Pulse heart rate monitor watches

I started with a HRM watch, but it was a New Balance. Got frustrated with it pretty quickly - having to touch the face of the watch to take a reading during the workout is a pain, and it doesn't always read right away, causing longer pauses in the workouts...and they are not as accurate - it's only going by the most recent reading, so the more often you touch the watch, the more accurate it should be, but the more you're pausing your workout.

I ditched it after about a month and got a New Balance N4 with a chest strap - MUCH better! And I found that the watch-only model was giving me really high burns, so I was over-estimating my daily calorie burn while I had it.

You can find the chest strap models for less - I had my eye on either a Polar or the New Balance, and found new models of both on eBay. Put the best deals on my watch list and scored the NB for $26 after about a week - brand new, and a huge savings over the retail price of $70.

In my opinion, it's worth saving up and finding a good deal on a HRM with a chest strap.

I have a Polar with the plastic chest strap. A HRM with a chest strap is 500% better than the the versions without a chest strap. There are two different types of Polar chest straps. I have 6-8 friends with Polar chest straps and we unanimously prefer the plastic body chest trap over the type with the removal attachment (with a replaceable batter).

There is a new one I was reading about, Mio Alpha (http://www.alphaheartrate.com/) that is supposed to work via light pulses passing thru your wrist (IE: no chest strap).

I'd love to get one, but I've spent way too much on the 3 Polar ones (and only have 1 working) and the FitBit.

I'm gonna keep an eye on it and see if it leads anywhere, I'd really love to get that chest strap off - it bothers me (and rubs wrong against my rib which has started to "poke" out).

I bought Omron HR-100C Heart Rate Monitor on Amazon for $35 in Aug 2012 and have no regrets. Its a good beginner level HRM with chest strap. Pros: price point, audible alarm if HR falls out of range so i know if I'm doggin it. Cons: Does not give me the average HR for the duration of workout but with a range set I usually either go with the min or a rough average of the range and calculate the calories using a free iphone app. Bottom line, I know if I am putting enough efforts or not during cardio. I calibrated it with some other methods and its in the ballpark. Good enough for me and would recommend it for anyone who wants a economical but reliable HRM!

Just curious if anyone else had a pulse heart rate monitor watch. I found one for about $12 and although I'd love to get the expensive chest strapped heart rate monitors, this is about all I need right now IF IT WORKS. I'm skeptical about buying it if it's not that accurate so just wanted some input. Thanks

If possible I would wait and save up for the Polar Series which average around $100 (Chest Strap) to get accurate and quality one.