Amazfit T-Rex Ultra 2

We tested the Amazfit T-Rex Ultra 2 over several months, using it primarily in the outdoor sports we know best: trail running, triathlon, hiking, swimming, road cycling and mountain biking.

It is difficult to deliver a simple, definitive verdict on a product as sophisticated as a modern GPS sports watch. Ultimately, any opinion depends on how you intend to use it, your personal preferences when it comes to technology, and, above all, the balance between price and performance. Comparisons should therefore be made between products in the same category.

The Amazfit T-Rex Ultra 2 is competitively priced—surprisingly so when compared with some premium competitors. It retails at €549.90, whereas a Garmin Fenix 8 costs around €1,100. Are their capabilities comparable? How does the T-Rex Ultra 2 measure up against other flagship outdoor watches? We set out to answer those questions through months of real-world testing in the sports practised by our reviewers.

The first thing you notice is its size. This is a substantial watch, weighing 93 grams on our scale. When running or swimming, you are always aware of its presence on your wrist. The reward for those extra grams is a superb 1.5-inch AMOLED display that is exceptionally easy to read. Resolution is excellent and the screen can display a large amount of information in a well-organised layout. Viewing angles and changing light conditions are of little concern—the T-Rex Ultra 2 remains perfectly legible in virtually every situation. Even users with less-than-perfect close-up vision, or those wearing reading glasses, can comfortably read notifications directly on the display, something that cannot always be said of smaller sports watches. After receiving the Amazfit T-Rex Ultra 2, we even found ourselves putting aside our trusted Suunto, partly because of the excitement of trying something new, but also because of its practicality.

The styling is unmistakably adventure-oriented and inevitably recalls the era of the legendary Raid Gauloises, not to mention a certain rugged Casio aesthetic. Its imposing appearance comes largely from the protective bezel surrounding the sapphire crystal. Rather than exposing the glass to impacts, this robust structure absorbs friction against rocks during mountaineering or scrambling. We know how valuable such protection can be: one of our Suunto watches was badly damaged after a fall because it lacked this type of protective bezel. On the Amazfit T-Rex Ultra 2, this external protection is a genuine advantage, particularly as it can potentially be replaced if necessary.

The silicone strap is comfortable, secure and easy to adjust. Four physical buttons provide access to the watch’s menus, while charging is handled through a compact magnetic dock that is particularly convenient for travelling. A USB-C cable is not supplied. Initial setup is straightforward: simply install the Zepp smartphone app, pair the watch and you’re ready to go.

One of the T-Rex Ultra 2’s greatest strengths quickly becomes apparent: battery life. Amazfit claims up to 30 days of typical use and as much as 50 hours in full-accuracy GPS mode. In practice, that is more than enough for an ultramarathon, an Ironman or virtually any long-distance outdoor adventure. Some competing watches offer over 100 hours of GPS operation, but often at the expense of display quality or positioning accuracy. For multi-day expeditions, carrying a power bank still makes sense, but for the vast majority of outdoor activities the battery life is simply not something you have to think about.

Navigation and ergonomics are generally intuitive, although some menus and advanced settings require a little familiarisation. One feature we particularly enjoyed is the voice assistant, activated with a long press of the upper-right button. It works remarkably well. Asking the watch to adjust its brightness, for example, produces an immediate response. It is also possible to dictate replies to text messages instead of typing them on the small on-screen AZERTY keyboard, which is considerably more practical. The built-in flashlight also proved surprisingly useful during everyday use.

Once you begin exploring the watch’s outdoor capabilities, it becomes clear that there is nothing especially revolutionary, but almost everything works extremely well. A few areas could still benefit from future software updates. During our triathlon testing, for example, we found the management of transitions between swimming, cycling and running less intuitive than expected. We also missed an equivalent to Suunto’s Heatmaps, which display the routes most frequently used by other athletes. When calculating routes, the watch often favours larger roads over smaller trails, although it does provide clear off-course alerts whenever you stray from your planned route.

The large display is another major advantage, allowing maps to remain readable without constant zooming. Pressing and holding any point on the map automatically generates a genuine navigable route rather than simply drawing a straight line to the destination. Colour topographic maps can easily be downloaded through the companion app, while the watch offers no fewer than 187 sport profiles, including HYROX.

As mountain athletes, one of our favourite features is ClimbPro, which displays upcoming climbs complete with gradients, remaining elevation gain and distance to the summit. For us, this kind of practical information is far more useful than many of today’s fashionable health metrics. That said, the heart-rate sensor also proved valuable on one occasion when monitoring an injured person before emergency medical services arrived.

Storm Alert is another feature we came to appreciate in the mountains. By monitoring changes in atmospheric pressure, it provides early warning of approaching storms and sudden weather changes. While this functionality is now common on premium outdoor watches, it performed reliably throughout our testing. We were unable to evaluate the high-altitude blood oxygen monitoring feature in genuine alpine conditions, although it could prove valuable in detecting symptoms associated with altitude sickness.

Another particularly useful function automatically generates loop routes when running in unfamiliar areas. Simply specify your desired outing duration or distance, and the watch creates a circular route that brings you back to your starting point. It is an elegant solution that helps avoid unexpectedly long adventures ending with a tedious retracing of your steps. Trails are clearly identified on the maps using brown dashed lines.

Like most premium outdoor watches, the Amazfit T-Rex Ultra 2 provides turn-by-turn voice navigation. Routes can be created directly on the watch, either as loops or point-to-point destinations, a capability still missing from many competing products. During navigation, users can also save GPS coordinates or activate the familiar Back to Start function.

We encountered mixed opinions online regarding GPS accuracy, but our own experience was consistently positive. Comparing recorded tracks with those from a Suunto watch revealed no meaningful differences. The watch supports six satellite positioning systems and its circular GPS antenna delivers rapid satellite acquisition together with consistently accurate tracking. Heart-rate measurements also proved reliable. Even beneath dense forest canopy, satellite lock occasionally takes a little longer, but never enough to become an issue in real-world use.

Connectivity is comprehensive. The T-Rex Ultra 2 supports external heart-rate straps, running and cycling power meters, as well as Bluetooth headphones. It records an impressive range of training metrics including ground contact time, stride length, pace, running power, lactate threshold, calories burned and recovery time. Earlier swimming-related software issues have now been resolved, with swimming cadence and SWOLF data accurately recorded.

Athletes looking for a highly specialised training tool may find the Amazfit T-Rex Ultra 2 slightly too general-purpose in both its menus and its overall philosophy. Yet that versatility is precisely what makes it so appealing. Designed to handle an exceptionally wide variety of outdoor sports and everyday adventures, it combines excellent battery life, robust construction, effective navigation tools and convincing performance at a price that undercuts many flagship competitors. For its outstanding balance of features and value, the Amazfit T-Rex Ultra 2 comfortably earns our Hot Deal Award.

Price : 549,90