Amazon.com Reviews
Average Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Stars
The following review received 65 helpful votes out of 70 total votes:Review Date: 2007-01-08"TIMEX HEARTRATE MONITOR"I USE THIS HEARTRATE MONITOR WHEN I BICYCLE. THIS IS USUALLY A 20 - 25 MILE RIDE.
THE MONITOR IS COMFORTABLE AND A GOOD VALUE.
SOME OF THE MONITORS IN THIS PRICE RANGE DO NOT HAVE A WATCH FUNCTION AND IT IS AN IMPORTANT FUNCTION ALONG WITH THE HEARTRATE FUNCTION.
WHO WANTS TO HAVE MORE THINGS TO DEAL WITH?
I WOULD LIKE IT BETTER IF THE TIME FUNCTION AND HEARTRATE FUNCTIONS WERE ON THE SAME DISPLAY.
I WOULD THEN RATE IT A "5" 4 stars The following review received 53 helpful votes out of 54 total votes:Review Date: 2007-05-17"Great Heart Rate Monitor"I just recently got back into exercising and wanted to monitor my heart rate to confirm I'm in the proper "zone" for losing weight. This HR monitor works great. And the strap - which I thought would be a problem -is extremely comfortable. I usually forget I'm wearing it. Also, the indigo light is perfect for spinning class, since they turn the lights down low.
I highly recommend this monitor. 5 stars The following review received 23 helpful votes out of 23 total votes:Review Date: 2007-11-21"Accurate heart rate monitor but lacks basics features"Overall, I'm fairly happy with my Timex heart rate monitor but I wish it had some basic features.
Pros:
-chest strap fits snuggly, doesn't move around and is comfortable (I'm female so I had to adjust it to the tightest possible and that fits me fine but would probably not work for petite women)
-chest strap transmits consistently and picks up your heart rate within seconds
-heart rate is easy to read on the watch
-most recent exercise time as well as average and high/low heart rate are recorded and can be easily accessed
Cons:
-it has a chest strap... a strapless heart rate monitor would be nice but they're notoriously inaccurate from the reviews I've read
-you have to press a button to see the current time while exercising
-there is no audible alarm--this is almost a show-stopper for me and I don't think I would have bought this if I had realized it didn't have this feature. The watch gives you no guidance as to whether you are in your target zone, when you need to slow down or pick up your pace, etc. That makes it very hard to use it as a serious fitness tool since you have to manually check the watch every couple of seconds and make sure your heart rate is where it should be.
Overall, it works well for the money and it does allow you to monitor your heart rate but if you're really serious about your workouts and are trying to do interval training this will probably not be sufficient. 4 stars The following review received 21 helpful votes out of 21 total votes:Review Date: 2007-11-25"Perfect for the Gym"After many years going to the gym, this is the best tool I've ever used to keep myself fit. It does what it promises: monitors your heart rate pretty accurately and it's a great value for the money.
At first, especially if you're a male, you have to get use to wearing the chest strap which carries the actual transmitting sensor. It was a bit uncomfortable for me the first couple times but I got over it quickly. No one has told me anything at the gym yet, but I think that (from the back) sometimes it looks like I'm wearing a bra.
I found that all stationary bikes, elliptical machines and treadmills at my school's gym can pick up the signal from my strap. This feature itself is worth every single dollar that I paid for this watch. I no longer need to interrupt my workout to keep holding the machine's handles to check my heart rate once in a while. For example, I just get on the treadmill, set it to the fat burn program, set the target heart rate to my 70% maximum and start working out. The treadmill will do the rest by automatically adjusting the inclination and speed to keep my heart rate to the specified range without me having to worry about it. It does the same thing with the other machines at the gym too.
Considering that the machines read your heart rate off the strap, you don't really need the wrist watch anymore, but I still use it because at the end of my workout it tells me the average and peak heart rates that I achieved during the time spent at the gym. Just the basic information but that's actually all you need if you want to make sure you're not wasting your time at the gym.
This is my first heart rate monitor and I'm sure there are better ones out there but for me this is a great value, it does what it promises and it truly helps me make the best of my visits to the gym. 5 stars The following review received 16 helpful votes out of 19 total votes:Review Date: 2007-09-02"Loved this"I bought this because I want to watch my heart rate right now that I'm preganant. So when I take my walks in the afternoon I don't overdo it as per my doctor. I have not had problems with this product at all and would recommend it in a heart beat, no pun intended. 5 stars |
