Polar FT4 or Polar FT7?

ChristinaBarnhouse

I use the FT4. It's my first HR Monitor and I spent a REALLY long time reading all the reviews on Amazon before I decided. I chose the FT4 because for a starter HRM, it does everything I need for a good price (I paid around 60 for mine). The chest strap is very comfortable and easy to forget you have on. Also, the transmitter that attaches to the chest strap is removable so the strap is machine washable (cold water) and by removing the transmitter you save it's battery life. Batteries in both the watch and the transmitter are replaceable, but I did read that having them replaced diminished their water resistance based on some of the reviews.

One user mentioned that she didn't like that the watch beeps when you are out of your HR range, but you can change the settings to have the range be what you want so that really shouldn't be an issue. The controls on the watch are very simple and easy to understand. One button for this, one button for back, etc.

A tip... splurge on a 5$ bottle of electrode gel. Some users complained that the chest strap wouldn't register HR until they were already sweating (it needs moisture to get a read). The directions on my FT4 clearly state to run the exposed sections of the chest strap under water before and after use, but if you have the gel, you just add enough for a thin coating and you're done. You won't have to worry about it drying out like you might otherwise.

Hope that helps!

Thanks for the tip on the electrode gel. I heard some mention it, but wasn't quite sure what it was for.

MtnKat

I just bought the FT7 at heartratemonitorsusa.com for $75.50. I love having lots of bells and whistles lol. I wish I could have been able to afford and FT60 or FT80.

I really like the polarpersonaltrainer.com site. It has bars and charts and stuff to keep track of things...for a techie like me, I love it.

natesangel

okay so i know this is an 'older post' but i am wondering about mac compatibility? the polar site shows the ft7 as the option for swimming and mac compatibility.
anyone have any thoughts, i am looking to buy one in the next couple days and this will be the factor for me between the two!

banner6

I just ordered a FT7. Got it on ebay for $65..can't wait till it gets here!

VirtuousVal

I have been running for months now and love it. To better calculate my calories burned, I have been looking into purchasing a HRM. I hear Polar has some great products so I have been debating between the FT4 and the FT7.

I could very easily get the product reviews online, however I wanted to get the opinions of my MFP buddies first. Do you have a Polar HRM and if so, how do you like it? Woud you recommend one or the other?

Thanks!

I have the FT7. I believe the only real difference is how many workouts they store. The FT7 does more. Since I log all my workouts on MFP, it doesn't really matter. The only features I use are HR, Calories, and Time. The ZONE features (fat burn and fitness) I don't really trust. I go by percentage to MAX HR. 85% +

If I had to buy a new one I'd go FT4. I don't think the FT7 is really worth the extra $25-30.

I am intrigued by the Nike Fuel Band, but it doesn't tell you your HR and at $200 it's a little pricey. I have a friend who has a Body Bug and he loves it, he feels it's really accurate. But it doesn't tell you your HR either.

But get a Polar, they're by far the leader in quality and accuracy. Plus a lot of treadmills will sync with them.

- Mike

I ordered the FT7 over the weekend and should get it this week. I chose it because it's supposed to be ok for swimming. Glad I did now that I see the part about replacing the battery.

The cheapest I found the FT7 was on www.heartratemonitorsusa.com for $75.50, free shipping. then I found an 8% coupon code online, so got it for $69.

I was debating on this exact decision myself and I asked around on here. The only real difference between them is that the FT7 has a user replaceable battery in the transmitter. With the FT4, the battery is sealed in the transmitter in such a way that when it does eventually go dead, you'll have to eventually replace the whole transmitter unit. Replacement units sell for as much as $40 from what I've seen.

EDIT: Polar likes to use sealed transmitters in a lot of their lower-end models. If you're going with a lower-end model of theirs, you have to accept that when the battery DOES eventually go dead you will have to replace the transmitter. And that may cost you nearly as much as buying a whole new HRM. Beginning with the FT7 and up, the batteries are replaceable. When talking functional/operational differences, there are none. The wrist unit/receiver is the exact same for both models. The ONLY difference is that the FT4 is packaged with a "disposeable" transmitter while the FT7 is packaged with their Wearlink transmitter, the one that's normally sold as a replacement unit. It is significantly better than the disposeable transmitter that comes with the lower end models from the FT4 and down because the strap itself is made from a more comfortable material to have against your skin and, as mentioned above a few times, the battery compartment is actually accessible by you.

All of this info about the FT4 and FT7 is wrong and needs to be disregarded... Both the FT4 and the FT7 have batteries that you can change yourself. It's the older Polar F series models that you need to send it back. Both the FT4 and FT7 use wearlink transmitters and straps.

Please read this website: http://www.polarusa.com/us-en/products/get_active/fitness_crosstraining/FT4 before you try to explain HRM's again.

To OP:
Both the FT4 and the FT7 are good models.. it just depends on what features you want how much you want to spend.

The link I posted in response to another poster explains the FT4 and then you can take a look at the FT7 too and decide what is best for you.

I have a Polar F6 andn i actually just sent mine in for a battery replacement, i just got it back on Monday, should of been Friday but they went to my house and no one was home(at work) so i called UPS and got them to deliver it to me at work instead, should of thought to tell them that on thursday when they called to let me know it was fixed and how much, they also do a check on quite a few things to make sure there is nothing else wrong with it.

I LOVE my Polar F6 it does what i need it to do, i bought it in Feb 2009, so not sure if tehy still make that one or not, i'm sure they have come out with newer models since then though

This is untrue of the FT4! "I was debating on this exact decision myself and I asked around on here. The only real difference between them is that the FT7 has a user replaceable battery in the transmitter. With the FT4, the battery is sealed in the transmitter in such a way that when it does eventually go dead, you'll have to eventually replace the whole transmitter unit. Replacement units sell for as much as $40 from what I've seen. "

I have theFT4 and just replaced the battery on the transmitter, you don't have to send it in or get a new one! . A regular replacement batter is like $3, but you can buy the kit from polar which includes a new ring and the back casing for $6 and change plus shipping!!!

I love my FT4 and use it to swim as well and no problems!

The only thing I don't like is it beeps when you're not in that zone. However, it is a very light beep and most of the time I don't notice it.

You can turn the beeps off in the menu!

I use the FT4. It's my first HR Monitor and I spent a REALLY long time reading all the reviews on Amazon before I decided. I chose the FT4 because for a starter HRM, it does everything I need for a good price (I paid around 60 for mine). The chest strap is very comfortable and easy to forget you have on. Also, the transmitter that attaches to the chest strap is removable so the strap is machine washable (cold water) and by removing the transmitter you save it's battery life. Batteries in both the watch and the transmitter are replaceable, but I did read that having them replaced diminished their water resistance based on some of the reviews.

One user mentioned that she didn't like that the watch beeps when you are out of your HR range, but you can change the settings to have the range be what you want so that really shouldn't be an issue. The controls on the watch are very simple and easy to understand. One button for this, one button for back, etc.

A tip... splurge on a 5$ bottle of electrode gel. Some users complained that the chest strap wouldn't register HR until they were already sweating (it needs moisture to get a read). The directions on my FT4 clearly state to run the exposed sections of the chest strap under water before and after use, but if you have the gel, you just add enough for a thin coating and you're done. You won't have to worry about it drying out like you might otherwise.

Hope that helps!

Thanks for the tip on the electrode gel. I heard some mention it, but wasn't quite sure what it was for.

Thanks ya all for sharing your tips and suggestions. I am looking to upgrade my HRM. I wasn't sure which one I could benefit the most when I upgraded.

I want it to track more exercises so that my husband can also share it with me when he does his workouts.
When I work out on my BowFlex TreadClimber TC 3000. My BowFlex has a calorie burned on the display it only says I burn 108 calories. My HRM says I burn about 308 calories for a 10 minute workout. I actually think I may burn more than that?...I think a FT7 will be more accurate with a chest strap.

I will make sure to purchase the electrode Gel as well. I also appreciate the tip about the online coupon for the Polar....I found one for 30% off + free shipping with www.heartratemonitorsusa.com. That is a big savings I am going to make sure I take advantage of that deal soon.

Bump this to save for later!

1fitmimi

ok just ordered a FT7. Should have it Tuesday any words of wisdom for me?

Rssblade

I use a FT4 nice and straight forward Cals burned, max hr, average hr, training zones for fat burning, you can replace all batteries easily and you can replace wrist strap when it wears out, what more can you ask.

mygrl4meee

I have the FT4 and I love it. I love that I can swim with it. It's pretty easy to use and I find that it's motivating for me to workout cause I love seeing the numbers and I feel challenged to make them higher.

DebbieLyn63

ok just ordered a FT7. Should have it Tuesday any words of wisdom for me?

Wet the sensors before you put it on, and be sure you wash your strap well after every use to keep from getting funk built up on the sensors.

DebbieLyn63

I have the FT4 and love it. My hubby has the FT7 which holds more files, and it also has 2 zones, fat-burning and fitness, where the FT4 only has fat-burning zone shown. Since I don't ride as often or at a high intensity as my hubby does, the FT4 was fine for me. We both are very happy with them. In fact, this model has lasted longer than any other one my hubby has used. He has had it for about 2 years and still going strong, and he uses it a LOT.

larnsperger

I have the FT4 Love it! I'm sure you cannot go wrong with either model.

1fitmimi

I try it out today for the first time. I teach 3 ZUMBA classes. will see how it goes

EmilyOfTheSun

The FT7 is a newer model. For only like 13 bux more, I'd say it's worth it to get the more up to date model!

domgirl85

I was debating on this exact decision myself and I asked around on here. The only real difference between them is that the FT7 has a user replaceable battery in the transmitter. With the FT4, the battery is sealed in the transmitter in such a way that when it does eventually go dead, you'll have to eventually replace the whole transmitter unit. Replacement units sell for as much as $40 from what I've seen.

EDIT: Polar likes to use sealed transmitters in a lot of their lower-end models. If you're going with a lower-end model of theirs, you have to accept that when the battery DOES eventually go dead you will have to replace the transmitter. And that may cost you nearly as much as buying a whole new HRM. Beginning with the FT7 and up, the batteries are replaceable. When talking functional/operational differences, there are none. The wrist unit/receiver is the exact same for both models. The ONLY difference is that the FT4 is packaged with a "disposeable" transmitter while the FT7 is packaged with their Wearlink transmitter, the one that's normally sold as a replacement unit. It is significantly better than the disposeable transmitter that comes with the lower end models from the FT4 and down because the strap itself is made from a more comfortable material to have against your skin and, as mentioned above a few times, the battery compartment is actually accessible by you.

Good to know! Thank you!!!! I couldn't figure out the difference in the two.

king1988

bump

JBird0826

I also have a question.... I'm about to buy an ft4 but I only just started my weight loss journey. Will the females version fit a bigger wrist?? Or should I order the males watch?

contingencyplan

I also have a question.... I'm about to buy an ft4 but I only just started my weight loss journey. Will the females version fit a bigger wrist?? Or should I order the males watch?

The only difference is in the color choices and the chest strap size. The Chest strap that comes with the men's version begins at size medium and can be adjusted larger.

richh963

dont buy from heartratemointorsusa. they are not good at filling order correctly, and then you recieve the item theres the turn around time untill you get the new one. I purchased a second one to correct the frist one sent by mistake, then returned the misshiped one back, took to many day after they recieved the return to credit my account.then they didnt refund the correct amount. I was so tired of phone calls i made to them and still they couldnt get it right. I wouldnt order from them if they were half the price.

Predsfan2013

I have an ft4 and I love it.

JBird0826

I also have a question.... I'm about to buy an ft4 but I only just started my weight loss journey. Will the females version fit a bigger wrist?? Or should I order the males watch?

The only difference is in the color choices and the chest strap size. The Chest strap that comes with the men's version begins at size medium and can be adjusted larger.

Thank you!!!

dxtra30

The people who ordered thier Polar FT7 are they enjoying it ??

tinawill2010

Just bought the FT4 can't wait to use it to see what I'm really doing!!!

akimball0

Easy to make your own conductive gel or solution. No need to pay for it.

Sweat is the best, but if you don't sweat easily, then put a pinch of salt in 5-cc's of water. For conductive gel, use whatever base you want... aloe gel... hand cream... whatever... put in a pinch of salt and mix. If you want it to really snuggle up to your skin then put in a few drops of shampoo as well.

Works great. I prefer natural sweat, or the salt in water... better on the strap.