There’s a ton of interest in smart and fitness watches, but it usually comes down to Apple v Garmin. I’ve ruled out Apple because of battery life and because I want a fitness watch.

The obvious place to go is Garmin… but Garmin! I’ve gone to Wahoo for my bike computer and it’s so much better than my Garmin ever was. I’ve got the fear about recommitting to Garmin.

Which leads me to the Polar Vantage V – it’s cheaper than top-line Garmins and would do everything I want, because I’m not fussed about music etc, but I do want all of the recovery and sleep stats. It’s looking like a pretty compelling proposition, but I’m keen for any real world experiences or feedback as the official reviews are good, but the default recommendation is always Garmin.

Thanks.

I have an M. It’s good. Use it as a daily to track steps and sleep. And then into GPS tracking for riding and running. Good battery too. Preferred not to have a touch screen which is why I didn’t get the V. And had the same attitude towards Garmin.

FWIW I have a 430 – older model and pretty basic. I like it a lot; use for cross races and to track my commute just to log the miles but the HR is surprisingly close in comparison to a chest strap at rest and racing.

GPS is pretty much rock solid (slightly better than garmin 810). Does sleep & activity but not HRV etc if that’s what you mean by recovery (TBH I’d wear a chest strap for 5 minutes if I wanted to know that with any accuracy – not read up on it but seems more likely to be accurate)

I have the M after upgrading from the 400.

It wasn’t a smooth upgrade and was a bit of a disappointment at first. A lot left out or buggy. The V and M have had several major updates since though and are realistically at the point they should have released at.

The Vantages have just had a major update which has brought over the ‘fitspark’ stuff from the more casual ‘Ignite’ series. Haven’t used it yet but looks like a nice addition. There’s a decent write up on Polars site or download the respective manuals if you haven’t already.

I went with the M as I wasn’t sold on the running power which is the only real major difference other than how they deal with recovery recommendations/advice. As I’ve moved to more and more running however I kind of regret that now.

There’s a lot of talk on the net about them having poor gps accuracy (something that seems to be an issue with the newer low power chipsets when I was reading) however whilst yes I’d agree they don’t draw a pretty line on the map the actual distances for me at least have been just as accurate as other devices.

Wrist based HR seems good. Between 5-10 bpm off against chest strap was the worst I experienced l. Doesn’t react as fast as the chest strap though.

Overall I’m happier with it now then when I got it.

I have the Vantage V, very impressed by it.

A few months ago they updated the sleep stats features on it, so it is now very comprehensive; better than the Apple equivalent, you get a full breakdown of your ANS (autonomic nervous system) one night, HR, HR intervals, breathing rate etc as well as a breakdown of sleep cycles etc.

The main thing which sets it apart is the battery life, on continuous HR monitor it lasts 5 days before needing a recharge, my wife’s iWatch barely manages 24 hours, often less.

Two weeks ago we got another SW update, the personalised fitness programs based on recovery which they launched on their newer cheaper Ignite watch; all back ported to the Vantage.

When exercising properly I generally use a chest strap, the optical wrist things isn’t bad, but they have to filter it a lot so they’re not supposed to be as good at detecting peaks etc. Having said that it still shows me HRs over 190 when I’m competitively cycling to work in the morning…

@footflaps how have you found the running power aspect of the V?

Iirc when it came out and I was reading about it some where seeing it as a gimmick. I presume there’s still no power ‘standard’ so Stryd/Polar/Garmin/Whoever will all give a different reading, having said that though have you made much/any using of the metric in your running and if so have you found it to offer a benefit?
As I said in my post I am mainly running these days so am tempted to possibly sell the M and get a V for the power side and supposedly better recovery side.

I don’t run, so can’t comment. I’ve used it for cycling, hiking and gym so far.

Ok no worries.

I have the Vantage V and I’m unhappy with the recovery data compared to the V800. At 6pm last night I was in the productive zone yet upon waking up at 9am this morning, I was 100 percent detrained. This has happened quite a few times now.

Oh and the OHR is crap for HIIT Turbo sessions, it’s just not responsive enough. I always wear the H10 for accurate results now.

I’d give my right nut for a brand new V800 again.