Customer Reviews

Timex Ironman Midsize Race Trainer Heart Rate Monitor with Data Xchanger Watch, Black/Grey, Mid Size

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

 

 

I had been using a Timex for several years, and was very happy with it until it started malfunctioning. I went looking for a new one, comparing Polar, Suunto, and then later Timex. My two primary concerns were quality, a diffuse set of factors, and the ability to work with an Apple running Mac OS X. Only some of Polar's and Suunto's watches work with a Mac, and then only with external software. I was surprised when I found Timex's Ironman Trainer packages also worked with Apple.

Provisos:

- A sleek light watch, that fits my wrists - I have proportionately slender wrists, although I'm fairly large - but might be unusable on men with large wrists.
- Data management is done on a website, requiring registration


Pros:

- Looks great
- Easy to use, although it has many features
- Reliable (assumed from my long-term experience with other Timex watches)
- Inexpensive (the cost was $50 less than advertised elsewhere, and much less than comparable Polar/Suunto watches)
- User-exchangeable battery (some Polar/Suunto models require shipping for battery replacement)
- Works nicely with PC's and Mac with a free account with Training Peaks, an effortless installation and upload to the third-party site.

Cons:

- There are some desktop packages, they are a bit pricey for my needs, $130 per year, a recreational fitness buff. The basic online statistics are good, but I would love to be able to slice-and-dice my performance numbers in more detail.

The light on this watch broke after owning it for less than 2 months and I am only eligible for a partial refund!!!! This is a problem with TIMEX and AMAZON. Maybe we should just purchase directly from a local vendor rather than Amazon, where they treat customers with more repect.

I like the watch but the software and use of it definitely takes time and focus. Its not intuitive. I'm glad they have videos posted on Youtube. I is helping me to understand my heartrate paired with my training. But I am not impressed with the software, download of data, viewing and using the features. Seems like there are lots of features. But.... between training, working and keeping the house up, I don't have time to study it.

This watch has soo many bangs for the buck! (Especially when best buy wanted $149 for the watch and an additional $100.00 for the usb drive!) The chest strap fits snug and is not a bother at all (women- you'll hardly notice it from wearing sports bras, same elastic feel). There are a wide variety of menus from chrono, to interval to timer; many more than my last timex. This is my second timex heart rate watch, the first I bought 4 years ago and it finally died to the point of losing connection between the watch and the chest strap. The nice thing about timex is the user is able to replace to the battery, compared to some others where you have to part with the watch to send it in for the battery to be replaced. This watch set is also great because of the usb data xchanger- uploads all my workouts online so i can see them. I can also edit and view basic graphs of my heart rate and if wanted, pay for more advanced uses such as further charts and keeping track of nutrition, etc. All in all i love this watch and all the capabilities it has, it is sleek and not very big at all on my wrist. The heart rate works very well and i love it! :)

Comfortable wrist band and nice large face. Data Xchanger isn't worth the extra cost. I just type the data into my trainingpeaks.com account. Seems to be accurate. Moisten the chest strap to improve contact and reduce data gaps.

I first want to say that Amazon is awesome! and a return is so easy! Print the label and done! Nice job Amazon.

The watch and heart rate monitor is probably very nice, but I never opened the package. The prior review does not give justice to the size of the wrist band. My girlfriend and I laughed at the size of the wrist band from the box. I am 5'8" and about 160#, and medium to small hands and wrists, so I thought this might be the correct size. Many mens sports watches look very large.

I could never find a picture on the internet of the side with the face and band. I went to Timex too before purchasing it, but couldn't find a picture. I didn't think where the watch tapers so much from the face to the band it would really be that small. IT REALLY IS THAT SMALL! I would never want to be seen in public with this watch on! In the gym or alone on my bicycle.