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Let's be real, HOW ACCURATE IS THE HEART RATE MONITOR?

HappyDude20

HappyDude20

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Jul 13, 2008
3,688
1,479
Los Angeles, Ca
My heart rate much like your is sporadic throughout the day. Admittedly is love to wear the apple watch over night to see how my heart rate changes at different times, perhaps even using it alongside a REM sleep app.

How accurate is the heart rate monitor? I'm not hating on the watch quite yet, I'm debating ordering one now after tryin it on last night but so far seems like an elegant toy as oppose to a serious medical device. <Obviously it's not the latter but marketed more that way.
 
HappyDude20 said:
My heart rate much like your is sporadic throughout the day. Admittedly is love to wear the apple watch over night to see how my heart rate changes at different times, perhaps even using it alongside a REM sleep app.

How accurate is the heart rate monitor? I'm not hating on the watch quite yet, I'm debating ordering one now after tryin it on last night but so far seems like an elegant toy as oppose to a serious medical device. <Obviously it's not the latter but marketed more that way.
Click to expand...

Marketed like a serious medical device? Must've missed that one.

Sorry doc, not for you if thats what you're after.
 
HappyDude20 said:
My heart rate much like your is sporadic throughout the day. Admittedly is love to wear the apple watch over night to see how my heart rate changes at different times, perhaps even using it alongside a REM sleep app.

How accurate is the heart rate monitor? I'm not hating on the watch quite yet, I'm debating ordering one now after tryin it on last night but so far seems like an elegant toy as oppose to a serious medical device. <Obviously it's not the latter but marketed more that way.
Click to expand...

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/...-and-several-models-are-in-our-labs/index.htm
 
I am extremely disappointed with the heart rate monitor thus far.

I am a fitness sensor fanatic, and the Apple Watch has been far less accurate/informative than the cheaper alternatives. Ive found it terrible for tracking peaks during weight lifting/intervals, and its taken the HR monitor 5-10 minutes to show an accurate number during outdoor runs. I've played around with tightness and location with minimal results.

My biggest complaint is that I would rather the watch say acquiring than give me a BS metric like 175bpm when I know I should be around 135-140.

Luckily, the software on this device is far more advanced, so hopefully they make tweaks based off of the extensive data they are getting.

As of now, amazing smart watch, sub-par fitness tracker.
 
Cyberstven said:
I am extremely disappointed with the heart rate monitor thus far.

I am a fitness sensor fanatic, and the Apple Watch has been far less accurate/informative than the cheaper alternatives. Ive found it terrible for tracking peaks during weight lifting/intervals, and its taken the HR monitor 5-10 minutes to show an accurate number during outdoor runs. I've played around with tightness and location with minimal results.

My biggest complaint is that I would rather the watch say acquiring than give me a BS metric like 175bpm when I know I should be around 135-140.

Luckily, the software on this device is far more advanced, so hopefully they make tweaks based off of the extensive data they are getting.

As of now, amazing smart watch, sub-par fitness tracker.
Click to expand...

Unless you're using the watch's activity app for you outdoors runs it will only check your HR every 10 minutes, which is does constantly throughout the day anyway. In the activity app it constantly measures heart rate.
 
Cyberstven said:
I am extremely disappointed with the heart rate monitor thus far.

I am a fitness sensor fanatic, and the Apple Watch has been far less accurate/informative than the cheaper alternatives. Ive found it terrible for tracking peaks during weight lifting/intervals, and its taken the HR monitor 5-10 minutes to show an accurate number during outdoor runs. I've played around with tightness and location with minimal results.

My biggest complaint is that I would rather the watch say acquiring than give me a BS metric like 175bpm when I know I should be around 135-140.

Luckily, the software on this device is far more advanced, so hopefully they make tweaks based off of the extensive data they are getting.

As of now, amazing smart watch, sub-par fitness tracker.
Click to expand...

Have you tried the FitBit Charge HR? That's my current (and first) tracker. I'm curious how they compare as heart rate monitors. It won't be a big deal to wear my fitbit on my other arm at times, if I want to, but naturally I'd like to avoid it. The Charge is nice for sleep tracking, which I won't be using the Watch for, because that'll be its nap time.

The Charge also calculates a resting heart rate which has tracked beautifully with how much I exercise (as it should) and I enjoy using it as a bit of a metric. Curious how the watch does at that as well.
 
Here's what you need to know: The heart beat monitor reads your heartbeat over the course of about 10 seconds and then gives you the readout. It's not constantly updating or real time. You can manually tell it to read your heart rate, at which point it will tell you about 10 seconds later what your heartbeat has been over those 10 seconds. Or with the workout app, it will measure throughout your workout but only in increments of about 1 or 2 minutes (not sure yet) So it's not like you can constantly monitor your heart beats at all times, but it's still very accurate and useful.

The sensor itself works very well. If you use the messaging thing to send your heartbeat to a friend you can feel it match up directly with your heart in your body, so it is definitely reading accurately. I think with a few software updates, it will become way more useful than it currently is without any new hardware.
 
DavidTheExpert said:
Here's what you need to know: The heart beat monitor reads your heartbeat over the course of about 10 seconds and then gives you the readout. It's not constantly updating or real time. You can manually tell it to read your heart rate, at which point it will tell you about 10 seconds later what your heartbeat has been over those 10 seconds. Or with the workout app, it will measure throughout your workout but only in increments of about 1 or 2 minutes (not sure yet) So it's not like you can constantly monitor your heart beats at all times, but it's still very accurate and useful.
Click to expand...

With the activity app, it monitors all of the time. It takes 10 seconds to aquire the rate, and gives you 6 readings every minute. So a 20 minute workout would yield 120 unique heart rate readings. If the activity app isn't used, then the same 20 minute workout would yield 2 readings (one every 10 minutes).

You can view (and verify) this in the Health app on your phone.
 
I hope not too well otherwise I may have a heart problem at hand ^^ it's 84ish when I do nothing watching TV and goes up to 124 just walking to the metro
 
Mine seems to be pretty darn accurate. I just wish I could see an average heartbeat for the entire day, rather than it only telling me my heart rate 5-10 minutes ago.
 
HappyDude20 said:
My heart rate much like your is sporadic throughout the day. Admittedly is love to wear the apple watch over night to see how my heart rate changes at different times, perhaps even using it alongside a REM sleep app.

How accurate is the heart rate monitor? I'm not hating on the watch quite yet, I'm debating ordering one now after tryin it on last night but so far seems like an elegant toy as oppose to a serious medical device. <Obviously it's not the latter but marketed more that way.
Click to expand...

It's accurate if you wear it a bit higher on your wrist.
 
I have a dedicated heart rate monitor to compare with. The apple watch is okay with accuracy, but it is very slow to get your heart rate. I will be buying a bluetooth chest strap for my apple watch.
 
it's pretty accurate. Between the other fitness band, the elliptical macchine at gym, it was within 5 BPM of those
 
gmanist1000 said:
Mine seems to be pretty darn accurate. I just wish I could see an average heartbeat for the entire day, rather than it only telling me my heart rate 5-10 minutes ago.
Click to expand...

What would be the benefit of having an average for the whole day? Your HR changes so much depending on the activity. It is better to have singular readings for resting, walking, exercise, etc.
 
I regularly use a Garmin Forerunner 620 with HRM Chest Strap and when I ran for the first time with my watch, the HR was pretty much spot on, or within 5 bpm of my Garmin data. You can see from the pics below the comparison of my average HR during this run.

What I had trouble with more was the difference in pace.  Watch was consistently off on that. However, I've read this calibrates with use and time. Hope so!
 

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Cyberstven said:
I am extremely disappointed with the heart rate monitor thus far.

I am a fitness sensor fanatic, and the Apple Watch has been far less accurate/informative than the cheaper alternatives. Ive found it terrible for tracking peaks during weight lifting/intervals, and its taken the HR monitor 5-10 minutes to show an accurate number during outdoor runs. I've played around with tightness and location with minimal results.

My biggest complaint is that I would rather the watch say acquiring than give me a BS metric like 175bpm when I know I should be around 135-140.

Luckily, the software on this device is far more advanced, so hopefully they make tweaks based off of the extensive data they are getting.

As of now, amazing smart watch, sub-par fitness tracker.
Click to expand...

Based on what I have heard, the HR monitor isn't ideal for weight lifting or other scenarios when you are constricting the your body's blood flow. When you lifting weights, your muscles tighten impeding your body's blood flow.

That's why it takes a second for the HR monitor to give you a reading. Once you're done with a set, your muscles aren't as tight and the blood flow becomes fluent again. The monitor is able to then pick up a reading.

For things like jogging, jump rope, rowing, and anything else that doesn't constrict the blood flow, the HR monitor has been spot on.

Just what I've heard. I have no proof to support this claim. I don't even have my watch yet.
 
DavidTheExpert said:
Here's what you need to know: The heart beat monitor reads your heartbeat over the course of about 10 seconds and then gives you the readout. It's not constantly updating or real time. You can manually tell it to read your heart rate, at which point it will tell you about 10 seconds later what your heartbeat has been over those 10 seconds. Or with the workout app, it will measure throughout your workout but only in increments of about 1 or 2 minutes (not sure yet) So it's not like you can constantly monitor your heart beats at all times, but it's still very accurate and useful.

The sensor itself works very well. If you use the messaging thing to send your heartbeat to a friend you can feel it match up directly with your heart in your body, so it is definitely reading accurately. I think with a few software updates, it will become way more useful than it currently is without any new hardware.
Click to expand...


sorry, not true. have you use the manual HR function yet?

its a 45 second snapshot.

first 15 seconds - gets the first reading
next 30 seconds - adjusts the reading accordingly.
after 45 seconds - screen shuts off


i mean all you have to do it use it and count.
 
tested

I did some tests today on the stationary bike. using the handlebars on the bike (polar HR monitor) it was exactly what the apple watch said,

Also, I used my garmin chest strap, and it was showing exactly what the apple watch said.

I think what people MAY be witnessing is that in the activity app, the sampling rate is not very frequent (or at least displayed frequently, it is indeed recording either ever 10 minutes or about six times a minute during an activity) but the display rate is not really real time.

try going over to the heart rate GLANCE and pull that up. That one gives me much more real time results and changes in real time if you try and leave it up.
 
It's pretty accurate especially when it comes to my dog!!!
 

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