The third generation of Huami’s Amazfit Stratos 3 is definitely an upgrade from its predecessors in terms of functionality and style. For instance, they have used higher quality materials and added some great features. As a result of these improvements, we get a mix of fitness tracking and fashion.
The Amazfit Stratos 3 was released alongside a variety of other smartwatches by Huami. But, this was specifically realized to cater to the various requirements of wearable tech users and enthusiasts. Additionally, the road also includes Amazfit GTR, Amazfit GTS, Amazfit Nexo, Amazfit Verge Lite and Amazfit BIP Lite.
Specifically, the Stratos was introduced as a competitor to full-function sports watches by industry leaders like Garmin during a very similar shell. So, with the design and feel of a higher-end smartwatch, does it live up to its claims?
Additional Reading: Which is better: Fitbit Charge 5 or Samsung Galaxy Watch 4?
Features
- 1.3? full round always-on LCD
- Provides smartwatch functionality like receiving calls, alerts and notifications
- 19 sports modes and analytics are available
- Water-resistant
- 14-day battery life
- Standalone music player
- 4 GB storage capacity
- In-built atmospheric pressure sensor for altitude calculation
- Tracks pulse and sleep
- Continuous GPS tracking
Appearance and style
Firstly, the Amazfit Stratos 3 looks almost like its predecessor when it comes to its 1.34 inch, round dial body, which is more robust now because of Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protecting the screen. Secondly, the OLED is replaced by a full-of-the-moon display, an always-on low-power color panel that permits greater visibility in various lights without draining the battery unduly. Additionally, it’s a decent display resolution of 320×320 pixels that delivers vivid colors and clarity.
As well as that, its body is formed from stainless steel, the bezel is zirconia ceramic and therefore the bottom casing is plastic. Thus this provides the sturdiness required without weighing down the smartwatch and gives it a luxury look. Finally, the silicone strap may be a standard 22mm and can be replaced if needed.
This watch also has four buttons on the exterior which enables the user to perform certain functions without ever having to touch the screen.
Battery
A typical charge will depend upon your usage, but you ought to get around seven days on the default Smart mode, which provides full functionality. One can get 14 days of uninterrupted use using Ultra Mode. In fact, with a 300 mAh Li-Ion Polymer battery and magnetic charging support, you can fast charge the watch to its full capacity within two hours.
Functionality
When it involves performance, the Stratos 3 provides both fitness tracking and smartwatch capabilities.
Additional Reading: Best Stress Monitor Apps for Apple Watch
GPS Tracking
This watch provides up to 70 hours of continuous GPS tracking. However, it depends on what you’re monitoring – are often saved within the watch, providing accurate data to gauge your running, walking, hiking or swimming sessions.
Multiple Sports Modes
Also, Huami has increased the amount of sports modes available from 11 to 19 activities with rich analytics backing each.
- Running
- Treadmill
- Indoor Cycle
- Outdoor Cycle
- Trail Run
- Jump Rope
- Walk
- Elliptical
- Pool swim
- Open Water
- Hike
- Triathlon
- Tennis
- Ski
- Football
- Multisport
- Rower
- Fitness
Additionally, its Firstbeat algorithm allows you to look at sport-respective data. This helps the user to understand their current fitness potential and allows them to chart a path towards their goals.
Bio-tracker
Of course, no sports watch is complete without pulse monitoring. The Stratos 3 is equipped with a top of the line BioTracker sensor to give readings. You could set the watch to continuously manage your heart rate and notify you in case of an excessively high reading or interval value.
Additional Reading: HP vs. Lenovo Laptops
Standalone Music Player
Furthermore, the Huami is one among the few fitness trackers that come with its music player, enabling you to fill your workouts with your music without a smartphone. Additionally, you could use its built-in Bluetooth with a pair of headphones to enjoy tunes on the go. The watch comes with 4GB of storage, giving you plenty of space to fill with your favorite playlists.
Swim Proof
Not only is this watch water resistant to a depth of fifty meters, the smartwatch can even be used to track your swim sessions or rainy runs. Additionally, it uses GPS to accurately gauge your swimming position and analyze data like your pace, SWOLF and calorie consumption.
Advanced Performance Analytics
Besides fitness tracking, the watch comes with a companion app which uses age, height and weight data to supply analytics for your daily activities and performance. It should be noted it also relays the info through a well-designed UI packed with numbers and graphs to make it understandable. Additionally, it displays your GPS tracking route, pulse figures and sleep pattern.
Besides this, you will also use the app to customize the watch face with up to 100+ different options or set your wallpaper.
Notifications
As a smartwatch, it shows notifications from major apps while receiving call and message alerts. Unfortunately, there’s no built-in mic or speaker so you cannot respond to calls. Notification details are often viewed by swiping down, but you will need your phone and its keyboard to reply.
Lastly, the Amazfit Stratos 3 supports both Android and iOS.
Main Advantages
- Premium design with always-on display
- Long battery life
- Tracks up to 19 physical activities
- Onboard music functionality with 4GB storage available
- GPS tracking
- Waterproof
- Can receive calls, emails and texts
- Sleep analysis
Main Disadvantages
- No NFC payment option
- No microphone or speaker
Additional Reading: Best Always-On Display Smartwatches
Summary
Overall, Amazfit Stratos 3 is full of features for tracking your fitness activities while providing comprehensive data against your personalized profile. It comes with on-device storage and playback allowing you to specialize in your activities while providing fairly accurate GPS tracking to help you train efficiently. You can track your efforts across 19 different fitness activities with accompanying analytics to help you review your performance and goals.
