I’m about to invest in a new HRM and there are some features I would like it to have, but I can’t seem to find one that meets the criteria. I’ve looked at the Timex, Polar, Garmin and Suunto web sites and didn’t find any of them very user friendly, so I thought I would see what you guys have used and liked.
First, I need the wrist unit/watch part to be waterproof.
I need a HRM for running and biking.
I would like it to tell me speed/pace/distance, etc for running. (If this is done by a foot pod, that’s fine. I don’t need GPS, but if that’s the technology used, I’m ok with it)
I would like one that tells me my speed/pace/distance (and maybe cadence?) on the bike.
I think Polar has all this stuff on its $500-$600 model, but it also has a lot of stuff on there I don’t need, and therefore, don’t want to pay for.
You’re looking for the Garmin Forerunner 50. Its’ not waterproof, but water resistant enough for the swim. tracks running speed and cadence with a footpod, speed/distance/cadence on the bike with one sensor, and can download all the data to garmin connect or garmin’s own work-out software manager. You should be able to pick up the watch, hrm strap, bike sensor, and foot pod for less about $260.00 retail- less if you look around a little.
Chris from Polar here. We have a new product coming out this month (RS300x). Check our website within the next few weeks for it. Sounds like it is everything you are looking for!
Garmin forerunner 305 has everything you’re looking for. Pace, speed, distance and of course HRM.
Bike compatible, but you’ll need to buy the optional cadence sensor.
Garmin 405 can do all of that except the cadence on the bike. And it’s ANT+ compatible.
The interface is highly customizable to show you the data you want. And the whole apparatus is contained in two items, the watch and the chest strap. (well, there is the ANT+ fob for your computer, but that’s not something you have to drag with you while training/racing…and certainly not cluttering up your bike forks or rear end stays.
Given your parameters, I’d put that one as the one to have.
FWIW - My Garmin Forerunner 50 arrived in the mail about a week ago. I am really really pleased with it. The only thing that it doesn’t have is GPS, and that doesn’t matter to me. Foot speed, cadence, HR, everything except GPS, and I got the chest strap, foot pod, and watch of the 'bay (including shipping) for $98.
I couldn’t find a deal that got anywhere close to that from any of the other companies.
Likewise I have an Edge 305 for the bike that works great, and liked it so much I bought a Forerunner 305 for bike/run (but mostly running). With the HR strap I got it for $150 at Costco on a special…normally it’s about $170 at Amazon and the bike pod for cadence (it uses GPS for speed) is only $35. So for $200ish you could have a Forerunner 305 with all of the features you are looking for. It’s water-resistant enough for everything but swimming (though some people apparently swim with them fine) and works great. The only software thing that annoys the hell out of me is there is no auto-off after X minutes of inactivity. So sometimes I forget to turn the unit off and drain the battery…DOH!
I don’t know why in the world you would want a $600 Polar when a $200 Garmin does everything I would need. 4 customizable screens with up to 4 items per screen…I have mine set up on the main screen for time, current pace, HR and lap time, 2nd screen is last lap time, pace, HR and total miles, etc.
FWIW - My Garmin Forerunner 50 arrived in the mail about a week ago. I am really really pleased with it. The only thing that it doesn’t have is GPS, and that doesn’t matter to me. Foot speed, cadence, HR, everything except GPS, and I got the chest strap, foot pod, and watch of the 'bay (including shipping) for $98.
I couldn’t find a deal that got anywhere close to that from any of the other companies.
Just to confirm, that’s downloadable running speed, running cadence and HR for $98?? Wow! How many hours of data will it store?