Friday, April 26, 2024

These are the best Amazfit smartwatches you can buy

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Finding a smartwatch that checks every box on your wish list is no easy task. The options are endless and it can be tricky to navigate them all. The Amazfit smartwatch lineup isn’t as well known as, say, Fitbit, but it keeps growing and offers plenty of solid choices at great prices. The Amazfit Verge stands out from the rest as a superb lifestyle smartwatch full of useful features. At the end of the day, the watch you choose will depend on the experience you want.

Best Overall: Amazfit Verge

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If you’re seeking a well-rounded lifestyle smartwatch that offers solid fitness tracking and features, the Amazfit Verge is the best choice. It offers a fitness-focused design that consists of an AMOLED display, a polycarbonate body, and a stay-clean silicone watchband. It comes in one size, 43mm, and is available in three colors, including Shadow Gray, Twilight Blue, and Moonlight White.

Battery life varies depending on usage. You can expect five days with normal use, 34 days in basic watch mode, and 22 hours of continuous GPS mode. The Verge can track steps, calories, and distance. You’ll have heart-rate monitoring, sleep tracking, and built-in GPS. Other bonuses include music storage and Amazon Alexa built-in. The sport modes cover basic exercises, like indoor and outdoor runs, trail runs, and indoor and outdoor bike rides. It also has modes for tennis, soccer, elliptical training, climbing, skiing, and jump roping.

As sporty as this watch looks, it’s lacking a 5 ATM water resistance rating and swim tracking. The IP68 rating may suffice for some users, but it won’t be enough for swimmers. The Verge can handle dust, rain, splashing, and accidental submersion, but you shouldn’t wear it when showering, bathing, swimming, or in the sauna. An ongoing theme you’ll notice is that app support isn’t great for Amazfit wearables, which is the case on the Verge.

Pros:

  • 12 sport modes
  • Onboard GPS
  • Microphone and speaker
  • Amazon Alexa built-in
  • Fitness-focused design
  • Music storage

Cons:

  • Lacks 5 ATM rating
  • Mediocre app support
  • Lacks always-on display

Best Overall

Amazfit Verge

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  • $160 from Amazon
  • $160 from B&H

Lifestyle watch with fitness tracking

If you want a solid lifestyle timepiece with plenty of fitness tracking and smartwatch features, you’ll love the Amazfit Verge.

Best Value: Amazfit Bip

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When you want a solid set of smartwatch features but you don’t want to set yourself back financially, go with the Amazfit Bip. It has a polycarbonate body and an always-on transflective display, which can easily be read even in direct sunlight. Not having an AMOLED display is a small price to pay in exchange for an affordable smartwatch. On the bright side, this is surely one of the reasons the battery life is so impressive.

Speaking of battery, the Amazfit Bip promises to last up to 45 days. Standby mode lasts four months and continuous GPS mode lasts 22 hours. The Bip is IP68 waterproof and dustproof, which is not surprising given the price tag. A 5 ATM rating would’ve been nice considering it’s marketed as a fitness smartwatch. Unless you’re a frequent swimmer, this may not be a deal-breaker. You’ll have step, calorie, and distance tracking as well as heart-rate monitoring. The sport modes include treadmill running, outdoor running, walking, and cycling.

The Bip is the most affordable smartwatch Amazfit offers. Therefore, you’re going to settle on a few features. You won’t have 5 ATM water resistance, music storage, or a mic/speaker. There’s no AMOLED display, but the always-on transflective screen is a nice compromise.

Pros:

  • Multi-sport tracking
  • Built-in GPS
  • Always-on display
  • 45-day battery life
  • Exceptionally affordable

Cons:

  • Lacks 5 ATM water resistance
  • No music storage
  • No mic or speaker

Best Value

Amazfit Bip

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  • $70 from Amazon
  • $70 from Amazfit

The most bang for your buck

When you don’t want to spend a lot on a watch, the Amazfit Bip is ideal. It has GPS, great battery life, and fitness tracking.

Best for Beginners: Amazift Verge Lite

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On the surface, you might have trouble telling the Verge and the Verge Lite apart. It, too, comes with a brilliant AMOLED display. It has a silicone watch band and the body is made of glass fiber and reinforced polycarbonate. This 43mm smartwatch is also available in gray and white.

Battery life lasts longer on the Amazfit Verge Lite with typical use lasting for 20 days and continuous GPS mode lasting for 40 hours. You’ll enjoy seven sport modes: outdoor run, indoor run, walk, elliptical, outdoor cycle, indoor cycle, and exercise. Other key features include onboard GPS, high-precision heart-rate monitoring, sedentary reminders, music controls, and sleep tracking. That’s a whole lot of features for a “lite” watch.

It costs a bit less than the Verge, which means you’ll be missing some of the better features, including music storage, Wi-Fi, Amazon Alexa built-in, a microphone, and a speaker. It also lacks a few sensors, like a gyroscope, air pressure sensor, and geomagnetic sensor. All things considered, it’s an excellent choice for those who are entering the world of smartwatches for the first time.

Pros:

  • Multi-sport tracking
  • Built-in GPS
  • 20-day battery life
  • Brilliant AMOLED display
  • Smartphone notifications

Cons:

  • Lacks 5 ATM water resistance
  • No mic or speaker
  • Can’t interact with notifications
  • No Wi-Fi or Alexa built-in

Best for Beginners

Amazfit Verge Lite

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  • $120 from Amazon
  • $120 from B&H

Getting started

If you need a starter watch, the Verge Lite is for you. For a “lite” model, you still get impressive features and battery life.

Best for Fashion: Amazfit GTR

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The Amazfit GTR is the watch to choose if you’re seeking a classic yet modern design. It comes with two side buttons and is available in both 47mm or 42mm sizes. The bigger option is available in three timeless variants: stainless steel, titanium, and aluminum. The smaller option is available in Starry Black, Moonlight White, Coral Red, and Cherry Blossom Pink.

Both sizes offer great battery life. The larger size gives you up to 24 days with typical use, 74 days in basic watch mode, and 40 hours in continuous GPS mode. You’ll also have 5 ATM water resistance along with tracking for pool swimming and open water swimming. In addition to tracking steps, distance, and calories, the GTR also has modes for walking, indoor and outdoor running, trail running, indoor and outdoor cycling, elliptical training, climbing, skiing, and general exercise. You’ll have 24-hour heart-rate monitoring, too.

To put it simply, if you’re looking for the most aesthetically pleasing Amazfit smartwatch, look no further than the GTR. It’s nice that you’ll have long battery life, GPS, and 5 ATM water resistance, but it’s important to note that you’ll be missing a microphone and speaker, Wi-Fi connectivity, and music storage.

Pros:

  • 12 sport modes
  • 5 ATM water resistance
  • Built-in GPS
  • Amazing battery life
  • Classic yet modern design

Cons:

  • No music storage
  • Lacks microphone
  • Lacks speaker
  • No Wi-Fi connectivity

Best for Fashion

Amazfit GTR

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  • $140 from Amazon
  • $130 from Best Buy
  • $140 from B&H

A truly beautiful watch

Don’t let your fashion sense take a backseat. The stylish Amazfit GTR offers GPS, 5 ATM water resistance, and 12 sport modes.

Best for Pro Athletes: Amazfit Stratos 3

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If you need all the fitness tracking and smartwatch features you can get, you’ll love the Stratos 3. This new-and-improved model comes in a giant 49mm case, which makes it one of the biggest in the Amazfit lineup. It comes in a sturdy stainless steel body combined with reinforced plastic, which keeps it light without the strap. The watch comes with a 22mm interchangeable silicone sports band that can handle all of your intense activities. You can use the touchscreen on the 1.34-inch transflective display to navigate your watch or you can use the four side buttons if you prefer.

The Stratos 3 gives you seven days of battery with typical usage. You also have three different GPS modes to choose from depending on what type of activity you’re doing and how long you need your battery to last. You’ll have 5 ATM water resistance, heart-rate monitoring, sleep tracking, music storage, and Wi-Fi connectivity.

There’s an unprecedented amount of sport modes on this watch — 80 to be exact. All of the basics are present, including walking, treadmill, trail running, cycling, and swimming. There are also more specific sport modes for serious athletes, like multisport, triathlon, football, rowing, tennis, climbing, and so on.

You’ll also be able to measure your fitness level, recovery time, and training load. It’s perfect for athletes who want to improve their performance. Some users might appreciate the generous size, but it may not be ideal for those with tiny wrists. Finally, the lack of app support is a bummer on a wearable of this magnitude. You won’t find an app store, but it does offer widget options, including a stopwatch, compass, alarm, and weather.

Pros:

  • 80 sport modes
  • Advanced GPS tracking
  • Music Storage
  • Wi-Fi connectivity
  • 7-day battery life

Cons:

  • Expensive
  • Lacks AMOLED display
  • Lack of app support
  • Pretty big

Best for Pro Athletes

Amazfit Stratos 3

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  • $200 from Amazon
  • $200 from Best Buy

Go the distance

Nothing can stop the Amazfit Stratos 3. You’ll have 80 sport modes, onboard GPS, music storage, and heart-rate monitoring.

Best for Adventurers: Amazfit T-Rex

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At nearly 48mm, the Amazfit T-Rex is a force to be reckoned with. The polymer watch body is available in a variety of colors, including black, green, and khaki. The 1.3-inch AMOLED display has a touchscreen for easy navigation. Keep in mind that the bands aren’t interchangeable on this smartwatch, but considering that this wearable is geared toward outdoor adventurers, you might be perfectly content with the silicone band that comes with it.

With typical use, you can expect this monster of a smartwatch to give you approximately 20 days of battery life. In continuous GPS mode, the battery life will last for 20 hours. If you go into basic watch mode for telling time and nothing else, you can extend the battery life by up to 66 days. It’s waterproof up to 50 meters, so getting your watch wet won’t be an issue. You can track your swims with it, too.

Speaking of tracking, most users will be happy with the health and activity features on the Amazfit T-Rex. You’ll have 14 sport modes, including indoor and outdoor cycling, treadmill running and trail running, walking, climbing, hiking, and skiing. You can track your route thanks to the built-in GPS. You’ll also be able to monitor your heart rate during your workouts. If most of your exercise takes place outdoors, you’ll appreciate having military-grade durability as it’s designed to handle extreme conditions.

Pros:

  • 14 sport modes
  • Built-in GPS
  • AMOLED display
  • Long battery life
  • Military-grade durability

Cons:

  • Might be too large for some wrists
  • Bands aren’t interchangeable

Best for Adventurers

Amazfit T-Rex

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  • $140 from Amazon
  • $140 from B&H
  • $140 from Amazfit

The mountains are calling

Hit the outdoors running with the T-Rex. It’s ideal for outdoor enthusiasts with 14 sports modes and military-grade durability.

Bottom line

Amazfit has a smartwatch for just about everyone. We recommend the Amazfit Verge for most people, however, due to all of its activity tracking and smartwatch features. It’s hard to pass up 12 sport modes, built-in GPS, music storage, sleep tracking, heart-rate monitoring, and Wi-Fi. You can even take calls right from your wrist thanks to the built-in microphone and speaker. The Verge also has Amazon-Alexa built-in, which rounds out the smartwatch experience.

The good news is that no matter what your preferences are, it’s more than likely that you can find an Amazfit smartwatch to meet them. Whether you’re a professional athlete looking to improve performance, a runner training for the next 5K, or a beginner who’s just getting started, there’s an Amazfit wearable made with you in mind.

Credits — The team that worked on this guide

Courtney Lynch is a freelance writer at Android Central. She’s obsessed with all things health, fitness, and music. At any given time she can be found checking out the latest and greatest gadgets while simultaneously petting her dog and sipping iced coffee.

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