New heart rate watch that didn’t use chest straps

Arasnatra

Hi There,

I come across this new watch that do not use chest straps to measure your heart rate.

The Mio Alpha it looks ok for people only looking to basic functions watch, without the discomfort of the Strap.

Is only available in The US, for the time being.


Source:
http://techcrunch.com/2013/01/29/the-surprisingly-comfortable-mio-alpha-heart-rate-watch-does-away-with-those-pesky-chest-straps/

rom

Arasnatra wrote: »

Hi There,

I come across this new watch that do not use chest straps to measure your heart rate.

The Mio Alpha it looks ok for people only looking to basic functions watch, without the discomfort of the Strap.

Is only available in The US, for the time being.


Source:
http://techcrunch.com/2013/01/29/the-surprisingly-comfortable-mio-alpha-heart-rate-watch-does-away-with-those-pesky-chest-straps/

If this was possible to get right then polar/garmin etc would have done this by now.

sconhome

Interestingly enough it seems to use the same system of light penetration that many of the apps use to detect HR.

I can't see it ever competing with the ECG accuracy of the Polar devices, but could be an option for gym fitness workouts etc.

Arasnatra

rom wrote: »

If this was possible to get right then polar/garmin etc would have done this by now.

or maybe now they will see a new possibility there!

This is a very new technology!!!!!!!!!

sconhome

Arasnatra wrote: »

or maybe now they will see a new possibility there!

This is a very new technology!!!!!!!!!

Doubt they'll go for it. There's no way a slim possibility it can ever be as accurate as measuring the electric pulses from the heart muscle itself.

Krusty_Clown

The technology has been around for quite a long time, it's just (one of) the first times that it has been used in a training watch (there are other competing watches that use the same technology). This is one of the kickstarter projects that was looking for funding early last year. At $199, you'd want to really hate that HR strap. You'd get a decent Polar for that money, or a GPS-based Garmin (albeit with crap HR data).

ger664

amphkingwest wrote: »

Interestingly enough it seems to use the same system of light penetration that many of the apps use to detect HR.

Same method is used in Irish hospitals. They put a bandage on the top of your finger with a red light on it to measure HR and Blood Oxygen. There is however a rather annoying lead running back to the machine which gets caught in everything.

TFBubendorfer

rom wrote: »

If this was possible to get right then polar/garmin etc would have done this by now.

That's a silly argument, especially considering how crap Garmin's HR chest straps are.

Everyone's favourite reviewer has posted an extensive review of the optical HR watch:

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/DcRainmaker/~3/gi92O-9m7Nk/monitor-bluetooth-smartant.html

I think I like the idea of the thing much more than the watch itself. As Krusty said, for that price you'd really have to hate your HR strap to replace it with that watch but I'd love to see the functionality being incorporated into the next standard Garmin (or Timex or Polar or ...) GPS watch.

rom

TFBubendorfer wrote: »

That's a silly argument, especially considering how crap Garmin's HR chest straps are.

Everyone's favourite reviewer has posted an extensive review of the optical HR watch:

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/DcRainmaker/~3/gi92O-9m7Nk/monitor-bluetooth-smartant.html

I think I like the idea of the thing much more than the watch itself. As Krusty said, for that price you'd really have to hate your HR strap to replace it with that watch but I'd love to see the functionality being incorporated into the next standard Garmin (or Timex or Polar or ...) GPS watch.

As a lover of technological inovation I had the same the same positive attitude but working in the field I see how things do fall flat. I am sorry but until a time where a major fitness tech licences this technology or buys the company outright it then we won't be using it simply. If it was any good this would have already happened. DCrainmaker knowledge of technology is some areas is poor.

TFBubendorfer

rom wrote: »

As a lover of technological inovation I had the same the same positive attitude but working in the field I see how things do fall flat. I am sorry but until a time where a major fitness tech licences this technology or buys the company outright it then we won't be using it simply. If it was any good this would have already happened. DCrainmaker knowledge of technology is some areas is poor.

I'm not contradicting you here. I can't see myself buying that watch purely for the HR, and the only way this will catch on is if they license it to the major players to incorporate into standard GPS watches (or similar products).

Your "if it was any good this would have already happened" comment, I'm not so sure about. Garmin's present HR solution isn't very good either and it's still very widely used (including by myself)

rom

TFBubendorfer wrote: »

I'm not contradicting you here. I can't see myself buying that watch purely for the HR, and the only way this will catch on is if they license it to the major players to incorporate into standard GPS watches (or similar products).

Your "if it was any good this would have already happened" comment, I'm not so sure about. Garmin's present HR solution isn't very good either and it's still very widely used (including by myself)

I rarely have problems with my garmin heart rate strap. If I do I swap out the strap to another one. Let the problem one get bone dry for a week or two and it will be fine for another few months. The polar analogue strap I have is excellent. Taking any rust off it too makes a big help.