Customer Reviews

Polar CS600 with Power Cycling Computers W.I.N.D.

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This is the new Polar cycling computer/HRM/Power Meter. Once you get everything hooked up and working it does seem to work pretty well. Unfortunatly getting to that point can be a bit frustrating and Polar made some compatibility changes which they mention on their web page (at least I didn't see it).

First off the installation took me about 2 hours to complete and the documentation was a bit misleading. The first item you will end up installing is the power sensor. According to the documentation + an addendum, the circle on the top of the power sensor needs to be exactly halfway between the center of the bottom bracket and the center of the rear axle. So far so good. Then they say that the chain should be 2mm above the sensor when in the small chainring and the smallest rear cog. I wasted a lot of time trying to get close to 2mm and it's just not possible. At that level of seperation the magnet in the sensor will grab the chain anytime there is no force on the chain. After giving up that effort I set it up at about 7mm and it seems to work ok. The magnet can still grab the chain in small chainring/small sprocket but it seems ok in other gears. In my oppinion they should never have designed/recommended 2mm of seperation. That is just rediculously small. They should also have some cheap easilly replacable plastic protector for the top of the sensor for those times when you drop your chain. Overall, having sensor under the chain on the rear chainstay is not the most elegant or cleanest solution.

My next item of complaint is the fact that the speed sensor doesn't have a replacable battery. I'm not sure how much a replacement will be, but even if it's inexpensive, I don't like the idea of downtime. Basically you will need to pick up a spair speed sensor as a backup. Considering the fact that every other battery is user replacable, this just bothers me.

The last item I have issue with is the fact that it doesn't work the old Polar serial IRDA. Fortunatly it works with the built in infrared port on my notebook, but once again I wasted time trying to get it to work with something that will never work with it. They make no mention of this in the manual or on their web pages.

Now that I covered the bad, I will point out some positives. My old computer was the Polar S710. While that worked about 98% of the time, it was very sensitive to electromagnetic interference. On any given ride, I would experience about 4 or 5 spikes where speed/cadence and HR spiked. Even with my older wireless computers (speed only), I never got spikes like that. The speed sensor on the 710 also seemed a bit slugish compared to my other wireless computers. The CS600 seems to have resolved those issues. The speed sensor is more responsive and not as sensitive to interference.

I also like the new 2.4Ghz methodology they are using for their sensors. Basically you bind the devices to the computer much as you would a bluetooth device. This way the computer will only communicate with those devices so there should never be any interference with devices that other people are using.

The new Power sensor also claims to have a 5% margin of error. I haven't tested this, but it is a 5% improvement over what they claimed for their old S series unit.

The computer display is well laid out and is easy to use. It's loaded with nice features like altitude, incline grade and estimated arrival time. I also like the new twist on mounting system. Removing the S710 from the mount was such a pain. Not so with the CS600, it's a 2 second operation and it seems just as secure.

The protrainer pro 5 software that it comes with is very good and is easy to use.

Would I recommend the product? As long as you know what your getting into it probably won't dissapoint you. The computer itself is top notch. The big weaknesses are the installation, how close to the chain the unit needs to be and the fact that you can't replace the battery in the speed sensor.

I purchased this product with high hopes for an affordable power meter for cycling race training. The CS600 computer itself is great and has good features, including capturing altitude information, which is essential in measuring performance. The Power Trainer software is reasonably good for a freebie and I have had no problems transferring data from the CS600 to my computer. I rate the CS600 itself at 4 stars.

However, the Power WIND sensor isn't so great. When I first installed it and began using it I found that power and cadence provided by the Power WIND sensor would randomly stop reporting to the computer. After researching this, I learned that Polar was aware of the problem and so I returned the Power WIND sensor under warranty for a replacement that supposedly had fixed the problem. After waiting almost a month, I received the new sensor only to discover the replacement would not function at all. I can only conclude that there is a serious reliability problem with the Power WIND sensor and cannot recommend it as anything more than a gadget.

If you want a good cycling computer, buy the CS600 by itself. But, if you want a power meter, look elsewhere. Since I bought the CS600 for its power feature and it doesn't work, I rate the overall product 1 star.

I've been cycling for over 20 years now... Earlier when I was a lot younger I participated in every kind of competition in every level. Now I just do my cycling to feel good with myself and finish every ride with satisfaction. Don't get me wrong, I still ride several hundred kms per week and the intensity of the rides is very hard.

This little piece of hardware is showing me, with amazing detail, every aspect of training you may imagine, and is totally customizable. You spend some time in the computer every sunday, and plan your week. The computer will then know your training parameters for the session and guide you through it. Showing the appropriate display: If you want to train based on cadence, power, heart rate, speed, time, intervals, you name it, there is an appropriate display for it, and you get to change it at will if you want to concentrate in something different.

At the begining is normal to go by riding and checking all of the displays just to check out all there is to display, you'll get distracted watching the inclination of the terrain vary as you go, or get focused on the time spent on each HR zone during your intervals.

Bottom line, this is the best of the best of what you may get for a cycling computer. A piece of advise though; be sure to know how to train before you start using it. This is not a training guide, or the software is not an advisor. If you start trying different ways to guide your training based on the info you get from it, you'll spend the whole year trying, and getting nowhere. Too much information can also clutter your way to fitness.

I so wanted this product to work. In theory, it's the perfect low-cost alternative to the Power Tap or the SRM. It has great features like its built-in altimeter to tell you how much you've climbed. The software that comes with the item is great, letting you visually analyze every ride. This is all well and good. Until it completely stops working. I had three of these computers and they all worked very well at first, but then the power sensor wore out after a few rides. After shipping the computer back to Polar at my own expense, it took Polar well over a month to ship a repaired version back to me. At first I was really surprised that Polar, the biggest name in the business, would have such problems. Now, everyone I talk to about this seems to reacall a similar problem with a Polar product - they work at first, but then wear out due to falty electronics. The company obviously spent money on R&D and marketing this product. It's too bad they didn't spend the money to have it built correctly. I definitely don't recommend this for anyone.

I have been using the Polar CS600 for 4 months and had several issues. First, the cadence sensor stopped working and Polar will not fix until they receive the old one first. This could take several weeks depending on your location. I loaded the software on my PC and it kept crashing my CPU. Overall, I rate this product poor do to the time to repair any warranty issues which are common in a new product. Perhaps, Polar should consider shipping out warranty replacement parts and then have the broken parts back in their packaging.

Who wants to go without their computer for several weeks while its under repair?

It worked as designed, it has some "kinks" and is finicky to configure (google, ask, don't rely on instructions...very poor).
But, I have found it to be the best buy in town to get you in the PM market.

I have had the power meter Polar for a little over a month and I would NOT recommend this product. Firstly, the signal from the "Power" device to the computer is intermittent at best. I, therefore, do not know what my wattage for a given ride is... Yesterday, I tried to adjust the "power" device so that it would be closer to the chain and now it has failed completely. Now, I do not have neither power nor the cadence data. Additionally, in order to transfer the data from the bike computer to my laptop (which is only one year old) requires another device. Why can't it be USB capable? On the positive side the speed has been consistent.

I'm really enjoying this new power meter. I thought it was pretty simple to install - took me all of twenty minutes. What other power meter can you install yourself? The technology has a great deal of promise; and the data collected is voluminous. But, as with any advanced training tool, the learning curve is steep.
The head unit is great: compact and attractive, easy to get on and off the mount, easy to control, and quite configurable.
Sure, the power measuring unit itself is a bit clunky and unattractive, but it seems sturdy enough, and the batteries are easy to replace.
The included Polar ProTrainer 5 software is powerful and complicated, as one would expect.
My purchase decision hinged on my past experience with Polar HR monitors, my recent purchase of an RS800 running computer, the self-installation and the low price - - in that order. So far I have been pleased with this product.