Polar A370 Review | 171 Data compared

The Polar A370 is a waterproof multisport fitness tracker featuring a vibrant color TFT touchscreen display (80x160 pixels) and a continuous heart rate monitor that measures pulse activity at least every five minutes. In testing, the device excelled with its highly detailed "Polar Sleep Plus" sleep quality analysis (scoring rest from 1 to 5), an intuitive menu structure, and its ability to track a vast range of sports profiles—including niche activities like yoga and horse riding—which are easily managed via the Polar Flow companion app. It also provides smart smartphone notifications, uses a convenient standard Micro-USB charging port instead of a proprietary cable, and delivered an impressive battery life of 5.5 days, outperforming the manufacturer’s 4-day estimate. However, the tracker suffers from several design and performance drawbacks, resulting in a mediocre "sufficient" (3.5) test rating from Computer Bild. Physically, the silicone wristband is a dust magnet, can easily detach from the tracker unit during daily wear, and causes uncomfortable pressure on the wrist when tightened for accurate heart rate tracking. Performance-wise, the device exhibits sluggish touchscreen responses, occasional Bluetooth syncing...

The Polar A370 fitness tracker earns praise for its high tracking accuracy and its versatile 24/7 continuous heart rate monitoring, which functions during both active workouts and periods of rest. A standout feature is the advanced Sleep Plus sleep analysis platform, which measures duration, interruptions, deep sleep phases, and overall sleep continuity on a scale from 0 to 5 before displaying the data in detailed graphics via the "Polar Flow" app. Additionally, the device offers excellent athletic versatility, allowing users to choose and manage up to 20 distinct activity profiles directly on the wrist from a selection of over 100 available sports. However, the tracker suffers from several notable usability and hardware design issues. While it boasts a water-resistance rating of up to 30 meters, the touch-based color LC-display responds poorly to wet or sweaty hands, making navigation frustrating during intense workouts or in the water. Users must also put up with a cumbersome manual synchronization process to update settings between the tracker and the mobile app. Finally, the device falls significantly short in terms of battery life; the internal...

The Polar A370 fitness tracker, evaluated alongside the Polar Flow app (version 3.6.5), demonstrates strong security engineering and robust user privacy protection. A major strength is its local Bluetooth communication, which relies on a secure, hardware-activated pairing process and fully encrypted data synchronization. Online communication with the cloud is similarly exemplary, providing complete encryption during registration and syncing, and successfully resisting man-in-the-middle attacks. Additionally, Polar quickly updated its data privacy policy following initial critique, making it highly transparent, adding a comprehensive FAQ section, and ensuring explicit user consent is obtained before processing sensitive heart rate metrics. Despite its high rating, the review highlights minor security and structural vulnerabilities. On the downside, the app's source code lacks obfuscation, which simplifies reverse-engineering efforts for external actors. Furthermore, user credentials such as emails, account names, and passwords are stored completely unencrypted within the local application folder; while sandboxed by Android, this data is vulnerable on rooted smartphones. There are also minor flaws in implementation, including residual, non-exploitable flaws in third-party code modules, and an outdated privacy policy archive link that incorrectly forwards users...

The Polar A370 is a sleek, lightweight fitness tracker featuring continuous wrist-based heart rate monitoring every five minutes and an integrated sleep-tracking system that automatically measures sleep quality and quantity. Designed for 24-hour wear, it offers a battery life of at least four days, charges via standard micro-USB, and includes various sports profiles alongside 30-meter water resistance with a dedicated swimming mode. While using outdoor profiles, the watch syncs with a smartphone's GPS to track speed and distance, falling back on an internal accelerometer for indoor metrics. Additionally, it provides motivational "It's Time To Move" vibrating alerts when sitting too long and celebrates with a slot-machine-style display vibration once daily step and activity goals are fully met. On the positive side, the reviewer highlights that the device is easy to install, features an attractive color display, does not require an uncomfortable chest strap, and utilizes a highly practical replaceable wristband. However, several drawbacks were noted during testing. The Bluetooth synchronization with the Polar Flow app presented initial pairing difficulties and frequently required specific, long-press button sequences to connect successfully. Furthermore,...

The Polar A370 fitness tracker focuses heavily on sports functionality rather than serving as a traditional smartwatch, standing out for its highly precise and tightly integrated heart rate monitoring. To extend the device's battery life to an impressive four to five days under normal use, Polar omitted a built-in GPS sensor, requiring users to connect to a smartphone's GPS via the mandatory Polar Flow app for activities like cycling or route tracking. Additionally, the tracker features a power-saving screen that only activates for a few seconds when the wrist is raised or when the side button is pressed. Despite its slim design, it includes a well-hidden, waterproof Micro-USB charging port and earns a "Spitzenklasse" (top-tier) classification for its robust build. The core advantages (pros) highlighted in the review include its exceptionally close-interval heart rate tracking, accurate measurement performance, and strong battery life achieved through smart power-saving measures. The device is also water-resistant up to 30 meters, making it highly suitable for swimming. Conversely, the primary drawbacks (cons) are the complete lack of an integrated GPS sensor—making a smartphone companion strictly...

The Polar A370 is a fitness tracker that significantly improves upon its predecessor, the A360, by bridging the gap between basic activity trackers and advanced sports watches. It features a highly readable, vibrant color touch display with gesture support and is built with a comfortable, soft silicone band utilizing a secure, classic watch buckle. Key technical highlights include a dynamic 24/7 heart rate algorithm that adjusts its sampling rate based on movement, and the "Sleep Plus" system, which provides detailed metrics on sleep duration, actual sleep time, interruptions, and continuity on a 1-to-5 scale. For runners, it offers adaptive training plans for distances up to a marathon and supports "Instant GPS" to record speed, distance, and routes by tethering to a smartphone. The device has notable pros and cons that impact its overall value. On the positive side, it delivers an excellent, brightly colored display, comfortable daily wear, motivational features via the comprehensive Polar Flow platform, and reliable heart rate accuracy once warmed up—matching closely with the Polar H10 chest strap. Conversely, the primary cons include a frustrating, "fiddly" Micro-USB...

The Polar A370 fitness tracker receives a mediocre, satisfactory review ("befriedigend", 3.2 out of 5 stars), with its design and performance heavily criticized for feeling outdated. Among its main strengths, the device offers highly accurate continuous heart rate monitoring that only deviates by one or two beats compared to a dedicated pulse meter. It provides extensive activity tracking across more than 120 selectable sport profiles via the Polar Flow app, has precise step counting, and features a WR30 waterproof rating that makes it completely safe for swimming and showering. Users will also appreciate the physical navigation button that prevents accidental clicks and the comfortable, flexible silicone wristband. However, the tracker falls short in several key areas, particularly given its high price point. A major downside is the complete lack of integrated GPS, forcing users to carry a smartphone during runs to get accurate distance mapping. Additionally, its battery life is disappointing; while the manufacturer claims four days of use, testing revealed it only lasts two to three days. The device offers very few "smart" capabilities, missing standard features like a...

The Polar A370 is a comfortable fitness tracker designed for casual athletes that offers solid daily tracking, but it is heavily held back by buggy software. On the positive side, the device features continuous heart rate monitoring and supports connected GPS via a smartphone. It tracks up to 20 customizable sport profiles, boasts an impressive WR30 waterproof rating suitable for swimming, and can seamlessly pair with external Bluetooth heart rate chest straps or bicycle computers. Additionally, users can swap out the comfortable silicone wristband, personalize the watch faces, and effortlessly sync data out of Polar's ecosystem into third-party apps like Strava and Google Fit. However, the tracker suffers from significant connectivity issues, frequently and unpredictably losing its Bluetooth connection with smartphones. This flaw breaks "Smart Notifications" and causes the device to drop GPS tracking mid-workout. The display is also highly reflective and difficult to read in direct sunlight. While its 4-day battery life is decent, it falls far short of competitors like the Xiaomi Mi Band. Finally, the Micro-USB charging port is protected by a loose, easily misplaced plastic cover...