Customer Reviews

Timex Ironman Men's Road Trainer Heart Rate Monitor Watch

5 star:		(53)
4 star:		(33)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

Purchased this product about a month ago, and I was originally pleased with it. However, after a couple weeks of use and more focused exercise, I realized this watch doesn't perform. Here are my pros and cons
Pros
-nice look
-easy to use

Cons
-HR strap battey life has not lasted longer than 2 weeks. I've already replaced it twice
-HR readings are all over the place. I'm in good tune with my body, and it has recorded my HR as high as 185-190 for extended periods of time. I've never been able to get my HR past 175, even during an EKG stress test
-HR readings are very inconsisten with readings jumping up and down 10-20 bpm in a 10sec period

Essentially, the product is not reliable. I've used Polar in the past, and was happy to move away from their products with the this Timex. Looks like I'll be changing back.

I read all the previous reviews of this particular watch thoroughly before making my decision. I am an active training triathlete and needed the functions provided by this watch for all three sports. Everything worked flawlessly for about 3 weeks and then the crystal started to fog up....I waited for a few days and then it got worse and then ultimately failed. I was not quite sure how to proceed. Do I engage Timex or Amazon? Well, the Timex website was not very return-friendly and so I came back to the Amazon website. OMG....this was so easy...I initiated the request for replacement product and had the new watch within about 4 days and then Amazon provides really easy return shipping labels so it did not cost me anything. Once I got the replacement watch, I used the same packaging for the faulty watch and dropped in the box. No fuss, no mess.

So, my 5-star rating is for both the watch and mostly Amazon.

I have now owned two Timex HRM watches. The first one worked for a reasonable length of time, say 6 or 8 months. It then was not able to receive heart rate data from the chest strap. I changed the battery in the strap, I changed the battery in the watch. I went through every single piece of troubleshooting advice I could find, both from Timex and from and exhaustive internet search. The watch showed the heart icon WITH the animation indicating that data WAS being received, yet it would only show double dash for the current rate. Could not overcome this issue.

It had worked so well for a while, so I thought I'd just get another timex and would have better luck. I was flat out wrong. This one has made it about 2 months and is now refusing to receive data. This time, no matter what I do, the watch will only display the empty heart icon. I have again replaced batteries, "reset" the transmitter, moisture, position, tightness, I even shaved the hair on my chest in the area where the strap sits. NOTHING.

So while this device may work well for a short time out of the package, it has become glaringly clear that it is NOT reliable. I don't think spending $70 every couple of months for a whole new watch and band is an acceptable approach. I will NEVER buy any timex again, and I would strongly advise anyone NOT to get these devices. They are a flat out waste -- oh, unless you only want it for the watch. It's a decent enough watch, but the HRM is worthless!

I purchased this heart rate monitor over a Polar because Timex has an extended warranty available - 4 extra years for a measly $5. I received my watch and called the number on the Timex website and was informed that the extended warranty was not available for this particular model.

I see at the bottom of their website that not all products are available for this extended warranty offer, but in order to find out, you have to refer to the instruction manual. Kinda difficult to read the manual without having the watch in the first place, especially when I couldn't find a store locally that carried the Road Trainer (Gotta love Fort Polk, Louisiana).

Otherwise, I am happy with this HRM. Easy to read, and the set-up/operation is very intuitive, especially if you are familiar with other Timex Ironman products. The wristband fits - my left wrist measures approximately 7 inches. I wear it comfortably loose on the third from the smallest opening, although it needs loosening partway through an upper body weight workout. It fits comfortably tight on the next-tightest opening.

The chest strap fits comfortably - you know its there, but it doesn't pinch or annoy me like I thought it would.

Overall, I am happy with the watch and the chest strap. However, I tend to abuse watches, and an extra 4 years would have been great. That aspect of my purchase is very disappointing.

I have been using my Road Trainer heart rate monitor for several weeks now, and must say it is a must-have for runners and athletes. This is the first HRM I have ever used, so I offer no comparative reviews to other models, but here are a few pros and cons of this particular unit:

PROS:
* Accurate heart beat measurement (just make sure to wet the chest pads a bit with water before wearing)
* Great tracking and review of workout stats (includes: total minutes of workout, time in heart rate zone, peak heart rate, minimum heart rate, calories burned and recovery time)
* Easy-to-read display, which is critical when you just want to glance down at the watch before looking back at the road/path
* Chest strap is very comfortable and stays in place (I'm a lean 5'11" 154lbs, so I can understand if larger guys find the strap snug)
* Customizable heart rate zone, great for changing the intensity of your workout
* Really informative manual and heart-health booklet included with this
* The watch looks nice enough to wear casually

CONS:
* The wrist watch strap is fairly large -- even for those with larger wrists
* There seems to be some relay lag between chest strap and watch if I start running too quickly. This is resolved if I slow down and allow the watch to "catch up," but it generally takes over two minutes to synch if I don't do this, which obviously skews the data
* The calorie counter tends to be somewhat inconsistent, either showing far too many or too few calories burned (I am by no means trying to lose weight, but I do need to monitor how many calories I need to consume in order to refuel -- especially when approaching race day)

I have not used this for biking or swimming, but I run roughly 15-20 miles per week, and can honestly say I will never be without my Road Trainer. My only regret is not having purchased it sooner!

Great watch. Funtions take a little getting used to, but I've had no issues that would warrant a complaint. There are multiple displays for showing current HR (full display, partial display, etc.), as well as different ways to display HR (such as percentage vs. actual).

For a poly/plastic band, the watch is very comfortable and doesn't feel like it adheres to your skin and actually becomes more comfortable as you sweat.

The indiglo light really increases visibility and when you're in a dark room, like for Spinning, you don't have to let go of the handlebars to read the watch; just hit the button.

I was surprised that no mating was required between the watch and the monitor band, but they just work together, straight out of the box.

UPDATE (1/3/12): After over a year of ownership, I have run into many issues that have me questioning my purpose. First, this is a Timex watch, no question about it. The basic functionality of the watch is outstanding. Battery life seems on-par with older watches I've owned and I can always rely on Timex's accuracy.

As a HR watch, while it works, the results have been mostly accurate. Dial in your settings (height, target, etc) and it seems to work great. HOWEVER, I went through about 4 batteries after initially replacing the battery that came with the strap before Timex decided to send me a new strap. After that battery died, I had the same issues again. Whatever battery I seem to stick in the strap, dies quickly. I'm talking like 1 month or less. It sucks to have to keep replacing the battery, so I eventually gave up on the HR part.

Fast forward to about October 2011 and the strap broke! Not only is the strap NOT covered under warranty, but they've been on backorder for so long, I doubt I'm going to ever receive a replacement. I'm going to call Timex again to see if I'm even still in the system.

UPDATE #2 (1/3/12): I finally was able to call Timex and apparently all of these back ordered watch bands finally arrived and they began shipping them out again. I was told my order was shipped 12/28, so I'll be anxiously watching the mail for mine.

This HR Monitor has lots of great features but, the most important one, the Heart Rate Monitor doesn't give a consistent reading. I've changed the batteries on both the monitor and the watch and the HR monitor still isn't constantly picking up a signal. It will go from 160 (which is approx. my running HR) to 70 in the same 1/2 mile. I haven't totally given up on it. I'll keep moving the monitor around to see if I can get it in a better spot.

I enjoyed the features of this watch/monitor, but it really does have a terrible design. It has a larger profile than my old Ironman and has an awkward fit when wearing with long sleeve shirts.

The most glaring flaw is the fact that the strap is prone to break and you have to replace the entire watch when this happens. I originally bought this watch in June; Amazon sent me a new one in August because of the strap; I was able to repair the 2nd watch when it's strap broke in OCT; it is almost DEC and the 2nd watch has a broken strap again. I give up!

I have gone back to my old Ironman.

After reading dozens of reviews, I observed that all of the major brands had plenty of folks who were ready to praise or pan any particular monitor for its accuracy and reliability. I ultimately put aside my prejudice against Timex as being a kid's watch, and selected Ironman Triathlon principally because it: (a) had a battery that I could change myself on the strap, and (b) had an elastic band on the sending unit that would accommodate my 48" chest. Both of those promised features turned out to be valid, but I got much more. The sending unit strap connects much more easily than I expected, and is comfortable once on. The sending unit syncs to the monitor in less than two seconds every time, even though I just dampen the sensor with tap water. The monitor is dead-on accurate, which I verified by comparing with a physical count. The review feature allows me to collect meaningful data following my workout. I've used this unit daily for the past two months, and I couldn't be more pleased.

I really liked this watch - had it for about a year and used it for basic functionality - the other day i thought i would try the heart rate zoning manual set up and came across the place where you could enter in your weight. I ran with it and it said I burned 650 cals in a 40 minute run - which seems WAYYY off... Im about 145 lbs and in good shape staying around 165 bpms per minute on a good run...

I used to think it was pretty accurate when compared to other devices that gave me similar caloric output... now that i told it my weight...im not sure anymore....

arghhhh wish i knew the default weight to put back in... i liked it better before i made this change as it seemed to be pretty accurate before this.

other than that - its dependable reliable and easy to use.