Polar - Vantage M3

Best recommendation is to get an external heart rate monitor to go with your watch for strength training. This is true of any watch on any platform though. I would recommend watching/reading some reviews on each model. The V3 and M3 share the same software experience, they are just different case and size (for the price). The Ignite 3 if I remember correctly doesn’t have buttons like the other two which have a 5 button configuration. Reviews on YouTube: DC Rainmaker, DesFit, Matt LeGrand, Chase The Summit, The Run Testers.

True, which is why the Polar M3 will fit me best as a cyclist, swimmer, hiker and while I get back into running. The Vantage M3 has a replaceable battery while the ignite 3 doesn’t according to the Polar support website. Search battery replacement and it will give you a list of which ones can have the battery replaced and which ones can’t. That can be valuable when choosing a watch.

True, which is why the Polar M3 will fit me best as a cyclist, swimmer, hiker and while I get back into running. The Vantage M3 has a replaceable battery while the ignite 3 doesn’t according to the Polar support website. Search battery replacement and it will give you a list of which ones can have the battery replaced and which ones can’t. That can be valuable when choosing a watch.

In my experience Precision Prime is way better than Elixir. I returned my M3 for that reason.

This is in line with my observations. Polar Precision Prime is better than Elixir (Pacer Pro better than M3, in my case). I'm glad they went for Precision Prime on the new loop band. Garmin (various watches) was almost always worse than Polar Precision Prime for me.

I think if you dig in my posts you could find a few detailed comparison answers.  I personally would stay away from Run, as it’s a different underlying platform from the rest of Suunto family and is thus incompatible with many Suunto features like S+ apps. Moreover, it seems it was more of a one shot attempt at alternative to the development that started with S9PP and isn’t going forward. Race S is a great watch though, which brings me to my next point. V3 is more akin to Race, so your real comparison is down to S vs M3. Both size, screen size, weight, and price wise.  Sleep, recovery, and general activity tracking is absolutely better on Polar assuming you can stomach their embarrassingly outdated app. They promised to overhaul it next year, but for now it is ass ugly and keeling over. That said Polar does have a web version (Suunto doesn’t anymore), with tons of useful reports and features. Also included are several adaptive fitness programs, from their  running programs to FitSpark to paid Fitness program. I think their training load and training load status are far easier and more intuitive for most people to deal with than Suunto’s stuff licensed from TrainingPeaks. On a flip side, Suunto has a very gorgeous and super informative app with ton of features (and sadly ridden with many bugs) and many great watch features targeting more advanced users, from ability to import workouts from third party systems, to track running mode, to structured workouts targeting specific intensity ranges not just plain 5 zones like Polar, to ZoneSense, to climb guidance, S+ apps and device integrations, and so on. I believe Suunto and Race S do have an edge for more training and fitness oriented people.  Getting to things like accuracy I’d say Suunto owns Polar on GPS (M3 is quite decent but not as good as Races). Also Polar tends to do some weird altitude thing that results in elevation gains 20-30% lower than other watches. On OHR, it’s the opposite. I find Polar far more stable and accurate. If you care about heart rate, unless you go for the latest gen, you’ll want that chest strap with Suunto for sure. Accidentally, Race S is better than other Suuntos, but far from perfect.  I’d say if your focus is more on general wellness and activity tracking and your fitness needs are generally to support that, M3 will be a great choice. If you need something sportier and with more advanced modern day training features go Suunto.  One other consideration is Suunto does update their watches with new features regularly (like 3-4 times a year) and does so for years. On a flip side, those updates lately bring unwanted bugs like HR dropping out in the middle of an activity, sleep tracking not working, etc.  Now my personal solution when faced with a similar dilemma?  I have Vertical 2 on one hand and Polar Loop on another. I do have V3 too for morning orthostatic, jump, and VO2 Max tests and a few other things Polar does well.   It’s either that, or get a single Garmin really… 

As a polar vantage m3 owner I'm hoping this means some polar flow updates to support the new fitness band. Also hoping it can be concurrently used with a polar watch so I can wear my nice watch on non-workout environments while wearing the hand on the opposite wrist. Polar needs to survive the review onslaught though for me to consider buying it though.

Polar has activity tracking over steps. The target is based on your current fitness level, and your own personally daily activity, it gives you a custom target to hit out of 100%. Any movement contributes to the activity tracking. Why this is considered superior to steps is maybe you bicycle, or do indoor rowing. These activities will contribute to the 100% goal but do not have "steps" involved. Polar does estimate steps, but I've never paid attention to it in all honesty. It's a sub menu of the "activity" watch face. There's a lot more sensors in the M3, longer battery life, and the M3 has maps. https://www.polar.com/en/comparison/#IGNITE_3&VANTAGE_M3&undefined

If your primary needs are; sleep tracking, training/exercise programs/suggestions and recovery tracking, then Vantage M3 beats Race S/Run by a long shot. It is not even close.

Polar M3 is still waiting (due Q2 2025) for the update from v1 to v3 firmware. This (amongst other things) will add the V3 watch faces with 2 additional fields. It all depends on whether Polar has an offer on one or the other of their top sports watches which you choose. The Grid X/V3/M3 should soon have the same sports functionality so it just depends on the look & feel, and what you can afford. The Ignite is not for serious sporting types, so I rejected upgrading to it from an M2 !

Dang, I have a Polar vantage M3. A little old, but it does the job

For sleep and recovery and a more attractive design: Polar Vantage M3 For better battery life, faster navigation, and a clear menu: Suunto Race S Or if you use Runna: Suunto Race S, Polar doesn't work (yet). I have both watches here and can't decide which one to keep.

If my polar had to die today I don’t know what I’d choose between the suunto run or the m3 The suunto run, while on a different software platform , looks to be quite good and reliable. Cheap. All major features built in so the lack of the suunto+ store doesn’t bother me. It seems to be updated fairy frequently to address issues or interface concerns. I don’t need maps. Accuracy looks to be really decent. It’s very lightweight. I’m just not convinced on the Digital Crown and AMOLED. With polar I don’t care that the app isn’t updated, I really like flow web. I like the 5 buttons. I’m not convinced on the look or the additional weight compared to the suunto. I really want to stay with polar but the run is really compelling. If either brought a lightweight watch with MIP, I’d go there first but I’m really keen to try out the Suunto and maybe find a solution to send my data to flow (rungap)

Stress measures are not reported by Polar. You could read an ECG instead. It reports HRV.  The m3 supports blood oxygen measurements and ECG. Both is not available on the Ignite. 

The Polar Vantage M3 is on sale for 299€ where I live (Grit X2 378€) which is a good price and I bought it. I am happy with the purchase and can easily recommend it to especially all beginners (Fitspark, nightly recharge and overall an easy to use system). I have previously had the Pacer Pro (very good basic whatch) but like the M3 more. I have also a Suunto 9 Peak pro and the Race. Both Suuntos are good watches, but I wanted to try Polar again. No regrets so far and it will be interesting to see the comming software updates which are said to be released by the end of the year.

Polar is the most pro-eu company on activity watches. Withings would be an alternative, but I'm not sure if their products would fit your needs. I own a garmin FR 265 and my partner a polar vantage m3. I bought mine after my previous Garmin 255 had its GPS breaking down and got a full refund. Spec-wise, I think both are very solid in terms of activity tracking. Polar is releasing their refreshed mobile app by the end of the year. What I like more on the Garmin is that it has NFC and can get music apps (Deezer, Spotify etc.) to listen to music straight from the watch (if downloaded beforehand from a wifi connection). But on the activity side, I think Polar is more accurate on the HR metrics. Also, on a major Marathon event that both of us took place in, my Garmin was completely awful in the first 5km in each pace readings, while the polar was really solid and stable. Sorry for the long reply. I know this is a buy-from-eu sub, but tried to give an honest comparison. You could find more info for all watches online, dcrainmaker is really solid in reviews.

I own a Polar Ignite 3 Titanium too, and yes, it’s designed exactly for what you described. I wear it day and night - it’s lightweight so it’s barely noticeable while sleeping. The M3 and the X2 are newer models with maps and navigation, so it may be worth the price.

I'm quite happy with my polar vantage M3 watch. It has gps maps through komoot. I have always used it on my wrist and the navigation went quite well. The only problem was on the downhills, I couldn't look at the map to see what curves were coming. I now bought an accessory so that I can put the watch on my handlebar (and another accessory so that I can still see my heartrate...).

Its about as good as you are going to get. Apple does lock certain features to apple watch only - so an apple watch ultra 2 is an alternative option you can look at - as does include recreational diving features - but not as much as the fenix 8, and you can cover the gaps the F8 misses via 3rd party apps - but does leave out the cohesive eco system garmin provides - and considering that you barely mention any smart features would then say you are looking at the right watch (definitely from fitness tracking and progress tracking point of view). Fishing - actually it does - you can log your catch and log the spots where you catch..... [https://www8.garmin.com/manuals/webhelp/GUID-EECCAC99-90D6-4AB1-9A3A-EC433D3365E2/EN-US/GUID-A6881EE1-DB08-4922-925F-C7526EFAE8A2.html](https://www8.garmin.com/manuals/webhelp/GUID-EECCAC99-90D6-4AB1-9A3A-EC433D3365E2/EN-US/GUID-A6881EE1-DB08-4922-925F-C7526EFAE8A2.html) and then you can used those saved location spots to navigate back to them at any point (can be very useful for fishing holes whether out on the water or fishing from bank/beach). All garmin have a built in coach for running - think C25K but does up to half marathon distance, then F8 incldues a Daily suggested workout option which you can then add a race event to it, to get the DSW to try and get you to peak for your event - so if you want a hassel free experience and a watch to build your training programme - hard to beat what garmin offers. Hiking- get offline maps and offline navigation (think satnav from car on watch) - so can create routes and get tbt directions on watch and via audio. Plus love the climbpro feature. Maps will work with all outdoor activity so can use for paddling as well as running / hiking etc (have a couple of paddle routes for when on canals / rivers especially canals in towns - great way of seeing parts of a town via water). So yes there isn't really anything else that comes close to matching it. Nearest alternative options would be apple watch ultra 2 (and losts of 3rd party apps); polar grit/vantage and coros pace pro /apex pro / vertix all include built in training systems and with training metrics and analytics like garmin to track progress; suunto at this stage is training metrics and analytics - though their suunto ocean is a full dive watch (garmin equivalent is the descent mk3 which is basically a fenix with full dive capability);