Timex Bodylink Ultimate Package 3rd Generation - GPS Speed and Distance, Heart Rate and PC Link (inc.Software)

T5E671D The Timex® Bodylink® system offers athletes and fitness enthusiasts the unprecedented ability to track, store and analyze several key indicatiorsof personal performance. Using the very latest in digital technology, the Bodylink® system is a network of up to 4 devices worn the body that act together as a single information and sport monitoring system. Timex BodyLink Ultimate Package - the complete personal monitoring system. The ultimate BodyLink Package includes Performance Monitor Watch, GPS Unit, Heart Rate Monitor and USB Data Recorder - including the USB data recorder device with PC software for comprehensive data analysis and monitoring. Guaranteed 1 Year warranty from manufacturer when purchasing it from us. HDO Sport also offers Life-Time warranty.

Customer Review: Timex say it ain't so!

I have always loved Timex watches, so my decision to pick this watch over the Suunto and Garmin was not a difficult choice. Unfortunately, I am less than impressed. The watch itself is fine, but I don't like the indiglo because it is not very bright. There is plenty of data that can be analyzed, but there is just something about the system that is no good. The GPS unit is finicky and doesn't always connect for me. The data recorder is small which is nice, but it is a pain to start the gps, watch, and data recorder and then run. There has to be a better way. The data recorder is a MAJOR disappointment when connecting to my PC. The cable is like a early 90s computer cable instead of usb that plugs IN the recorder. I have to connect the usb and squeeze the recorder to the cable with BOTH hands and hold it until it connects and downloads data. Sometimes this takes several attempts and often I have to start over when the recorder disconnects in mid download. The software is not very impressive either. I hate to say it... no it pains me to say it, don't buy this item. You have been warned.

Customer Review: Slightly flawed, but irreplaceable for serious training.

First, this has completely taken my training to a whole new level. I'm a medium distance runner training now for a half marathon. After using the speed & distance & heart rate monitor many times, I've started to get very familiar with where my heart rate should be if I'm going to have enough left to go the distance. And being able to see my pace in real time pushes me to make sure that I have *just* enough left, and not a bit more. My improvements in speed have been dramatic.



In terms of the actual product and features, I'd rate this as very good. The speed & distance GPS unit is extremely accurate. It takes a bit longer than I'd like (about a minute) to lock on to the satellites, but that's not a real problem, just a minor annoyance. Also, once, I fell after twisting my ankle. I stopped the chrono while I walked it off, then started it again when I started running. All of a sudden, though, I was doing 2' 55" miles. Needless to say, something was wrong. I stopped and started the chrono a couple more times, but still got similar readings. It wasn't until I stopped and restarted the GPS 45 minutes (and an alleged 15 miles) later that my pace started reading something realistic. That's only happened once.



The heart rate monitor works fantastically. I got a couple of spikey readings (240 bpm down to 0bpm back up to 240bpm) the first time I used it right at the very beginning. But I suspect that had more to do with the fact that I was still adjusting it on my chest since I had never used one before and wasnt' yet quite comfortable with it. Other than that one first time, though, it has given extremely accurate readings and has been invaluable in helping me keep myself at a pace that my body can sustain.



The data recorder has worked flawlessly except that it's a bit annoying that the data recorder and the chrono in the watch need to be started and stopped separately. At first this kind of bothered me, but having used it now for a month, I realize it makes very little difference if the data on the recorder is for a run that is for three seconds longer or shorter than what my watch reads. For training purposes, this has made no difference at all to me.



The worst part of the whole package is the timex trainer software. I suspect that in the HRM and S&D data over the course of a training run, there's a lot that I could learn about when my body starts to fatigue, how soon that occurs, and how that point changes as my condition improves etc. etc. I say that I "suspect" because there's no way I'll ever be able to find out using the training software. The graph it produces of an individual run is miniscule to begin with and cannot be resized. Also the scale cannot be altered. After all I'm not really interested in knowing much about what happens in the heart rate 0-160 zone, as I never run in that zone. I'd like to be able to set the HRM scale to 165-185 and the speed zone to... well, I'm not saying :-) Because only by doing that will the small differences in heart rate over a run appear large enough to see with clarity. I suspect the only way I'll be able to use that kind of data is by exporting it to excel. I've done that, but am not yet handy enough with it to see the kind of data that I really need in the way I want to.



In a nutshell, I highly recommend this product for anyone who wants to get a handle on what their body is capable of, and to improve it as well. It works excellently and I'm planning on keeping mine on when I run in the actual half marathon this april.
See details