POLARH9 Heart Rate Sensor

I have been using this strap for over a year to monitor my heart rate on runs and bike rides, and it has worked flawlesly throughout. I've only changed the battery on it once during this time when I noticed that it would not connect to my bike computer. I personally have never had the band slip or shift off my chest.Once you pair it to your watch or bike computer, it's remarkably simple to use - just put it on and it automatically turns on and starts transmitting to whatever device you have. When you take it off, it automatically powers down. There is no on/off indicator light, but I found that it's not needed, and would likely just waste battery.

This heart rate monitor has worked great! Easy to attach around my chest and it synchs with the gyms elliptical and treadmill machines right as I get on them. I like that the electronic piece snaps on and off, so I can clean the band after every use while keeping the transmitter piece dry.

The polar H9 is extremely difficult to pair with an iPhone. Still trying to get mine to work. Very difficult to get support from polar. They will flood you with 1 million FYI on their webpage. None of it helpful. Still trying to figure out how to actually talk to somebody or get some real advice. It’s a very common problem if you search on Google. Really for as long as these have been around it should be simple as possible to do.UPDATE: I returned it. I got so tired of trying to get this junk to connect to my phone. Randomly disconnects. This is with 2 different H9's. Its just a poorly designed product and the app performance and features are poor.This company lives on its reputation, certainly not its technology. Thank god for Amazon easy returns.

I’m not sure why people having such problems with this strap. I’ve had mine for over three years and just starting to have issue with it syncing to app. App easy to use and feel it’s very accurate when used side by side with machines tracking. Do half hour cardio and half hour on weights and can leave it 10 ft away from when working out and still connects. For 50-60 bucks well worth the money. Just ordered new strap to see if that helps with syncing issue if not will gladly by new one.

I use a heart rate monitor primarily for indoor and outdoor bike training so it must be reliable with consistent monitoring, durable through very sweaty sessions and comfortable enough to wear for long periods.BackgroundThis purchase was triggered because I was fed up with a competing brand's heart rate monitor which I've been using since 2019. That brand's data had been inconsistent over time, often dropping to 0, as well as needing 3 replacements from the manufacturer. I decided to switch to a different manufacturer and after much research decided to try the Polar H9. I didn't need the advanced features of the H10. I just needed it to pair with Zwift and my bicycle computer and be consistent.The setupThe product was packed nicely and had minimal instructions. There was no real setup. I wet the strap contact points slightly, plugged in the monitor to the strap, adjusted the length and it was seen by Zwift immediately.PerformanceAs of this review, I have been using it around 4 times a week for the past 3 months and the data has been very consistent. I will continue to review it as the competing brand was good at first and then degraded over time. The strap has been comfortable and easy enough to adjust. The monitor itself has had no issues with connectivity or water intrusion over this time. The only negative which is why I gave it 4 stars is that as you can see in the photos, where the strap meets the metal strap adjuster it is already starting to wear and you can see the elastic edge is wearing prematurely. I hand wash the strap with water and air dry it after every session so it is not from long-term salt exposure. I am concerned I will need to replace the strap once a year at this rate which can get expensive.Positives+ Seems well made+ Data has been solid over 3 months+ Comfortable and easy to adjust+ Water resistance seems to be consistent with claims+ Easy to pairNegatives- Premature wear at the buckle point in the strap. Some fraying is noticeable at the edges. The elastic seems to be wearing prematurely even with consistent washing.

I almost returned this until I looked up how to get it working on the web. You have to pair it WITH THE APP, NOT your phone! If you pair it with your phone the app will not see it, at least as far as I can tell.The third time I used it I had to restart my phone for it to pair for some reason. Since then it has paired automatically whenever I open the app and have the thing on my chest. No restart needed.There may be better apps to use. I use the Polar Beat app which does what I want just fine. There is also an app called Polar Flow but I think it sucks. Not needed. But if you open the Polar Flow website (not the phone app) you will see that Polar Beat syncs all your data there and keeps track of all your activities on a calendar.I get the strap slightly damp as well as the spot on my chest where it goes, then put it on. I make sure it's paired in the app, then when I get to the gym or my hike I hit Start on the app. When I'm done I remove the monitor from the strap which turns it off.All I needed was a way to track my heart rate while I'm working out and it does that just fine. The cheap watches here on Amazon do not track your heart rate accurately, especially at higher rates. This thing is great.