As promised back in the fall, Polar has released their Q1 firmware update for the Polar Vantage V3 and Polar Grit X2 Pro, under the FW3.0 umbrella. This update brings with it the following new features:
– Adds mapping points of interest (to the map database), such as campgrounds, shelters, etc…
– Adds ‘Find my phone’ feature, when you lose your phone in the couch cushions, using the watch to find it
– Adds two new analog watch faces, and three new digital watch faces
– Adds charging during workouts/training (for stupid-long adventures)
– Adds alerts for leaving your phone behind (along with other new alerts)
– Adds ability to see completed route on watch in training summary (and swim styles in pool summary)
– Adds new training start and pause views showing more details
– Revamps Cardio Load Status feedback (changes terms, more on this below)
– Plus a bunch of other bug fixes/tweaks/improvements
As noted, this update is only available for the Vantage V3 and Grit X2 Pro, whereas the recently released Polar Vantage M3, which also has mapping, won’t see these features till the ‘Q2’ update.
Thus, I’ll get my singular piece of (strong) criticism out of the way up front here, but this decision is just bizarre. After all, the *entire point* of Polar standardizing on a single OS platform, as they touted for these three watches, was to allow for a concurrent platform where the *only* difference was the actual hardware styling between the three watches. The seemingly made-up delay for these features to the M3 isn’t helping Polar’s sales here, since that’s the only of these newish Polar products that’s actually competitively priced. Sigh.
In any case, here are the rest of the release notes indicating all the smaller updates/tweaks:
– Improvements on occasionally too high optical heart rate (OHR) readings during training sessions.
– Improvement to display brightness in bright sunny conditions: you can now temporarily enable the high brightness mode during training by pressing the top left button (LIGHT).
– Improved Route Guidance start logic: Starting your route mid-point now picks up your current location and recalculates routes from where you are, instead of guiding you to your set starting point.
– Fixed issues related to 3D speed calculations, providing more accurate readings during elevation changes and terrain variation.
– Fixed a bug that caused for some users incorrect pool swimming distance calculations.
– Improvement to compass calibration: When the watch detects that the compass needs calibration, it will display the message: “The compass is slightly off. Do you want to calibrate it?” You can then decide whether to calibrate the compass. If you choose not to, the message will not appear again during that training session. However, you can calibrate the compass later during the session through the navigation menu if needed.
– Other minor updates and bug fixes
Remember first though you’ll need to update the watch (using desktop or phone apps):
But, and this is really important, you’ll also need to update the maps for it, since that contains the POI database. That’s a bit messier, since you need to use a desktop computer to download, and if on a Mac, you’ll also need a 3rd party app to get the device to show up on your Mac. Note that in my case, the maps showed Nov 25th, 2024 as the most recent. That worked out just fine though, and the POIs were in there.
In any case, once that’s done, you’re good to go.
The New Update:
First up, let’s look at the new mapping bits. After all, that’s probably what you’re here for. After getting the maps to your device, you’ll now see various points of interest (POI) on the map set, assuming you’ve downloaded the detailed view. Scrolling around near me, I didn’t immediately see any, though scrolling a bit further I saw a cemetery.
However, what’s cool is if you open up the menu you can see a list of all nearby waypoints, including sorted by type.
Once you select one, you can choose to see it on the map, as well as route to it.
Note this is ‘as the crow flies’ distance, versus routable distance, since Polar doesn’t have routable maps (meaning, it depends on online platforms to give turn-by-turn directions in the route file, rather than doing it on the fly).
The next feature is ‘Find my Phone’. Again, this is useful when you’re wearing the watch but can’t figure out where your phone is. As long as your phone is within Bluetooth range (thus, within a few rooms), it’ll find it and start buzzing your phone. It’ll also show estimated distance to the phone, and, as you can see, a little map of the last known GPS location of the phone on the map.
Next, there’s the ability to charge the device during workouts/training. This is mostly aimed at very long treks, or multi-day scenarios. Note that there still isn’t a ‘Resume Later’ option, which would be ideal and probably a bit more useful for most folks wanting to do multi-day hikes (otherwise you basically have to leave the GPS session recording at night).
Next, you’ll notice a new UI when you select a sport mode, as well as pause. This UI makes it a bit more clear that you should actually wait for the GPS before going (because not waiting makes things waaaaay worse). I like this:
Lastly, Polar has revamped a bunch of their Cardio Load Status terms. I’ll just let them explain it:
The Cardio Load Status calculation has been updated to provide more actionable feedback in situations where the load has been low, such as when you are just starting to train or recovering after an intensive training period.
We have added a new status: Recovering. This is shown when you have been overreaching in the past 14 days. As your training load decreases, you’ll now see “Recovering” instead of “Detraining”.
With the previous Cardio Load Status calculation, you could reach “Overreaching” too quickly, for example, when you were just starting to train or beginning to use the Training Load Pro feature. This could give the impression that you were training too hard, even if you weren’t. We have adjusted the status to better reflect when you are training at a productive level. In relevant situations, you will now see “Productive” instead of “Overreaching”.
Here you can see the new terms displayed within the watch:
Got all that? Good. Now go and get your watches updated if you haven’t already! And again, don’t forget to download the new maps.
Going Forward:
These are good updates, and honestly more than Polar let on about back this past fall. I also appreciate that Polar launched these at the legit start of Q1, instead of a ‘March 30th’ type of date range. I suppose that doesn’t surprise me, Polar is usually quite good at predicting future release dates on things. It’s almost like they have no-effs-given project managers who keep everyone on track.
Of course, almost all of these features are already on competitor devices, but sometimes keeping up is enough – especially if you have a loyal fanbase already, ensuring they don’t have reason to jump ship can do the trick.
That said, I think Polar needs to heavily re-evaluate their plans on holding back the Vantage M3 update until Q2. There’s just no logical reason for that, and as Suunto has very easily demonstrated, offering a strong competitor watch in the sub-$400 range is yielding good success for them. Polar, along with Suunto and COROS, got the break of their lives this week when Garmin bizarrely decided to not add maps to the Instinct 3 series (priced in the same range, and one of Garmin’s most popular product series). A decision that would seemingly imply we probably won’t get maps on an assumed Forerunner 265 successor this spring (typically in this same price ballpark). Though, the overwhelming negative feedback on the internet the last 48 hours might change their thinking.
Point is, Polar has been given a ‘Woah’ moment, and shouldn’t waste it. Get that update out before it’s too late. In the meantime, for those on the Vantage V3 and Grit X2 Pro, welcome to your campsite!
Thanks for reading!
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Didn’t they also promise training peaks integration in this update?
Technically separate, since that should in theory work regardless of any firmware update as it’s being down at the platform level. But same rough timeframe.
Their Facebook page says “Also Vantage M3 and Ignite 3 will get these updates and features in Q2 of 2025.”, so maybe beginning of April.
Hmm…though, either way, seems a long ways away to me for what was supposed to be the main selling point of the consolidated FW concept.
Does Polar already (or any other watch) can read speed from treadmill via BLE FTMS treadmill profile (not as footpod) ?
How does route guidance work with 3.0.16 fw?
In 2.2.3 I have a nice workaround to see the planned route without having the navigation notifications. I choose “Start point” when starting the session with route guidance but I avoid it by at least 100-200 meters so it’s never found and the navigation is never started. There is only a small arrow and a distance counter showing how far am I from the chosen start point.
For me this is a perfect solution because I only want to see the planned route as a recommendation/orientation and do not want to follow it strictly.
It this method possible in 3.0.16? (Or anything else which shows a planned route + actual track without vibrating navigation notifications?)
Guidance notifications only appear for komoot routes, right? So you should be able to use strava routes or download a gpx file from komoot and upload that to flow.
Good point, I tried it today. Used the same route from gpx file / from strava / from komoot. You’re right, only komoot route gave me turn-by-turn notifications at some intersections, the other 2 did not.
Thanks!
“The seemingly made-up delay for these features to the M3 isn’t helping Polar’s sales here”
Could build system and/or QA issues be throwing a monkey wrench into the works? The M3 may be sufficiently “different” to cause headaches. But if so, they got the order of getting this all done wrong.
I’ve been with polar for my fitness watches for the past 10 years and the vantage v3 will be my last one. They simply do not last for me. I’m already on a replacement v3, my first one crapped out about a month ago where it simply stopped charging.
Replaced V2 3 times. While I like the simplicity and amount of data from polar, I can’t justify 600+ every two years.
I’m curious – how did it work before? You take the watch off the wrist to charge while the activity is being recorded and the watch just stops the recording and saves the activity?
It just wouldn’t charge if an activity was running.
Intrest is a spelling mistake in your headline?
I prefer to think of it as an alternative spelling…maybe…hopefully, in some language. :)
THanks!
For a few seconds I wondered if it was part of the trend to leave out vowels, like announcing the launch of the PLR Intrst or something similar.
I did find it interesting though, happy with my Garmin 2X Solar
I like these updates! The find my phone buzz’s feature does not always work with me but that could me using an old iPhone x(?). No street names in the maps yet? Any promise of new updates for Q2 or later for vantage V3 then if Polar Vantage M3 is going to be updated with this current firmware by then?
If I want maps, then I look it on my phone.
My phone has bigger display.
So I dont need the “find my phone” feature.
If I dont need my phone, then I have my watch with the health features, heart rate, stress etc.
If I have only my phone with me, possibly I need a “find my watch” feature :-)
Ray has a lot of watches to test, he need especially a “find a watch” feature.
“Find my phone” is definitely in the top 3 of the most used features of my Apple Watch.
Thanks for the post, Ray!
How do the good folks think it’s okay that Mac users have to rely on a third-party application?!? The whole experience is so clunky (most of the time OpenMTP doesn’t even recognize that the watch is connected).
Polar knows how to charge premium-like prices they don’t quite know how to deliver premium-like experiences…
It’s annoying, though, most of that should be directed at Apple to be honest, which doesn’t have native support for MTP like Windows has had for…a decade or two.
In terms of companies, Garmin has slowly transitioned their devices to it as well, including all Edge devices this summer, and all wearables over the last year or two. It’s a pain in the butt (literally, just spent the last 20 minutes troubleshooting it for some Instinct 3 logs I had to send over). But from a device standpoint it significantly reduces changes that end users introduce corruption to the file system, and also gives them some security protection for rights-protected content (e.g. apps/music/etc…)
You went to Magaluf? Does Polar include “Get hammered and massively sunburnt on the beach” as an activity, then?
I attempt to avoid Magaluf on a daily basis, thus, why I usually only run/ride/drive around the outskirts of it.
That said, in the winter it’s quite pleasant. There are no drunk tourists, the hotels closed down (even Starbucks/McDonalds/Taco Bell/etc… are all shut down), beaches are empty except for locals, and parking totally free!
The only downside is currently they’re re-doing the entire beachfront boardwalk, which is otherwise beautiful place to do intervals when nobody is around.
Quite good updates for a quite good watch. I have tested a Grit X2 Pro Titan sometime ago. But the only update that would make me buy this watch or the stainless steel version would ba 200$ discount (minimum). And maybe they should get this step-count thing right…..
Nice pack of updates, but I can not get over that pause activity screen.
Ok, it maybe nicer (that is very subjective), for sure it is now more inline with rest of activity screens.
Having HR readings may be usefull for some (to check how are You cooling off).
But why on earth the distance is gone? I’ve been using Polar for Years, my M400 and than M430 showed distance, time and calories burned. Calories were nice, because I had an estimate of my training load.
When it was finally time to upgrade my nice, industrial style M430 (nobody is doing that kind of style any more :( ) i switched to V3. My pause activity showed only time and distance. Pity.
But now it is missing the distance too… It was the thing i looked at first when pausing my activity.
Ray, please let Polar know they have messed up!
And in fact, for Years I’m wondering, why I cannot just swipe to see regular activity screens during pause.
Is it in any way complicated?
For anyone thinking of upgrading to the V3, I’ve just stumbled across what I think is a very good deal (inc. HR strap). Seems a bit convoluted to access it but works for me from the UK *today* like this…
1) Search on Google for Polar Vantage V3
2) Click on the Idealo price comparison link in the Sponsored section up top
3) Find the £279.05 “best price” and click “go to shop”
4) Don’t click any other options in Amazon just add to basket (if you click on options doesn’t seem to come back at this price without starting again from Idealo link)
It’s sold by Amazon not a third party so the only catch I can see is the delivery date is 6-7th May for some reason. (I’m assuming this is unlikely to be right after the V4 is announced @Ray!?)
Anyway, I can wait and I’ve paid my £279.05.
Just to confirm, my new V3 arrived a month early in the end. I took delivery yesterday (3rd April). No issues.
I have no idea why the pricing was so weird on Amazon for a month seemingly alternating every other day according to Idealo but happy it worked out for me.
First impressions of the watch… that screen 🤩!!! Also, reasonably impressive setup process bringing nearly all my setting, data, bluetooth pairings across seemlessly. Couple of minor niggles but within <20mins including a firmware upgrade I was able to use it for a workout and continue tracking daily steps etc seemlessly.