5 excellent heart rate monitors worth up to 5 thousand rubles

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

It's easy to get lost in the variety of heart rate monitors. This selection includes only time-tested inexpensive models to make it easier for you to make a choice.

How heart rate monitors differ from each other

Mounting location

The heart rate monitors can be chest and wrist mounted.

Chest straps are attached using a special strap with an electrode strip. They read data using electrical resistance. These models are usually very accurate and are only worn for training because in normal life the chest strap can get in the way.

Wrist sensors are optical heart rate monitors. All of them have sufficient accuracy when their owner is at rest, but for sports it is better to choose well-known models from reputable brands.

Data storage and presentation

Due to the lack of a display, chest straps are forced to save data somewhere else, in the vast majority of cases in a smartphone. Accordingly, you can find out the heart rate only by looking into the application.

Optical heart rate monitors also usually have their own application or can synchronize with third-party sports software, however, they also have a display in order to conveniently monitor the heart rate during training.

There are also closed heart rate monitors, which are a pair of "watch + chest strap". The chest heart rate monitor syncs with the watch and shows real-time data on the display. Closed heart rate monitors are often not synchronized with the mobile application.

Issuance of information: constantly and occasionally

Heart rate monitors for occasional measurements provide information on the heart rate on demand and are suitable for those who do not play sports, but for some reason want or have to monitor the heart rate.

Continuous heart rate monitors record and display data 24/7. A great option for sports.

5 good inexpensive heart rate monitors

We selected five models that seemed to us the best in their category in terms of price, quality and accuracy. Each of them belongs to a well-known brand and has a good reputation.

Nexx HRM2

One of the most affordable chest straps. It works in tandem with a smartphone and allows you to record data in most sports applications, including Runtastic, RunKeeper, Strava, Endomondo and many others.

The device consists of two parts: a chest strap and a heart belt. It is possible to use it as a permanent heart rate monitor, but not very convenient.

Polar FT1

This is an example of a closed heart rate monitor, in which the chest strap works in tandem with the watch and does not give information anywhere else. The watch and the sensor are sharpened for each other, which excludes the transfer of your data to anyone else. A very reliable model from one of the leaders in the sports market. An interesting feature is the ability to manually set the target zone.

Mio alpha

An optical heart rate monitor that is recognized not only by athletes but also by competitors: The first Garmin heart rate monitors were developed by Mio Global. During the existence of the brand, it has already released five models of trackers and heart rate monitors.

This year the first version of Mio Alpha arrived in Russia at a very attractive price. High accuracy, minimal susceptibility to interference, stable connection and tracking in wet conditions (which is not so common with optics) make this sports watch one of the best for measuring heart rate.

SMA Coach

Bracelet with heart rate monitor. There are many of them, take at least the same Xiaomi Mi Band 2. As a rule, such models have a bunch of different functions that are not always necessary for sports. However, not all of them will be good as sports heart rate monitors.

The SMA Coach is perfect for sports: the optics are robust here, while the additional functions are not a hindrance. Here you can set the measurement mode (constantly or at a specified interval), and advanced features such as receiving notifications or controlling the camera turn the bracelet into an excellent everyday gadget.

LifeTrak C400

LifeTrak intermittent heart rate monitor is highly accurate and reliable, excellent autonomy (up to one year from CR2032) and fitness watch functions (activity and calorie consumption analysis).

LifeTrak is known for both professional gym equipment, a US government partner that supplies heart rate monitors and other health monitoring products to NASA, and a supplier of fitness watches to New Balance. At the same time, he does not forget his line of gadgets.

The LifeTrak C400 is simple to operate and measures heart rate on demand. An important difference between this heart rate monitor for occasional measurements from others is that the heart rate is shown within a minute while the user holds the button. For most analogs, data is given at a specific second immediately after pressing.