A mix of smartwatch and fitness tracker
With the increasing awareness of obesity and other chronic diseases, there has been a rise in demand for health monitoring devices, which in fact are very useful for anyone looking to improve their fitness. So, if you consider yourself to be a person looking to improve their fitness level, then chances are that you own or are planning to own a smartwatch or fitness tracker.
While there are plenty of options to choose from, there’s always room for an affordable, nice and effective product. And Amazfit brings you exactly that – Amazfit Cor – a product that offers an appealing experience at a budget price.
Design and display
The Amazfit Cor has a relatively simple design with a long, thin rectangular main watch section that transitions into the band. The front of the Cor sports a 1.23-inch colour touchscreen display. A raised section on the back houses the heart rate sensor and has charging pin nearby.
The Cor can survive up to five atmospheres, or 50m/164 feet, of water pressure. So, now you don’t have to worry while diving in a pool or taking shower wearing it. Further, at just 32 grams, it’s so light that you’ll barely notice it on your wrist.
The large font and vertical display, however, aren’t ideal for notifications. For example, while reading text messages, many words get split because of the screen layout. The low-resolution display is good for showing information, but is not pleasant to look at. And while the UI is responsive, there are no transition animations when browsing the watch menu.
Performance
The Amazfit Cor’s performance is good, but considering it is a smartwatch, it’s basic. And as a fitness tracker, it’s restricted by its design and screen layout. The Cor offers a few tools – Status, Notifications, Exercise, Weather, Alarm and Timer. One handy tool tucked away in settings is ‘Find Phone’ – a feature that will ring your connected smartphone if it’s in range.
While Cor is highly responsive when navigating, the screen turns off quickly, but returns to the home screen immediately, thus any progress made during searching through menus is backtracked.
The company claims 12 days of battery life, and the battery works as good as advertised. During our review period of approximately 15 days, we only charged the watch once.
Fitness
The Amazfit Cor accurately track steps. I counted my own steps during a light stroll, and the step counter of the watch was quite close. Its heart rate senor did a fine job of keeping track of my pulse while I walked on a slightly elevated road. But at times It wasn’t very accurate. Interestingly, one day just after I'd finished my workout, according to the Cor, my heart rate was 72 beats per minute. Duh!
On the up side, the Cor was pretty good in sensing when I went to bed and when I got up. But, since the watch struggled to deliver an accurate heart rate reading, it would be hard for me say how well the Cor tracks pulse during deep and light states of sleep.
Conclusion
The Amazfit Cor is good enough for wallet-friendly users who want a touch screen, pedometer and an occasional heart rate tracker. The 50-meter water resistance and Gorilla Glass also make it a good purchase.
Pros
Accurate pedometer, battery life
Cons
Screen layout
