New blue wrist coach from the fit Finns
Polar S510 Heart Rate Monitor

Price: £169.99

Contact: LSI 01926 811611

Features: Wireless heart rate monitor transmission, wireless bike computer transmitter, optional cadence upgrade. Wireless download and upload capability.

Test logbook: Mountain biking, road biking, running, swimming and falling asleep in front of the telly for the last month.

Everything you need to See just how fast – or slow – you’re really going

Polar were the first company to release a viable commercial heart rate monitor for athletic and fitness use, and can be pretty much given all the credit for making them so popular as a training tool. The S-510 is one of two totally new combined bike / HRM units but we went for this one as it’s even more comprehensive brother – the S-710 – is not scheduled to arrive until March.

As this was one of the first monitors in the country the instructions weren’t even finalised or printed when we got it. After previous bad experinces with labarynthine set up and menu procedures on top-end Polar monitors we were nervous about getting the 510 going but it was totally logical and simple. OK so we had to check a few points with the draft instructions we had but once we’d got the hang of which buttons did what it was easy to navigate through all the features. There’s also an easy “Basic Use” default setting to get you going if you’re too impatient to set it up fully.

The monitor itself is a big blue chunky beast but it’s ‘organic’ round lines will appeal to all the iMac owners out there. The 3 line display can be tuned to deliver your information however you want it, but even the smaller digits are easy to see in normal conditions, with a 3 second backlight button and optional audible alarms for all functions and exercise settings.

For bike use, the monitor just straps onto a handlebar cradle and recieves its information from a sensor on the front fork. There’s a two bike wheel size setting for whichever rig your using, and the transmitter is powerful enough to cope with the distance between long travel forks and riser bars. The only niggle we had was the dificulty attatching the zip-tied sensor to narrow aero forks on a road bike and the size and flat-to-the-wind (not streamlined) sensor location that will trouble those aero cable tuckers and leg shavers such a high performance training tool will otherwise appeal too.
The S-510 can be upgraded with a cadence sensor, while the S-710 also gets altimeter and thermometer functions.

The chest strap is a slim, re-shaped unit which sits snugly in place (even when we went swimming). We always find heart belts to be really temperamental on the first ride and this was no exception, but after it had warmed into shape it’s been faultless. Polar even supply elastic chest straps in different sizes so you don’t have to cart round excess laggy, we found medium spot on for the average pigeon-chested cyclist. The only downside is Polar’s insistence on a sealed chest belt rather than user replaceable batteries. They say it’s to maintain the waterproof seal but it means you’ll be without the use of the monitor while you send it and wait for them to send it back, and neaither we or our feedback panel have had problems with replacing batteries in other units such as Cardiosport or Cateye.

The S510 makes up for this (and it’s considerable price) with a massive array of very useful features. We’ll stick a whole feature list below, but the ones we found really useful where these:

• Adjustable interval training zones that can be set for heart rate or time in both resting and exercise phases.
• Minimum heart rate of 20 which covers even the calmest moments of the ultra fit and genetic freaks.
• Easily recallable lap time information and session data retrieval from the watch.
• As accurate, comprehensively calibrated calorie counter as we’ve seen anywhere.
• Heart Rate range % display option for easy synching with most heart rate guidebooks.
• Coded transmission so it doesn’t pick up other heart rate belts around you.
• The ‘OwnZone’ fitness test set up will also be very useful for first time heart rate monitor users or those who can’t be bothered to do the sums themselves.

Here’s a list of the other functions that lurk inside;

•  Water resistant to 20 metres
•  Especially large display
•  Target zones with visible audible alarm
•  Backlight
•  OwnCode – coded transmission
•  Stopwatch
•  Calendar
•  Interval training function
•  Recovery function
•  Lap times with heart rate
•  Maximum/average heart rate of each lap

Fitness Features

•  OwnCalS – calorie expenditure
•  OwnIndexS and Polar Fitness Test
•  Predicted maximum heart rate

Recording/Memory Functions

•  Total exercise time
•  Time in target zone (in, below, above)
•  Average heart rate of total training
•  Maximum heart rate of total training
•  Training file info page
•  Downloads data to computer (SonicLink)
•  Uploads data from computer
•  1/5 exercise files

Wireless Cycling Features

•  Trip distance
•  Average speed, odometer, total riding time
•  Optional cadence sensor

All very useful and good stuff but there’s one more big drawback in our eyes and that’s computer to monitor capability. Basically the S-510 won’t play ball with a Mac unless you’ve got a PC emulator programme installed which adds more expense to the system. For this reason we can’t tell you how useful or otherwise the supplied Coach Light CD is but it sounds helpful from the packaging.
Still at least the link is now sonic rather than through the old external interface system that used to cost you an extra £100. Mac users will be pleased to know that when the S-710 arrives it will be cross platform compatible with no extra software.

Verdict: Undoubtedy an excellent, reliable and very accurate tool delivering masses of information to enhance and tune your training. Best of all, the presentation and accessing of all this information is clear and straightforward even when your mind’s been scrambled by a hill sprint session, and the options are exactly what you want for maximum useability. It’s as lightweight and attractive as they could make it and a whole lot more stylish than most units (except their own gorgeous M-71 Ti monitor). Our only niggles are the slightly awkward fork transmitter attatchment, the ‘send back’ chest band issue (which knocks off value points) and the PC compatibility problems, but it’s still a superb tool for the serious athlete.

Performance

If you want to know more about the full Polar range from the basic Beat to the still awaited S-710, or you just want some really good heart rate training information then head Finn-wards to the icy lands of the highly informative Polar website.

Masses of really useful information for serious athletes in an easily accessed and useable format. Slightly hampered by PC only compatibilty and non serviceable chest strap but it’s the ultimate combined monitor and bike computer until the even smarter S-710 arrives in spring.