Amazfit Cheetah 2 Ultra Review

Amazfit has quickly evolved from a budget-friendly brand into a serious performance contender that is now closing the gap with industry giants like Garmin. The Cheetah 2 Ultra is their most ambitious running flagship yet and offers a genuine alternative for anyone looking for a high-end endurance watch. It sits at the very top of their current lineup and revises the design mistakes seen in previous versions to provide a more refined experience

Design

The Amazfit Cheetah 2 Ultra uses premium Grade 5 titanium alloy for the case and the bezel. This material gives the watch a high-quality feel that matches its status as a flagship device. A sapphire glass lens covers the display to keep it safe from scratches while you explore the outdoors. The watch also features physical buttons, which are easy to use even when you wear gloves.

The screen is a massive 1.5 inch AMOLED display that reaches a peak brightness of 3,000 nits. This makes the interface straightforward to read even under direct sunlight. Compared to previous models, the proportions of the screen look much better on the wrist because the bezel area is smaller. The device weighs only 52 grams, so it remains comfortable during long endurance sessions.

There is also a functional LED flashlight built in with different modes, including red light and SOS. This is a handy feature for runners who find themselves still on the trail after the sun goes down. The watch comes with both a silicone strap and a fabric strap in the box to give you options for different activities. While the straps are decent, they are probably the weakest part of the overall premium build. Thankfully, the bands are 22mm universals and can be swapped out easily.

Setup

Getting started requires the fantastic Zepp app which serves as the main hub for your fitness data. The app is easy to use and helps you sync your workouts with popular services like Strava and TrainingPeaks. The initial setup process is straightforward with a QR scan and keeps you from spending too much time menu diving. 

Downloading maps is another key part of the setup for trail runners. You do this by selecting specific square sections of a region in the Zepp app. These sections are then transferred to the watch over Wi-Fi so you can use them offline. While this method is a bit different from some competitors, it results in very detailed contour maps for your routes.

Setting up specific trail features like the Elevation Overview requires you to create or import a route first. Once a route is loaded onto the watch, it can break down the climb data for you automatically. This gives you a clear look at how much elevation is left in your run. The watch also supports voice prompts to guide you through your navigation sessions.

The Amazfit Cheetah 2 Ultra is a genuine endurance powerhouse that pairs a rugged Grade 5 titanium build with a massive 60-hour GPS battery life, offering trail runners a premium, high-performance alternative to more expensive flagship watches.

Performance

GPS performance is a strong point for this watch as it uses a dual-band system for accuracy. In standardized tests, it achieved an accuracy that is a big jump over earlier models. It handles tricky environments like narrow alleys or heavy tree cover quite well and holds its own against the giants of Garmin and Suunto.

Heart rate tracking comes from the BioTracker 6.0 sensor, which provides excellent results during most activities. It remains reliable for steady-state runs and gym sessions like HYROX workouts. The watch even monitors your blood oxygen levels and stress throughout the day. For very high-intensity intervals, you might still want a chest strap, but the optical sensor is great for daily use.

Trail runners will appreciate the dedicated Trail Running mode, which calculates terrain load. This feature takes the difficulty of the surface and the gradient into account when tracking your effort. The Elevation Overview screen is another useful tool that shows your progress on specific hill segments. These metrics provide a more complete picture of your performance on hilly terrain.

I’ve found all of these metrics to be well within the range of what I’d expect from a $600 fitness watch. I tend to compare across the Garmin Forerunner 265 and the Suunto Vertical 2, and the Cheetah 2 Ultra sits right among the results from those devices. Heart rate, GPS, and trip tracking are all very accurate in comparison. I would have no issue stacking this up to either of those brands or the likes of Apple and Google.

Zepp App and Software

The Zepp app acts as the primary hub for managing your health data and fitness journey with the Cheetah 2 Ultra. It has matured into a very polished ecosystem that allows you to sync your workouts automatically with popular platforms like Strava and TrainingPeaks. 

You can use the app to access Zepp Coach which provides adaptive training plans that adjust based on your performance and schedule. This makes it a credible alternative for athletes who want a simple way to track their progress without a steep learning curve.

The app and the internal firmware of the Cheetah 2 Ultra recently received the Zepp 6.0 update, and this makes syncing across workouts and even AmazFit devices much more seamless. I’ve always been a fan of how you can utilize multiple devices inside the ecosystem, but it only aggregated the health stats and not workout data.

This made bouncing from, say, the Helio Strap for a general workout back to the Cheetah 2 Ultra miss out on my burned calories, heart rate, and the secret sauce of PAI across both devices. It would just sync the current device and ignore the other. Now, this data as well as health stats work together.

I also have to mention the changes in BioCharge. This feature of “how you should feel” has been rebranded as HybridCharge. The change was introduced next to the new Life Load feature that allows users to manually chart things like feeling sick, poor sleep, or maybe a night out drinking that may have lowered your score. Now HybridCharge takes that input along with the automatically tracked hardware metrics to adjust the score accordingly.

Battery Life

Battery life is where this watch truly shines and challenges the best in the industry. It packs a 780 mAh battery that can last up to 30 days during typical smartwatch use. If you are a heavy user who tracks workouts every day, you can still expect about two weeks of power. This kind of endurance makes it a great choice for people who do not want to charge their watch every night.

When it comes to GPS tracking, the efficiency is very impressive. Real-world testing suggests you can get about 55 to 60 hours of continuous tracking in the high accuracy mode. This is enough battery to handle almost any ultramarathon or long hiking trip. Even with map rendering active, the watch manages power well enough to outperform many of its rivals.

Charging the watch takes about 85 minutes to go from empty to a full state. It uses a modest 3W power draw, which helps preserve the health of the battery over time. While some other brands offer faster charging, the long battery life means you will not need to plug it in very often anyway.

Final Thoughts

The Amazfit Cheetah 2 Ultra is a genuine alternative for anyone who wants a high-end multisport watch. It bridges the gap between affordable fitness trackers and expensive, professional tools. The combination of titanium materials and a brilliant screen makes it look as good in the office as it does on a mountain trail.

While the software might not be as deep as some rivals, the battery life and hardware quality are challenging to beat at this price. It is easily the best watch that the brand has built so far. If you want a rugged endurance watch that lasts for weeks on a single charge, this is a very compelling choice.