glassman

I just got a Polar S725 and I did not get the Infrared Interface with USB yet, I wonder if anyone has tried the cheaper ones not made by Polar and if they work?

SpongeDad

I have the Polar IR, which works fine ... and which doesn't answer your question. For somereason I think there was some new software associated with it.

While I like the system, the interface and documentation bites. If you have problems with an off brand IR receiver, I have no idea how you would debug that system.

crosscut

725 owner here also with the Polar IR, so same boat. But I figured as much as I paid for the thing, I wasn't going to be cheap and it not work or have multiple problems with off name brands.

Sponge, So how long did it take you to figure everything out? LOL.


BTW: if any POlar reps read this board. There are MAC users that ride and use your products. HINT HINT.

travis200

I also use the Polar infared. If you look on ebay you might find it cheaper. I bought mine through HeartRateMonitorMan for I think less than $30. Can't really remember it was last year.

glassman

LOL, I guess I am cheap, but I was thinking I could buy one at a computer store instead of having to order one and save money too....It does have a lot of stuff on it, probably take a while to learn everything. Do you have any tips? I do like the fitness test.

SpongeDad

LOL is right. I finally reached the point where I can download the data. Setting up intervals and exercises is next, but man they don't give you a lot of help.

crosscut

Tips....hmmmm Well the owners manual is ok but like any other man, I just jump into it and start using it. I went back after a week of using it and read the owners manual again and alot more made sense, since I understood how to use it.

More importantly I think, is what to do with the information once you got it. I send my readouts to a former cycling coach and he goes over things with me. While you probably don't have that option, I would say read up on heartrate, and how to read your rides. Learn to understand cadence and watch your average cadence. Mine stays around 90 (average).

It is a great tool.

F1_Fan

From what I understand and Polar unit with "i" in the model number (710i, for example) works with a standard IRda port or the Polar unit. If there's no "i" then the Polar USB receiver is required.

And just in case anyone wonders, the Polar unit won't function as a regular IRda receiver... or at least I can't get mine to work with my PDA.

mellowdave

You CANT use MOST generic IrDA adapters. I tried a mess of em. the polar one is flawless, and if you use Linux, use Daveb's software and it works flawlessly too.

gabiker

I tried a generic IR port with no luck and had to buy the Polar which works great.

FatguyRacer

I just got my 725 this week. I though my Viao laptop had a built in sensor, but no. I have to get the USB device. Still, I need at least a month of Sundays just to figure out how to work the buttons!

dtufts

My 720i works just fine with the IR port built into my laptop. It can also communicate with the built in IR on my Pocket PC. I believe the polar unit is just a standard IR via USB.

uctke283

I have the 610i and the polar ir for my pc, but it works fine with my HP pocket pc and laptop both with builtin irda interfaces...

mellowdave

The thig about Irda is that there is no standard for the protocols. The only NON Polar IRDA sensor that has worked for me wa the one on my Dell laptop. None of the small aftermarket units worked at all. Just get the polar one and be done with it.

gixser11

I used an aftermarket IRDA and it worked, but not as smoothly as the Polar which I purchased online. While waiting for the Polar in the mail I tried the standar IRDA device and it worked.

ok2ride

The polar 720I has had issues with sigmatel chipsets. I have the 720I and I find it a fantastic tool (toy).
The amount of data that it is capable of producing is astounding.


If using a non-Polar USB IrDA device, check if the device contains a SIGMATEL chipset (info can be found in the windows device manager). There is an incompatability with the S-series S610i, S710i, S720i, S810i models and the Sigmatel chipset. Brands that we have found with this chipset are the BAFO, Spirit, Sitecom CN-100 V2 and Belkin F5U235au.


Note: The new S725, S625X, AXN500 and AXN700 communicate with the "SIGMATEL chipset" IRDA devices.

USB IrDA devices that have been tested by Pursuit are the BELKIN USB IR smartbeam F5U230 (purchased from Harvey Norman) and a similar KC Technology Inc. device XC4831 (purchased from Jaycar Electronics).

MacManic

Boy that's what I say! I recently purchased the Polar CS200cad and I love it. However, I can't upload to Polar's website where they have that "coach" thing and track my results. It would be really great if they would spend a little adding Macintosh software that we could download. I don't know why they spend all that time/money on a slick website and neglect the Mac people. Maybe we just need to keep reminding them.

Chuck Sekera
Pueblo, Colorado

F1_Fan

The usual reason... you're a very small proportion of personal computer users. However, there are options:

1) MS Virtual PC + WinXP ($$$)
2) Search the forum... there was a MacOS-compatible Polar application written by a poster here. ($)

FWIW, CycleOps has tried to go multi-platform by creating a Java version of their software... it's crap though. So much for trying to please everybody.