Amazfit T-Rex 2 finally brings navigation skills to the affordable outdoor watch
Amazfit has officially unveiled the T-Rex 2, the third generation of its rugged, outdoor watch, which finally feels like a proper outdoor watch.
After the original T-Rex and the more durable T-Rex Pro, the T-Rex 2 is a watch built for adventuring and it’s added a pretty big feature in the shape of being able to import routes and follow them in real-time.
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It’s arguably the biggest feature the first two T-Rex watches lacked to truly consider it as an outdoor watch rival for the likes of the Garmin Instinct, Fenix and Polar Grit X. While it’s not getting the same level of navigation support as you’ll find on a top-end Garmin Fenix, it should be more useful helping you find your way around and getting back home.
Added navigation skills aside, the T-Rex 2 has apparently passed 15 military-grade durability tests and can operate in temperatures as low as -30°C and resist temperatures as low as -40°C and high as +70°C.
Design-wise, you’re getting four color options with a 1.39-inch, 454 x 454 AMOLED screen at the heart, which is a bigger and higher quality screen than the one packed on to the T-Rex and T-Rex Pro. It’s also one you can use in an always-on display mode.
There’s a 47mm case that measures in at 13.65mm thick and it weighs in heavier than its predecessor at 66g (with the strap). It’s partnered up with a 22mm silicone band with a classic buckle design to help it stay firmly in place.
In the sensor department, you’re getting the key motion sensors as well as a barometric altimeter for added outdoor data and now Amazfit is adding dual-band and 5 satellite positioning to improve outdoor tracking accuracy in more problematic signal areas. There’s also an optical sensor on board to track heart rate and blood oxygen levels and it also incorporates Amazfit’s one-tap measurement to additionally see stress and breathing rate data at a glance.
There’s over 158 sports modes covering core sports like running, cycling and swimming (pool and open water) along with outdoor pursuits like surfing, sailing, fishing and hunting. Amazfit is looking to improve indoor workout tracking here too offering automatic rep counting for 15 strength training movements along with the ability to build training plans and interval training sessions for runners too.
It’s including its Peakbeats training insights and the Zepp OS-powered watch offers access to a small collection of mini-apps with GoPro integration set to be added in an over the air update. You’ll also get features like notification support and music playback controls.
It offers all the same activity tracking features as its predecessor and that includes tracking steps and sleep, providing PAI Health scores, guided breathing exercises and menstrual cycle tracking. It can also send alerts for abnormally high and low heart rate and blood oxygen levels.
There’s improvements on the battery front with the T-Rex 2 offering 24 days in typical usage, which drops to 10 days in heavy usage and can jump to 45 days in a basic battery saver mode. For GPS battery, you’re getting 26 hours in the highest accuracy mode, 50 hours in a balanced GPS mode and 58 hours in a power saving GPS mode.
Pricing for the T-Rex 2 starts at $229.99, which is a jump from the $179.99 the T-Rex Pro cost. Granted, you’re getting some pretty significant new features here so it’s no major surprise, but that still puts it below outdoor watches from the likes of Garmin, Polar and Coros.
On paper, it sounds like it could be a great, affordable outdoor watch. We’ve got one in to test so we’ll be sure to let you know if Amazfit is onto a winner with the T-Rex 2.
