The third generation of Huami’s Amazfit Stratos 3 is certainly an upgrade from its predecessors in terms of functionality and design. By using higher quality materials and adding some popular features, the improvements blend a robust fitness tracking framework with a fashion-forward smartwatch.
The Amazfit Stratos 3 was released – with a whole selection of other smartwatches by Huami – to cater to the different requirements of wearable tech users and enthusiasts. The line also includes Amazfit GTR, Amazfit GTS, Amazfit Nexo, Amazfit Verge Lite and Amazfit BIP Lite.
The Stratos was introduced as a competitor to full-function sports watches by industry leaders like Garmin in a very similar shell. With the look and feel of a higher end smartwatch, does it live up to its claims?
Features
| 1.3″ full round always-on LCD display | Standalone music player |
| Provides smartwatch functionality including receiving calls, alerts and notifications | 4 GB storage capacity |
| 19 sports modes and analytics available | In-built air pressure sensor for altitude calculation |
| Water resistant | Tracks heart rate and sleep |
| 14 day battery life | Continuous GPS tracking |
Appearance and Design
The Amazfit Stratos 3 looks similar to its predecessor when it comes to its 1.34 inch, round dial body, which is more robust now thanks to Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protecting the screen. The OLED is replaced by a Full Moon display, an always-on low-power colour panel that allows for greater visibility in various light without draining on the battery unduly. Additionally, it has a decent display resolution of 320×320 pixels that deliver vivid colours and clarity.
Its body is made from stainless steel, the bezel is zirconia ceramic and the bottom casing is plastic. This provides the durability required without weighing down the smartwatch and gives it a luxury look. The silicone strap is a standard 22mm and can be replaced if needed.
There are four physical buttons on its exterior allowing you to quickly perform certain functions without touching the screen.
Battery
A typical charge will depend on your usage, but you should get around seven days on the default Smart mode, which provides full functionality. Stripping down some elements by using the Ultra mode allows 14 days of uninterrupted use.
With 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 comes to performance, the Stratos 3 provides both fitness tracking and smartwatch capabilities. Its features include:
GPS Tracking
Up to 70 hours of continuous GPS tracking – it depends on what you’re monitoring – can be saved within the watch, providing accurate data to evaluate your running, walking, hiking or swimming sessions.
Multiple Sports Modes
Huami has increased the number of sports modes available from 11 to 19 activities with rich analytics backing each. They include:
| Running | Indoor Cycle |
| Treadmill | Jump Rope |
| Trail Run | Pool Swim |
| Walk | Open Water |
| Elliptical | Hike |
| Tennis | Triathalon |
| Ski | Multisport |
| Football | Rower |
| Outdoor Cycle | Fitness |
Additionally, its Firstbeat algorithm allows you to view sport-respective data in order to help understand your current fitness potential and allow you to chart a path towards your goals.
BioTracker
No sports watch is complete without heart rate monitoring and the Stratos 3 is equipped with Huami’s proprietary BioTracker sensor to give readings. You can set the watch to continuously manage your heart rate and notify you in case of an excessively high reading or interval value.
Standalone Music Player
The Huami is one of the few fitness trackers come with its own music player enabling you to fill your workouts with your own music without a smartphone. You can 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 favourite playlists.
Swim Proof
With water resistance to a depth of 50 meters, the smartwatch can be used to track your swim sessions or rainy runs. It additionally uses GPS to accurately gauge your swimming position and analyse data like your pace, SWOLF and calorie consumption.
Advanced Performance Analytics
The watch comes with a companion app which uses age, height and weight data to provide analytics for your daily activities and performance. It relays the data through a well-designed UI packed with numbers and graphs to make it understandable. Additionally, it displays your GPS tracking route, heart rate figures and sleep pattern.
You can also use the app to customize the watch face with up to 100+ different options or set your own personal wallpaper.
Notifications
As a smartwatch, it show notifications from major apps while receiving call and message alerts. Unfortunately, there is no built-in mic or speaker so you can’t respond to calls. Notification details can be viewed by swiping down, but you will need your phone and its keyboard in order to reply back.
Lastly, the Amazfit Stratos 3 currently supports Android 5.0 and IOS 10.0 or above.
| Main Advantages | Main Disadvantages |
| Premium design with always-on display | No NFC payment option |
| Long battery life | No microphone or speaker |
| Tracks up to 19 physical activities | |
| Onboard music functionality with 4GB storage available | |
| GPS tracking | |
| Waterproof | |
| Can receive calls, emails and texts | |
| Sleep analysis |
Summary
Overall, Amazfit Stratos 3 is packed with features for tracking your fitness activities while providing a comprehensive data against your personalized profile. It comes with on-device storage and playback allowing you to focus on your activities while providing fairly accurate GPS tracking to help you train efficiently. You’ll be able to track your efforts across 19 different fitness activities with accompanying analytics to help you review your performance and goals.
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