I''ve been using a Polar F11 for years now, and I''ve stuck with it despite the difficulty in changing the battery and in navigating its menus because Polar came out with the fabric chest straps a while ago, and they are great. However, the battery died recently, and the thought of hassling with the battery change yet again was so discouraging that I researched other HRMs and bought this Timex. I have used Ironman watches for a few years and have been so happy with them that the Ironman HRM seemed promising. After a few uses, I''m quite happy with the purchase. A few nice aspects: the data is much easier to read than on my Polar. You can make your HR, HR percent, elapsed time, or time dominant and quite large while still having the other data displayed. The Illuminight works well. The watch is pretty good-looking (whereas the Polar was pretty ugly. Polar''s facelift of the higher end models in the last year or two hasn''t helped much in my opinion). The menus are much more intuitive than Polar''s. The chest strap, while less comfortable than Polar''s fabric one, is fine. The ventilated band breathes well. I haven''t tried changing the batteries yet, but it has to be far easier than with the Polar, which is a bad joke. I also love the count-down timer, which I use to time my resting periods while lifting weights. On the negative side, the Polar would blink and/or beep when your HR was out of your prescribed range. I know my zone 3 numbers, so it''s not a big deal. The main negative is the band. If it breaks (as one of my Ironmans did), you have to replace the whole watch. It''s integrated into the watch body. I plan to be gentle in taking it off and on in order to reduce wear and tear. My old Ironman broke at the point where the band would get folded back when inserting the buckle''s tab. Also, if you are a data freak, my understanding is that Polar''s ability to download, etc. is better. I''m into knowing my numbers while on the bike and after the workout, but I don''t keep records, so I can''t speak to that feature. Overall, A-.
As all the reviews state, this watch/HR chest strap are superior to Polar''s simply because you can do the battery replacement yourself. All the features are intuitive on the watch and it has a number of ways to monitor your workout sessions. The biggest drawback is the watch band. It is NOT replaceable. It doesn''t have the pins on the top and bottom that are interchangeable with another band type. It is molded as one piece and if the strap wears out, your out a $80 plus watch. I really enjoyed using it for 1 yr and 8 months before the strap on one end broke. I am trying to see if replacing the watch band at Timex is worth it or not. They won''t quote any prices so you have to send it in and see. I will update when I find out more.
***Update 3-4-2012***
Sorry for taking so long to update this. But to answer many queries I ended up sending in the watch to the Timex repair center: TG Service Center
P.O. Box 2740, Little Rock, AR 72203. I sent in the watch and 2 weeks later received my serviced watch but found that they had sent back the broken watch (because you can''t replace the strap), a refurbished replacement and a bill for only $10. This looked like a great deal but I knew the replacement was a refurb because the indiglo light didn''t work. Rather than having to deal with the hassle of sending it back I just dealt with it. Now, the strap has broken...again in the same area (see pic). Why not use a stronger grade material than this fragile rubber? The conclusion, if Timex still repairs this watch, I will probably do it instead of shelling out $120 for a new one. But in hindsight, this was a poorly made watch and should not be on your short decision list.
Buy Timex Ironman Men''s Race Trainer Heart Rate Monitor Watch (Black/Grey) Now
Just got my 2nd Timex heart rate monitor. I decided to by this latest model since I was really satisfied with the old one. With the new design of the wrist strap, I hope it will last since the old one was not that robust (became brittle after 2 years). By the way, to those who plan to buy this product with the intent to download performance data to the computer, make sure that the product title includes "WITH DATA XCHANGER" or see if the model# is T5K263 not T5K217.... you don''t want to commit the same mistake I did.
Read Best Reviews of Timex Ironman Men''s Race Trainer Heart Rate Monitor Watch (Black/Grey) Here
This is my first HRM watch, so I cannot compare it to any other similar products out there except for what I''ve researched on-line and seen in stores. That being said, it does everything you might expect from a device of this nature (perhaps a bit more) and it does it extremely well. I''ve been using it for about 3 months now, exclusively for spinning.
Since you can easily read what the watch offers to do, I''ll try to limit this review on how well it has worked for me during workouts and what you could expect from its use.
THE WATCH ITSELF: To begin with, it''s a great digital watch with basic features like multiple alarms, indiglo backlight and a chronograph. The display is quite large, showing the time and date very clearly, but the watch itself is compact and surprisingly light in weight. I find the large display to be very practical during exercise because you can easily see both your heart rate and/or time of day and/or time left in your workout and/or elapsed time, or any combination of any two of them, depending on how you set it up (easily changed with the push of a button).
The wristband''s web-like design makes it very comfortable to wear when you''re working up a sweat but, as someone here mentioned before, if the band breaks for any reason then you''re out of luck because it''s integrated directly into the time piece. In the watch''s defense, I believe you would really have to give it a lot of use, and maybe some abuse, for it to break. The wristband (as well as the watch itself) seems to be of good quality; it isn''t weak, cheap or flimsy at all.
THE HEART RATE MONITOR: As for the heart rate monitor feature, it is great. A little bit of water on the back of the heart rate digital sensor and it''s good to go. Set-up is very simple, even if you don''t read the instruction manual, although some people might find it necessary to read for certain features like programming intervals. Changing the battery on the sensor is extremely simple and inexpensive (it uses one of those flat circular batteries found in watches).
The sensor picks up the heart rate very well and I haven''t had it lose any data during a workout since I began using it. Now, there was one exception, I did lose data but it is something more attributable to human body physiognomy than the watch. Since no one''s body is perfectly flat (especially in the bottom chest area where the sensor goes), depending on the contours of your body, finding that sweet spot where the sensor will optimally detect your heart beat could be a little tricky in the beginning but once you do it works fine.
Personally, I found that "slouching" while spinning resulted in data loss because the sensor would not be touching my body completely, but this would be my fault for two reasons: first, I can easily maintain a more proper posture during my workout and, second, I have a small indentation where my chest muscles meet the top part of my ribcage (if you workout with weights a lot, you probably know what I''m talking about), so because of the shape of my body it''s really up to me to make sure I don''t remain hunched over... at least until they come up with a sensor that isn''t completely flat, perhaps a bit more curved or "ergonomic" in its design. Like I said, it''s an individual thing, but perhaps something to consider depending on the activity you''ll use it for. Besides, you would expect this from any heart rate sensor (they''re all basically the same in construct from what I''ve seen in stores researching different HRM watches).
The watch can be programmed to sound an alert when you''re out of your heart rate zone; an audible alarm easily switched on or off during your workout (it even beeps differently depending on if you need to pick up the pace or slow down, so you don''t have to look at the watch to know what it''s trying to tell you). There are 6 heart rate zones to choose from (which you can also change at any moment during your workout) -viewed as percentage or beats per minute, depending on what you select-. All of the information is stored and viewable afterwards, including calories burned.
It also has a recovery feature that lets you measure your heart rate while you cool down. You can choose 30 seconds, 1, 2, 5 or 10 minutes and it starts automatically when you finish your workout (automatically only when using the chronograph. It doesn''t start automatically when using the count-down timer or the interval timer more on that later).
My favorite feature is the interval timer (and the primary reason I bought this model). It''s also one of the reasons I took away one star in this review. Don''t get me wrong, the interval timer is amazing! You can program the watch to measure different heart rate zones during specific times or laps that you choose and it can be programmed to repeat your selection many times over. Here''s my personal issue with this feature: I don''t understand why they didn''t design it to only repeat the intervals you tell it to? The watch actually asks you how many times you want to repeat each interval but it doesn''t do it... it repeats the whole workout from the first interval.
Let me explain: for example, I programmed interval one to keep me in "Heart Rate Zone 1 (50% 60% of my heart rate)" for ten minutes. It asked me how many times I want it to repeat this interval, I chose once. That''s my warm-up time.
After that, I programmed interval two to measure me for "Heart Rate Zone 2 (60% 70%)" for two minutes. It asked me how many times I want it to repeat this interval, I chose five times. This is my regular workout time in between sprints.
I programmed interval three for "Heart Rate Zone 3 (70% 80%)" for one minute. It asked me how many times I want it to repeat this interval and I chose five times because I want it to coincide with the two minutes chosen earlier. This is my sprint time.
You would think the watch would begin with a 10 minute interval once, do 2 minute by 1 minute intervals five times over and that''s it, but no, it includes the first 10 minute interval five times as well... so what you get is 10 minutes (zone 1), 2 minutes (zone 2), 1 minute (zone 3), 10 minutes again, 2 minutes, 1 minute, 10 minutes again, etc. until the five intervals are up. Granted, the user manual specifically says on page 28 that "The repeat setting applies to the entire group of settings; you cannot have the Interval Timer repeat twice for INT 1 and only once for INT 2", but I didn''t read the instruction manual until I had it in my hands after buying the watch.
NOTE* Another reason I took off that one star from this review is that in "INTERVAL" or "TIMER" (it''s a count down timer) mode, you have to manually go to the "RECOVERY" screen, have it already set-up, reset and ready before pressing "START" for the cool down to begin. It does not begin automatically after your programmed workout has finished. If the watch knows you''re finished (that''s why you programmed the watch to workout during a specified time), why not begin the recovery automatically once the programmed workout is over?
No big deal either way, just an observation of something I believe can be easily fixed or included by the people who design those features. Hopefully TIMEX will take note.
PRICE: From every other watch I researched before buying this one, not one of them came close to having as many features or had such a clear and practical display. Any that do offer as many functions usually have some but not all and if they do, they are way more expensive.
CONCLUSION: The minor issues mentioned are in no way a deal breaker and I haven''t had any problems with the watch whatsoever, it has worked fine since day one (no buttons sticking or being easily pressed by accident, the heart rate sensor worked well out of the box, etc.). I would highly recommend this watch to anyone and for the price you can''t go wrong. I bought this model for myself and the smaller mid-size (female) version as a gift. I''ve been told that the other watch is working great as well.
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Purchased one of these guys (w/o the USB data transfer device) about a month ago and am really loving it. It''s very easy to use, accurate, and really helps you make sure you''re working in the zones that you intend. I use it for doing HIIT intervals and it''s great...and fun as well to see how your body adapts and becomes more fit over time. This watch has all the basic features and the fact that you don''t have to send the chest belt back to the factory to change the battery (like you do with the Polar watches) is a plus. The only two things that I would like a bit different that warrant 4 stars, instead of 5, are that the buttons are not always as smooth as I''d like and tend to grab a bit. Also, I wish the watch just had a straight stopwatch in addition to the chronograph. Overall, a good HRM though.
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Quality shirt. Well made but sizes are off by a mile. Never did get one that fit correctly. OPrder at least 2 sizes up for comfortable fitting
