Amazfit Bip 3 review: a functional fitness tracker that doesn’t break the bank

Amazfit has cemented its position as the go-to wearable brand for the masses. In fact, as per a recent Counterpoint report, the company holds a whopping four percent stake in the global smartwatch market and competes for the same slice of the pie as other big-name wearable brands like Garmin, Xiaomi and Huawei. Needless to say, the company’s offerings have found their way on millions of wrists and the brand hopes to add to the ever-growing sales tally with the recently announced Bip 3 series. The latest lineup comprises the Bip 3 and the Bip 3 Pro, with the former retailing for Rs 3,500 in the Indian market. I managed to get my hands on the unit and here’s what I make of it. 

The lowdown 

• Amazfit has a plethora of wearables under its belt that are segregated across different series. Be that as it may, most if not all of the company’s budget-conscious watches come toting a utilitarian design. Take the Bip 3, for instance, which looks the part of a run-of-the-mill fitness tracker. Don’t get me wrong, the device is superbly comfortable to wear over extended periods, which can be attributed to its lightweight chassis that tips the scales at just 33 grams. What’s more, the device ships with chunky silicone straps that don’t itch or bite the wrist either. And, you can even change the straps for something fancier as the watch features quick-release pins, allowing buyers to change its looks on the fly. 

• With that said, the black colourway sent to me for review is missing – for the lack of a better word – an X factor. Thankfully, the watch is available in two more peppy colourways so buyers looking to make a splash with their purchase should buy the Bip 3 in a blue or pink avatar. On the bright side, the wearable touts water resistance of up to 5 ATM so you can wear the device in a shower, or whilst swimming too. 

• Moving on, the watch ships with a physical crown that has been positioned on its right-hand spine. The toggle offers adequate tactility and doesn’t feel mushy in the slightest, which is great. Lastly, you should know that the watch comes with an anti-fingerprint coating layered on top of the display. Unfortunately, the finish doesn’t mitigate fingerprints and smudges all that well so you’ll have to wipe the display every once in a while to keep it in pristine condition. 

• Display-wise, the Amazfit Bip 3 features a revamped 1.69-inch TFT LCD panel. The display is quite sizeable – so much so, it even casts a shadow on the Bip U’s 1.43-inch screen and is the biggest display on any Bip series watch to date. Interestingly, the screen is bordered by relatively sleek bezels and therefore, the panel doesn’t come across as unwieldy or clunky. Further, the display is fairly pixel-dense too and offers a resolution of 240 x 240 pixels. Consequently, you’ll notice that the text, as well as the complications for the digitized watch faces, appear quite sharp on the panel. That’s not all, as the screen gets plenty bright too, so you should be able to use the display when you’re out and about, under the sun. 

• I should also point out that the screen responded to my swipes and touches in an admirable fashion. The panel was quick to register all my inputs and the display is big enough to read incoming notifications comfortably too, which is great. The icing on the cake is that the panel curves gently along the edges so, you won’t feel the unit’s plastic frame rub against your fingers when you’re navigating through the watch’s UI. 

• Speaking of which, the wearable offers a straightforward and user-friendly interface. To wit, you can access shortcuts for the brightness, alarm, and other system settings by swiping from the top to the bottom. A swipe up from the bottom will bring up your recent notifications, whereas swiping left or right on the screen will pull up the custom widgets for the music player, etc. You can access a slurry of workout modes and other applications by pressing the crown.  

• As is the case with most fitness trackers, the Amazfit Bip 3 utilises a companion app to sync data with your phone. Dubbed Zepp, the app is available for both, iOS and Android devices. The utility offers a user-friendly interface too and aggregates all your fitness stats front and centre. You can use the app to tweak various other aspects of the smartwatch, including enabling (or disabling) sedentary reminders, downloading numerous watch faces, and the works. And, since we’re on the subject of watch faces, you should know that the Bip 3 offers support for hundreds of gorgeous watch faces that feature unique designs and complications. Unfortunately, you can’t use an image from your gallery to design a watch face for the wearable. That said, you can customise the complications for select watch faces. I should also point out that while the wearable can relay notifications from most apps, you cannot revert to the same from the watch’s interface. 

• Coming to the meat of the matter, the Amazfit Bip 3 can track a plethora of activities including but not limited to outdoor running, walking, outdoor cycling, etc. The wearable can also monitor your health and give insights into your heart rate as well as SpO2 and stress levels. During my stint with the device, I noticed that the wearable could reciprocate my heart rate readings to a tee. What’s more, I found the SpO2 readings fairly accurate too and the results from the watch were in line with a pulse oximeter I have lying around. More notably, while the watch doesn’t ship with a built-in GPS, it latches connection to the one on your smartphone in a matter of seconds. 

• Unsurprisingly, the wearable mapped routes admirably when I was out for a walk or a run. Furthermore, the unit even sheds a light on your average pace, calories burnt, and heart rate when you select a running activity like the treadmill or outdoor running from the watch’s interface. The unit’s step tracking was to my liking as well and the watch didn’t add a ton of ghost steps to the overall step tally. Furthermore, the step count was on par with the results from pricier fitness trackers like the Fitbit Versa 2 and Charge 5 as well, which is great.
  

• The watch is more than adept at tracking your sleep patterns too. To wit, the device can break down your sleep cycle into deep, light, and REM sleep. The sleep patterns assessed by the wearable were to my liking as well and unlike some competing devices, the Bip 3 tracks the overall sleep time quite accurately. It also helps that the wearable is superbly comfortable to wear to the bed as well. As for the battery backup, the wearable ships with a 280mAh cell which, with moderate usage comprising tracking sleep and runs every day, as well as relaying notifications to my wrist, lasted me around seven days off a full charge.

Verdict 

The Amazfit Bip 3 retails for Rs 3,499 and for the price, ticks most of the right boxes. For one, the watch is superbly comfortable to wear day in and day out. The unit can track a ton of activities too and offers support for all-day heart rate monitoring and SpO2 tracking as well. And, while I am not quite sold on the unit’s design, the watch somewhat makes up for it by offering an array of stunning watch faces as well. Coupled with its spacious display, long-lasting battery backup, and snappy UI, the Bip 3 makes for a solid entry-level fitness tracker that can give the competition a run for their money. 

Editor’s rating: 3.5 / 5 

Pros: 

• Comfortable, all-day wear design
• Good fitness tracker 
• Long-lasting battery backup 

Cons: