Polar’s AMOLED-toting multisport watch hits the mid-range sweet spot
This is a huge upgrade over the Polar Vantage M2 and one of the best Polar watches to date. It’s not quite Apple Watch sexy and Garmin has better looking watches but Polar has delivered a good looking watch in a relatively compact and stylish package that should broaden its appeal. The optical heart rate isn’t perfect but the GPS accuracy looks to be solid and there’s enough training tools here to cater for most. You get a lot for your money here. It comes at a competitive price for an AMOLED screen with dual frequency GPS and offline maps. If you’ve never considered Polar, this watch would be a good place to start.
Pros
- Bright snappy colour touchscreen
- Excellent recovery tools
- Offline mapping
Cons
- Fast nighttime battery burn
- No offline music option
The new Polar Vantage M3 is the latest multisport watch with a smartwatch-style AMOLED touchscreen.
The third in Polar’s line-up following the Polar Grit X2 Pro and the Polar Vantage V3, it also packs Dual Frequency GPS, offline mapping, ECG on the wrist and the complete set of training, performance, recovery and health tools you’ll find on the best Polar watches.
It’s a compelling package for a mid-range sports watch but is it now the best bang-for-buck Polar you can buy?
And how does it stack up against the growing list of AMOLED rivals? I lived with the Polar Vantage M3 for a month, running marathons, hitting the gym floor, lapping the pool and even sweating in the sauna to put it to the test. Get the verdict in our Polar Vantage M3 review.
Polar Vantage M3: Price and competition
At launch, the Polar Vantage M3 price is set at £349, or just shy of $400 in the US. In Polar’s line-up it drops in between the Polar Pacer Pro (£299/$329.95) and the Polar Vantage V3 (£519/$599).
In the increasingly fiercely contested AMOLED-packing mid-range, it’s up against the similarly-priced COROS Pace Pro (£349/ $349) and the Suunto Race S (£325 / $449). But significantly undercuts the pricier Garmin Forerunner 265 (£429.99 / $449.99).
Polar Vantage M3 key features
- From £349 / $399
- 7 days in smartwatch mode
- 30 hour GPS battery, extends to 70 in low-power Eco mode
- 1.28-inch, 416 x 416 AMOLED display
- Touchscreen and button controls
- Size: 44.7 x 44.7 x 12.2 mm
- Weight: 53g
- Dual Frequency GPS
- Offline TOPO Maps
- Turn-by-turn navigation
- Display flashlight
- Wrist ECG
- FitSpark workout recommendations
- Training Load and Recovery Pro
- 7 x fitness tests
- Interchangeable 22mm straps
- Music controls but no offline music
- 32GB storage
- Waterproof up to 50m
Polar Vantage M3: Design
It’s been 10 years since the launch of the original Polar M400. I tested that watch back in the day…in fact, I think I’ve still got one. Things have moved on a lot since then, and Polar has improved the design beyond recognition. The Polar Vantage M3 follows in the Vantage V3 as a good-looking Polar watch with more subtle styling that fits better into daily life.
The features in the Polar Vantage M3 are the same as the Polar Vantage V3 and the Polar Grit X2 Pro. So if you’re choosing between these watches, design is increasingly important. It’ll come down to the more durable materials, size, looks, and styling, along with a bit of battery life. And of course how they perform.
The hero on the Polar Vantage M3 is the new bright, color, smartwatch-style 1.28” AMOLED display. That brings a nicely responsive touchscreen to the M models for the first time.
The Gorilla Glass 3 display is slightly smaller than the Grit x2 Pro and the Vantage V3 and doesn’t offer the scratch resistance of sapphire crystal screens you get on pricier watches including the Grit X2 Pro. However, in testing so far I’ve had no issues and the screen is brighter, kicking out a maximum 1,500 nits compared to 1,050 on the X2 Pro and the V3.
I found the AMOLED bright and punchy – a definite upgrade on the M2 – and easy to read in all conditions. The touchscreen is snappy and responsive and the raise-to-wake was also quick to respond. I found I could switch off the Always On, making it easier to eke out more staying power.
The Vantage M3 is smaller, thinner, and lighter than the Vantage M2 and Vantage V3 with plastic front and back casings and a steel bezel. Those are pretty standard materials on a mid-range watch. They help keep the Vantage M3 light, compact, and comfortable on the wrist. This is an easy watch to wear 24-7. However, I desperately want Polar to offer a nylon strap.
The Vantage M3 isn’t as good looking as the aluminum Vantage V3 but avoids feeling or looking too cheap. I think the Vantage M3 beats the more plastic COROS Pace Pro on looks.
You get the same sensor suite as the Vantage V3 and Grit X2 Pro. That includes dual frequency GPS and the latest Polar Elixr Biosensing Tech which combines Polar’s Gen 4 optical heart rate sensors with wrist ECG. There’s also a skin temperature sensor and SPO2 blood oxygen sensor.
The Polar Vantage M3 ships with two sizes of standard 22mm swappable silicone bands in the box and comes in two colors Night Black or Greige Sand.
Polar Vantage M3: Sports and training features
The Polar Vantage M3 is built on the same platform as the Grit X2 Pro and the Vantage V3 and it carries an identical suite of tools and features as those more expensive watches. Polar has adopted a similar approach to COROS and when new features are rolled out, they should come to all those watches. We salute that.
What you’re getting here is a watch that’s up there with Polar’s most capable, fully loaded devices. That includes 150 sport modes including a multisport triathlon mode and all the familiar training, recovery, activity, and health tools, you find on the Grit X2 Pro and the Vantage V3.
Training Load Pro offers an excellent week-so-far summary that makes it easy to monitor your training mix. FuelWise fuelling recommendations offer support with race fuelling strategies. You also get a daily breakdown of the fuelling sources you’ve used — estimated, obviously.
Runners get running power on the wrist and Hill Splitter which automatically detects when you’re hitting climbs and descents and breaks out your stats post-run.
In the gym, I also like the Work-Rest guide that analyses your heart rate during work and rest phases of a session to give you personalized guidance on the optimal time to start working again.
Polar’s sleep tracking and recovery tools are still some of the best you’ll find and you can choose between Recovery Pro and the Nightly Recharge tools. The Boost from Sleep feature attempts to estimate the impact of your slumber.
Beginners or anyone looking for guidance will also enjoy the excellent FitSpark workout recommendations. These daily recommended sessions are linked to recovery. You can choose cardio, strength, and mobility and each workout comes complete with full instructions and animations.
There’s also a comprehensive set of at-rest fitness tests and performance testing for running, cycling, and walking. The best you’ll find among the rivals.
Polar Vantage M3: Maps & Navigation
The Polar Vantage M3 offers good maps and navigation tools for a mid-range watch. The same as you’ll find on the Grit X2 Pro and the Vantage V3 including full colour offline maps (which you won’t find on the rival Garmin Forerunner 265) and turn-by-turn navigation. However, you’ll need to use the third-party app Komoot on the Vantage M3 to get it.
It comes with pre-installed maps for the US and Europe. Other regions are available to download for free. There’s also Komoot-compatible routing with Route Guidance, Back to Start, and TrackBack tools.
The Elevation Profile tools also add a welcome layer of insight, with a real-time view of how far you’ve ascended or descended, how much you still have to go, and the rest of the lumps and bumps that lie ahead.
B-line navigation to Point Of Interest (POI) is coming in an update that Polar has pegged for the first quarter of 2025. That will also bring new watch faces, a new workout launcher, and Find My Phone feature.
Polar Vantage M3: GPS & Heart rate accuracy
When it comes to heart rate tech and sensors, you get the latest Polar Elixr Biosensing Tech which combines Polar’s Gen 4 optical heart rate sensors with wrist ECG. You can now do an orthostatic recovery test without the need for a chest strap.
On GPS, the Polar Vantage M3 packs the same multiband Dual Frequency GPS setup as the Grit X2 Pro and the Vantage V3 with support for L1 and L5.
To test the GPS and heart rate accuracy, I put the Polar Vantage M3 up against a range of watches, including the Garmin Fenix 8 AMOLED, the Suunto Race S Titanium, and the COROS Pace Pro along with a Garmin HRM Pro Plus chest strap for benchmarking.
When it comes to GPS, the Polar Vantage M3 Dual Frequency performed well. It struggled a little in tree cover but at times it handled tricky underpasses better than the Garmin Fenix 8 (purple line). I saw nothing that troubled me.
On one of my regular 10km runs that mix London streets with river paths, in its most accurate mode, up against the dual-frequency Garmin Fenix 8 AMOLED and the Apple Watch Ultra 2, the Vantage M3 was good on the overall distance. The Fenix 8 logged 6.47 miles, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 logged 6.36 miles, while the Vantage M3 clocked 6.39 miles.
The Polar Vantage M3’s optical heart rate performance was a bit more hit-and-miss. On one easy run, the Vantage M3 went high early and stayed high. But I had some easy runs where it was a good match for the chest strap. During an interval session, it registered all the efforts much higher than the chest strap. It was better on a progression run with just the odd spike.
TLDR: Like most optical sensors, the heart rate performance has its less reliable moments. But the GPS performance was nicely reliable and on par with the other dual-frequency devices.
Polar Vantage M3: Battery life
On paper, the Polar Vantage M3 offers 30 hours in Performance mode, extending to 70 hours in Eco mode and 7 days in smartwatch mode.
That’s slightly shorter than the Grit X2 Pro and the Vantage V3 which both pack 43 hours in GPS mode up to 140 hours in Eco mode. But the same as you’ll find on the Polar Pacer Pro and the older Vantage M2. It also tops the Garmin Forerunner 265 which ranges from 14 to 20 hours depending on the GPS mode.
Polar Vantage M3 battery life headline stats:
- Smartwatch: Up to 7 days
- GPS Only: Up to 30 hours
- Eco Mode: up to 70 hours
In our tests, I ran through two full-to-dead cycles, one with the Always On screen on, one using Raise to Wake.
With Always On, I got around 5 days usage on a single charge. That included just half an hour of GPS training.
An hour’s run in the max-accuracy Performance Mode with Always On used around 4%.
The Polar Vantage M3 is a thirsty beast overnight, torching an average of 11% while I slept. That’s not far off the Apple Watch Series 10.
With Raise To Wake rather than Always on Display I got around 6 days of general usage with 6 hours of GPS training and 4 hours of heart rate cardio training.
I ran a 4-hour marathon distance in max-accuracy Performance Mode with Raise To Wake and using map routing burned 20%.
- On average, an hour’s GPS Only training with the Polar Vantage M3, burned 4-6%
- A 4-hour marathon in max-accuracy Performance Mode burned 20%
- Overnight battery burn rate was between 2-7% with Always On screen off.
- Overnight battery burn rate rose to 11% with Always On screen on.
TLDR: For hour-long GPS training efforts the Polar Vantage M3 is a close match in battery life for the COROS Pace Pro and the Suunto Race S.
For single stint rides, runs, and swims up to 16 hours it has you well covered in the most accurate GPS mode. If you’re looking to use this for longer ultra-endurance and multi-day adventure types will have to use the Eco mode.
In general, the Vantage M3 has enough juice on a single charge to cover a week, training an hour a day but you’ll need to switch off the Always On to get that.
There is one other important thing to note. Polar’s devices start to lock certain features where the battery life drops below 10%. For example, you can’t start a workout at 9%. In reality you’re only accessing 90% of the battery capacity. That’s not the case on other watches that let you risk it when the battery drops low.
Polar Vantage M3: Smartwatch Skills
When it comes to smartwatch tools, Polar is still a long way behind Garmin and nowhere near sport-capable dedicated smartwatches like the Apple Watch and Samsung Galaxy Watch.
The Polar Vantage M3 smarts are limited to notifications from a connected phone and music controls, but there’s no offline music storage or Spotify/Deezer like you’ll find on the Garmin Forerunner 265 and the COROS Pace Pro. There’s also no NFC payments or app store.
If you’re looking for a more complete balance of sports-tracking and smartwatch capability, the Apple Watch Series 10 is worth consideration.
Polar Vantage M3: Should you upgrade and alternatives?
If you own one of the older Polar M models the Polar Vantage M3 represents a significant step forward in the design, hardware, features, and performance.
The cheaper, lighter, more durable Polar Pacer Pro also offers better staying power. However you’ll sacrifice that AMOLED screen and dual frequency GPS for that bigger battery.
The mid-range AMOLED shelves are getting quite busy now. If you’re not bothered about offline maps and you really want offline music, the Garmin Forerunner 265 is probably a more rounded watch. Just with a shorter battery life.
The Suunto Race S is another very capable, good-value AMOLED option with dual-frequency GPS, an excellent screen and a longer battery life. That comes in slightly cheaper.
If you want the best of both worlds: an AMOLED watch with longer battery life, the COROS Pace Pro, fits that bill. It also comes in at £349.
If you’ve got a bit more budget to throw around and you’re considering the Garmin Forerunner 965, we’ve done a detailed comparison here:
