One of the questions you need to ask yourself is what do you really want to use it for. I've listed some of the features that are found on Polar HRMs and my thoughts on these features.
Heart rate- This one is kind of important if you want a HRM ;D
Stop Watch/Timer- typically comes standard
Speed and Distance- it's nice to know how far and fast you might be going if there aren't mile markers to check off against. I do a lot of workouts based on intervals i.e. 5 minutes @ 7:40 pace alternating with 5 minutes @ 8:20 recovery, etc. I find this feature very helpful as a training tool.
Cycling stuff i.e cadence/speed. Helpful if you want an all in one watch that can be used for both. Not so helpful if during a race you forget to the the watch off the handlebar for the run.
Temperature- probably could be helpful but I just look @ the weather report to determine the temp (plus the one on my watch is not accurate)
Altimeter- could be helpful but I find it cool only to boast to my friends how many meters I climbed. Might not be accurate.
Fit Test: It's supposed to tell you your level of fitness compared to normal folks. The key word here is normal. Triathletes are inherently not normal and in general are to the right side of any fitness curve. Trust me on the following: after training for a while you'll know that you're more fit than before.
Recovery Test: Supposed to tell you if you're recovered. A cheap way of doing this is to take your pulse before you get out of bed for a week or so. If you're HR is 10 or so above then you've probably worked out a little too hard and should take it easy.
R-R interval- even as a physician I am not sure what this is used for. I think it's another measure of fitness. Have to ask my cardiology friends.
Uploadable feature- My watch uploads but in my mind as long as I am following my prescribed workout set out by my coach, then I really don't need to see it again at the end of the run. I either stayed in the zone or I didn't- I try not to deviate from what he says. I keep a spreadsheet that lists my times (my coach has me repeat different cycles throughout the year so that my body experiences different stimuli). this is much easier than opening every file to find the same workout that I might have done 1 year ago.
I love gadgets and I love seeing data but in the end after having had about 6 or 7 different types of HRMs. My current HRM does a zillion things but I find that I usally use the following things.
1. my heart rate (hence the HRM)
2. my pace (I have a Polar s625x- this one gives running pace and you can set your limits to HR or pace).
3. stop watch.
4. Distance- just to track mileage.
Oh yeah, I find that the newer Polar HRM have something called a wearlink transmitter which is essentially a cloth belt that goes around thefront of the chest with elastic in the back as opposed to a big piece of plastic that goes around your chest with an elastic strap in the back. This wearlink rocks. With the other regular chest straps, I could never seem to get good contact on my chest especially when I had a running jacket and occasionally a shirt on. d**n thing would always read HR 220+. With the wear link strap I don't have anymore problems.
That's it. Hope this helps.
