Polar Vantage V3 Hands-On: 16 Things to Know!

Polar has just announced its newest watch - the Polar Vantage V3. With this 3rd generation watch, Polar is focusing heavily on the hardware - swapping out the MIP-based display for a new AMOLED display, while concurrently upgrading the GPS/GNSS chipset to multiband/dual-frequency. However, the biggest ticket item on the docket is going to be the addition of offline maps, allowing you to see not just the rivers, towns and streams around you - but also topographic contour lines. Oh, and then there's the new optical heart rate sensor, skin temperature sensor, SpO2 sensor, ECG, and more.

In this post I'm going to dive into all the new features with a look at how they actually work in real life. Note that this isn't a full review - that'll come later, once the unit has final firmware and starts shipping later this month. However, this device is a final production device from a hardware standpoint.

With that - let's dive into it!

Here’s everything the big ticket items that are new on the Polar Vantage V3. Or at least, everything I’ve found thus far. Undoubtedly there are plenty of even smaller tweaks along the way I haven’t found yet.

- Added offline mapping, with free global maps at high detail levels
- Added/switched to 1.39” AMOLED display
- Added dual-frequency/multiband GNSS (GPS) chipset
- New optical heart rate sensor version (Gen4)
- Added new ‘Elixir biosensing’ technology, which is their new algorithm fusion thingy
- Added SpO2 sensor (blood oxygen levels)
- Added ECG capabilities (note: not certified as a medical device, however)
- Added skin temperature sensor
- Added skin temperature tracking feature and baselining/guidance
- Added virtual flashlight (display-based)
- Increased GPS battery time to 43 hours (full fidelity tracking), and 140 hours (reduced tracking rates)
- Increased CPU speed by 129% for faster user interface usage
- Increased internal storage to 32GB for saving multiple map regions/continents
- Smartwatch regular usage battery life is 8 days, or ~5 days with always-on display enabled
- Switched to standard 22mm straps (without adapter required)
- Switched charging cable to USB-C (watch-side connector is still propriety)
- Watch is water-resistant to 50m, and has Gorilla Glass 3 (curved)
- Pricing is $599USD, shipping October 25th, 2023