Polar RS800sd - Review

A Watch To Improve Your Running and Stride - The Polar RS800sd


No other tool can improve your running faster than the Polar RS800sd, a bold statement that is backed up by sheer performance and analysis capabilities. Sculpted in support of world-class runners and their handlers to help develop efficiency, stride length, and the turnover speed between foot falls.


Come up with the proper balance between power and speed and you have unlocked the secret to proper cadence. Runners with proper cadence seem to effortlessly run and it is obvious they are fast by how brief a period their feet come in to contact with the ground.


The S3 Stride Sensor contains micro equipment to produce incredibly uniform and precise tempo and measurement of distance. The S3 fits exactly in several Adidas shoes, such as the Fusion, and the S3 is unaffected by water and comes equipped with a battery that is replaceable by the user.


Chest straps have a bad reputation for comfort, but the Wearlink chest belt that comes with the Polar RS800sd is the best we've tried for total comfort.


At hand are stellar, brand new capabilities that are significant besides the chest belt and stride sensor, that are in attendance with this dynamite running and cycling watch. The brand new Runners Indicator attribute combines speed and heart rate information gathered all through the run. This allows regular data as regards the athlete's operational level on both running efficiency and fitness.


After your work out is complete you can opt for complete training analysis with the Polar Pro Trainer 5 software that comes with the Polar RS800sd, or use other popular training software. Plug in an IRDA USB Adapter and away you go, wirelessly transferring data to your computer.


What you receive with the RS800sd includes the monitor, chest strap, stride sensor footpod, a USB data transfer device and the software. Its worth noting that Polar has two watches, the RS800sd and the RS800 Run, that come identically equipped.


You can use infared data transfer with the RS800sd to load your data quickly to your computer. If your laptop doesn't already possess an Infared port, use a Polar Infared adapter device to transfer feedback from the RS800sd to your notebook.


This watch is without a doubt the superior runners device for fleet feet who will not settle for less than the top-level with their performances, plus the finest in accessible tools. The best triathlon watch we ever tested was the Garmin 310XT, the RS800sd is, without a doubt, the most excellent running monitor by a long shot.


The Polar RS800sd keeps track of your pulse, tempo and distance while on the run, caloric consumption, circuit information and much more. It records your velocity with the assistance of the footpod that rides in your shoe laces or else squeezes inside the unique holding unit in some Adidas running shoes. The s3 stride sensor, which comes with the Polar RS800sd, indicates tempo and mileage making use of inertial technology.


Upon completing your training session, transfer all of your feedback directly to your notebook right away to assess tempo and related information along with your pulse feedback.


These stupendous technology improvements are precisely why we awarded the Polar RS800sd with 4.9 out of five stars, which creates a dead heat for 1st place among the best ratings we have yet awarded.

Garmin 310XT - Review

What blows us away about Garmin’s latest GPS watch, the 301XT, is that it functions as a runner’s watch, a cycling computer, a swimmers watch, a power meter, a very accurate speed and distance measurement device and it allows you to set vibrating or audible alerts for dozens of different measurements. It is unrivaled as a multi-sport watch – period.

If there is a singular flaw it would perhaps be the size of the watch but it feels no different on the wrist than a normal watch as it is actually very light, plus the size gives you a nice, large readable display that is very easy to read and can display up to 4 metrics per screen with 4 screens for each sport.

We chose to display distance, speed, heart rate and pace when testing it running. The pacing feature, or Virtual Partner as Garmin calls it, allows you to put a pre-determined pace into the watch and then it tells you throughout the course of your run how far ahead, or behind, you are from that pacing goal. It’s a really cool feature.

For cycling, we chose to display speed, cadence, heart rate and watts, which can be displayed as long as the bike you are riding has an ANT compliant watts meter. A GPS cycling watch could literally take the place of your bike computer but we recommend the handlebar mount for safety.
For swimming, we set up a meters per minute pacing goal and turned on the vibrating alarm. Since you don’t have time to look at a watch swimming we found the vibrating alarm very useful and actually put the watch on over our wetsuit because it did not feel comfortable and would barely fit under the wetsuit.

In our estimation this watch is great for a whole bunch of different sports and not just the triathletes who served as the inspiration for its genesis. Pure swimmers will love it. It makes a great cycling computer and has versatility to be used for other things. Kayakers can measure speed, distance, heart rate and do all the Eskimo rolls they want because the watch is waterproof.

Power, calories, heart rate, speed, distance, and elevation: You name it, they're all there. It can also help make your workouts more effective. You can easily set up custom interval workouts right in the watch.

The vibrating alarm is a nice feature because it allows you to listen to an iPod and still know when you’ve gone outside the zone for your metrics. It also means that you don’t have to bother your friends with constant alarm chirping during group workouts.

If we were Siskel and Ebert we would have to say two thumbs way up but since we rate a GPS watch on a 5-star system we’ll give this powerhouse 4.9 out of 5 stars.