Polar has released two new GPS watches with advanced heart-rate monitoring. The new products—Vantage V for elite athletes and Vantage M for competitive amateurs—feature Polar Precision Prime. New sensor technology uses two LED colors and a skin contact measurement to provide more reliable and accurate heart rate readings from the wrist.
Chest straps remain the gold standard in heart-rate monitoring, and Polar’s announcement notes that its H10 chest strap is “still the best match.” But improving the performance of an optical wrist-born reading would be a big step forward for those who find chest straps uncomfortable or can’t wear them due to the nature of their sport.
The other key feature of Polar’s new Vantage series of watches is the Training Load Pro that accounts for cardio load, muscle load, and perceived load, in which the user inputs a subjective rating for the toll of their workout.
“Given our long track record and continuous innovation, we consider it justified to say that we are the pioneers of sports wearable technology and heart rate measurement,” said Polar chief strategy officer Marco Suvilaakso in a statement.
SportTechie Takeaway
There are two key objectives in this Vantage series launch. First, optical wrist-worn heart monitoring is still not rated for clinical use, even though it has featured in some reported trials. Testing will be necessary to see how the new Polar Precision Prime feature works, but solving this riddle will be a major breakthrough. Second, the dual release of the elite Vantage V and prosumer Vantage M models highlights the necessity of targeting multiple markets. Many elite wearables companies—Catapult, STATSports, and more—are all diversifying their offerings to reach highly engaged recreational athletes.