Customer Reviews

SIGMA PC15 Heart Rate Monitor Watch

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

I've been shopping around for a heart rate monitor for a while, Polar is the recommendation from everyone, however I didn't want to buy it for 2 reasons, its way too ugly and cheaply made, and very expensive for the specs, I ended up buying this HRM after I saw a cyclocomputer made by Sigma Sport, it was such wonderful, easy to use computer, so I thought their heart rate monitor would be designed and built the same way, I wasn't wrong, this HRM is amazing, very accurate, and most importantly it easy to use, straight forward, and loaded with functions without making your life complicated, it has all the features you need plus little extra for luxury, however without the hassle of digging around with buttons to get the important data output you need, it can display all the information you need with large print, so you don't have to concentrate a lot to read while cycling or running, unlike Timex or some Polar models, where the display is too small that you have to look longer to read it, quite distracting and frustrating when cycling, more over Sigma Sport utilized the whole surface of the watch to be as display (you can tell from the picture) and they placed all the buttons on the side, as a result you can get your heart rate, heart rate zone (health, fitness or Power) , your percentage heart rate out of maximum + training time or calories or lap count (you choose more if you want) all in one screen with huge print, very impressive, absolutely ergonomic design.
You can define your Max heart rate with the zones your self, if you know them, or you can simply enter your gender, age and weight and let the watch do all the work for you.
Another advantage is the chest strap and the sensor, you can change the battery by your self which is a major advantage over other HRMs, moreover the sensor is very sensitive, you don't even have to wet it to get the reading, didn't have distortion from electric signals yet, and very rarely lost the signal, when it happens the watch captures it again within few seconds.
The watch has a very attractive design, I found my self wearing it all the time instead of my regular watch, it has all the functions of practical watch, like time, 12 or 24 hr format, day and date, stop watch, alarm, backlight, plus nice looking, something you don't see in Polar models,
The watch comes with bike bar attachment so you can mount it while cycling
The only disadvantage is the size, its big and more suitable for men, I believe it would be too big for ladies arms, you can compare it in size to Casio G shock models, however its much thinner, but mounting it on Bike bar would solve this problem.
Over all I see this watch as a perfect HRM in regard to function reliability appearance and price, highly recommended

I have used this HRM for 4 months now and love it. I mainly use it riding my bike. Comes with a handlebar quick-mount for bike that is nice to use so can see it always without taking hands of bar.

Trying to decide I found Polar (and others) had too many models and they carefully structured features/price to make you spend $50 to $150 more. This HRM has a ton of features (all that I need) and a great flexible display. I don't think it has a light.

While working I like to display the Heart menu so I can see % of max constantly and a % graph and my current HR. It's easy to move thru the menus and see all the info. Keeps a running tally of calories, I think I burned 20,000 so far.

The Sigma Sport website is very well done and shows all the info you need to decide. This is a best buy.

This product exceeded my expectations by a long shot. It is literally easier to use than my watch. It is set up with menus which you can scroll through rather than memorizing witch buttons to hold down for 5 seconds. The menus are also clearly labeled on the outside of the watch. The only set up this product requires is Time/Date and weight/age. the watch does the rest for you. press one button it will start to log your heart info press another button, and it will stop. you can also pause. it will beep each time you enter a new heart rate zone. At the end of a workout it has all your information logged for you. including max HR, average HR, Calories burned, length of workout and loads of other features. This is highly recommended for anyone who is looking at staying or getting into shape.

I was further impressed with the product when I took it to the gym, I bought this mainly for my bike riding, but soon found out that most treadmills pick up the sensor and display it on the machine, which is great so you don't have to look at the watch or even wear it while running. I am sure that is a feature all the HR monitors have, but it's just another great reason to invest in one if you are a treadmill user.

My earlier comments are below...

July 2008 Update...

My SIGMA PC15 is now dead. It lasted less than a year.

Note: I never took my PC15 in the water.

Now in search of another heart rate monitor. Looking for one that can last longer than a year.

Disappointed. Worked great while it lasted...

******************************************************

I was going to wait a while to review the Sigma PC15, but as I was just asked for a HRM recommendation from a friend, it makes sense to got ahead now.

PRICE.

A while back I bought two HRMs for my work as a clinical psychologist. Got a coupla small HRMs, wristwatch size with a wire running to a "cuff" over a finger. Each of them cost $20-$25 more than the PC15. And all they did was monitor HR with an option to set an alarm. Seems to me the price for the Sigma PC15 is more than reasonable.

EASE OF USE.

I am NOT fond of digital watches with buttons. iPods OK. Cell phones, just fine. Complicated computer programs, no problem. But not digital watches with buttons. Add translated-from-the-German instructions written by techies for techies and you'd think a bad appraisal was forthcoming. But no. Non-digital-watch-techies can use the PC15. I still think some of the access is "random," but I can usually get to where I want to be.

RUN / CYCLE.

I've used the Sigma PC on both of my bikes and on one long run. No difference in signal strength or accessibility with wrist (running) vs. mounting (cycling). Another reviewer commented on the ease of viewing the data and I would concur.

SWIMMING.

The warning that users should not push the buttons when swimming has warned me off using this in the water. Although I'm training for a triathlon in 2008, I really don't need this.

SIGNAL STRENGTH.

Another reviewer noticed that SIGNAL LOST is common. My experience: it's related to signal strength and interference. Attempts to see what my HR was while driving failed: too much interference in the car. Also, while going around the BWI Airport (cycle) loop I notice that the SIGNAL LOST message came up in predictable, high interference areas. So if you lose signal? Be patient, check to see what might be interfering, move past, etc. My signal always came back as predictably as it disappeared.

SUPER OCD?

I gather some folks like to download HRM information to their laptops. Although I am OCD enough to warm to this marvelous notion, I'm not willing to pay for it and am pleased with the functionality available with the PC15 at this price. Happy using pen and paper, later *laboriously* transferring data to my Excel spreadsheet.

CONCLUSION:

So far can only say the PC15 is a great piece of kit at a reasonable price. Very pleased indeed.

If Amazon allows double entries I'll check back in a few months. If others could do the same that would be a real service.

Dr. Kirtland Peterson


ADDITIONAL NOTES July 25, 2008________________

POSITIVE

In general I remain very happy with the PC15.

When my wife wanted a HRM, she too went for the PC15 and is pleased with her decision.

NEGATIVE

Minor things...

The strap that comes with the monitor gets loose rather quickly. Be prepared to shorten it with staples, thread, knots, etc. Irritating.

Even tho' I've never used my PC15 in the water and did not wear it on my first tri, the display on the watch has started to go. A "band" near the top of the display no longer registers data--it's just blank. Of course, what used to be visible here is crucially important for functionality. Annoying.

All in all, I liked the functionality provided by this heart rate monitor. Unfortunately common bodily flexing can lift the contacts from the skin just enough for it to lose the heart signal, where it starts an incessant and annoying beeping. This will happen despite being covered head to toe in highly conductive sweat, possibly thanks to the design of the sensors.

Aside from that minor annoyance, the watch remains easy to use, offers review of your last workout with all the expected averages, maximum sustained levels, and some accumulated values for total workout length and calories burned. Very good price for all the features it offers, and it even comes with a handle-bar mount for all you bikers out there.

I use it for cycling. All the info I need to see is on the screen at one time. No hands off the bars to push buttons. The chest strap works with the fitness equipment at the gym too.

For the money, this one does a great job. It works reliably and is flexible enough to view anything you'd want (current heartrate PLUS ... max HR, avg HR, % of max HR, calories burned, training time, more). If that wasn't enough, you can turn off the HR monitor and use it like a watch. You can even change the name across the bottom to anything you want (like YOUR name). Indigo night light works WELL in dark environments.

I've had this heart rate monitor for over a year now. I use it for running and biking. It was one or the lower priced models I could find with features such as target zones. For the most part it has been reliable and helpful.

Problems I have encountered:
1. Not sure how it reset, but one day it was displaying in German. Only way I could reset it (since I don't understand German) was to dig out the manual and match up the German instruction pictures to the English instructions (there are 6 languages in the manual) until I could get it back to English.
2. Generally I find the menu system confusing. I'd like to be able to see Clock time with the Heart Rate, but that is not easy to do. It seems like you can get that, but that it switches out of that setting on its on.
3. Sometimes it gets stuck at a heart rate - usually at some unreasonable rate, like twice what it should be. I have to stop running and wait until it corrects itself.
4. Probably the most frustrating bit is that the training time doesn't work unless it is getting a pulse rate. If there is "No Signal" then the timer stops running. No signal and you can't start the stop watch. Went for a 30 minute run today and the watch only counted 19 minutes of the run, because the signal kept dropping.
5. NO SIGNAL - After a year I have figured this out pretty well. Generally I can wet my chest and the band "pickup" areas (saliva works quite well) and get a signal. In the winter this may not work and I use an electrode gel I got from the drug store (most don't carry it in my area, so I had to shop around to find it.) The chest strap does stretch over time and you will need to adjust it ever now and then to get the band to stay put during exercise.
6. The handle bar attachment for the bike is made for small bars. It still works on my road bike, but I can't use the O-ring they include to "lock" it in place. So when I take the watch off the attachment, I have to remove the attachment from the bike or it may fall off and get lost.
7. The battery compartment cover was difficult to turn on my watch and I almost destroyed the slot you put the coin in before I got it open. Tried to open it last week and it is too damaged to open with a coin. Will need special attention to open it.

For the money it isn't a bad deal. The transmitter isn't being picked up anymore by the watch, so I'm in the market for a new monitor. I won't buy another Sigma.

For the money the Sigma PC 15 is a bargain. It has the Feature set of many more expensive HRM's, it's easy to program, well made, and as a bonus it comes with a handlebar mount for cycling. I have owned several Polar HRM's over the years and eventually you reach the dreaded point in time when you have to send them back to Polar to have the batteries replaced. In my opinion, one of the best features of the Sigma PC 15 is that you can replace the batteries in the watch and the belt yourself. If you have never had to deal with replacing your batteries yearly with Polar, you cannot begin to appreciate how great this is. It's a little big as another reviewer said, compare it to a Casio G Shock watch in size. It's a steal for $65 from Niagara Cycle Works. I feel it's one of the few things that I paid for and got more than my money's worth. That doesn't happen enough these days. Buy it.

I purchased this monitor based on a review by another user. He did not lie. This monitor is easy to use if you read the instructions, accurrate, and is 2/3 the cost of comparable heart monitors in the stores such as Cabelas, Sports Authority, etc. The bike attachment is a nice touch.