Polar RS400 Heart Rate Monitor Watch with Free IRDA - USB2 Interface

As a hear rate monitor this unit is really good and I like the software that comes with it (this is my third model of Polar monitors). But this is a replacement RS400 because the first one ran through batteries very quickly (to be fair I loved this watch when I first got it and I gave the first unit 5 stars in my review, albeit that was only after about a month of usage). The first battery lasted about four months, the second one four weeks. I don't suspect this is normal behavior though, it could just be a defect in the unit...or, as I have read on some of the Polar message boards, the watch is designed such that the side buttons are very easily pushed in when setting the watch down on its side such that it could be getting turned on inadvertently and running the battery down. My guess is that it is the latter rather than being a defect. Now I make sure not to put the watch down on its side to prevent this from happening. The watch is also designed so that, theoretically, you can change the battery yourself but the back is made of such soft plastic that it is almost impossible to open it without destroying the battery cover. This is very annoying. My last Polar was great because it had a metal back with small screws that were easy to pop out, change the battery, and pop back in. My guess is you have to have a special jewelers tool to get this back off without damaging the plastic. The conclusion I have come to is that I think this design is just a poor design. They need to go back to the screw on metal backs (e.g. 625Xi) and redesign the buttons to prevent the watch being accidentally turned on and draining the battery. I would recommend you look at a different Polar model as there are other designs that appear to be better and less likely to suffer from these issues.

My RS400 itself works pretty well. It reliably tracks and records pulse information during my cardio workouts, even interval training which is more challenging due to the frequent changes in heart rate. However, the design of the watch leads to the buttoms activating frequently unintentionally, especially when I wear the watch outside of my workouts.My experience with the Polar IrDA link and the ProTrainer 5 software is more negative. The watch often does not link up with the software. The distance between the watch and the Polar USB/IrDA interface needs to be within an apparently range (not too close and not too far away... around a foot away seems to work best). The Polar USB/IrDA device is mostly good for randomly flashing red light. It does not link the the watch consistently. The ProTrainer states that it is "Connecting to Polar Product" indefinitely. If you "Cancel", then upon trying to transfer data again, it says "Communication port couldn't be opened.", meaning that the port was not properly closed when the Transfer was canceled. This is a frustrating experience.Also, customization of the watch graphic is very frustrating since Polar uses a proprietary format for the graphic. The ProTrainer's editor for the graphic is very primitive and difficult to work with.My friends who use Garmin monitors seem much happier, especially with the analysis software.

I have been using RS 400 for over a month and completely satisfied with its performance. While I was already excited about its features, when I was researching for a good running computer within my price range, I was a little concerned about some of the negative reviews regarding its infra-red connectivity. The first time I tried downloading data, I did have trouble, but I realized, I was holding it in my hand and my hand was not steady, so I then took the watch off, and placed it on the table close to the USB infrared reader and it has been able to always get the data quickly after that. Other than that, the recording features where you can record your data at 1s, 5s, 60s etc. are great as I'd like to do a lot of interval training and would want to see my heart rate change almost close to real time. The Polar Personal Trainer software that comes free with it is also a big bonus as I can personalize my target zones based on VO2 max values and find out the distribution of my workout in various VO2 max percentages. I also like the fact that it calculates my calorie expenditure by taking VO2 max into account, as well as heart rate, gender, age and weight, unlike the other monitors that just use gender, weight excluding VO2 max, thereby giving my more accurate representation of the calories I am burning. When I compare it to the calories burned shown by my treadmill, bike or elliptical trainer, they show a lot higher number of calories burned almost 20-30% difference. Therefore, I think it is a much more reliable tool even if you just want to lose weight. I would definitely recommend this product to any serious runner or even a casual person, who wants more accurate estimate of their calorie expenditure during a workout.

This is a great Watch....i purchased it from Jomashop first but the second one i got from my wife was from Bestbuy...it is a great monitor...had other polar watchs the F11 & F55 but this is a good watch to have to fitness purposes...it does it all...however, u must get yourself fimilarized with its manual & usage....even my personal trainer doesn't know all the features on it....to program it correctly & using the ownzone is important feature that most Polar users do not know how to set up....still learning...& i go Lifetime Fitness, even the trainers do not know how to set it up & they r resellers of Polar!!!....i believe Polar must teach these guys how to use all the features before they try to sell one to u~!!

I ordered the "POLAR RS400 heart Rate monitor watch WITH FREE IrDA - USB2 Interface"The goods arrived in good shape except no IrDA - USB2 interface. it's missing.But the seller said that it has to be ordered separately.I don't think it's a good answer. because it's clearly said "it comes with free IrDA interface"

Excellent replacement for my Polar S625x just as functional plus advanced software for reviewing and analysing runs, and at a much cheaper price than I paid for my S625x 7 years ago.