Got the new Polar S625x: First day use

Triathlon Forum
1

Hmmm.

I’m one of those guys who, if he doesn;t know every function of how something works, I’m frustrated until I do.

So, it has been a long day wading through the specifics of how to use the S625x and the attendant software.

There is a lot ot learn. The manual is good and I have gone cover to cover three times in the last two days but there are some vagueing terms in there such as “exercise set” and so forth.

I wish there were some plain language that explained the functionaltiy of certain features and a detailed glossary explaining the terms in more detail.

There is a big opportunity for someone to publish an aftermarket users’ guide that is longer, with practical use examples and more illustrations. The camera industry has these and they are useful. This device has so many features a book like that is necessary IMO.

A lot of features. Very interesting. Still very low on the learning curve. One thing I will say- everything works as advertisied- it is just a matter of learning it.

2

I love mine!

You going to get the power meter too?

3

At this stage I’ve looked at a lot of power measuring devices and learned a lot. I have a lot to learn about measuring power and incorporating it into training at the recreational level (my level).

Right now, I’m still learning how to incorporate it. I will be in Georgia at the Discovery Adventure P.R.O. Series TRaining Camp with a Ph.d exercise physiologist who has been working with the Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team as well as US National Team athletes to incorporate power based training into their routines. I know I’ll learn a lot there.

Just mastering the existing functionality is plenty for now.

4

I find most polar manual to be a little vague in certain areas - may be the translation aspect?? Tom based on your writing skill, industry knowledge and personal experience I sence a new book coming on…

5

If you’re “Recreational”, I hate to think what category I fall into - “Jr. Beginner?”

Anyway, let us less enlightened know what you learn at the training camp. We’ll be looking for a full download. Have fun.

Thx

6

i have been a long time timex user and i switched over to the polar. contrary to many users i had to manually calibrate mine on the track. this may sound crazy but polar recommended wearing the watch on the same side as you wear the foot pod. i tested it and found there was i very slight difference if you use different sides. i have got a few hours on the power unit. it takes some getting used to. i actually don’t know enough about power yet to help you any further. good luck. can not wait to hear about what you learn in the next few months. please share.

7

Thanks. Will do.

8

The 625 has major flaws:

First, the mileage meter uses the same circuitry to measure both run and bike mileage, so when you download your workouts, you get total mileage without separating running from cycling. It’s more important to know your running mileage in order to keep it within a proper range, whereas bike mileage can fluctuate more without leading to overuse injuries.

Second, the software doesn’t allow any sort of journal to be kept where you could break out weekly run mileage or make any other notations that would be useful to pull out on a weekly or monthly basis.

Third, you can’t use it in a tri, because you have to actually switch the recording mode off and back on again to change from bike to run. As if this weren’t bad enough, the foot pod shuts itself off after a short time with no communication with the watch, so even if you set it up on your run shoes, you have to shut off the watch, change to run mode (shifting through three modes to get there) and then switch on the foot pod. How much does that suck?

Fourth, the altitude function is never correct. You have to reset it almost daily, and then it still isn’t right. I’m standing next to the sign that says “elevation 72 feet,” so I set the watch to 72 feet. Then I switch it on and start to run and rotate through the functions to “alt” and it says 465 feet!! Wassup wif dat?

Finally, the damned things just aren’t all that reliable. I started my run yesterday, and here are the errors:
1- System showed a HR of 166 - which is 7 beats above my absolute max HR - for the first ten minutes. I was running LSD, so it was reading about 40-50 beats above my actual HR. It eventually settled down, but I need to watch my HR at the beginning of long runs, because I have a tendency to go out too fast, and the stupid thing is virtually NEVER correct early in a session.
2- After I got going and the number dropped into a realistic range, I could tell the HR displayed was now too low, but it didn’t get to the right number for nearly fifteen minutes. It is not uncommon for the HR number to “stick,” i.e., show the same number for a while until you move it up to the chest strap and then it changes (and you usually have to do this several times). If I’m seeing a number that’s lower than I want, I speed up and feel myself working harder and breathing harder, but the Polar is still showing the low number that I don’t want. Then suddenly it will wake up and show me that I’m now way above my desired HR… and pissed off to boot.
3- At the end of yesterday’s run, the watch indicated 16.25 miles. When I downloaded, it said the run was 15.9!! I’ve measured this course, and it IS 16.25.
4- It can’t even do it’s internal math correctly. If I run 1 mile in 8:00, it tells me (on the fly) that my pace is between 7:00 and 7:45, then after download, it would show the carefully measured 1 mile split as taking 8:00 at a 7:49 (or some such wrong number) pace. How hard is it to calculate 8÷1=8???
5- On download, if you click splits at .25 miles, it shows the first as .2 and the second as .3, iow it can’t handle the second decimal place.

I could go on, but you get the idea…

9

I’ve used my 625 for several months, along with PCCoach software, and I’m much more pleased with the Polar than I was with Timex. I’ve noticed that the Polar is sensitive to strong elecrical fields, so when I’m running through the neighborhood, the HR occasionally spikes up to 240 bpm, and always in front of the same houses - clearly their alarm systems, or homemade nuclear reactors, or really cheap microwaves are interferring with the 625. It took a while to get used to all of the menus and modes of use, and the manual isn’t always very clear, so you muddle through. The first few times I used it, I hosed up recording the workout because I couldn’t remember which buttons to mash when…but eventually you figure it out. I haven’t tried the bike accessories yet, but I still use it to measure HR while doing bike workouts. I haven’t figured out how to effectively use it for bricks, maybe someone else on the string has that figured out.

11

Thanks for the info. I will be on the lookout for this. I have not even hooked up the foot pod yet. I’ve only worked with the software/HRM/PC interface and so forth.

12

“Switching on the food pod is no issue. This takes 2 seconds.
To change from bike to run mode you have to push stop/break (lower left button) and then switch the modes with the lower right button. I never tried this but a read it in a German Tri forum.”

Yep, you can do it, but you’re talking ten seconds minimum lost time. Can you afford that in a race? I can’t. It’s OK for a brick.

Also, as I noted above, the pace per mile is pretty erratic and usually off significantly. I’m a crappy runner (usually close to DFL in my AG after swimming and biking #1 or #2) and pacing is a big problem for me. I’d sure love to access that pace per mile in a race, especially in half or full marathon or IM where I always start too fast and blow up.

All in all, I like what the Polar system does, but I should have stayed with the 710 and saved the money.

13

For a brick, you just don your shoes, turn on the pod, press stop on your watch, press and hold the lower right button so it switches to Bike 2, press and hold again while it switches to Speed Off, then press and hold again 'til it shows Run Speed, then press start and you go. Pain in the ass, but doable - just not acceptable on race day.

14

I’ve got a question about my 625. I got it just before Christmas, and it worked fine. Then I took the Holidays off, followed by some physical therapy which required no running for 2 more weeks. When I finally started using my 625 again, I keep getting a “Check Sensor” alarm, but the shoe pod LED is on (green) and appears to be working fine, as it does log some distance but not the complete run. I changed the battery, and the same thing happens. I haven’t waded through the manual yet, and thought I’d ask here first. Thanks in advance.

Kevin

15

Is the pod on the same side as the watch ?

i.e. If you are wearing the watch on your left wrist is the foot pod on the left shoe.

For some reason, when i first got mine I put the pod on my right shoe - and had a problem with the signal, switched the pod and had no problems.

16

Well I just checked, and as a matter of fact, it is on my right shoe, and I wear the watch on my left hand. I’ll have to give that a try. Thanks a bunch.

Kevin

17

I concur with Felix_w - I have seen some of those same erratic hrm readings, and they are caused by the belt not getting an accurate signal. If you have the wearlink strap, hold the two sensor areas under a faucet to wet them. Also rub some water on your chest before you put it on.

I have had some weird altitude reactions with my 720i. Today I did an out and back ride, and the altitude was much higher at the finish. The watch was at 70F when I started out, but the outside ambient was 39F, and the watch compensates for temperature changes when measuring altitude via barometric pressure. I use the Polar software to download the data, and it has an easy correction for adjusting the endpoints of the altitude curve, as well as the starting elevation.

From the negative comments regarding the 625x and its running measurement, I don’t feel the anguish of not having the running features in the 720.

18

I’d agree with you that the HR readings can be all over the map, but only if you don’t wet the strap sufficiently beforehand. If you run the electrodes under a tap for a few seconds before putting on the strap, you shouldn’t get any weird readings.

I totally agree with you on the altitude feature, and just turned it off.

I’ve never had any issues regarding (run) pace measurements, and can’t say I was paying close enough attention to notice a differential between watch readings and downloaded readings. By sheer fluke I set up the footpod on the same side as I wear my watch, so that might have helped.

I figure for racing I’ll just leave the watch in run mode, and not have speed/cadence data for the bike leg. Maybe for longer races I’ll take the extra time to switch it over, but certainly not for the early season sprint/oly’s.

Overall, I’m extremely pleased with my 625x and find it to be an excellent tool - especially given my long distance coaching relationship with the SAC. With this unit he can “watch” me train from a distance, and “see” exactly what it is I’m doing. It’s also a fantastic tool for fitness testing. That’s the main reason why I bought it, and the rest (run speed, etc) is all just gravy as far as I’m concerned.

19

“If you run the electrodes under a tap for a few seconds before putting on the strap, you shouldn’t get any weird readings.”

    • It does get more consistent after ten minutes or so, but it still “locks on” to a number every so often and doesn’t change until I hold it up to the strap.

"I totally agree with you on the altitude feature, and just turned it off. "

    • Although the altitude is unrealiable, it does give relative altitude, so it’s handy to see on workouts like today, when I ran 6.6 miles up Mt Diablo and back down.

I figure for racing I’ll just leave the watch in run mode, and not have speed/cadence data for the bike leg."

    • Unfortunately that won’t work. For the entire swim and run you’ll simply have a display that reads “Check Sensor,” it’s annoying.

“Overall, I’m extremely pleased with my 625x and find it to be an excellent tool - especially given my long distance coaching relationship with the SAC.”

    • Agreed. Many of my crew use 710 or 720 and send me workout files, which gives me a lot of insight.
20

That’s odd… My old Accurex II would “lock” occasionally, but it was almost 15 years old - so I figured it had had a pretty good life. :wink:

To get rid of the “check sensor” message, just hit one of the buttons on the right side. That will clear the message and show the proper display. I’ve never downloaded a workout that was recorded during this period (usually happens to me when I time splits in the pool, and I’m just using it as a stopwatch then) but my guess would be that it would record HR accurately…

21

“To get rid of the “check sensor” message, just hit one of the buttons on the right side. That will clear the message and show the proper display.”

    • Theorectically true. But you have to press and hold. If you just press, “check sensor” goes away for a few seconds and then comes back. My experience has been that it sometimes takes three or four tries. Again, just a pain in the ass design flaw

"…my guess would be that it would record HR accurately… "

    • That guess would be correct. It’s just frustrating to not see any info displayed.

OK, here’s the deal: Who did Polar think was going to buy this freakin’ watch anyway? People who like to bike and run, but not on the same day? Whoever put the design parameters together for this unit screwed up - no two ways about it. If all I had to do was turn the foot pod on at the beginning of the run, that would still be objectionable. But as it is, the watch is just plain NOT functional for a tri. Well, unless you either don’t care or you’re so freakin’ fast you can afford to throw away 20-40 seconds.