Reddit reviews Wahoo TICKR X Heart Rate Monitor with Memory, Bluetooth/ANT+

Spend some time looking into the Wahoo Tickr X, I'll give you my two cents why. I own or have tested all of the following HR Straps: Tickr, Tickr X, Polar H6, Polar H10, Garmin Run, Tri, Swim & Dual. Since you want to use it with TrainerRoad on your Mac (just like I do), forget the Garmin Run/Tri/Swim since they don't have Bluetooth. You can get the ANT+ adapter, which works good, but why if you don't have to.

When comparing the rest I find myself using my Tickr X more than the others simply because it has on-board memory that I take advantage of often. You can put just the strap on and begin recording. You don't have to connect it to any app to start it. You can then double tap the transmitter on the chest and it will record a lap/maker. When you are done you can connect it to the Wahoo app and download the heart rate file. You can then see where those markers are and easily edit/crop the file. For example, I'll put in on before a Crossfit class or OCR race. I can tap it when the actual event begins. When done I can go back and edit it to just capture the workout. The X also has an accelerometer and measures reps. The app will display them as you do them. It's nice if you do something like want to jump rope or do sit-ups to a certain number.

The Polar straps are super nice. The H6 lacks the on-board memory. The H10 has it but editing/cropping is a cumbersome process. It also does not have accelerometer. Polar units are very accurate. All electrode-based chest straps are relatively accurate, but the Polar ones are just a bit more, to the point they are the only brands that work with some HRV apps if that is important to you.

The Garmin Dual lacks both the on-board memory and accelerometer.

At $80, the Tickr X sits right int he middle of the Polar and Garmin. It would be the one I recommend. There is no downside to it and it has a few on-board features you might find handy like I do.

On a side note, as mentioned in comments below, you don't have to have a Garmin brand HR strap to get the FirstBeat features, you just have to have an electrode-based one.

How about the Wahoo Tickr X? http://www.amazon.com/Wahoo-Workout-Tracker-Monitor-Android/dp/B00O5Y4FXA/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1462374333&sr=8-3&keywords=wahoo+kickr

I have the regular Tickr, which I use in place of the optical monitor on my 225 for running, and it works flawlessly. I never have any question about the data it gives me - which is much more than I can say for the 225's optical monitor.

Based on this article, the sense is only if you really watch your weight and activity. And it makes sense to look towards the chest HRMs, like

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Wahoo TICKR X Heart Rate Monitor with Memory, Bluetooth / ANT+

Garmin HRM-Run Monitor (010-10997-08)

What about one with a chest strap? Would be more accurate per my post above, something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Wahoo-Workout-Tracker-Monitor-Android/dp/B00O5Y4FXA/ref=sr_1_1?tag=wareable-20&ie=UTF8&qid=1441901184&sr=8-1&keywords=wahoo+tickr+x

Not wanting to wear my garmin watch while climbing for many reasons, the least of them being not wanting to damage a $200+ watch, the only solution I found is a heart rate strap on Amazon that stores the data without needing to be connected to a watch or your phone. I haven't purchased it yet, but I still might, but it's $80 and I'm not sure how well it works.(https://www.amazon.com/Wahoo-TICKR-Monitor-Memory-Bluetooth/dp/B00O5Y4FXA/ref=lp_3407971_1_13?s=exercise-and-fitness&ie=UTF8&qid=1522163479&sr=1-13)

Since you're getting a new Peloton Cycle, I'd recommend you get the Wahoo Tickr X hr monitor: amazon

I've got a Watch 4 and it has two issues, one, no HR on the screen, and two, it simply is nowhere near as accurate even in continuous monitoring mode. The most important aspect of the Tickr X is that it uses bluetooth low energy to talk to your phone, but also supports ANT+ for exercise equipment that needs that, so if you ever do some trips to the gym, etc. it will work with all scenarios. A cheaper ANT-only monitor won't be able to send HR data to your iPhone. Why is that important? Because it allows you to use the Peloton app with heart rate while traveling. Garbage hotel gym cycles are nowhere near as nice as a Peloton cycle, but when I'm traveling, I do classes on my phone and just try my best to adjust the bike's resistance the way the class wants, and I get accurate HR in the class history just like if I'd been on my real cycle. A side benefit to the bluetooth connectivity is if you're doing other types of workouts, you can map the Tickr sensor to other functions, like double tap to advance the music playing; I use that when outdoor cycling with my phone in my backpack but still tracking it as a workout. Finally, the Tickr X supports device-free workouts, so you can start a run, etc. outside and not carry your phone, then download after the fact.

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Now for a side gripe. The way the apple ecosystem works with the HR monitors, peloton cycle, watch, etc. is fairly obnoxious in general, but does work if you give everything the right permissions and possibly ability to run in the background. Other apps can push data to Apple Health, but will only close your activity rings if you put your watch on at some point that day. If anything messes up, there is no way to fix the data. For example, if I start a workout in the Wahoo app, but forget to stop it, I'll ultimately record a 12 or 24 hour workout once I go to do the next one and realize what happened. You can't edit down that data other than deleting one minute at a time for 12 hours, so I end up clearing the entire thing, and that workout is now gone. Once the app believes it has pushed the workout to apple health, you can't make it do it again. The Peloton app will push workouts to Apple health, but only for the duration of the class you took; so if you do a few minutes warmup before the real class, even the official minute lead-in, or you are chasing a PR at the end and do your cool down after the class has 'ended', that extra workout data gets missed from Apple health and doesn't contribute to your exercise minutes. For that reason I usually run the Wahoo app as an indoor cycle simultaneously, then between it and the Peloton app I almost always get my workouts recorded properly.

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Good luck!