Review of the Zephyr HxM bluetooth heart rate monitor

Introduction

What is the Zephyr HxM bluetooth heart rate monitor?  The title is fairly self explanatory but it is a chest strap heart rate monitor that communicates via bluetooth wireless with an Android smartphone for fitness tracking.  Please note that it is not compatible with iPhone.

A bluetooth HRM is ideal for me for several reasons.  First, it reduces the number of accessories I need to have with/on me when I work out.  I carry my phone for music so the HxM frees me from having to wear an HRM "watch".  Not a huge deal for most but the "watch" accessory does get in the way when I wear gloves for strength training.  Second, because it doesn't have a "watch" and uses the phones hardware for GPS, computing, etc., it is much less expensive than most of the other high-end HRMs at around $99.  To get the most out of it, you will need to buy a pro-level app for your phone but that's only an additional $4-$5 and you'll get that back in discount if you buy the device through the app's website (See Software below). Finally, the tracking is uploaded automatically to the application's websites so you can see all the details of your workout including route, speed, heart rate, etc. without any data entry.  It would be great if it uploaded automatically to myfitnesspal.com but MFP hasn't built that feature in (yet). 

Hardware

The hardware itself is lightweight and comfortable and works very well. As is mentioned above, It is really just a chest strap with the snap-on transmitting module.  The module is rechargeable with the included USB adapter and holds a charge for at least a week's worth of workouts.  There is no on/off switch, it is activated when the sensors are against your skin. 

The HxM provides information beyond just heart rate like cadence so you can get an approximate speed even if you are working out indoors on a stationary machine like a treadmill or elliptical.  Like most better HRMs, these devices are primarily for outdoor exercises but its nice to have some additional features for those of us who do are cardio in the gym.

Most importantly for a device like this, it pairs easily with an Android phone (I use a Droid Charge running Gingerbread 2.3 Update: I've moved on to the Galaxy Nexus with Android 4.0) and the connection remained steady even when using a bluetooth headset during the workouts.  Most lost connections I had were due to software issues, not hardware (see below). 

Software

Despite the benefits above, the HxM is held back by the quality of the software.  Zephyr does not provide a specific app but recommends several on their website. I've tried the pro version of two, Endomondo and SportsTracker, to try to get the most out of hardware and they both have a few shortcomings.   Both apps also have free versions on the Android Market but with some limited functionality.

Endomondo ($3.99) has an extensive library of activities, tracks and maps routes via GPS, and the app maintains a steady connection with the HxM with good heart rate tracking.  It even has a support community on its website.  I really like this app except for one major shortcoming: it doesn't take heart into consideration for its calories calculations, only an estimate based on activity, age, weight, and speed.   The developers have acknowledged the shortcoming and are working to rectify the issue but, until then, the calorie burn calculator isn't much better than the estimates on MFP. 

So, I decided to try SportsTracker Pro app ($4.99) from sportstracklive.com because it does use heart rate in the calorie burn calculations.  The app has many tracking features similar to Endomondo but its list of activities is much smaller and focused mostly on outdoor workouts.  For example, there are no options for strength training or cross training so you have pick a surrogate for those  types of activities.  This app did, however, do a better job at tracking cadence/speed for indoor activities and has a nice web interface for reviewing workouts.  The major problem that I had with SportsTracker was that it kept losing the bluetooth connection with the HxM, which kinda defeated the whole purpose of using it. Update: with my new Galaxy Nexus, I have no dropped connection issues.  This app is working great now.

My hope is that Endomondo updates their app and website soon, but until then, I'll keep looking for the software that will make the Zephyr HxM as useful as it can be.  Next up: SportyPal (no indoor tracking currently). 

Conclusion

The Zephyr HxM itself is a good piece of hardware with a lot of potential but it needs some help from software developers to help it reach its optimal functionality.