Active 3 Premium

I am using Galaxy Watch 7 and Amazfit Active 3. Amazfit is closer to my professional medical devices from work. Edit: and topo maps are better than any app on Wear Os

Might as well go with the active 3 premium.

You're not the first nor will you be the last making that amazon association. The max and the 3 premium aren't identical though, they have a lot of overlap but the 3 premium has some unique features like full button navigation and certain running metrics as well as on watch gps routing and higher grade materials. But it has a smaller display and battery.

I agree, I'm disappointed. I wear my Active 2 when I want a smaller stylish slim look than my T-Rex 3 Pro 44mm. And in those situations, I don't really need all the buttons. The Active 3 looks like less stylish and is larger and thicker. They need to focus better on who the audience is for each model.

In digging through the specs online, I get the impression the heart rate monitor can still only do every minute rather than continuous. Not a critical feature, but I like being able to look at my watch outside of workouts and see my heart rate.

every watch with a more than decent GPS and HR sensors can be ok for you. An Amazfit, from the first Balance or Cheetah to the most recent Active 3 premium, can be good for a marathon. If running is your sport, probably a Cheetah or (much better) the newest Active 3 are the best devices for you between the Amazfit devices. I would avoid heavier models.

With the Active 2 Premium currently $93 on Amazon, not sure why anyone would bite on the 3 right now. I bought one yesterday as a potential shift from my current RingConn/Garmin combo.

Fair points. And yes, the Active Max seems pointless at the price point compared to Active 3

Seems very similar to the Max: same size battery as the Active Max, smaller screen, same brightness, and sapphire screen. I'd get this over the Max for sure. Only thing not to like is the two tone case and large bezels with tick marks.

https://us.amazfit.com/products/active-3-premium I was excited that the article said it had a bigger battery but that was a lie... It's about 33% larger than the Active 2 but the 44mm Trex 3 pro which has the same screen size was almost double.

Yes I stated its 33% more. You can directly compare the T-Rex 3 pro 44mm because the amazfit runs two screen sizes in the round form factor: A 1.5" 480x480 display and a 1.32" 466x466. The new Active Max 3 and Trex pro have the same screen size and the physical dimensions of the cases are very similar.

Probably the most unneccesary release I've seen from Amazfit, alognside the T-Rex Ultra 2. They haven't been able to keep up with the Helio Strap demand, still unable to sell a single replacement band for the Helio Strap, the calories algorithm is still super high, sports like swimming are still lacking advanced features, training templates could use some improvement, Zepp Aura is not good enough to be a worthy subscription, a lot of people have issues with sleep tracking (not me) and so on. Amazfit was one the right track but at this exact moment they seem pretty lost to me. I thought they were going to focus on Bip, Active, Balance, T-Rex and Helio Strap, and the rest on software and features, but nope. Why bother in releasing the Active Max? They couldn't just wait 1 month and just release the Active 3? It's basically the same watch. Why the T-Rex Ultra 2? Isn’t the T-Rex 3 PRO enough??? They are losing focus and are trying so hard to be Garmin with their 198226628393837262729 different watches. They want to have a 1:1 of every single Garmin watch apparently, when they should focus on more features to actually compete w garmin. It's like they need to be constantly on headlines bc if not they think people will forget about them.

I understand having T-Rex 3 and T-Rex 3 Pro. T-Rex 3 is their "affordable" rugged option and the T-Rex 3 Pro is the "Pro" and expensive rugged option. T-Rex Ultra 2 is just pointless, especially w that price. They should’ve made 3 size options for both T-Rex 3 models, that’s it. But it's clear that they want to be Garmin having a bunch of watches that are almost the same like Fenix, Epix and Enduro. Active Max a month before Active 3 is completely pointless, especially if they’re basically the same watch and the exact same price. It's so stupid, they release the Active Max and immediately killed it just after a month, bc tbh if someone is making their decision now, there’s really no reason to buy the Active Max other than the whole black look that the Active 3 doesn’t have. They’re totally losing focus and bombing everyone w releases to be on the headlines every other week. I still like the products but at this moment the only thing keeping me with them is the Helio Strap + Watch combo, not the features of the app. If Garmin or Coros decides to do something like that, I think I'll switch bc I don't wanna be waiting god knows how much time for Amazfit to get their shit together and start being their own company instead of trying to be Garmin. People want features and long term support, not 15162783377 watches.

Quick disclaimer: I’ll mention a couple of comparisons with my Active 2, but none of these were side-by-side comparisons since my Active 2 died out of nowhere and the Active Max ended up being the replacement. 1. Design and general info Obviously this is completely subjective, but I think the Active Max is the second best looking watch in the current Amazfit lineup (the first being the T-Rex 3 Pro 44mm in my opinion). It’s the perfect size for my wrist and has this sporty look that for some reason reminds me of the old Stratos 3, which I really liked, although the design here is a bit more subtle. It still only has two buttons, which some people might find annoying, but honestly I don’t mind using the touchscreen even when I’m sweaty or wet. I also feel like Amazfit hasn’t really taken full advantage of the buttons anyway, so it doesn’t bother me much right now. It has 4 GB of storage, which is great if you're downloading songs, podcasts, or multiple maps for running or hiking. 2. Battery life I usually wear my Helio Strap day to day since I tend to wear mechanical watches, but to actually test the battery I decided to use the Active Max as my daily watch for two weeks. One thing I didn’t do was sleep with it, since I’m used to sleeping with my Helio Strap. With AOD on, sleep mode and do not disturb enabled during the night, three swimming sessions per week, two gym workouts per week, and two GPS workouts per week (both around 1h), the battery lasted around 7 to 8 days. With basically the same settings on my Active 2, I usually got around 5 to 6 days. 3. Display and brightness Since the watch is a bit bigger, the display is more comfortable to read and it’s easier to see your metrics. I’ve noticed this the most while swimming. When I try to take a quick glance at the distance, it’s easier and faster to read compared to my Active 2. For running and gym workouts, I honestly haven’t noticed much of a difference since I never had any issues with the Active 2. I think it might be slightly brighter than the Active 2, but again, I never had any brightness issues with the Active 2, so I wouldn’t call it a particularly meaningful improvement. One weird thing I’ve noticed is that my Active Max has an issue with certain watch faces when AOD is active. Some part of the watch face starts flickering like crazy, but as soon as I touch the screen and AOD turns off, it immediately stops. I’m guessing this is something that could probably be fixed with a firmware update or something, since it doesn’t seem like a display issue, it only happens in AOD and only with certain watch faces (check the video). 4.. Heart rate accuracy It uses exactly the same heart rate sensor as the Active 2 and the Helio Strap, so I wasn’t expecting anything different. The results have been pretty much the same, with a bit of deviation here and there but nothing meaningful. 5. GPS accuracy It’s still single-band GPS. I’m not sure if it’s a different GPS chip compared to the Active 2, but the results are very similar overall. The only very small difference I noticed is that it seems to be slightly closer to the road I’m actually running, but again, not a meaningful improvement. One thing I did notice is that the Active Max gets the GPS signal faster than my Active 2. The Active 2 usually took around 10 to 12 seconds, while the Active Max takes about 5 to 7 seconds. 6. Sport features It’s pretty much the same as most Amazfit watches. You get a ridiculous number of sport modes, and the advanced features are almost identical. The only difference I noticed is that for running, the Active Max includes the Weighted Load option, which my Active 2 didn’t have (although I’m not sure if they might have added it in a later update). One extra thing worth mentioning is that the Active Max includes triathlon and multisport modes, which the Active 2 didn’t have. 7. Conclusion I think the conclusion is pretty much the same as with most Amazfit watches. At $170, it’s still an excellent watch, and whether it’s worth upgrading or not will mostly depend on how much you’re willing to pay for the design, because in terms of features and software, it’s basically the same as the rest. In my opinion, if we ignore the design, there are really only two reasons to upgrade from the Active 2 to the Active Max for example: 1. If you need more storage 2. If you want a larger display That’s it. If you don’t need those two things, the only real reason to upgrade would be if you simply prefer a watch with a sportier look. Now, if you’re deciding between the Active Max and something higher up like the Balance or the T-Rex models, there are a few additional differences. However, for me they’re not significant enough to automatically justify choosing those over the Active Max. The main ones would be: 1. If you really need dual-band GPS 2. If you do activities like diving 3. If you care about higher-end materials or build quality If none of those matter to you, then again it mostly comes down to whether the design is worth paying $300+ for. Honestly, it doesn’t really make sense to me that Amazfit released the Active Max and Active 3 as separate models, it feels pretty unnecessary. In my opinion, the Active Max could have simply been another color option of the Active 3. But Amazfit clearly likes releasing new models and staying in the headlines every week or so. If the differences between the Active Max and the Active 2 are already minimal, then between the Active Max and the Active 3 the only noticeable differences seem to be the colors and the buttons. I'm sure there are stuff that I'm not including here so if you have any questions, I'm happy to help (:

I agree, I was actually leaning more to the Active Max being unneccesary if they were already planning to release the Active 3 a month later, and tbh the only reason to choose Max over Active 3 is design. In my opinion, they should’ve just release Active 3 with an all black version. Yeah, I always forget about the Balance 2XT since it's not in their US web site which is the one I check. I complained on another post bc Amazfit is stuck in the same strategy. When someone ask me what Amazfit watch would I recommend, even if they tell me their needs, I honestly always say "if you don’t care about budget, just get the one that catches your eyes" bc everyone is so damn similar.

Exactly! My thing was that I wanted a more sport looking watch, and the Active Max was perfect for me. For people who want a more elegant watch, Active 2 is the one, one of the most if not the most beautiful smartwatch design I've seen. And I think they messed up with the Active 3, the ones I've seen look pretty cheap while the Active 2 looks so damn premium.