Timex Ironman T5C411 Unisex 30-Lap Digital Fitness Heart Rate Monitor Watch

This Timex heart rate monitor is a great performer. So far, the transmitter has worked flawlessly and for the price, it rivals many expensive Polar units. I have become very frustrated with the short battery life with Polar monitors, and it is nice to be able to replace the batteries yourself (transmitter battery - the watch battery itself should be replaced by a jeweler).

The one (very minor) drawback is that it has not been compatible with the receivers in my gym's exercise machines. I have a Freestyle unit that works with the machines, and of course, the Polar units will work. No problem - just use the watch and you're all set. I would imagine that this was done purposely - it most likely will prevent cross-talk with other monitors.

In short, it's a great monitor for the price and will allow you to precisely track your cardiovascular workouts.

I have a much older version that has worked perfectly for several years. This new one has the advantage of the 30 lap memory. You can get your time and average heart rate for every split and the overall run. You also get min, average and max heart rate for the run. My monitor works great, is reasonably comfortable to wear and is easy to read when running. I highly recommend it.

I've had two of these watches now and I like the product overall, but with some tragic flaws.

Pros:
- The buttons are well laid out and easy to use while exercising.
- Has all of the basic features needed for exercising (set heart rate ranges, alerts, calorie counting, lap, alarm, timer, etc.)
- Good screen size and readability while exercising


Cons: (the tragic flaws)
- Nothing about this watch is waterproof. If you get your sweat into it, the buttons stop working temporarily (I strap it to my bike or put it in my pocket while running to avoid getting it wet).
- I went swimming with it twice to monitor my heart rate, both times it fogged the screen and once it stopped working for a week until it had ample time to dry out.
- After a few months, the heart rate is not picked up by the watch (don't know if it is the watch or transmitter). I first thought it might be the battery and had them both changed (watch & transmitter) but the problem persisted.

When I had problems with the first one, I returned it within a week and the store gave me a new one. When the second one experienced the same problems, the 90 day warrenty period expired and I was left with a flaky watch with no recourse. I (stupidly) bought another since I liked design and thought I just experienced some bad luck with the first two. I made my second purchase of the watch (it was on sale) and it worked fine for 6 months before it too stopped receiving the heart rate.

The price was cheap, so you get what you pay for.

This HRM does everything I need. Never have had any issues getting my HR to read out on the display. Works great and easy to use.

I am very pleased with this product and have had no problems with getting a continuous read on my heart rate. Besides this, it's a full-feature watch. I paid more than this price for my last watch, which had no heart rate monitor. I highly recommend it!