I can’t seem to commit to a smartwatch, pretty much the same way that I can’t seem to commit to my health resolutions. Okay, that might go hand-in-hand! But with so many affordable smartwatch options within one’s reach, picking the right one has been fairly daunting. It doesn’t help that companies are inexplicably getting better at packing in more features in these devices, within a relatively short period of time. The Amazfit GTS 4 Mini is one such smartwatch that looks tiny, but packs in a ton of features!

Design & Display

The first thing I notice about the Amazfit GTS 4 Mini is how elegant it looks, especially given the price range. The 1.65-inch HD AMOLED display is easily one of the best features on this smartwatch. Sufficiently bright, even under sunlight, scrolling on this is a breeze. The ‘Wake on Wrist Raise’ feature works every time, but takes just a bit longer than I’m used to on other smartwatches I’ve used. I turn on the Always-On display, however, the watchface options for when the screen goes to sleep, are fairly limited. 

Health and fitness features

Swiping right from the main watchface I see an endless list of trackers! I see the usual suspects that keep tabs on my heart rate, blood-oxygen saturation and my stress level - and I’m surprised there’s no uptick as I race against the deadline to finish this copy on time! With the ability to offer continuous heart rate monitoring, the GTS 4 Mini is also able to detect irregular heartbeat, a feature usually found in more premium smartwatches.

I also wore the GTS 4 Mini to bed and it seemed to do a good job of tracking my sleep stages - I was definitely getting fewer hours of deep sleep than I anticipated! My sleep score at 70 per cent was apparently the lowest of all users, according to the Zepp app. And, that’s ironically something that’s going to keep me awake and wondering for a couple of nights now! 

Swiping left from the main watchface, I can easily access a list of customisable ‘shortcut cards’, however the interface doesn’t let me add more than six at a time, which is a pity as there are lot of parameters I’d like here as well. 

Special features

Being someone who forgets to take a break while writing, I found the built-in Pomodoro timer quite useful. I could customise the time stretch for work, after which it would prompt me to take a 5 minute break. During work meetings, the “Theatre mode” came handy. Once on, it dimmed the screen brightness to the minimum, switched off the “wrist raise” feature and wouldn’t light up for any incoming notifications.

Controlling music was a breeze, once set up, but this feature, too, might be redundant if you’re wearing TWS earbuds, as they usually have in-built gestures that let you control music. 

I was also able to use the watch as a remote camera control, but there’s no way to see the frame I’m about to click on the watchface. 

Alexa, are you OK?

The experience with Alexa on the GTS 4 Mini has been a bit unreliable for me. While there have been no issues in registering voice commands, the execution isn’t exactly ideal. A water reminder for 5:00 PM started beeping at 5:30 PM, and a ‘Get Up and Move Around’ reminder, although registered, failed to alert me altogether.  

The Zepp app has seen a bit of an overhaul and has a bunch of sports modes - starting from the good ol’ cycling, swimming, running and strength training to belly dancing, martial arts, hula hopping, tug of war and horse-riding. That’s more than I might end up trying in this life time! 

Verdict

Of all the things it gets right, the most impressive bit for me, is its endless battery life! It stayed on for so long with moderate usage, that I pretty much lost count of when I’d charged it last - almost 10 days before. With the magnetic charger included, it takes just about an hour and spare to go from zero to being fully charged. Suffice to say, of all the devices you might own, you’ll be plugging this in the least!

Price - Rs 7,999

Pros - Vivid display, feature-packed

Cons - No built-in speaker

Published on September 20, 2022