Amazfit T-Rex review: This affordable rugged smartwatch is a real looker

The Amazfit T-Rex has its own set of limitations, but with its utilitarian design, military-grade durability, and a long battery life, T-Rex is a great value for money at this price.

Amazfit T-Rex is Huami's first offering in the rugged smartwatch segment. Priced in the sub-10,000 range (Rs 9,999 to be exact), the T-Rex's price is clearly a talking point, but the smartwatch has also been touted for, as the name suggests, its robustness. It is available in four colours -- Rock Black, Army Green, Camo Green, and Khaki. We reviewed a rock black unit, and this is our impression of the T-Rex:

Design

The Amazfit T-Rex is a beautifully crafted smartwatch with an old-school round dial. It is a bit bulky (13.5 mm thickness), and has pronounced bezel, but it is deceptively light at 58 g since most of the material is polymer. Moreover, the makers have also used the raised bezel for a few metal screws and some fine detailing work which, combined with the distinct angles and strong texture, give the T-Rex a solid look. The four etched metallic buttons (two on either side) are fairly responsive.

Like most of the smartwatches nowadays, T-Rex features a 5ATM waterproofing system. But, the T-Rex, being a rugged smartwatch, is more robust and comes with 12 military certifications for resistance to harsh environments. The company claims that the smartwatch can withstand heat, cold, humidity and salt spray resistance, although it does put out a warning saying that prolonged exposure to such circumstances is not recommended.

Display

The Amazfit T-Rex sports a 1.3-inch AMOLED touch screen with 360 x 360-pixel colour display that offers vibrant colours, although the brightness can get a bit iffy outdoors. The screen is protected by the Gorilla Glass 3 and anti-fingerprint coating. The wrist raise function works with an ever-so-slight lag. There aren't many watch face choices by default but one can always access more choices from the accompanying app. The watch comes with an always-on display option, but at the risk of a reduced battery life.