Submitted by
TienShan
a Cross Country Rider
from San Jose,CA
Date Reviewed: June 11, 2004
Strengths: Good price at the time. Function well.
Weaknesses: easy to scratch, flimsy look and built (looks like a $5 watch) expensive to replace anything
Bottom Line:
This heart rate monitor works fine. It's good price at the time of purchase. After one crash I scratched the surface and it becomes unreadable. I contacted Polar to find out how much it will cost to replace the cover. It will be $25. I noticed someone mentioned it causes $40 to replace battery (I used to have the impression of $14.) Since then I have been shopping for a replacement instead of having it repaired since it's so expensive.
When I found out Supergo has Sports Instrument ECG-5 on sale for $40. I decided to buy ECG-5 since it is the cost of replacing Polar's batteries. By the way, ECG-5 is much better designed and built with stainless steel. It looks very nice and functions really well. The surface is scratch-resistant,big-display, nice night light, also you can replace the battery yourself. The watch is water-proof too.
I really think Polar Edge even for $70 is way over priced. It should cost around $40. I am glad there are a lot of competitive products out there.
I want to give 3 chilis. But compared with $40 ECG-5 I can only give it 2 chills.
Bike Setup: Dean Ti everything, XT groupo, Manitou Mars Elite
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
SAM Bills
a Racer
from Stoke-on -Trent England
Date Reviewed: January 11, 2001
Strengths: Simplicity,Functions are just what are needed-no more
Weaknesses: sealed transmitter not allowing battery to be changed,rendering it disposable after a couple of years. No average HR
Bottom Line:
A good monitor,very reliable.the 10 minute blocks which appear on the left of the display are mega useful in that they let you know at a glance how long you've been in your preset zone. Polar say that you should send it back for watch battery replacement,beleive me it can easily be done at a fraction of the cost yourself, buying a battery from a jewellers. As for the transmitter strap,that has to be thrown away once it is dead as the battery cannot be replaced.But do not despair,as for the same cost as a replacement polar strap you can get a cardiosport one which works on the same frequency as polar,and has a replacable battery.
Submitted by
Gene
a Cross Country Rider
from Lake Ariel,Pa
Date Reviewed: November 25, 2000
Strengths: Simple to use. Usually fairly accurate.
Weaknesses: $40.00 to replace a battery!
Bottom Line:
Bottom line... sooner or later (probably within 2 years) you WILL have to replace the batteries. With a Polar unit it will cost you $40.00 for a $3.00 battery. I replaced mine twice and it is dead again. I was stupid enough to give them my money before, but now it is time to try another HRM company that designs consumer friendly products.
Submitted by
George
a Racer
from Nelson, New Zealand
Date Reviewed: October 25, 1999
Strengths: simplicity
Weaknesses: no average HR measurement
Bottom Line:
Very simple and effective. It does its job. I have had it for over 2 years and it hasn't skipped a beat. I wear it everyday as a watch and use it to train. The bike mount works fine for road racing, but wouldn't try it off road. A solution is the old piece of foam around the handlebar, and put the entire watch on it. The contacts definitely have to be wet for it to work, but that is a simple thing to fix. Minus one chili for the lack of an Average Heart Rate function, but other than that it works fine.
Submitted by
BOB
a Cross-Country Rider
from HIGHLANDS RANCH CO
Date Reviewed: August 31, 1999
Strengths: Takes a liken and keeps on ticken.
Weaknesses: The model I have does not have a light. Must be sent in to replace battery in heart strap.
Bottom Line:
I purchased this heart rate monitor in january of 1994 and its still ticking. I have never had any problems, nor have I replaced the batteries in the watch or the heart strap.I plan on replacing just the strap when the time comes to send it in(when the battery dies). My only gripe was that this model did not originally come with a light, I believe that it now comes with the light.
Submitted by
Chris
a Weekend Warrior
from Vernon, CT
Date Reviewed: July 12, 1999
Strengths: Easy to use, night feature
Weaknesses: Occasionally doesn't work, especially when running
Bottom Line:
In today's world of toys, the last thing I need is a heart rate monitor with too many features & buttons. The functionality is great, and I haven't had a probelm while bike riding. However, it doesn't work sometmes when running...I'm not sure if it is because of excessive jostling or not?
This is a basic unit that does what it's supposed to. Nothing fancy, but it keeps track of my hr, and makes noise outside of the target zone. The bike mount looks really flimsy, I don't think I'll try it.Five stars for the hrm, minus one for the bike mount.
Submitted by
Toshi Clark
a Cross-Country Rider
from Tacoma, WA
Date Reviewed: May 26, 1999
Strengths: Accurate Easy to use - two buttons and nothing too fancy or complicated
Weaknesses: See below - unfortunate accident
Bottom Line:
I liked my Polar Edge. I really did. However, its handlebar mount, not recommended for off-road use, really shouldn't be recommended for _any_ use. I was riding on the road, on the way to a trail in Durango, CO, and the head unit popped out, onto the road. Just then a car came by, managing, by sheer luck (destiny?) to run over the bouncing head unit. After the ride I searched the road and found the mangled thing - the display was cracked and unreadable, and pressing any button just made the thing bleat. Since the accident was not its fault, and the unit worked fine before it, I give it four stars.
The edge heart rate monitor is the biggst piece of junk I ever bought.I am sending it back for the third time tommorow for repair. It has never worked for over a month in a row since I bought it. Buy a watch and check your pulse....it's much cheaper.
Submitted by
Bill
a cross-country rider
from SF CA USA
Date Reviewed: February 7, 1999
Bottom Line:
I've had my monitor for just over a year now. When it was almost a year old, the battery went dead and I had to send the unit to Polar to replace it. It took about a week and a half to get it back which was inconvenient, but I think they do that for quality purposes. I had a Cardiosport before and it was really a piece of junk. I had to send it in 3 times within 8 months. They allowed you to replace the battery, but the seal was also bad and the battery rusted once. They could have allows a longer heart rate zone, but in all it works very weel. Don't forget to follow the maintenance instructions in the book and it will last a long time. Also, make sure to wet the chest transmitter before use.
Submitted by
Len
a cross-country rider
from Sonoma county, California
Date Reviewed: October 16, 1997
Bottom Line:
I've been training with a Polar Edge for the past 4 months. Using it for both running and mountain bike riding, I have found it a very helpful aid. It's been accurate and reliable. Several points: 1) I rarely have to wet the chest sensors for them to work, but when I do I just give them an easy 'quick lick' and all's fine.2) Poor: After 1 hour of recording time it resets the 'time in zone' and stopwatch and starts over again at zero. I've been frustrated by the distraction of computing the total times in my head when it would seam so basic and simple for Polar to include the hour/minute/seconds in the readout.3) I bought it with the plastic handlebar bike mount thinking I would be all set. In reading the directions that came with the mount, however, there's a disclaimer that the mount is not recommended for mountain bike riding. This is very good advise to follow as I spent and hour on the trail looking for the receiver after it flew off (found it). I now wear it on my wrist while riding but find it somewhat uncomfortable.4) Poor: you don't get a manual that tells you how to really train with the monitor, just how to use it. I went to the bookstore and bought a HR monitor training book by Sally Edwards that was very good.
Submitted by
Chris White
a racer
from Newburyport MA
Date Reviewed: January 2, 1997
Bottom Line:
I just purchased the Polar Edge NV monitor and find it very helpful for training purposes. You definately have to have the sensors wet for this to work. The book is fine for setting the HRM up but I would advise getting a training book for your target heart rate training. One thing the book leaves out is periodization. Training in cycles. I originally set my Min and Max HR too high for pre-season riding. One problem I found is that if you are too close to the TV while riding rollers the monitor won't work for beats per minute. All things considered the product performs as one would expect.
Submitted by
Cathy
a cross-country rider
from Colorado, USA
Date Reviewed: October 27, 1996
Bottom Line:
I have a dead Polar Edge HRM. It worked OK at first though, even with the chest sensor dampened the transmission was if-y especially in cold weather.(It never worked when I was x-skiing.) But even with these inconveniences the reason I am not considering replacing my Edge with another Polar model is the outrageous price (and hassle) to replace the unit battery or chest transmitter. I wish I had that info before I gave Polar $160. My new HRM will be a Cateye.
Submitted by
Lloyd
a cross-country rider
from Livermore, CA
Date Reviewed: June 15, 1996
Bottom Line:
At $169, the 'Edge' HRM is Polar's 'middle of the road' model. But I feel that it has more than enough features for accomidate a quick, efficient improvement for anyone's training program. Along with misceleneous features such as the time, being able to set limits on maximum and minimum heart rates, with an audible alarm feature is the best. For me, it was the whole reason for upgrading to the Edge. Sure, it would be nice to be able to hook it up the my computer and analyze my training that way, but I figure I might as well be able to afford a coach to train me as well.
The durablility of the Edge is great, I've crashed and the monitor didn't even pop out of the wrist band (a feature that allows you to place the Edge on a handle bar mount). The Books that come with the monitor are also useful. If you don't have time to go to a doctor to calculate your max heart rate, the book gives some pretty good guidlines. They also mention some good training techniques using the heart rate monitor, for all levels of fitness. Overall, a good value, and an incomparable training tool.
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