Feedback from Polar FT7 owners

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cupidval
cupidval Posts: 74 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I am considering on purchasing the Polar FT7 heart rate watch. Can you share with me what you think are the pros and cons for this heart rate watch? Thanks in advance for your input!

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  • flamegirl72
    flamegirl72 Posts: 143 Member
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    Just got mine a few weeks ago and love it love it love it!! Although if you want to upload your data to your computer and have it tracked on the website you also need a FlowLink to send the data which costs extra. But for me it was worth it. For me it is perfect but it depends what you want it for. For some a GPS is important to save trails and track distance etc. For me this is a great basic model and has all I need. And the research I did told me if you are looking for straight heart rate monitor....no gps etc, then Polar is the brand to go with. Hope this helps! Whatever you do....get one with a chest strap....FT7 has one.
  • tageekly
    tageekly Posts: 3,755 Member
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    I love mine - had it about 4 months now. I've found it very accurate and easy to use, after I read through the user's manual. Chest strap is adjustable and very comfortable. Machines at the gym pick up the reading (heart rate only, not calories) so I don't have to keep glancing at my wrist and balance on the machines!

    Drawbacks:
    Some of the features are confusing at first, but that is probably true with all new gadgets.
    To transfer the data you have to purchase the separate FlowLink (and I'm a numbers geek so had to purchase this to get my data correct)

    Tips:
    You can't get that chest strap wet enough - I find when the reading seems off, if I rewet the sensors, it's all good again. (But use warm water, cold is no good!)
    Keep your weight updated as you lose so it's calculating your numbers correctly.
    Definitely wash it (don't put in dryer though) after a half dozen sweaty workouts.

    Overall verdict: Best purchase I made last year!
  • SithZombie
    SithZombie Posts: 165 Member
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    I literally just bought one of these tonight....XD It's in the package, in my lap, waiting to be opened!
  • onefitdiva
    onefitdiva Posts: 331 Member
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    I have no cons. I have had it a year, use it 6 days a week, sometimes for 1 1/2 to 2 hour workouts and it is awesome.
  • Klein1475
    Klein1475 Posts: 248 Member
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    I love mine... It tells you when your in fat burn mode or fitness mode... You can pause it and continue and it picks up right where you left off... Love it, love it, love it... There are different models out there.... I researched it for about a week or so before I did anything... They have different HRM for the different activities... Just depends on what you are doing...
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    I am considering on purchasing the Polar FT7 heart rate watch. Can you share with me what you think are the pros and cons for this heart rate watch? Thanks in advance for your input!

    Pro -
    Asks for 3 out of the 4 stats needed for accurate estimate of calorie burn - gender, age, weight, and you can manually adjust the max HR once you know it.
    It will store workouts.
    Chest strap mechanism, the sending unit is separate and snaps on. So you can put the strap on at home and go to the gym and know you are not wasting battery. Then push the sending unit on.
    Strap and watch replaceable batteries. They still say send to an authorized Polar dealer to main the water proofness, but I think I can handle it correctly.

    Con -
    While you can set an upper HR limit for warning and optional audible on it, you can't set a lower limit. I miss that as a Timex I had could set my lactate threshold zone in, and stay below the lower number for endurance, within in for that training, and stay above it for VO2 training. So basically could easily see 3 zones with only 1 entered.
    Can't see the stopwatch and HR at the same time. And with no countdown timer or interval timer, trying to view the stopwatch and raise the HR for a specific time period to a certain level is about impossible.
    Can't enter VO2 max figure for more accurate calorie burn estimate.
    No laps type function on the stopwatch. If you want to divide a workout into say warmup, workout, cooldown, that is 3 separate workouts that you must review when finished.

    I guess, just think about what you want to be able to do in the future. I wish I had spent more money to get one that did what I really wanted.
  • seph_house
    seph_house Posts: 101 Member
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    i ended up getting the FT4 which was a fair chunk cheaper. the two key differences as i remember it were:
    - FT7 measures/warns for 2 heartrate zones. this might be useful if you are doing focused heart training but i figured i would never use it :)
    - FT7 can down load the data to a computer (if you buy and extra gaget).

    & i <3 my HRM :)

    best tip would be to remember to detach the chest band unit from the strap when it's not being used, it makes a big difference to the longevity of the battery. i unplug one of the snaps and leave it attached by the other so i don't lose one, i *think* that does the job and my first battery lasted 5 months of usage 3/4/5 times a week.

    also, i find i don't need to dampen the strap that much to make a good connection, it's decent dry or with just a damp thumb ran over the skin before strapping on and once i start lightly sweating it's 100%. your milage may vary though, especially if you are a hairy chested male :D

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