Amazfit T-Rex Ultra GPS Smartwatch Review

Last spring, in the event you advised me I’d quickly be excited over a watch named after a theropod, I’d have referred to as you a liar. But a curious factor occurred in June of 2022 when a GPS-enabled fossil confirmed up within the mail. (No, not that sort of Fossil.)

I’m speaking concerning the Amazfit T-Rex 2, probably the most versatile and succesful journey watches within the sub-$400 panorama. And the most recent of those is the Amazfit T-Rex Ultra ($399).

 “With features like a stainless steel and mud-resistant design, 30 m freediving support, dual-band GPS and route navigation, ultra-low temperature operation, and 20-day battery life, this smartwatch is the ultimate tool for outdoor enthusiasts,” the model claims.

You had me at “mud-resistant,” dino fam. Join me as I cowl per week’s price of testing with this metal-clad GPS smartwatch provided (full disclosure) by Amazfit.  

In brief: The Amazfit T-Rex Ultra ($399) is a worthy improve to one among my favourite smartwatches of final summer time. While the change to a 316L metal case provides weight to the general bundle, the sensation of stability and high quality is an ideal match for the watch’s aesthetic. Battery life dips barely, however the addition of offline map downloads and new adventure-focused exercise modes goes a great distance towards making the Ultra precisely that.

Amazfit T-Rex Ultra GPS Smart Watch Review

T-Rex Ultra vs. T-Rex 2

Let’s begin with what hasn’t modified. Both fashions use the identical 454 x 454-pixel AMOLED display screen, protecting 1.39 inches with its “glass material” crystal. GPS employs a “dual-band and six satellite positioning system,” and the optical sensor is similar BioTracker 3.0 PPG.

But Amazfit added a number of excessive sports activities modes to the Ultra’s quiver, together with free diving and sky diving. For extra earthbound adventures, the corporate upgraded the mud resistance of its {hardware}, together with the change to a 316L stainless-steel case.

There’s additionally a brand new slate of offline performance. Per the advertising copy, “With the Amazfit T-Rex Ultra, you can now search for and download a matching Offline Map of your planned activity area from the Zepp App and match it with your imported route for even better understanding of your surroundings.”

There’s one other refined contact right here that deserves to be talked about: Amazfit’s new methodology of attaching the silicone strap (which, by the way in which, is sort of snug). The hinged twin lugs are a deal with, permitting the watch to put flat in your desk or bedside desk. This is one thing the T-Rex 2 couldn’t do.

Battery and Weight: It’s Complicated

Another factor the Ultra provides is weight: 89 g with out the strap versus 66.5 g for the T-Rex 2, strap included.

But actually, I’m counting this as a constructive. The metallic case feels way more substantial, and the distinction is instantly recognizable. Note that it says “with” stainless, not “all stainless.” The body consists of “polymer alloy,” however for essentially the most half, metal is the medium of selection.

Still, there’s one drop price mentioning, and that’s the battery life. While the earlier mannequin was rated for twenty-four days of typical utilization (or 10 days for heavy use; 45 with Battery Saver), the Ultra’s ranking dips to twenty days of typical (with 9 of heavy use; 25 days in Battery Saver).

This is a bit perplexing, because the Ultra really surpasses the T-Rex 2’s battery life when utilizing sure GPS settings. For occasion, Accuracy Mode on the brand new mannequin raises the Ultra’s estimated life to twenty-eight hours versus 26 hours for the T-Rex 2.

There’s additionally a brand new “Endurance GPS Mode” with a projected lifespan of 80 hours, which nicely exceeds the 58-hour mark of its predecessor. It seems that, by placing its batteries within the go-hard journey basket, Amazfit has misplaced only a hair of its day-to-day endurance.

Operating System: Zepp 2.0

A word concerning the OS — whereas Zepp will not be fairly as intuitive as its bigger-name competitors, it’s a stable, useful platform. The Ultra upgrades to Zepp OS 2.0, which options refined enhancements from the unique.

It’s a bit onerous to elucidate, however every little thing feels smoother, brighter, and extra polished. Even water splashes (which used to require that I lock the controls within the bathe) appear to be much less of an issue with out decreasing the tactile response of the display screen.

Testing the Big Claims

Amazfit locations a excessive emphasis on the cold-blooded nature of the T-Rex Ultra. “Outlast the Ice Age,” the web site reads, with a “specially designed circuitry system and battery” good for temperatures as chilly as -40 levels Celcius.

As such, an in a single day keep within the freezing rain didn’t part the watch one bit. Nor did the scalding sizzling bathtub it was thrust into throughout the morning to check its resilience to thermal shocks.

Moving onto a distinct sort of shock, my influence testing started with a toss from a second-story window. But the snowbank it landed in appeared too tender to attract any actual conclusions. Next got here the pavement, with a repeated sequence of lobs and retrievals. Then, I observed a pleasant patch of mud close to the facet of the street.

Yeah, that’s the stuff. Amazfit boasts concerning the Ultra’s “Mud-resistant Hardware,” and the watch lived as much as the billing. But who is aware of what squirrels or canines may need accomplished with mentioned mud?

There was just one means to make sure the watch obtained clear — into the washer it went. After a full wash, rinse, and spin, the Ultra confirmed zero unwell results.

Conclusion: Amazfit T-Rex Ultra GPS Smart Watch Review

You may discover an absence of adverse suggestions right here. A small discount in battery life, just a few grams of further weight and, nicely, that’s roughly it. As a smart-watch skeptic, I anticipated to seek out extra to complain about.

If the T-Rex 2 made me a believer, the Ultra has made me an fanatic. I’m typically eager to get again to my easy analog timepieces as soon as the evaluate of a wrist-computer is full.

But on this case, I genuinely stay up for strapping on this Amazfit when it’s time to hit the fitness center, the street, or the path. From its rugged functionality and interface to its snug, well-considered design, the T-Rex Ultra, you may say, earns its bones.