As the frenzy of Black Friday and Cyber Week subsides, I have finally gotten around to inspecting the latest Polar Vantage V3 health-focused smartwatch. This is my initial encounter with a Polar product. Despite just starting to comprehend its functionalities, the V3 is already astonishing me with its features. If you're unacquainted with the Vantage V3, it's a $600 top-tier gadget from Polar targeting professional athletes and enthusiastic fitness junkies. It comes with an oversized AMOLED screen, dual-band GPS, integrated maps, and a vast collection of activity monitoring and recuperation resources.

From a health tracking viewpoint, the Vantage V3 comes with a photoplethysmography heart rate monitor, SpO2 sensor for tracking blood oxygen saturation levels, skin temperature monitor for scrutinising sleep quality and stress, and an electrocardiography sensor for wrist-based heart health surveillance. This is undoubtedly one of the high-tech health fitness monitoring devices, selling in 2023, and I am eager to evaluate it thoroughly for an upcoming comprehensive review. Meanwhile, I have compiled my top five surprising aspects of the Polar Vantage V3.

I generally don't favour oversized, bulky watches, be it smart or mechanical. The Vantage V3, possessing a 47mm diameter, is illustrated alongside my mechanical Hamilton Khaki field watch, of 38.5mm, in the picture above. Although the V3 is considerably bigger, I was caught off guard discovering that it appears comparatively smaller on my wrist. Interestingly, the V3 and Hamilton Khaki share similar lug-to-lug distances, perhaps a factor for V3's deceptive size. The lightness of the watch also pleasantly surprised me. With an aluminium bezel and housing and seemingly plastic case back, it weighs a mere 57g, slightly less than my compact mechanical watch.

Moreover, I am finding the V3 quite comfortable to wear throughout the day. As its sleep tracking ability remains untested, its comfort level is still uncertain. However, I am confident this smartwatch won't burden my wrist. Familiarising with the five physical buttons on this 2023 consumer electronic, alongside its touchscreen, has been rightfully challenging but not quite as daunting as rocket science. The touchscreen also offers a handy backup for those uncertainties about pressing the correct button.

Getting a new wearable technology up and running can be tedious, given the pairing troubles and long updates. Still, to my surprise, the V3's setup process was devoid of such hassles. Anyone who can follow simple on-screen instructions can quickly activate this device. It was also surprisingly straightforward to navigate through the Polar Flow app. While the 15-minute-long firmware download and update is usual, there have been zero pairing or syncing issues so far, thankfully.

While light jogging, both indoor and outdoor, is enjoyable, many of my favoured physical activities are not trackable by popular fitness smartwatches. My Fitbit Inspire 3, for instance, doesn't monitor my skateboarding and snowboarding sessions, or kayaking adventures. Fortunately, the Polar Vantage V3 offers all three and beyond. With an extensive list of over 150 sports profiles, ranging from jazz dance to disc golf to table tennis, and even windsurfing. The V3 also allows you to customise, save up to 20 of these profiles to suit your preferences.

Finally, the exceptional quality of Vantage V3's 1.39-inch AMOLED screen was another delightful revelation. With a resolution of 454 x 454 pixels, I found the display sufficiently detailed, readable even under direct sunlight at its maximum brightness setting, and housed within the tough Gorilla glass, ensuring higher endurance. Although the touchscreen goes off during an activity by default, I have been enjoying my initial usage of the Polar Vantage V3 and look forward to more.