Polar F55 Heart Rate Monitor Watch

Suggested Retail Price: $239.95

Rating: 10/10

Top Features

• Personalized workout programs (Polar Keeps U Fit)
• Assists in strength training (Polar Body Workout)
• Guides you in 5 minute relaxation sessions (Polar OwnRelax)
• Measures your fitness level in 5 minutes (Polar Fitness Test with OwnIndex)
• Personalized target heart rate zone indicator (Polar Zone Pointer & Polar OwnZone)
• Personalized calorie burn counter (Polar OwnCal)
• Blocks signals from other monitors (Polar OwnCode)
• Polar Precision Performance 4.0 software with SonicLink

Product Specs

• Displays heart rate, average heart rate, and exercise time
• Full clock and stopwatch function with day of the week and date indicator
• Sound volume level setting
• 1 year average battery life
• Water resistant to 100 feet (30 meters)
• 2 year limited warranty

Disadvantages

• Very expensive
• Software can be difficult to use
• Instructions can be confusing

Review

Of all the Polar general fitness ("F series") heart rate monitors, the F55 model is the most premium.  Not only does it contain all of the features from the F11, but it has even more features, namely the Polar Body Workout application for strength training, and the Polar OwnRelax, which assists in relaxing your body.  As you would expect, these extra features do not come for free, as the hefty price tag indicates.

In this heart rate monitor, personalization is really emphasized.  First, you can use the Polar Fitness Test to gauge your personal fitness level in just 5 minutes.  The F55 will use these results for many different functions.  This includes the more basic features like your personalized target heart rate zone and a calculation of how many calories you lose.  Additionally, this heart rate monitor uses the Keeps U Fit function, which is meant to act like a personal trainer by setting up customized workouts based on your own fitness goals.

If you've been working primarily on cardio fitness, but want to go a step further, the F55 will even give you guidance in strength training with the Polar Body Workout feature.  Your heart rate monitor will recommend everything you will need in a strength program, including training exercises, the number of sets and repetitions to do, and even the best amount of weight to use.  It will really seem like you have your own virtual personal trainer.

Another extra feature in the F55 is the OwnRelax application.  This is supposed to help you improve your overall well being by tracking your heart rate and heart rate variability over 5 minute periods of time.  This is an interesting idea, but could be more fully developed.  Another way this heart monitor could be more fully developed would be to improve the computer support, which is lacking in all Polar models.  Although the F55 has some room for improvement, it really gives you a lot of useful features, and even at its high price it's still a very good value.