Which heart rate devices work with Sentinel

The seven wearables Sentinel supports, how each one connects, which ones need your phone unlocked, and which ones can measure HRV.

WebiPhoneAndroid Updated 26 July 2026

What this does

Sentinel needs a live pulse, because it reads physiology rather than trading activity. Seven devices can supply one, and the picker on any one platform lists six of them, because the watch at the top of the list differs between Apple and Android. They divide into two kinds: watches, which hand their readings to VEXA through Apple Health or Health Connect, and Bluetooth straps and armbands, which connect straight to the VEXA app on your phone.

Heart rate devices Sentinel supports

Device	Made by	How it connects	Setup steps	Phone must stay unlocked	Sends beat-to-beat data for HRV
Apple Watch	Apple	Through Apple Health	2	No	No
Fitbit Air	Google	Bluetooth, direct to the app	4	Yes	No
Garmin HRM-Pro Plus	Garmin	Bluetooth, direct to the app	4	No	Yes
Polar H10	Polar	Bluetooth, direct to the app	4	No	Yes
Polar Verity Sense	Polar	Bluetooth, direct to the app	5	No	Yes
WHOOP	WHOOP	Bluetooth, direct to the app	4	Yes	No

The table lists the six you see on the web and on iPhone. Android shows the same five Bluetooth devices and offers a Wear OS watch in place of Apple Watch, which is the seventh. See Set up a Wear OS watch.

Two columns are worth reading carefully before you buy anything.

Phone must stay unlocked. WHOOP and Fitbit Air stop sending when the phone screen locks. That is the device’s behaviour and there is no way around it from inside VEXA. See Why WHOOP and Fitbit need your phone unlocked.

Sends beat-to-beat data for HRV. Heart rate variability is calculated from the gaps between individual beats, so a device has to send those gaps rather than an averaged number. The chest straps and the Verity Sense armband do. WHOOP, Fitbit Air and Apple Watch do not send them live, so a rule built on heart rate variability will never fire during a session on those devices.

Apple Watch on an iPhone still gives you overnight HRV through Apple Health, which is what the baseline uses. It is the live, in-session figure that is missing.

Before you start

The option list is not identical everywhere. The web offers Apple Watch and the five Bluetooth devices. Android offers a Wear OS watch and the same five Bluetooth devices, and does not offer Apple Watch. iPhone offers Apple Watch and the five Bluetooth devices.

Your choice is stored on your account and shared between surfaces, so picking a device on the web and then opening Android settings can show you a different selection, because Android has no Apple Watch option to show. Set it on the phone that will actually hold the connection and you avoid the problem.

iPad and Android tablet show the same picker, and the strap still pairs to the phone that runs the session.

Bluetooth chest straps broadcast to one app at a time. If the manufacturer’s own app is open, VEXA cannot see the strap.

Steps

How to change your wearable source.

Open VEXA Sentinel from the sidebar.
Open the Settings tab.
Under Wearable Source, choose your device.
Anything other than Apple Watch opens a setup modal. Read the steps, then click the Scan Now action at the bottom of it.

Open Home, then tap Sentinel.
Tap the gear icon, then Sentinel Settings.
Tap Wearable Source and choose your device.
Tap the setup link for that device and follow the steps.

Open Home, then tap Sentinel.
Tap the gear icon (Settings), then Sentinel Settings.
Under Wearable source, choose your device.
Follow the setup sheet that opens.

What you should see

The wearable section shows your device name with the status Connected.

Start a session and the live card names the device next to the LIVE badge, with a beats-per-minute figure that changes every few seconds.

If you chose a strap that sends beat-to-beat data, the HRV figure fills in too. If you chose a device that does not, HRV stays empty during the session, which is correct rather than broken.

If it doesn’t work

Your device is not in the list. Only these seven are supported, and your platform shows the six that apply to it. Anything that writes into Apple Health or Health Connect can still reach Sentinel through the watch path, at Health Connect’s 30-second polling rate on Android.

The status says Not Connected. The strap is asleep, out of range, or held by another app. Close the manufacturer’s app and try the scan again. See Pair a different strap.

Readings stop the moment you put the phone down. You are on WHOOP or Fitbit Air. Those need the screen on.

What you need to run Sentinel The plan, the phone, the wearable and the health permissions Sentinel needs before a session can read anything. Pair a different strap VEXA remembers the last strap it paired with. Forget it and rescan when you switch devices, replace a strap, or pick up someone else's by mistake. Why WHOOP and Fitbit need your phone unlocked Both devices stop broadcasting when the phone screen locks. Change auto-lock for the session, then put it back.

Still stuck? Email support@vexatrade.ai.