A heart rate monitor is an excellent fitness tool, allowing you to work out within your chosen heart rate zone. Extras beyond the heart rate reading include stopwatch, exercise timer, clock, settable heart zones with alarm, and backlight. Check whether you can change the battery yourself or must send it to the factory. Decide what you want and shop for the best value.
1. Timex Road Trainer Heart Rate Monitor
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The Timex Road Trainer uses a chest strap sensor for maximum accuracy. The wrist monitor is a full-featured Timex Ironman sports watch. You can view your heart rate with the time of day and while using the chronograph and timer. It has a minimum and maximum heart rate alert, five pre-set heart rate zones and a customizable zone. I like the large number display and a night light. Perhaps because I've used Ironman watches in the past, I find the Timex more intuitive and I find it easier to navigate the displays and menus than I do with Polar heart rate monitor products. The watch is large, but you could easily wear it and use it as a sports watch, independent of its heart rate monitor function.
2. Polar FS1 Heart Rate Monitor
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The Polar FS1 heart rate monitor lets you set a manual target heart rate zone with visual and audible alarm. It give you your average heart rate during your exercise and elapsed exercise time. You can also wear it as a watch - it displays the time and it also has a stopwatch function. The extra large digits are appreciated. Water resistant up to 50 meters.
3. Polar F4 Heart Rate Monitor
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The Polar F4 is designed for women and has a large number display. It includes calorie calculation, automatic and manual setting for heart zones, zone alarm when you get out-of-zone, and records your total time in zone. It displays heart rate both in number and percent of maximum. It has watch, alarm, and stopwatch, but no backlight.
4. Reebok Fitness Trainer Heart Rate Monitor
Watch and heart rate with triple row display showing your average heart rate, highest and lowest heart rate and exercise time. The target zone memory records time in, above and below target zone with your average heart rate.5. Cardiosport GO-20 Heart Rate Monitor
Target zone limits with upper and lower alarms. Features include a calendar, time display, and daily alarm. Large LCD display with super glow light is easy to read. User changeable battery and 3-year warranty.6. Polar FS2
The Polar FS2 allows you to enter your target zone and gives you both visual and audible alarms when you are out of the zone. It displays heart rate and exercise duration and has a backlight. It also has watch functions for time of day and stopwatch. Once done with your workout, you can recall your total exercise duration, maximum and average heart rate.7. Ekho E-10 Heart Rate Monitor
Prevention Magazine rated its transmitter the most comfortable. This is an entry-level model which displays your heart rate continuously and the time of day. 5-year manufacturer warranty and user replaceable batteries on transmitter and watch.
