Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I did a lot of research on heart rate monitors because I wanted to get back into shape and track exertion. These "fitness trackers" that track your steps are useless. If you have some knowledge of exercise and would like to track how you are doing while you exercise this is great. Having said that this is all it does. MY RECOMMENDATION: -Buy this to get back into shape. This is the basic you need to get it done. AFTER you accomplish this then you can get a fancier device. The price difference ($200+) between this one and the more advanced models that don't use straps is too great. Get this one, master it, THEN, move on to the advanced models if you must. This is recommended for people who know how to exercise already and want to track exertion and use the heart rate info to calculate calories. WHAT THIS DOES -It only displays one data point at a time when you are exercising. There are three options for that: Time, Stopwatch or Heart Rate. I always have the heart rate on. -it tracks your heart rate while you exercise. It only displays the current number. -It allows you to select ONE range and tracks that you are within that range -Once the exercise is over it shows you only 3 data points: 1. Time (how long the exercise lasted) 2. Average heart rate (important if you are tracking calorie burn) 3. Maximum Heart Rate ( I don't use it, but it gives you that) WHAT IT DOES NOT DO -It does not track averages on the current display -It does not track calories burned (because it doesn't have an input for age, gender and weight) -It does not allow you to add multiple ranges (ie "cardio", "70-80%" etc whatever you use) -It is too cumbersome to wear all day, it's only meant to be worn while you exercise. PROBLEMS -There is ONE problem you should watch out for: If the elastic chest straps are not tight enough OR if there is no moisture underneath the chest device, the heart rate will be innacurate. It happens from time to time. This is fixable. It's either moisture or strap tightness/position. I freaked out the first time this happened, went online and figured out it was NOT broken. WHO THIS IS FOR: -People who have a degree of understanding of how exercise works but are not athletes or runners, or anyone looking to become serious athletes. This device is PERFECT for people who think "going to the gym" equals exercise. It showed me that lifting weights can sometimes burn MORE calories than cardio. It really does let you track exercise exertion. You have to be Ok with having to go online to calculate the calories by entering time and avg heart rate though. WHO THIS IS NOT FOR -This is not the device if you want a lot of stats -This is not the device for serious athletes or runners tracking distances. -This is also NOT The device for people who want to track steps or do basic exercise and call it a day. -This device is meant to be worn ONLY when exercising and it DOES NOT work with apps.