The key differences between Amazfit and Fitbit smartwatches cover various aspects, including their brand origins, fitness tracking capabilities, battery life, design philosophy, health monitoring features, sports tracking, connectivity, app ecosystems, and pricing. A detailed exploration of these differences can help users decide which brand better suits their needs.
Brand Background and Market Position:
Amazfit is a brand from Huami, a Chinese company subsidiary of Xiaomi, known for budget-friendly smartwatches with competitive features. It focuses on offering a broader range of smartwatch functionalities, balancing fitness tracking with standard smartwatch uses, often at lower prices. In contrast, Fitbit is a well-established American brand with a longstanding reputation primarily in fitness tracking and health monitoring, typically offering more refined and specialized fitness and wellness features but at a higher price point.
Fitness and Health Tracking:
Fitbit is generally considered superior in accurate daily fitness tracking through its advanced motion sensors and software algorithms. It excels in sleep tracking, providing detailed insights into sleep stages including REM sleep and overall sleep quality scores, surpassing Amazfit's capabilities. Fitbit also leads in women's health features, such as menstrual and fertility cycle tracking, with more detailed analysis and integrated notifications. On the other hand, Amazfit is strong in sports and workout monitoring, offering features like VO2 MAX, PAI Health Score, and Training Load, alongside a wide variety of sports modes (over 60 activities) including swimming in open water owing to greater waterproof capacity.
Battery Life:
One of Amazfit's standout advantages is its battery life. Many Amazfit models can run from a week up to a month on a single charge, depending on the model, which far exceeds the typical Fitbit battery life of 5 to 7 days. This makes Amazfit particularly appealing for users who prioritize long battery endurance over frequent charging.
Display and Design:
Amazfit smartwatches tend to offer higher resolution, larger, and brighter AMOLED displays, catering to users who want more screen real estate and vivid visuals. The design variety is wider in Amazfit, ranging from sporty to classic aesthetics, sometimes incorporating premium materials like titanium and sapphire glass. Fitbit devices have a sleeker, more modern, and subtle profile focusing on comfort and style for everyday wear using quality materials like Gorilla Glass and aluminum, thus targeting users who want a combination of fitness and a stylish but understated look.
Sports and Activity Tracking:
While both brands provide comprehensive activity tracking, their emphasis differs. Fitbit focuses on accurate step counting, distance tracking, and heart rate monitoring with zones and cardio fitness scoring related to VO2 MAX. It supports guided breathing and stress management features. Amazfit offers more sports modes and built-in GPS across many models, allowing better tracking of outdoor activities without phone dependency. Amazfit's ability to track swimming in open water down to 50 meters is an advantage over Fitbit, which is typically pool-friendly but not suitable for open water.
Software and Apps:
Fitbit operates on a proprietary OS optimized for smooth navigation and intuitive use, with strong third-party app support and social community features enabling challenges and progress sharing. This ecosystem makes Fitbit devices highly versatile and integrated into broader health and fitness lifestyles. Amazfit runs on Zepp OS, which supports more smartwatch-like apps and features, including some AI features and Alexa voice assistant integration, but lacks the extensive social connectivity found in Fitbit.
Connectivity:
Both offer Bluetooth connectivity for syncing, but Fitbit adds NFC for contactless payments (Fitbit Pay) and some models also support Wi-Fi. Amazfit models typically feature built-in GPS as standard, an important factor for outdoor users, and some also offer Wi-Fi and NFC, bringing their connectivity features close to Fitbit's higher-end models.
Price and Value:
Amazfit is widely recognized for delivering substantial value at a more affordable price point, appealing to users seeking a budget-friendly smartwatch with extensive features and long battery life. Fitbit is costlier but justifies this with advanced health tracking, better app ecosystems, social features, and premium build quality. The choice between the two often comes down to budget versus depth of health and fitness tracking.