Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro review: designed for adventurists

There’s an increasing demand for durable, long-lasting wearables for outdoor activities. With advancements in GPS and health tracking technologies, Amazfit’s T-Rex 3 Pro positions itself within these trends compared to other players in the industry. The Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro is the third smartwatch from the brand that has landed on our desk for review in less than a month. Before this, we tested the Amazfit Helio Strap (review), an affordable, distraction-free fitness band with no display, and the Balance 2 (review), aimed at users who value style and lifestyle features in equal measure.

The Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro, on the other hand, is built for adventurists who’d rather conquer trails than treadmills. Priced at Rs 34,999, I have been using the watch for quite some time now, and here is my review.

Table of Contents

Rugged from every corner

The Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro delivers ruggedness not just in looks but also in build quality. This wearable opts for a bulky, muscular design rather than the sleek profile seen on some premium smartwatches, and it’s noticeably heavier at 52 grams. That added weight likely comes from its military-grade construction and the use of grade 5 titanium for the buttons and bezels, materials chosen to withstand damage and dents during demanding outdoor or adventurous activities.

While the Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro may not break easily, its paint isn’t quite as durable, especially around the corners. On my review unit in Tactile Black (there’s also a Black Gold variant, which looks a bit flashier in my opinion), I’ve already noticed a slight chip on the left bezel of the display, and that’s without dropping the watch or exposing it to extreme conditions.

To keep water and dust at bay, the T-Rex 3 Pro has a 10ATM rating, making it suitable for swimming and underwater activities, but not beyond 100 meters in depth. The bundled silicone straps are equally supportive of the watch’s ruggedness while being soft and comfortable to wear. That said, my usual gripe with silicone straps remains: sweat tends to accumulate underneath, causing mild itchiness until wiped away. Still, I don’t mind it as much here since this isn’t a smartwatch meant for everyday wear, and you’ll likely take it off after a while to give your wrist a breather.

The straps feature quick-release pins, allowing you to swap them out for others of a similar size. However, it is not as easy as it sounds. The pins sit recessed within the strap and are only accessible with a slender fingernail or a tool.

How comfortable is the Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro?

The Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro is reasonably comfortable to wear for what it is designed for, such as cycling, workouts, and other adventure-focused activities. Despite its weight, the watch doesn’t feel overly burdensome in such use cases. However, runners and casual users may not find it as comfortable.

The heft became immediately noticeable during my treadmill runs, where the wrist wearing the watch felt distinctly heavier than the other. I also found myself taking it off after two to three hours to give my wrist a break, and I hesitated to wear it overnight for sleep tracking. That said, you might get used to the weight after a few nights once the initial discomfort fades.

Bright but smudgy display

The Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro is available in two dial sizes: 44mm and 48mm. The smaller variant sports a 1.35-inch AMOLED display, while the 48mm model we received for review features a larger 1.5-inch AMOLED panel. The display is protected by sapphire glass and delivers up to 3,000 nits of peak brightness, making it scratch-resistant and easily readable even in harsh outdoor conditions.

However, the glass is quite prone to smudges, which dull the colours and reduce overall visibility. No matter how often you wipe it, fingerprints return almost immediately. An oleophobic coating could have reduced the smudging issue. Alternatively, users might consider applying a third-party tempered glass protector with an oleophobic layer (if one becomes available for the T-Rex 3 Pro) to help keep the display clean.

Be that as it may, Amazfit tells us that the decision to omit the oleophobic coating was made to ensure the display remains accessible even with gloves.

Amaz(ing) battery life

I have reviewed a handful of Amazfit smartwatches now, and one thing that has always amazed me is their impressive battery life. They have always stood true to their claimed value. With the Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro, it is no different. The 48mm case packs a 700mAh battery, almost as big as a feature phone, and is rated to last up to 25 days on regular usage, 38 hours with accurate GPS mode, and 85 hours with GPS long-battery life mode.

I’ve tested the T-Rex 3 Pro under various conditions, with and without GPS, LED light usage, hour-long daily workouts, active notifications, and continuous vital tracking, and it consistently lasted around 14 days on a single charge. That’s impressive endurance, especially considering many premium smartwatches struggle to last even a whole day under similar usage patterns.

Charging the watch is equally convenient. Amazfit includes a magnetic charging dock in the box, which snaps neatly onto the back of the watch and connects via any USB Type-C cable – though the cable itself isn’t provided. That shouldn’t be much of a concern, as Type-C cables have become a household staple, with most modern smartphones, wearables, and audio accessories now using the same standard.

I’ve said this before in my Amazfit Balance 2 review, and I’ll say it again – Amazfit’s charging solution is far more convenient than the proprietary cable-based ones, which often end up tangled with the rest of your wires in a backpack/ drawer. The charger can juice up the T-Rex 3 Pro from 15 percent to 100 percent in roughly two hours.

Reliable & trusted fitness companion

When it comes to health tracking, the Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro performs identically to its siblings, the Helio Strap and Balance 2. It uses the company’s latest BioTracker 6.0 PPG biometric sensor, rated to deliver accurate readings for heart rate, sleep quality, stress, and blood oxygen levels. In my experience, the smartwatch performed fairly accurately, if not with absolute precision. Sleep tracking tended to be slightly off, and I noticed the occasional ghost step.

That said, since the watch isn’t intended for medical diagnostics, these minor inconsistencies are forgivable. For everyday fitness insights, the data remains reliable and consistent enough to be trusted. All readings are synced to the Zepp Aura companion app, which allows users to view comparative trends across days, weeks, and months. The app is available for both Android and iOS devices, and I’ve shared a detailed account of my experience with it in my Amazfit Balance 2 review.

To sum it up for you, the app has a learning curve but is intuitive, and it offers a premium plan with a 14-day free trial. Priced at Rs 1,299 per year, the plan provides in-depth sleep analysis, identifies potential risks such as sleep apnoea, insomnia, and restless leg syndrome (RLS), and offers tailored suggestions for improvement. In essence, if sleep quality is a concern, the premium plan is well worth considering.

When paired with an Android device, the watch can respond to messages via the on-screen keyboard, which offers a decent typing experience. For short replies, the watch offers automated responses that can be handy when you are occupied and can’t reach your smartphone.

The Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro supports over 180 sports modes, including strength training and HYROX. I used the strength training to track my regular gym sessions, and for the most part, it performed reliably, accurately identifying the primary and secondary muscle groups engaged during each workout. However, on leg days, the tracking wasn’t quite as precise.

My other qualm with the training mode is that users have to manually start and end each set for every exercise, which is easy to forget mid-workout. I would have preferred if the watch could automatically detect rest intervals to mark set transitions more intuitively. Still, this isn’t a deal-breaker, especially considering that even pricier smartwatches, such as the Garmin Forerunner 570, require similar manual input.

Additional features

The Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro features a dual-band GPS, similar to what we saw on the Balance 2. However, it goes a step further by supporting offline maps, turn-by-turn navigation, round-trip routes, auto rerouting, and even ski routing – all useful tools for those who enjoy cycling, trekking, hiking, and, needless to say, skiing. Unfortunately, the watch lacks eSIM support, which feels like a missed opportunity for a smartwatch aimed at adventurists. As a result, users will need to stay connected to their smartphones during the initial offline map and route setup.

Once set up, the watch quickly locks onto the wearer’s location and delivers impressively accurate tracking. In my tests, its GPS readings matched my smartphone’s data almost perfectly. More notably, it didn’t drift towards nearby trees or buildings in the same area where the Garmin Forerunner 570 occasionally did.

In case users find themselves off-route or in an unfamiliar location, the Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro includes a built-in LED light on the top edge for emergencies. Accessible with a swipe down in the quick settings menu, the light offers adjustable brightness to help in dark environments and a red flashing mode for signalling danger or calling attention during emergencies. It’s a thoughtful addition for outdoor enthusiasts, although it’s worth noting that prolonged use can drain the battery noticeably – so it’s best reserved for when you truly need it.

Familiar UI & decent speakers

The Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro runs on Zepp OS, the brand’s proprietary operating system shared across its smartwatch lineup. While it isn’t the most dynamic or customisable platform out there, it remains user-friendly and responsive, offering quick access to apps and multi-screen layouts through intuitive swipes and physical button controls along the edges. The Zepp OS also pushes out a morning report based on your previous day’s activities and sleep to help you prepare for the following day.

I haven’t found it as convincing as the daily reports of the Garmin Forerunner 570, which even sends an evening report. Unlike the Garmin smartwatch, the Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro is also not consistent with its reports. There were days when the wearable didn’t share the reports at all or appeared late in the day.

The mono speaker on the Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro delivers decent output, clear enough for quick calls, though not ideal for longer conversations, especially in noisier settings. The microphones perform well too, capturing voice clearly for calls and interactions with the built-in Zepp Flow voice assistant. The assistant can execute commands smoothly and even follow up with contextual questions, as long as the connected smartphone with an active internet connection is within range.

Verdict

At Rs 34,999, the Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro isn’t affordable by any means, but it is relatively cheaper than some premium rugged smartwatches out there, such as the Apple Watch Ultra 3. The Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro is a smartwatch designed for outdoor enthusiasts, such as hikers, cyclists, and explorers who prioritise durability and reliability over sleekness and style. It’s built like a tank, packs a host of adventure-ready tools including offline maps and LED lighting, and lasts nearly two weeks on a single charge.

These parameters contribute to the smartwatch’s added bulk and weight, making it less ideal for casual users or those seeking an all-day lifestyle watch. Moreover, the smudge-prone display and slightly inconsistent morning reports don’t help its case either. And while the dual-band GPS and offline navigation are fantastic, the absence of eSIM support feels like a missed opportunity for a watch designed to thrive independently in the wild.

If you are seeking a highly durable smartwatch that doesn’t burn a huge hole in your pocket, the Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro is worth buying. But if you’re mostly desk-bound or prefer something sleeker for daily wear, Amazfit’s Balance 2 or other lightweight models might be a better fit.

Editor’s rating: 7.5/10

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