ZDNET’s key takeaways
- The Amazfit T-Rex 3 is out there now for simply $280 in a single measurement and one shade.
- The watch has an extended battery life, sturdy development, a vibrant show, AI components, and intensive well being and wellness performance.
- There isn’t a speaker for hands-free calls or headset-free audio, and the Zepp smartphone app remains to be overwhelming.
I began testing Amazfit smartwatches in 2018 and have been fairly pleased with the Steadiness I bought on the finish of 2023. In 2020, I rocked an Amazfit T-Rex and located that rugged line to suit my life-style and enormous wrists higher than smaller Amazfit watches. So, it has been nice to have a brand new T-Rex 3 strapped to my wrist for the previous three weeks.
Once I first heard concerning the alternative to check this watch, I wasn’t that excited as a result of I assumed it was simply going to be a bulkier Steadiness with out a lot enchantment to me. It seems that this watch is constructed for these of us with bigger wrists. Given my choice for large watches just like the Samsung Galaxy Watch Extremely and Apple Watch Extremely 2, it appeared like a great match. There was even point out of expanded AI performance and connectivity with exterior sensors, leaving me intrigued.
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The big 1.5-inch 480×480 pixels decision AMOLED Gorilla Glass show is sensible with as much as 2,000 nits of brightness, making watch faces with a lot of issues simple to view and work together with. I like that Amazfit added the power to allow evening mode, which modifications every part on the show to at least one shade.
Whereas virtually each different watch that helps this perform makes use of purple textual content, Amazfit helps you to select from purple, orange, or inexperienced. I have been having fun with the inexperienced gentle on this assessment unit.
The big capability 700 mAh battery is marketed as offering as much as 180 hours of steady GPS monitoring in max battery life mode and 42 hours with correct GPS mode. I am unable to, in fact, run for 180 hours straight.
I did, nevertheless, run with essentially the most correct GPS possibility and noticed about 3% to 4% battery loss per hour, so the 42-hour estimate appears pretty correct. In typical each day use with two to 3 brief runs per week, sleeping with the watch, some notifications enabled, and viewing wellness knowledge commonly, I solely charged the watch as soon as after the preliminary cost, and it lasted me three weeks.
GPS monitoring can also be spot on, with the Amazfit T-Rex 3 supporting dual-band GPS and 6 satellite tv for pc programs. I used the T-Rex 3 for operating, biking, strolling, and mountain climbing with different GPS sports activities watches to verify accuracy. A lot of my actions have been in closely wooded areas, with the T-Rex 3 buying a fast connection and monitoring virtually on the very same line as my flagship Garmin watches.
One shortfall within the new Samsung Galaxy Watch Extremely is its incapability to hook up with exterior sensors. That’s not an issue right here for the Amazfit T-Rex 3, which linked completely with my Coros HR monitor, Garmin chest strap, and Garmin pace/cadence sensors. The T-Rex 3 may also hook up with GoPro motion cameras, the Core physique temperature sensor, and extra.
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It appears one stand out characteristic of flagship watches is the power to help underwater sports activities, as seen within the Apple Watch Extremely and the Garmin Fenix 8. The Amazfit T-Rex 3 takes issues even additional, with numerous certifications that help freediving right down to a depth of 45 meters. Sorry people, I am not going to have the ability to check out this functionality.
Superior sports activities knowledge, together with operating energy, VO2 max, restoration time, coaching impact, and coaching load are all current on the T-Rex 3, which is a bit stunning given its $280 worth. The sleep monitoring is near different watches and is utilized by the built-in Zepp Circulation AI system and Zepp Coach system to tailor and replace your coaching plan.
The Zepp smartphone software is used to current the information captured by the watch, and there’s a lot of knowledge proven on a number of pages. The Zepp app has advanced through the years, but it surely continues to supply an exhaustive quantity of knowledge which will appear intimidating at first. I like to recommend taking the time to arrange the app to your preferences, after which letting Zepp Circulation and Coach streamline your expertise with sensible and actionable insights.
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The free Zepp Circulation utility is an correct and dependable AI assistant that’s particularly helpful on a watch just like the T-Rex 3. I have been utilizing it to ask well being and health associated questions on my efficiency and knowledge that the watch collected, as it’s quicker to make use of Zepp Circulation then undergo the assorted menus. I additionally prefer it for leaping proper right into a exercise.
Zepp Circulation was developed utilizing OpenAI’s GPT-4o and gives full management over your watch, so that you needn’t know precisely the place issues are buried within the watch UI. The Amazfit T-Rex 3 additionally helps an offline voice assistant for some primary capabilities, however I didn’t discover it that helpful.
The Zepp Coach AI chatbot can stroll you thru a collection of inquiries to optimize a coaching plan to satisfy your objectives and most well-liked method to coaching, beginning with choices to create a operating plan or a primary AI plan to enhance cardio health. The watch then screens your knowledge to offer steerage that can assist you cut back threat of fatigue and damage. This seems on the watch and within the Zepp app as insights and even prompts to go to the Zepp Aura chatbot. Zepp Aura gives some glorious, detailed solutions and steerage on numerous well being and wellness questions.
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You may as well mix the T-Rex 3 with an Amazfit Helio Ring should you do not wish to put on your watch to sleep. Sadly, the Helio Ring continues to underreport my sleeping coronary heart price by 10 bpm, so I have been sporting the T-Rex 3 for sleep monitoring.
I’ve additionally been utilizing the voice memo possibility since I usually have concepts once I run. The T-Rex 3 has a microphone for the voice assistant and voice memos, however there isn’t any speaker for hands-free calls or audio responses. You may reply to messages from a linked Android telephone together with your voice, however you can’t provoke any messages.
There’s a lot happening with the Amazfit T-Rex 3, however the battery life has been improbable, the AI coach, insights, and Zepp Circulation assistant have been helpful, and there’s a lot to love in a giant watch out there for simply $300.
ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation
With the T-Rex 3, Amazfit continues to impress due to an excellent massive show, sturdy supplies, highly effective sensors, and useful insights powered by AI. Having a smartwatch that lasts for weeks somewhat than days is a breath of contemporary air.
For those who like massive watches, might use some watch map steerage outside, and take the time to customise your expertise, then the T-Rex 3 could also be an ideal possibility in your subsequent journey.
