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Apple Watch and Polar H10 Heart Rate Monitor

T

Thomas Weber

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 3, 2021
25
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I am thinking of getting an external Heart Rate Monitor such as the Polar H10 because my workouts are sometimes between 6-8 hours of running and thus the battery drains quite quickly. I read on Amazon and other forums however, that the Apple Watch and the Polar Heart Rate Monitors don't get along so well (e.g. losing connection).

Are there any users here, using their Apple Watch with Polar Heart Rate Monitors that can share their experiences?
 
Been using mine for years now and i mostly have no problems with it. Sometimes it will unpair with the watch, it takes 20 secs to re-pair no phone needed. You get a way more accurate result with a heart rate monitor.
 
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Thomas Weber said:
I am thinking of getting an external Heart Rate Monitor such as the Polar H10 because my workouts are sometimes between 6-8 hours of running and thus the battery drains quite quickly. I read on Amazon and other forums however, that the Apple Watch and the Polar Heart Rate Monitors don't get along so well (e.g. losing connection).

Are there any users here, using their Apple Watch with Polar Heart Rate Monitors that can share their experiences?
Click to expand...
Have never had any issue with it. (S3 & S5)
 
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Mine ( Watch series 4 Nike edition ) works perfectly with my Polar band and H10 sensor….since 2018 when I got my Apple watch…
 
Last edited:
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Thank you everyone. I have ordered the H10 on Amazon this morning. I’ll give it a try and will report.
 
I like to share my experience and learnings with you:
  • the Polar H10 but also the H7 HRMs work very well with the Apple Watches SE (2022) and Series 7 with WatchOS 9
  • I only needed to connect the HRM through the systems settings bluetooth menu once
  • Heart Rate measurements will switch to the Polar HRM once I start a workout
  • The battery drain will be reduced drastically and even after several hours of workouts, my watch lasts till next day
  • On Amazon, some reviewers state that the HRM monitor will not connect or stay connected with the watch:
    • I observed that even though it appears as not connected in the systems setting's bluetooth menu, the measurement will happen via the HRM regardless --> the green AW heart rate sensor will not light up green but your heart rate is being measured
    • there is no need to tap/click connect the sensor in the menu each time you plan to use it
 
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This thread is a couple months old, but I ran across it searching for a specific answer.

Has anyone used the polar H10 connected to an Apple Watch while swimming?

The H10 has the ability to record hr readings then transmit later, but I’m unsure how this works with Apple Watch. My understanding is that Bluetooth doesn’t work well in a poll so the hr monitor needs to record
 
kylew1212 said:
This thread is a couple months old, but I ran across it searching for a specific answer.

Has anyone used the polar H10 connected to an Apple Watch while swimming?

The H10 has the ability to record hr readings then transmit later, but I’m unsure how this works with Apple Watch. My understanding is that Bluetooth doesn’t work well in a poll so the hr monitor needs to record
Click to expand...
It works very well. I was curious to find out and have tried it this week.

I looked like a total dork however…professional chest strap paired with the swimming technique of a total amateur earned me some eye rolling :rolleyes:
 
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Thomas Weber said:
It works very well. I was curious to find out and have tried it this week.

I looked like a total dork however…professional chest strap paired with the swimming technique of a total amateur earned me some eye rolling :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
At least you were doing something active! That’s a win in my book, dorking aside.
 
Thomas Weber said:
I am thinking of getting an external Heart Rate Monitor such as the Polar H10 because my workouts are sometimes between 6-8 hours of running and thus the battery drains quite quickly. I read on Amazon and other forums however, that the Apple Watch and the Polar Heart Rate Monitors don't get along so well (e.g. losing connection).

Are there any users here, using their Apple Watch with Polar Heart Rate Monitors that can share their experiences?
Click to expand...

Damn 6-8 hours of running! And not even with an Ultra and the battery will last? Sounds like you have your phone with you (which will then act as GPS for pre Ultra/S8)
 
Thomas Weber said:
It works very well. I was curious to find out and have tried it this week.

I looked like a total dork however…professional chest strap paired with the swimming technique of a total amateur earned me some eye rolling :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
Hi,
I never tested it befor but do you connect with the Polar beat app and activate your internal memory and start the swimming session there.
or do you just start the swimming session in the work-out app?
Or both?
I don't now if the work-out app knows how to use the internal memory of the H10.
 
If I use Polar H10 and Apple Watch concurrently, how is the data in the Health updated for example during a walking workout?
 
kitenski said:
You pair the polar to the Apple Watch then walk, it turns off the aw heart rate so the data just comes from the polar.
Click to expand...
This, or when you have “competing” data sources, this is what the Healt app says:
1691179057260.png
 
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Does the "green led" go out for you when the Polar h10 is connected ? Mine despite the connected Polar still lights up.
In addition, in the settings I connect and after a while it shows disconnected. I click connect after a second is connected. I do not know as a result if it is connected all the time or disconnects it.
Too bad watchOS doesn't show which sensor it draws data from.
I have watchos 10 latest beta.
 
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