We also found both the touchscreen and the buttons (which include a rotating bevel, oddly similar to much of the Coros line) to be slightly inconsistent—functioning most of the time, but not always. And after only a few ocean swims (with the recommended fresh water flushing), we had some rough play in the rotating bevel, though it still worked. It was a similar story during a 5K race where average and maximum heart rate readings were well off the readings of a chest strap. Things did get better for steady-paced runs, so you can get some good data here and there.

But rewinding even further, some history first: Amazfit is a Chinese brand established in 2015 with very very limited presence in North America. Most of their smartwatches are a little more “lifestyle” focused. Think: cheaper Fitbit. It’s not unusual to find a sports watch at this price that can offer breadcrumb-style navigation or the ability to upload routes like you can on the Cheetah Pro. It is rare to also find the ability to sync and follow offline maps. If you care about continuously monitoring heart rate for more general well-being insights, the Cheetah Pro is much better equipped to do that. We wore it alongside a Garmin watch, which delivers very reliable continuous heart rate readings, and even during sleep, the data felt a lot more reliable in comparison. GPS accuracy As mentioned above, there is an absolute embarrassment of riches when it comes to functions, and while we’ll get into a few that are missing below, it’s tough to find something on your smartwatch wishlist that isn’t already built into the Cheetah Pro. Tri-important functions like open-water swim, triathlon mode, and multisport mode all work well enough for 95% of triathlete’s needs, and we found each customizable (enough) to present the data fields you’d want for most training or racing applications.We used it alongside the impressive multi-band mode on Garmin’s latest Forerunner watches and found the GPS performed well, but wasn't immaculate. There's significant wandering in the example above, but the distance came out correct in the end – so it's workable for those less fussy about their data.

When those maps are on, they’re certainly not the richly detailed maps you’ll find on watches like the Garmin Epix or even third-party Apple Watch apps, but it does offer you a little more detail to survey surroundings and get a better sensor of what’s around you. We’d say that with regular use of features like GPS and all of the advanced health monitoring features on offer, the Pro is good for a week with the capacity to go longer. It’s reminiscent of the level of battery performance you get from something like the Huawei Watch GT Runner. There are some additional battery-saver modes to boost things from anywhere to 24-45 days, but that does mean living a more primitive smartwatch life.Outside of those coaching features, there are some additional training metrics on offer. So you can see your VO2 Max estimates, get a sense of your training load, and will also use your workout history to recommend recovery time.

Finally, smaller things like no running with power (though it does have somewhat advanced running metrics like stride length and cadence), a very limited on-watch post-workout data screen (typically forcing you to use the Zepp app, which is actually very good), and intermittent issues with smartphone connectivity might not be make-or-break for the Cheetah Pro, but it does show that Amazfit isn’t 100% there when it comes to their sport-focused devices. Section divider Conclusions RELATED: The Best Triathlon Smartwatches of 2023, Reviewed Section divider Amazfit Cheetah Pro Review: The Basics Ultimately, there’s something very likable about the Cheetah Pro. It’s good to see Amazfit hasn’t entirely tried to copy what the competition is doing and the result is a watch that looks good, feels comfortable to wear for long periods and doesn’t feel like you’re getting short-changed overall in the design department. Battery life Now, not everything is executed perfectly (or even well), but there are literally so many sports and everyday “lifestyle” features on this watch—with limited documentation and iffy on-watch navigation—it’s actually difficult to find or use them all. Read on for what actually works and what doesn’t. Section divider Amazfit Cheetah Pro Review: The Good

On paper, the Cheetah Pro is Amazfit’s most complete offering, but does the AMOLED-screened, multi-band GPS watch deliver on its promises?

As such, their limited traction in the U.S., coupled with limited interest in endurance sports—especially triathlon, with open-water swim/tri/multisport/etc. features—means it probably isn’t on a lot of triathletes’ radars. But with the release of the mostly capable Cheetah Pro, Amazfit is worth another look (with a few caveats, below). Unlike the Cheetah, the Cheetah Pro only comes in a round-case option. That’s a 47mm-sized case, so you can expect something similar in stature to a watch like the Garmin Forerunner 965. It’s a polymer case with a titanium alloy bezel surrounding a 1.45-inch, 480x480 resolution AMOLED and that is a screen you can keep on 24/7.