31 thoughts on “Polar Ignite Specifications & First Run”

1. EDIT: Matti is from Polar.

   the screen is meant to stay permanently on [during training].

   – You need to enable it from the top shade -menu when the training has started. not on by default.

   1. Correct. During workouts there’s the swipe-down thingy (like on a phone to access a flashlight or something) that toggles always-on mode.

      During normal day to day non-workout mode, the screen turns on based on gesture/buttons.

      Fwiw, I have found the same as you that in running mode, it takes slightly longer (a solid 2-3 seconds) to wake if not in always-on mode. Whereas sitting around it’s 1-2 seconds.

   2. thank you!
      yes that works.
      “RTFM” would have been a shorter answer 😉

   3. Matti, once enabled does it stay enabled for future workouts or do you have to select it every time?

2. Is the standard strap really that bad? I ordered one direct from Polar yesterday (being shipped to the UK from Amsterdam) and on Polar’s pics it looks pretty much the same as the other colours. It looks terrible in the pics that form part of Ray’s review and you yourself state early on that you swapped it out. I did try to amend my order to include a black silicone version but they couldn’t help and I’m not paying £8.90 shipping for a twenty quid strap

   1. it’s alright, the one i’ve put on isnt that great either

   2. Any chance there might be some OEM straps with 20mm width that would fit?
      It’s too bad the 200€ model is “silver” too and not “black”.

      They state 5 day delivery on Polar, have you alread received some tracking info ?

3. Thanks for the preview.

   Looks like a great watch to track your fitness ! I’m thinking I might want to get it to replace my FR935 or rather supplement it by becoming my daily wearer to get the who “nightly recharge” “FitSpark”,, etc…data/guidance and I’d just whip out the FR935 when needed. For races it would be a must to have the FR935 to benefit from “Peter’s Race Pacer” that corrects for distance differences each time you hit a a mile marker. I suppose I could whip out the FR935 for normal runs too.
   Would you see this as a functional scenario ?

   Bonus question : do you need to track runs with the Ignite or would the 24×7 HR tracking be enough to still get load analysis/guidance ? Actually, it doesn’t show the training load does it, hum…well it shows VO2Max 😉

   Thanks !

   1. you’d have to wear the IGNITE for the workout. so if you don’t mind wearing two watches…go for it
      I doubt the 24×7 tracking would work without doing the workouts as workouts. (No. from what i’ve seen so far)

      1. Thanks, yeah it might look a bit kludgy to wear two watches for a workout. I suppose I could save that for actual races. Well I might miss the most excellent HRM4-Red HR strap too, the only one that’s performed consistently for me since, hum…2013.

         Would you consider using the Ignite + a more “workout advanced watch” like that yourself ? I mean it would have to be worn round the clock for the data to make sense.

         I can’t see any good reason for upgrading my FR935 to another high-end watch but getting an additional “cheap” watch with these advanced “sleep recovery” derived metrics, why not. Especially since I’m not very good at getting a good night’s rest !

      2. I suspect that’s exactly what I’ll be doing for at least the next 4 weeks.

         although in my non-the5krunner/real world I wouldn’t do that. I’d use the one advanced workout watch.

         I could very easily live my life without wearing a watch outside of sport…but in sport…there’s got to be at least one on my wrist! I would tend to use waking hrv or emfit for the overnight recovery stuff which i would use to work alongside TRIMP-based wokout/load analyses.

      3. I’ve always worn a watch and I must say the FR935 has been great with its buzzing to let me know there’s a notification and even better to let me send a canned reply without pulling out my phone. The CIQ apps have been great too like MinuteCast or the OWM Widget. Clearly the Polars have none of this.

         The whole “quantified self” on the Ignite really looks great though and again, I *think* I can justify getting in in addition to my FR935, not something I could do with the high-end Polar watches that will not be getting FitSpark on top of that. HRV4Training is well designed but it’s yet another thing you have to do in the morning, on the Ignite it would be seamless.

      4. My use of fitspark so far is that, if you do all it says, you’re gonna get fit! It keeps nagging me to do weights (remember those? the thing that runners mostly “know” an extra mile will probably have the same effect as)…ahem

      5. Hehe…all the “good stuff” that runners keep coming up with excuses not to do 😉
         For the Training Load part, the watch just shows “cardio load” it seems, with all the details being visible ni “Polar Flow” ?

      6. yes there is cardio load in the post workout summary

      7. it’s giving me 4 options what to do now and they involve weigths or core or circuit or bodyweight regular. so what am i going to do? 30 minute easy ride to the lake, 30-45 minute swim, 30 minutes tempo ride back. That’s almost the same right? My formal training plan has today down as a REST day, so that seems about right? Or am I doing something wrong 😉

      8. So have you survived all the advice it’s throwing at you ? 😉

      9. if i had a few hours spare I might do it all!!
         actually i’ve done a few things it’s suggested. it’s good in the sense that I am actually, sort of,using it properly and it seems to be working so far. i’m just going to have to clarify if any duplicates on FLOW miight confuse it.

4. Looking at the manual it seems there is no way to have manual laps ?

   1. Correct. Same as the Vantage M
      Vantage V has a tap-for-lap option in FLOW

      1. Thanks, well that wouldn’t be great for someone running laps on the track…Another sign that it can be viewed as an “advanced tracker” 😉

      2. it’s a fitness watch not a sports watch (for athletes)

      3. a core function like creating manual laps should not be part of classification. Handling by using touchscreen seems a reason for lacking…

      4. Yeah it’s a pretty basic feature and an absolute must if you’re running on a track. The touchscreen would be a limiting factor I suppose, but what about a double-tap on the button ?

5. Cycling BLE sensor not supported? Ouch!

   1. i’ve not tested that yet.

6. I didn’t like it, I have already requested a refund.
   I had Polar A370 and M600 for my fitness at the gym, fantastic watches and a unique Polar Flow system, but this Polar Ignite from incorrect sleep information, (he claims I sleep 4 hours), cheap material, misread the HR, the battery lasts only 2 days (not 5 days) with 4 training sessions without using GPS.
   There are watches with Amoled screens and more reliable sensors that last for weeks.
   I can’t put a watch on charge every 2 days because “maybe” the third doesn’t arrive …
   forgive but (my opinion)
   It would have been enough to charge 100 euros more and put an Amoled Screen (which consumes less than TFT) and a larger Battery.
   Look forward to a better Polar watch.

   1. where did you buy it from?

      1. On the Polar website, on June 28th, he arrived from Amsterdam in Italy.

7. I can’t find any info on the notifications function.Did you set this up and does this work for you? Can you read the whole message/text by scrolling or is it like the M430 where you still need to check your phone for the whole message?

   1. it exists. i’ll cover it in the review

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