Review Polar F4
Description Review Polar F4 Compare Polar F Series Heart Rate Monitor Buyer Guide Compare Price
Pros :
- Easy to use
- Fits women’s wrists well
- Big display
- Audible reminder when out of your target heart rate zone
- Polar is known for their good quality
Cons :
The Bottom Line : For women who can afford it, especially those out there that count calories, this is my recommendation to you. The Polar F4 Heart Rate Monitor Watch has it all: quality, good display, easy-to-use, counts calories (short- and long-term), a visible and audible reminder to stay at your target heart rate zone, comfortable fit, and several other nice features.
I love this heart rate monitor/watch. It has only two major faults: it can be hard to read in low light (because it doesn’t have a backlight) and it costs a pretty penny. Most people, including me, are hesitant to shell out $90 for a heart rate monitor. However, if you do, I think you’ll be satisfied with this one.
Why, you ask, is this such a great watch?
First there is the quality. Polar is known for their quality products. They last longer than most watches, can take a beating, and are very accurate. Also, the display is big enough to read without having to slow down (as long as you have enough light, that is) and it fits comfortably on most women’s wrists. The Polar F4 heart rate monitor is easy to use following Polar’s good instructions that come with it. Even the newest beginner to heart rate monitors shouldn’t have trouble programming it. Plus, the Polar F4 has great features, such as reminding you to stay in your target heart rate zone, how long you’ve been in your heart rate zone, how long you’ve been exercising, how many calories you’ve burned during this workout, and how many calories you’ve burned over a week (or whatever time period you program it to remember).
It’s not the most complex heart rate monitor out there nor does it have the most bells and whistles, but I think it’s one of the best and has what most runners need.
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Features
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Polar
F4
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Polar
F6
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Polar
F7
|
Polar
F11
|
Polar
F55
|
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Male Color Option
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Black
thunder
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Black
coal
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Blue,
Grey
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Grey
pepper
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Ice
aluminium, Bronze
rock
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Female Color Option
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Black
amber, Blue
ice , Red
berry
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Black
diamond, Pink
coral, Green
tea
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Silver
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Pink
fizz, Blue
glow
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Red
velvet
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Continuous heart rate monitoring
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Yes
|
Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Polar Fitness Test : This
test is done while resting.
The test monitors your heart rate and heart rate variability at
rest, taking into account your sex, height, weight and you own
self-assessed volume of physical activity to get a score called
the OwnIndex comparable to VO2 Max. This number is an indication
your fitness classification: Very Low, Low, Fair, Moderate, Good,
Very Good and Elite.
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No
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No
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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Keeps U Fit : telling
the monitor what your goal is and the amount of time you can
devote to it with a detailed
training plan taking into account your own current fitness (as
measured by OwnIndex), to help you become fitter.
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No
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No
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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Body Workout : It provides you with a default Body Workout
which includes 10 different movements. For each movement, it
suggests how many times you should do it via the concepts of sets
and repetitions.
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No
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No
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No
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No
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Yes
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OwnRelax : It measures how relaxed
you are comparing to the standard values found in a Polar
supplied table.
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No
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No
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No
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No
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Yes
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Manual or automatic setting of heart rate training zone using
either BPM or % of Max HR
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Two automatic methods of setting heart rate training zone: one
age-based and the other fitness-based on your series of short
warm up exercises, measures your heart rate and are given your
heart rate limits. (OwnZone)
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Both automatic methods allow you to choose four exercise
intensities to determine you heart rate training limits: Basic
(65%-85% Max heart rate), Light (60%-70% Max heart rate),
Moderate (70%-80% Max heart rate) and Hard (80%-90% Max heart
rate)
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Heart rate displayed as BPM or % of Max HR
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Heart rate zone audio alarm beeps when you train above or
below your target zone
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Visual zone pointer on the wrist watch keeps you training
within your target zone
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Instant (and post-exercise) display of calories burnt (OwnCal)
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Fitness bullets: One per 10 minutes in target zone (an
indirect way of showing time in target zone)
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Instant (and post-exercise) display of time in target zone
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Stop watch to start and stop exercise session
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Short Post exercise summary: Duration, time in target zone,
average heart rate, maximum heart rate, calories burnt
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Full post-exercise summary (Daily File): Time started,
duration, calories burnt, fat percentage of burnt calories,
maximum heart rate, average heart rate, time in training zone,
training zone limits
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Number of last Daily Files (exercise sessions)
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No
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12
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12
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12
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26
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Number of last Weekly Files
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No
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12
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12
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12
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16
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Cumulative stats of sessions from a given date: Total
duration, total calories, total number of sessions, average
frequency of sessions per week
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Basic time keeping: Time, date, alarm
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Polar UpLink to transfer data from a PC to the heart rate
monitor. (Requires a Windows PC with a sound card and
loudspeakers or headphones.)
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Polar WebLink/SonicLink to transfer data from the heart rate
monitor to Polar's fitness trainer website. (Requires a Windows
PC with a sound card and a microphone.)
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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T31
coded transmitter: Wireless heart rate monitor with an
analogue chest strap transmitter and a wrist watch receiver
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Yes
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Upgrade to OwnCode transmission
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OwnCode:
The coded analogue transmission now reduces the possibility of
cross-talk when other heart rate monitor users are nearby
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No
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Yes
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Upgrade to Wear Link
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WearLink
: Sort fabric textile chest transmitter with user-friendly
replaceable battery
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No
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Water resistant
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50m
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50m
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50m
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50m
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50m
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Display Language: English
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Display Language: German,
French, Spanish and Italian
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No
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No
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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Heart Rate Monitor Buyer Guide
Description Review Polar F4 Compare Polar F Series Heart Rate Monitor Buyer Guide Compare Price
If you're trying to lose weight and get in shape, a heart rate
monitor (HRM) is a great way to monitor your intensity and make sure
you're working in your target heart rate zone. Many monitors not only
provide a continuous heart rate reading but also tell you if you're
working in your zone and how many calories you're burning.
With the variety of HRMs out there, it's hard to know how to
choose the right one for you. Before you spend your money, check out
the factors you want to consider when buying a heart rate monitor.
The type of HRM you buy will often depend on your fitness level,
needs and goals:
For Basic Model: Look for a basic model and
functionality that offers your heart rate monitoring like the Omron
Heart Rate Monitor HR-100C, Timex
T5G941 Heart Rate Monitor, Polar
FS1
- Omron
Heart Rate Monitor HR-100C is basic heart rate monitor that
is inexpensive, easy to use and doesn't require hours of time spent
reading a manual to figure it out. You get a continuous reading of
your heart rate, an alarm that tells you when you're in your heart
rate zone, time of day display and a daily reminder alarm. At around
$30-$50, this is a great price for what you get and users will be
pleased with how easy this is to use.
- Timex
T5G941 Heart Rate Monitor is basic model that's easy to use,
offers basic heart rate and workout information and is a favorite
among exercisers. The display is large, so you can easily see the
numbers and it includes an activity timer to rack exercise time as
well as information about minimum, average and maximum heart rate
for each workout. Most exercisers like the fact that you can change
the battery yourself (something you can't do with all HRMs) and that
you can figure out how to set it up without spending hours reading
the manual. At around $30-$60, this HRM is perfect for people who
want the basics for a great price.
- Polar
FS1 is the perfect choice for the exerciser who doesn't want
to fool with a lot of buttons during their workouts. The extra large
display and the one-button functionality make this monitor easy to
use and easy to see. The basic features include your heart rate, a
visual and audible alarm that lets you know if you're in your target
heart rate zone, a stop watch and, of course, a clock. At around
$50-$60, this monitor will give you what you need without all the
bells and whistles. There are the higher models of Polar
FS1 which are Polar
FS2 and Polar
FS3.
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Features of basic model
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Omron
HR-100C
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Timex
T5G941
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Polar
FS1
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Polar
FS2
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Polar
FS3
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Continuous Heart Rate Monitoring (see what your current
heart rate is on your wrist watch and how it fluctuates while you
are exercising )
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Heart Rate Training Zone with Alarms (manually set your
heart rate alarm zone, lower and upper heart rate limits in which
you will be doing your exercise)
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Yes
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Duration of Exercise Session (tells you how long you
have been exercising)
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Average Heart Rate of Exercise Session
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Maximum Heart Rate of Exercise Session
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No
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Yes
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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Basic Time Keeping (for example, won't let you set the
date and a wake up alarm)
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Backlight
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Yes
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Yes
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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The aged-based automatic setting of heart rate training
zone (Max Heart Rate = 220 - Your Age)
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No
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No
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No
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No
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Yes
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For Weight Loss: Try a HRM that tracks time spent in
your heart rate zone and calories burned such as the Polar
F6. Polar
F6 does more than just display your heart rate, but isn't so
high-end that you'd have to get an engineering degree to figure it
out, the Polar
F6 is an excellent choice. The F6 has a variety of functions,
from tracking heart rate and workout intensity to calculating
calories burned and time spent in each zone. It also provides a
weekly summary of your workouts that can help you stay motivated and
set new goals. There is the lower model which is Polar
F4. The higher models are Polar
F7, Polar
F11 and Polar
F55.
For General Fitness: Try one that helps you improve
fitness with information about intensity and training zones, like
the Polar
FT60. If you're into fitness and want to improve your workouts
and/or lose weight, the FT 60 offers personalized workouts that
adapt according to your workout habits and goals. The FT 60 gives
you weekly targets (such as to workout a certain number of minutes)
based on your goals and tracks how you did. Aside from your heart
rate, the FT 60 also offers a fitness test, calories burned and it
keeps track of all your workouts. The FT 60 is also compatible with
the Polar GPS Unit (which is Polar
FT60G1) and FlowLink which allows you to transfer data to your
computers. At around $197, this is a pricey heart rate monitor but
offers great motivation for people who have specific goals. The
lower model is Polar
FT40 and the higher model are Polar
FT 80 and Polar
FT 80 w/ G1 GPS.
For Athletes: Consider a HRM, like the Garmin
Forerunner 405 HRM, that offers multi-sport support, workout
feedback and advanced features such as GPS and downloadable data. If
you're a multi-sport athlete, you may want a more serious heart rate
monitor like the Garmin
Forerunner 405 HRM. You get a heart rate monitor, GPS tracking
and the ability to create your own workouts as well as analyze
everything from your pace and distance to calories burned. One
stand-out feature is the courses, which lets you compete against
your previous workout by comparing heart rate and pace - a great way
to see if you're improving from workout to workout. This is also a
good one for triathletes because you can transition between sports
without resetting it. The lower model is Garmin
Forerunner 305 HRM and The higher model is Garmin
Forerunner 405CX HRM.
Description Review Polar F4 Compare Polar F Series Heart Rate Monitor Buyer Guide Compare Price