Coros Vertix 2 review: a work in progress

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When it comes to multisport fitness watches, you most likely think of something from the likes of Garmin, or Polar. You might have heard of Coros if you enjoy outdoor sports. The company is a relative newcomer to the space, but I was curious when I started seeing it pop up more frequently in running forums, and on TikTok. The most devoted athletes in this category already know what they do and don't like from their gps watches, and I was eager to see how the Coros Vertix 2 would measure up against the category's heavyweights.

The Vertix 2 is the most expensive watch in the lineup. It can access all five major satellite systems at the same time. The Vertix 2 should be able to deliver accurateGPS tracking even in the most challenging environments, and that's a first for a smartwatch.

This is supposed to be a tough watch for the most intrepid athletes. The Vertix 2's specifications show that. It has a battery life of 140 hours and 60 days of use. The Vertix 2 adds more features than its predecessor, including color maps, 32GB of music storage, and the ability to control an action camera. The case is made of titanium, the display is diamond-like, and it has 10 ATM.

Don't expect a smart fitness watch. Push notifications are one of the smart features. You won't get the ability to reply to texts, or a third-party app ecosystem. The most recent update added the ability to ping your phone.

I knew the Vertix 2 would be big and heavy. The display is housed in a 50mm case and 26mm interchangeable straps. It is 15.7mm thick and weighs 89 grams, which is over 10 grams more than two 45mm aluminum Series 7s. I don't know what it would weigh if Coros used it here. How could it not be large?

I was not prepared for how heavy the watch was on my wrist. There is no jacket sleeve on this thing, and it looks large on me. I have to wear a tight strap during exercise, but I can fit two chopsticks through the gap between my skin and the lugs. I feel gravity pulling on the case when I swing my arm. I woke up in the middle of the night to take it off. I had a small rash after a week of wear. I can get away with a 45mm watch, but the Vertix 2 wasn't made for my small wrists.

I am aware that this watch caters to a different body type. Not every outdoor activity enthusiast is a big person. Many people, particularly women, are excluded from using the most advanced smartwatch through no fault of their own. The Vertix 2 only comes in one size, so 50mm may be too large for people who like bigger watches. You can get multiple size options from the Fenix 7 series.

There are benefits to the larger screen of the Vertix 2. The notifications are easier to read and the memory-in-pixel display is visible in the sun. You can fit more data within each screen during an exercise because Coros lets you personalize what you see. The Vertix 2 is a great option if you want to know a lot.

Software and features are typical for this category. Coros isn't bringing anything we haven't seen before, with the exception of action cam control and dual-band satellite Frequency. I wasn't able to test the action cam feature because I don't own one. The Vertix 2 feels like a work in progress to me.

Take a look at the menu. Multisport watches have buttons that are more likely to register sweaty fingers. The only way to scroll up and down through the menus on the Vertix 2 is through the crown, which throws a wrench in things. It is not intuitive.

Coros doesn't really follow the rules when it comes to the smartwatchUI. You can wake the watch with a flick of your wrist. You can't do much until you press the crown. It's annoying when you want to quickly access something, but I can see that preventing accidental presses during workouts is a good idea. I'm used to long presses bringing up digital assistants. That is just one example. I had to fight against muscle memory when using the Vertix 2, like using the back button to scroll down, or using the swiping to view notifications. I think a lot of people would have the same problems.

Every smart device now requires you to agree to a series of terms and conditions before you can use it. It is impossible for us to read and analyze all of these agreements. We started counting how many times you have to agree to use devices when we review them.

To use the Coros Vertix 2, you have to pair it with a mobile device. The phone's Privacy Policy, Terms of Service, and any other permission you grant are included.

You agree to two mandatory agreements if you set up Coros Vertix 2.

• Coros Terms of Service
• Privacy Policy

You can grant Coros additional permission to access your location, cellular data, notifications, background app refresh, and document storage. You must agree to the terms of service and privacy policy of any third-party service you integrate with.

There are two mandatory agreements and nine optional agreements.

Over time, you get used to it, but it can still be difficult. Even though I was barely rotating the crown, I kept scrolling past the finish button. When scrolling with physical buttons, you don't have that issue. While the watch has a screen, it is limited to scrolling through maps during activity. You have to manually turn that on in the settings. A lot of this could have been avoided if users had an option besides the rotating crown.

It sounds like the Vertix 2 has an electrocardiogram sensor. It's not a real thing in practice. You can take electrocardiogram (ECG) readings in the same way as Apple Watches, Fitbit, and the like. The Vertix 2 has not received FDA clearance to do that. You can see the HRV for 60 seconds in the app. You don't need an electrocardiogram-level sensor to track HRV for stress or recovery.

It was a miss. The sleep metrics are very basic, even if I did make it through a whole night wearing the Vertix 2. I didn't have access to sleep stages most of the time. REM tracking was added with a recent firmware update.

It's fine that Coros added more storage for music, but it's not useful because the Vertix 2 doesn't support streaming services or offline downloads. You have to sideload the mp3s. There will always be people who prefer that, but the majority of people don't. I have not had to drag and drop music files onto a portable player in about a decade. Coros isn't the only fitness watchmaker that does this. It makes less and less sense every year.

The maps on the Vertix 2 are good, but they aren't going to beat the navigation features offered by the other companies. Had the Vertix 2 been priced lower, I would have been more okay with it. You're paying the same as some Fenix 7 models, but you get less detail and context. There are no labels or landmarks highlighted. I would expect to see a turn-by-turn navigation at this price point. The Vertix 2's maps would be better than nothing in a pinch, but when I got turned around during a trail run, I reached for my phone.

ANT Plus compatibility is dropped by the Vertix 2. It didn't affect me much because I mostly use the accessories. It can measure running power from the wrist. If you use a lot of ANT Plus accessories in your training, the Vertix 2 isn't the best choice for you.

I want to acknowledge that the Vertix 2 is a good showing for a company that has only been making fitness watches for four years. When compared to companies that have been leading the space for a decade, a younger company has things to iron out.

There is a lot I liked about the Vertix 2. The Coros app is simple but still has a good level of customizability. You could program your own workouts and training plans. When I was training for a half marathon, I wished I could do that more easily. Not everyone will use that option. You could easily modify several activity screens to your liking. My VO2 Max, running power, and race time predictions were some of the training insights I dug. The streamlined design was a refreshing change from the crowded designs of the other apps. If you want to spend less time in a companion app, it's more than fine.

The Vertix 2 has battery life and accuracy. I haven't been wearing this watch for 60 days, but it has been about two weeks with about 60 minutes of gps activity a day. I have an 85 percent battery. This is still phenomenal stamina, even though dual-frequency satellite communication or anything beyond standardGPS mode drained the battery faster. Even if you're on a multiday trip with a lot of gps activity, this is a watch that you can leave at home.

The Vertix 2 was able to find a signal. I live in a challenging area with lots of tall buildings and water. I went trail running in a park with dense tree coverage and had no trouble. The Vertix 2 recorded distances that were within a tenth of a mile of my phone and Apple Watch Series 7. The routes recorded by the app are very close to each other. The Series 7 was slightly more accurate than the Vertix 2 in some places. The Vertix 2 did better than the Series 7. The Vertix 2 met all of my expectations.

During interval runs, it had a few issues with its heart rate. The majority of the time it was within 10 beats per minute. The watch didn't fit me well, so I mostly looked at the attribute readings.

The Vertix 2 feels like a step in the right direction. It shows promise since it excelled in two areas that endurance athletes care about: battery life and gps tracking. Coros continues to push updates that add value. For the price, you'll be better served by a discounted Garmin Fenix 6. The lower price is an incredible bargain for the feature set. The price makes it easier to overlook things that are not perfect. It's hard to do that when the Vertix 2 costs $700. There are a lot of training features and accurateGPS in the $499.95 Polar Grit X Pro.

This isn't the watch for me, but it doesn't mean no one should buy it. I would recommend it if you can find it on sale, not put off by bulky and heavy watches, travel to areas with poor gps signal, or just want something simpler. I saw enough on the Vertix 2 to be interested in what Coros does next.

Victoria Song is a photographer.