Do all heart rate watches need a strap?

Jumpy

Are there any ones that read of your wrist pulse?

I am looking at some of the polar ones but they all seem to need a strap. I hate the strap and would love to go without it for a while. Plus I want to see how many calories I burn off the bike as well and wearing it to work wouldnt be comfortable.

Lumen

They do exist, but this design seems to require you to touch a sensor.

I guess all these devices measure electrical differences between the two sides of your body (easy), not the physical force of your pulse (hard).

There are finger-end devices that will measure pulse, but these are designed for hospitals or telehealth applications, and would interfere with your typing. :pac:

Perhaps you could train a small helper monkey to count your wrist pulses.

Jumpy

Lumen wrote: »

Perhaps you could train a small helper monkey to count your wrist pulses.

I tried that but downsizing required that I had to let it go

I have just now seen the price of the polars (that are in any way stylish). I could get a 705 for that.

SomeFool

The newer Polar strap, the 'wearlink' is actually a good deal more comfortable than the older ones with the long plastic band if that helps.