The only negative is the battery seems to only last a month or two vs. my old Garmin one where the battery would last a year or so.
Have you tried disconnecting the pod from the strap after using? I had the same “issue” in the beginning, but since I started doing that, it lasts much longer.
I also recommend the Polar heart rate straps. I ended up getting the H9 (because I didn’t need all the H10 features) and I’m super happy with my decision.
Have you tried disconnecting the pod from the strap after using? I had the same “issue” in the beginning, but since I started doing that, it lasts much longer.
I haven’t tried that - thanks for the tip.
Have you tried disconnecting the pod from the strap after using? I had the same “issue” in the beginning, but since I started doing that, it lasts much longer.
I haven’t tried that - thanks for the tip.
Oh yeah, you have to remove the unit from the strap or else it will just stay on forever lol. I made this mistake as well, went through a lot of batteries
I am looking for a new chest strap monitor. Just had my 2nd Garmin HRM Tri die on me in just under 2 years. They are nice when they are working but at almost $100 I think they should last longer then 9-10 months.
I am looking at the Wahoo and Polar. I have read reviews on all of them and people seem to have issues with those as well.
Any advice?
Garmin straps have a 12 month warranty. I had a warranty replacement after my 2nd one died. First lasted 15 months, second 11. They didn’t even ask for the old one to be returned. Note that was the HRM-Run, but the issuer seems to be the same for all the ‘new’ design with the electronics integrated in the strap, and the coloured rubber oval.
I am looking for a new chest strap monitor. Just had my 2nd Garmin HRM Tri die on me in just under 2 years. They are nice when they are working but at almost $100 I think they should last longer then 9-10 months.
I am looking at the Wahoo and Polar. I have read reviews on all of them and people seem to have issues with those as well.
Any advice?
I gave up on Garmin straps for the same reason. They’d die after about 18months to 2 years. Got a Wahoo Tickr and it’s still going strong. I will say I don’t wear it much after getting a 935. For my needs, the optical on the watch seems to do pretty good.
I’ve used the gen1 and gen2 Wahoo Tickr. No issues with the first generation, but using the second generation I started experiencing problems with measurements lagging. I’d be in the middle of a workout and HR would freeze, unfreeze and then read way lower than it should have. I followed all directions Wahoo had for troubleshooting, ended up sending it back and received a replacement. Same problems with the replacement
I was tired of dealing with the Wahoo and don’t like going off of my 935’s wrist-based HR so I purchased the Polar H10. I’ve put it through about 100 hrs. of training at various intensities and it’s been great with no hiccups
I was in your shoes about 8 months ago. Got Wahoo run which was on sale somewhere and it’s been bullet proof so far. I like the two flashing lights as an dummy indicator showing it’s on and working. I haven’t even looked at what the run portion does as I don’t own a treadmill or have a foot pod.
I was cleaning out a backpack just this morning and found a graveyard of HR monitors. All of them were Garmins, both the old school and new school versions. With the exception of the bulletproof 1st gen. hardstrap, I think most Garmin users have succumbed to the fact that they are lucky to last 6 months, give or take a few months. In Garmin’s defense, they have been good with warranty replacements or deep discounts on new ones.
I also have a Wahoo TickrX which I like a lot. Oddly enough, the strap broke before the monitor portion. I had a spare Garmin on standby so I went to that, but will eventually go back to the Wahoo.
What the heck are people doing with their Garmin heart rate straps that they only last that short of a time? I don’t swim in mine except for races, but I average wearing them for between 8 and 12 workouts per week for quite a few years. Sure I have to occasionally replace the battery, and I take it in the shower to clean it every few weeks. However, mine work exactly as expected.
My Wahoo Tickr X was also returned. It looks great on paper, but fails at the most basic function of measuring heart rate. I had all the same issues everyone else has been reporting; I think maybe one ride it worked fine. I then went for a Garmin HRM Dual as the other old Garmin strap I have has been reliable (although no bluetooth for Zwift connection). The HRM Dual has been “ok”, the only problem I have with it is that it drops the HR in Zwift for a few seconds every once in awhile. I tend to sweat like crazy (5.1 lbs lost in a 1:10 session yesterday) and I’ve yet to find a chest strap that works reliably for me. The optical ones, while not suffering from sweat, seem to be better under some conditions and worse under others, and the constant battery charging is a PITA.
Buy a replacement strap from Amazon for about 10 bucks and snap your sensor on that. Works great.
What the heck are people doing with their Garmin heart rate straps that they only last that short of a time? I don’t swim in mine except for races, but I average wearing them for between 8 and 12 workouts per week for quite a few years. Sure I have to occasionally replace the battery, and I take it in the shower to clean it every few weeks. However, mine work exactly as expected.
There was a ‘discussion’ on this in the DCrainmaker review of the latest one. Essentially 2 groups. Yours, that can’t work out what others are doing, and mine, and the people I know first hand that work fine until the battery needs changing, then the new battery lasts for a few weeks and then the HRM is dead. I was so careful to re-seat the rubber gasket you wouldn’t believe. I only swim with it for races, perhaps twice a year, but do live and train in the warm, so sweat a fair bit, and my personal brand of sweat ate through the old FR205 with the metal contacts on the back in 4 uses. Really.
I average about 15 hours of strap wearing a week.
So it’s clearly linked to the battery change (in my case and many - not all) others. I’ve no idea why some people have no issue, others a 100% fail rate after swapping.
After having 2 Garmin Tri’s break in quick succession I changed to a cheaper Magene H64 HRM (I’m based in China). Works good enough and supports both Bluetooth and Ant+. Cost around 23usd.
I have literally been through 3 garmin HRM tri.
If the battery runs out it’s game over for them- I was always so careful replacing the battery, but each time they just died after a few workouts. Never swim in them other than my races. Had so much trouble trying to get garmin to replace them (they refused).
For the last 2 years I have used a wahoo tickr. Absolutely bullet proof. No problems at all, have replaced battery etc.
I replaced it with the tickr 2 recently and it had a bit of a problem reading HR- I got in contact with wahoo, and sent them a fit file. They sent me a replacement within 2 days- no questions asked.
Some issue as most with the Garmin HRM Tri; dead after a battery change. If you didn’t have to change the battery if was faultless. The cost of replacing every year pissed me off so I tried a Wahoo, which couldn’t do what it was supposed to do. My HR would hold at one number for a few minutes then drop to an unnatural number and hold that for a few minutes, then jump to another number and hold that. The HR graph in Garmin Connect looked like a game of Tetris. Replaced and same problem. Now I’m on a Polar H10. Only issue I had was battery not lasting more than 4-6 weeks, until I started removing the pod from the strap between workouts. Now I’m getting good life. The other positive of the Polar is that the wife can use the same pod but on a smaller strap to fit her little rig.
I’ve used Garmins for more years than I can to admit. I always got years from the old plastic strap. I rinsed it frequently and changed batteries about twice a year. I recently bought the newer strap and it lasted about four months. It’s also frustrating to change the battery. More often than not the tiny screws will strip and I end up throwing the whole strap away. It certainly seems like planned obsolescence to me.
The new version would also drop my heart rate at irregular intervals, even if I wet it before using. I never had that problem with the older hard HR straps.
I know OP is asking specifically about chest straps, but if you want a device that truly will not die on you prematurely, it’s the optical Scosche Rhythm+ or optical Wahoo version (forgot what it was called, looks the same.)
It’s got a few quirks in finding the best spot to use it on your forearm, but once you get that spot right, it works as well years later as it does on day one. When I’m doing hard running with it, I wear a tight sleeve over it to hold it more in place, and it just works.
I have killed every type of Garmin strap. A few folks swear that the old hard straps last longer, but that absolutely wasn’t the case for me - they died just as fast as the soft ones, most in the 8-14 month range.
The annoying thing about the dying Garmin straps isn’t just that it dies - it dies a SLOW death, meaning gradually worsening and inconsistent data after 6 months, until you just can’t take it anymore. It would be better it was all good and then suddenly just stopped transmitting. Again, the optical arm HRMs don’t seem to have this problem.
And no, the Garmin watch HRM doesn’t work well at all despite similar or even better optical sensors. I’ve tried it numerous times - it outright sucks on a 945 once I start running. optical wants to be on a fleshy part like forearm, and fairly tight.