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Lora109
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Polar F6 review

  • Price Paid:$109.95
  • User rating:
    (4.8)
  • Would buy again from this company: Yes
  • Used product for: 7 months
  • # of logged workouts: 0

"2008 was my first tri season and I didn't want to spend a lot of money on a HRM. I thought this would be a great buy for the money, because I could at least use it for all three events.

Reading my HR accurately at all times has been problematic, but it does eventually normalize and I can at least somewhat trust the readings at the end of the workout.

It would be fair for me to point out that I have not contacted Customer Service regarding this problem. Maybe I just need a better chest strap or there is something they could do.

However, the eventual normalization of the readings and my plan to upgrade in the near future makes this something I'm willing to live with."Lora109

(5)

Ease of use

If you can set-up different ring tones for different people on your cell phone, you can set this up.

(5)

Quality of Construction

I've used it for 7 months and through 2 triathlons and it's held up great.

(5)

Fit

Both the chest strap and the wrist band have versatile settings, so finding a fit was easy.

(5)

Comfort

I have to tighten the chest strap a little more than I'd like so it won't fall down, but I don't notice any tightness during training. The wrist band is very comfortable.

(5)

Adjustability

This goes back to what I said under "Fit" and "Comfort." The adjustability was great.

(5)

Durability

Again, "Quality of Construction" covers this.

(4)

Value

I think it's priced reasonably. It's not a multisport HRM, but it can be worn during all three events which is really great. It has a calorie counting feature which is really nice.

(5)

Appearance

I think it looks great. It's not a women-specific HRM, so it's not as slim, but I don't feel it's too big. The color has lasted well and the screen is clear.

(4)

Performance

For the first couple months, it caught my HR perfectly. Then, when I would turn it on, my HR would read "00" or it would be in the two-hundreds. After training for a few minutes, it would normalize, but I've always taken the readings with a grain of salt.

Recently, I read on the BT forums that you could take some aloe vera gel (the stuff you use on sunburns) and rub that on the electrodes in lieu of water. The first day I did this, it worked. No zeros or two-hundreds.

The second and third times, I did get some zero and two-hundred readings, but it stabilized or normalized more quickly.

The fourth time, I put on a little more gel and it worked fine without any zeros or two-hundreds.

That was yesterday.

***Update one month later: I stopped using the aloe vera gel and went back to water. I realized I had been keeping the water inside the bounds of the electrodes. When I put water inside and outside, my HR started showing up normally again. A couple times it's jumped up in the 200s, but I haven't seen a zero since and it's acting much more normally now. I've moved the Performance rating from a 2 to a 4 and the Value rating from a 3 to a 4.

Strengths

It can be used for running, biking AND swimming.
It counts calories.

Weakness

The instability of the readings when it is initially turned on.

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Buyers clubF6
  • 7 people use
  • 0 workouts logged
  • 1104.59 miles / 107.84 hours logged