We’ve just seen the announcement of Polar’s latest ‘proper’ running watch – the M430. It’s essentially a refreshed and updated oHR-packed, M400. But how do they compare? What’s missing? And, instead, might it be worth going for the AndroidWear2.0, market-leading Polar M600?
- There is a comparison table further below.
- There are links to detailed, individual product review, below
Summary
If you are stuck beetween the M400 and M430 then the choice is simple: Buy the M430.
The M430 and M600 are a trickier comparison. The M600 is an AndroidWear 2.0 smartwatch. Essentially the M600 is the same sort of thing as an Apple watch but instead it is closely integrated with apps on an Android smartphone and with an Apple phone but to a lesser extent.
Both the M600 and M430 are sports watches rather than a generalist smartwatch that also does sport. The M600 is probably the BEST AndroidWear watch for sports.
For pure running I would go for the M430 over the M600.
FWIW: I like both the M430 and M600.
Polar M400, M430 & M600 Reviews
Polar M430 Review + Discount | Detailed | GPS & Optical Run Watch
Further below is a tabular comparison of the detailed features.
Best Running Watch 2018 | Top 10 | Guide Review, Recommendations & Comparisons
The M430 is clearly the same or an improvement over the M400 in just about every respect. The one, single respect where the M400 has a winning feature is with AUDIBLE alerts. That lack of audio alert could be a show-stopper for some people with the M430; which instead has a newly added vibration alert.
The M600 is a great device and surprisingly has a better GPS life – ie how many running-hours you have with it. This is slightly misleading as the M430 has a longer-battery life mode where GPS quality is reduced.
Also when used solely as a ‘watch’ the M430 will go longer than the M600 between recharges.
So the battery depletion BETWEEN RUNS will be lower with the M430 and you are likely to get more one hour runs on a single full charge from the M430 than from the M600…hopefully that makes sense!!
The prices shown are Polar’s. Amazon prices will be lower for older models. (Current prices added after the table)
If you are looking for a runner’s ‘proper’ running watch then you would go for the M430 and a foot pod of some sort (STRYD is the most accurate).
Why is the M600 More Expensive?
The M600 has a beautiful, high quality screen. Superior to ALL Garmins.
The M600 will benefit from the functionality of numerous apps that can run on AndroidWear. The review, above, will give you more of an insight into that. eg ‘proper’ navigation via maps.
Both the M600 and M430 have Polar’s superior 6-LED optical HR.
That’s why it’s more expensive.
Opinion
Me?: Personally I love the M600 and would recommend that. If you want a ‘proper’ running watch for, ahem, running then you would take the M430 over the M600. If you have a M400 and it works fine then there is no reason whatsoever to upgrade UNLESS the optical HR attracts you. The GPS chip has changed from the M400 so the M430 has a better GPS performance. But as I said, buy a STRYD for your current sports watch if you want accurate running footpod pace (Milestone pod is cheaper). Some watches, not the M430, will also then also give the power metric with STRYD.
In a nutshell:
- Buy the M400 as it’s much cheaper.
- Buy the M600 to integrate with your smartphone more as a sports watch.
- Buy the M430 for great quality components as more of a proper ‘runner’s watch’.
COMPARISON TABLE
| M430 | M400 | M600 | |
| Smart Coaching Features | 229.90 EUR | 159.90 EUR | 349.90 EUR |
| Activity Benefit | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Activity Guide | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Fitness Test | Yes | Yes | No |
| Running Index | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Running Program | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Smart Calories | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Training Benefit | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Training load | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Activity | |||
| 24/7 Activity Tracking | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Sleep Plus | Yes | No | No |
| Activity Goal | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Active Time | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Steps and Distance | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Activity Summary | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Activity Benefit | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Inactivity Alert | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Sleep Duration and Quality | Yes (new) | Yes | Yes |
| Training | |||
| Running Program | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Speed and distance from the wrist | Yes | No | No |
| Running cadence from the wr | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| GLONASS | No | No | Yes |
| Wrist-based heart rate measurement | Yes | No | Yes |
| Heart rate | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Hrmax | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Heart Rate zones | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Speed/Pace zones | Yes | Yes | No |
| ZoneLock | Yes | Yes | No |
| ZonePointer | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Polar Fitness Test | Yes | Yes | No |
| Running Index | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Smart Calories | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Training Benefit | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Training Load | In Flow | In Flow | In Flow |
| Recovery Status | In Flow | In Flow | In Flow |
| Back to Start | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Distance | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Altitude, ascent/descent | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Sport profiles | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| User-adjustable training displays | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| GPS | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| A-GPS | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| GPS Power save mode | Yes | No | No |
| End Time Estimator | Yes | Yes | No |
| Speed/Pace | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Training targets | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Training history | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Training diary | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Interval Timers | Yes | Yes | No |
| Laps, manual | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Laps, automatic | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Personal Best | Yes | Yes | No |
| Autostop/start | Yes | Yes | No |
| Stopwatch | Yes | No | No |
| Bluetooth Stride Sensor: | |||
| Cadence | Yes | Yes | No |
| Distance | Yes | Yes | No |
| Average stride length | Yes | Yes | No |
| Speed/Pace | Yes | Yes | No |
| General | |||
| Bluetooth 4.2 (see BT smart below) | No | No | Yes |
| Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n | No | No | Yes |
| Android Wear | No | No | Yes |
| Weight | 51g | 56g | 63g |
| Color touch display | No | No | Yes |
| Resolution | 128×128 | 128×128 | 240×240 |
| Water resistance | WR30 | WR30 | Swimming |
| USB cable | Custom | MicroUSB | Custom |
| Bluetooth Smart | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Smart Notifications | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Audio alerts | No | Yes | No |
| Vibration | Yes | No | Yes |
| Alarm | Yes | Yes | No |
| Button lock | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Backlight | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Date and weekday indicator | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Flow Features | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Running Index analysis | Yes | Yes | no |
| GPS Battery Life | 8 hrs | 8 Hours | 10 Hours |
Altimetry is not specified by Polar. However it is MOST likely that it will be GPS based. I think I’m right in saying that the M400 can calibrate altitude based from a manually set start point (based on GPS). However I don’t think that ascent/descent/altitude can be displayed as fields on the M400 and presumably also the M430. If you are interested in corrected altimetry then you could run your files through sporttracks or even Garmin connect where they can be corrected based on known altitudes of GPS points. STRAVA might do something like that too, I’m not 100% sure (GPS elevation, barometric elevation and gps-corrected elevation are all entirely different).
If you are just interested in gym classes then consider the much cheaper option of the FREE Polar Beat and Flow apps coupled with the awesome Polar OH1 optical armband
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AFAIK the M400 does not have vibration alerts?
yes ty will correct
Will be interested to see what “sleep plus” actually means. There was a “Sleep Analysis” tab in one of DCRainmakers screen shots when he was reviewing the Balance scale.
source Polar: “Most adults need eight hours of sleep, but sleep needs vary from person to person. It is recommended that adults get between 7 to 9 hours of sleep. Your sleep needs are affected by several factors like individual characteristics, training load, mental stress, body’s condition and possible sleep debt. Polar Sleep Plus automatically detects the timing, amount, and quality of your sleep based on your wrist movements. •Sleep time shows the total time between when you fell asleep and when you wake up. •Actual sleep shows how much of your sleep time was actually spent asleep. •Interruptions show you how much time you spent awake during the night. •Sleep continuity tells you how continuous your sleep was on a scale of 1-5, where 5 reflects uninterrupted sleep. The lower the value the more fragmented your sleep was. You can set your preferred sleep time to define how long you aim to sleep every night. You can also rate your sleep. You’ll receive feedback on how you slept based on your sleep data, your preferred sleep time and your sleep rating. Monitor your long-term sleeping patterns in Polar Flow. By following your sleep patterns you can see if they’re… Read more »
Great comparison! I’m a fan of the M400.
But will the M430 be Stryd compatible like Garmin/Suunto? (the M400 isn’t)
Thanks!
it should be compatible as a footpod for cadence/speed. admittedly not for power. i’ll add the clarification
Check out fellrnr’s Stryd pod review. He shows the M400 and Stryd as a working combination.
channel hijacking will work for stryd on many watches…can mess up your data tho. if you can afford stryd then buy a watch that supports power when running properly.
M400 now supports speed and distance from the wrist. An update that came out in Jan 2017.
ahhh. didn’t know that. ty won’t be as accurate as a footpod but could be more accurate than gps alone for ‘instant pace’
Yes, that was added in firmware 1.8.4:
http://support.polar.com/en/updates/polar_m400_software_update_with_running_cadence
Does the m430 support music control ie. skipping tracks and control volume?
not as far as I know. i am expecting an early release unit later this month
I guess that’s a no then 🙁
most probably a NO…device still not here and specs make no mention. possible could be enabled later…
I currently have an M600 and I am thinking of switching to an M430, why would someone want to pair a stryd foot pod with the M430?
a footpod increases the accuracy of speed and distance. stryd is most accurate. there is also a STRYD live version (cheaper)