Expert assessment
Advantages
- Beautiful design
- Wide range of health characteristics
- Strong battery life
- GPS
cons
- Cannot respond to notifications
- No NFC
- Not the most accurate tracker
Our verdict
A solid and aesthetically pleasing new entry from Amazfit. The GTS 4 Mini isn’t the most accurate tracker I’ve used, but it meets most people’s general needs well enough. It’s limited as a smartwatch, but as a classy-looking tracker you can’t go wrong for the price.
Price at review
$99.99
Best prices today: Amazfit GTS 4 Mini
Amazfit has updated its slimline smartwatch offering with the GTS 4 Mini. It sits slightly lower on the price ladder than the larger Amazfit GTS 4 and GTR 4, but has many of the same features.
So, does size matter? Here is the Tech Advisor review of the Amazfit GTS 4 Mini.
Design and build
- Light, compact chassis
- Comfortable to wear
- 5 ATM water resistance
Martin Casserley
Amazfit has kept pretty close to the design ethic it used with the previous iteration of the Mini, confusingly dubbed the GTS 2 Mini. It has a nice slim metal body that accommodates the 1.65-inch screen. On the wrist is a satisfyingly low profile of 9.1mm, allowing the watch to slip easily under the cuffs of a shirt, and the 19g weight means you’ll forget you’re wearing it half the time.
A minor gripe is the crown bud on the right flank. Yes, it fits a classic watch design and a certain design from Apple, but even though the crown rotates, it is of no use. The screen does not scroll up or down and there is no option to assign a function to the action. Instead, it’s actually a button, so why not just make it a button instead of a crown?
![Side profile of Amazfit GTS 4 Mini](https://b2c-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Amazift-GTS-4-Mini-CROWN.jpg?quality=50&strip=all&w=1200)
Martin Casserley
The silicone band has a simple buckle design where you click it in and then thread the rest of the band underneath. It’s 20mm wide, so pretty standard, but even with my slender wrists I only had three holes left in the band. With this in mind, you may want to avoid this particular model if you have a lot of girth on your wrists, or buy a longer strap.
Turning the GTS 4 Mini over reveals the round plate where the sensors are located, as well as the contact points for the supplied proprietary charger. As is common these days, the charging cable’s cord is quite short, so you’ll need to have a power outlet nearby when charging the 270mAh battery.
![Sensor module of Amazfit GTS 4 Mini](https://b2c-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Amazift-GTS-4-Mini-REAR.jpg?quality=50&strip=all&w=1200)
Martin Casserley
My review sample was the Mint Blue variant, but Amazfit also offers the GTS 4 Mini in Midnight Black, Flamingo Pink and Moonlight White. However, I think this is the nicest colorway because it looks clean and modern, while not falling for garishness.
It’s a nice package that looks tasteful and smart, just like I thought with the previous version. The one big advantage the newer model has in its locker is a 5 ATM water resistance, which means you can swim with it and it will keep up with your activities or survive the washing up.
Display
- 1.65-inch AMOLED screen
- 336×384 resolution
- Always-on display
The 1.65-inch AMOLED display is crisp, clear and easy to read thanks to a resolution of 336×384, which equates to 309ppi. The size has increased slightly from the 1.55-inch panel on the GTS 2 Mini, and with a 70.2% screen-to-body ratio you can use a decent portion of the screen.
![Alternative watch face of Amazfit GTS 4 Mini](https://b2c-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Amazift-GTS-4-Mini-DISPLAY2.jpg?quality=50&strip=all&w=1200)
Martin Casserley
The different watch faces available make it easy to choose how busy the information should be on the screen, and there’s an always-on option so you can display the time or other information without having to raise your wrist.
One thing I noticed, however, was that the touchscreen itself could be a little finicky when it came to responding to a tap. It was usually okay when I sat at a desk, but a few times it proved to be more resistant when I walked. This may have something to do with small touch targets and my imprecise fingers, but it was disappointing.
Software and features
- Zep OS
- Alexa built-in
- Limited third-party app support
- No NFC
While the Amazfit GTS 4 Mini may look like an Apple Watch alternative, it’s actually more of a fitness band with ambitions. It has some useful built-in features, but many of the popular third-party apps you see on other smartwatches aren’t available.
Most things are controlled through the Zepp app, which lets you download lots of watch faces (some you have to pay for), change tracking settings and things like that, and rearrange the apps that appear on the watch. as well as their order. A useful option is to decide what happens when you long-press the crown button, but as I said before, you can’t assign functions to rotate it. Missed opportunity there.
![Zepp app for Amazfit GTS 4 Mini](https://b2c-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Amazfit-GTS-4-Mini-SOFTWARE.jpg?quality=50&strip=all&w=1200)
Martin Casserley
The watch itself runs on the Zepp operating system, which is quite responsive and reliable, plus some useful features to make up for the lack of app support. Alexa is built-in, so you can add stuff to your Amazon account or ask questions like you would with any Alexa product. You can also use it to quickly set timers and reminders, something I used to do regularly because it was so convenient.
There’s also a music app, weather, to-do list, stopwatch, flashlight, alarms, and a Pomodoro timer. All pretty standard stuff.
You can’t store files on the device itself, so don’t listen to music offline unless you have your phone with you. There’s also no NFC capability, meaning you can’t use the GTS 4 Mini for contactless payments. This makes it less of a standalone device than some of its rivals, but it would be really impressive to have such advanced features at this price point.
Third-party apps are not downloadable, apart from some random apps in the Zepp store, none of which are mainstream that you want. WhatsApp messages do show up as notifications just like Facebook if you link your account, but you won’t find an actual app. The same goes for the likes of Spotify, Audible and similar services, although you can use the generic Music app to control basic playback and volume to any connected Bluetooth headphones thanks to the Bluetooth 5.2 connection.
![Notification display of Amazfit GTS 4 Mini](https://b2c-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Amazift-GTS-4-Mini-NOTIFICATIONS.jpg?quality=50&strip=all&w=1200)
Martin Casserley
One minor drawback is that there are no preset replies you can use to reply to messages, so the GTS 4 Mini is only for reading them. If this could be changed to include a quick option for ‘Ok’, ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ or even a custom message, that would be a great benefit. If this is a sticking point for you, the Amazfit GTS 4 runs an updated Zepp OS2 and offers the ability to reply to messages, so that might be the watch you need.
Track health and fitness
- 120+ sports tracking modes
- GPS
- Rough guides instead of super accurate
As mentioned earlier, the GTS 4 Mini is essentially a fitness tracker rather than a full-fledged smartwatch. That’s not a bad thing at all, and since Amazfit offers over 120 different tracking modes, you should be able to find your favorite activity.
The most obvious is step tracking and the GTS 4 Mini keeps a good track of my steps throughout the day. You can get detailed reports on long rides, such as your cadence and stride, plus how hard your heart was working. All of these can count towards your personal activity intelligence (PAI) score, which gives you points for workouts and works similarly to Apple’s three rings on the Apple Watch.
Auto-tracking is only available for walking, indoor walking, outdoor running, treadmill, outdoor cycling, cross trainer, or rowing, so if you’re swimming, lifting, doing a yoga session, or any of the other myriad activities available , then you will have to remember to start the training check manually.
![Tracking function on Amazfit GTS 4 Mini](https://b2c-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Amazift-GTS-4-Mini-WORKOUT.jpg?quality=50&strip=all&w=1200)
Martin Casserley
Amazfit includes several assessment features that show how your training has affected your body, such as heart rate zones, aerobic and anaerobic monitoring displayed in the PeakBeat algorithm. There’s also blood oxygen levels, stress and sleep tracking that stores a lot of information about your health in the Zepp app so you can look for patterns and areas for improvement.
From the various activities I’ve tried while wearing the watch, I think it’s safe to say that the readings recorded seem more like a rough guide than super accurate. If you’re training for something like a marathon and need specific goals to track then you might want the Apple Watch SE or a Coros Apex 2 watch instead, but for most people who want to get active and don’t want a fortune spend to monitor their efforts, I would say that the Amazfit GTS 4 Mini is certainly good enough.
There are also some nice additions, such as the virtual pacer that challenges you to run at certain speeds during a session. You can also link your Adidas Running, Relive or Strava accounts to the watch, plus built-in GPS so you can map all your outdoor routes. There is also a menstrual cycle tracker.
Sleep tracking didn’t quite manage to always tell the difference between being sedentary and sleeping, but then again if you’re happy with the number of hours you’re in bed and the quality of your sleep then you can’t go wrong for the price.
Battery life and charging
- 270 mAh battery
- Used for over a week in normal mode
- Charges slowly
The battery life on the Amazfit GTS 4 Mini is great. Using the device with the always-on display turned off and carefully following the heart rate tracking will give you about two weeks of life between charges. Even with the said features turned on, it’s still well over a week before you need to reattach the magnetic charger.
![Charging the Amazfit GTS 4 Mini](https://b2c-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Amazfit-GTS-4-Mini-BATTERY.jpg?quality=50&strip=all&w=1200)
Martin Casserley
The only feature that will drastically drain the 270 mAh cell is using the GPS tracker. Once that’s on, you’ll get up to 21 hours before the juice runs out. But even that is impressive. Charging the Amazfit GTS 4 Mini takes about two hours, so it’s a good thing you don’t have to do it often.
Price and availability
The Amazfit GTS 4 Mini can be bought directly from Amazfit for $99.99 / £99.99 / €99.99, which is a really good price for the features you get and the nice design of the device.
For about the same money you can pick up the Fitbit Charge 5, which also has a GPS tracker and plenty of excellent health and fitness features, although some are only available with a Fitbit Premium subscription.
If you like what you see with the Amazfit GTS 4 Mini, but want more features and a bigger screen, then the Amazfit GTS 4 is available for around $200 / £199 / €199.
Pronunciation
Amazfit has built a reputation for good quality, affordable trackers and the GTS 4 Mini keeps that tradition intact. It is a very nice looking device that is effortlessly comfortable to wear. The software and features available are excellent for the money, and the battery life means you don’t have to take it out every night like some other smartwatches.
The tracking isn’t as accurate as more expensive models and I would have preferred a more sensitive display, but it’s hard to complain when you get a decent fitness tracker that has some smartwatch capabilities for under $100/£100.
Specifications
- 1.65-inch AMOLED display, 336 × 384 resolution, 309 ppi
- Always-on display
- BioTracker 3.0 PPG biometric sensor
- Acceleration sensor
- Geomagnetic sensor
- Ambient light sensor
- 5 ATM water resistance
- GPS
- Bluetooth 5.2
- 270 mAh battery
- 41.8 x 36.7 x 9.1mm
- 31.2g (including strap)