Coros Vertix Review

After years of trail running with my Apple Watch Series 2 I decided that to go longer distances I would need a watch that had better battery life. During an attempt at my first 50+ miler I quickly realized that if I wanted to do a 50+ mile race I would absolutely require a new watch. Even with stopping mid run to allow my Apple Watch to charge it was still not up to the task. I ultimately stopped a little shy of my goal because of the failing battery. So with the acquisition of this new Adventure Watch, I decided to write a Coros Vertix Review. I hope this review will highlight the strengths and weaknesses of the watches used. And help others make their own decision.

Jump to a section of our Coros Vertix Review:

Coros Unboxing | Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 | Day 7 | Day 8 | Day 9 | Conclusions | Pros & Cons | Test Details

 

Choosing the Vertix

After reviewing several different options and receiving some testimonials from running buddies I took a look at Coros. The Coros Vertix Adventure Watch appeared to have the essential features. Along with the best battery life of any GPS watch on the market, so I decided to give it a try. Could it live up with all the hype. As a result of that switch I present my Coros Vertix Review.

Coros is a relatively new company in the GPS fitness tracking watch market. It has long been dominated by names like Garmin, Sunnto, and Polar. But Coros made a splash in 2018 with the Pace, and quickly added the Apex and then Vertix. Each model pushed the features and battery life to new levels. So despite being a new player in the market, they sought to disrupt the existing ecosystem with their own unique features and capabilities.

The Coros Vertix Arrives

Since no review is complete without showing the packaging, I will start out this Coros Vertix Review with the box opening process. When my Coros Vertix arrived I was immediately impressed by its packaging. It had a standard but attractive cardboard box presentation on the outside. But was then inclosed within a watertight pelican type case, with custom foam to hold it securely in place. Needless to say it was impressive and probably a little overkill, but gave the feel of a rugged watch.

The initial setup was a breeze, after activating the watch and choosing my language the watch presented a QR code. I scanned the QR code with the Coros app for iOS and it was immediately connected. Although setup instructions were included in the case, most people should be able to intuitively set it up.

Unboxing Images

Day 1 – Randall’s Loop 7.05 Miles

My Apple Watch had been with me for some time, so I was quite familiar with it. Additionally I was registered to run the 2019 Speedgoat 50k 11 days after the Vertix arrived. So I determined that if I ran with both watches simultaneously on each run through Speedgoat I would be able to compare their functionality and accuracy. Also this would also give me a pretty good test of the Vertix’s real world battery life.

I started my Coros Vertix Review test on Randall’s Loop. I had set a goal to run this loop 1000 times before the end of 2019. As a result, I was well acquainted with it and had already run 557 of my requisite loops for the year. Consequently this made it a perfect place to test the Vertix and compare it with many similar runs.

Firstly I found that the elevation was being reported strangely. Looking at the screenshot from the Coros app it appears that the elevation recorded keeps reducing each lap. On closer re the first 4 loops had the same recorded elevation of 3261 feet, then the next three laps each had reduced elevation. The last loop showed an elevation of 3245, so only 16 feet lower than the first few loops. I am not sure if the Vertix was improving it’s accuracy over the run or if it was an anomaly. The Apple Watch Series 2 that was on my other wrist showed some variation but most around 3251 feet.

Vert Comparison

But apart from that GPS discrepancy I also found that overall the Vertix reported 371 feet ascent, and  397 feet descent. While the Apple Watch reported 285 feet for both ascent and descent. For whatever reason Strava decided that the 371 feet value was accurate.  Where the day before this test the Apple watch recorded 285 feet gained on the same run. But Strava decided the correct value was 466 feet. I had observed this same behavior with previous runs recorded with the Apple Watch being uploaded to Strava.

Observing this same behavior with the Vertix on subsequent runs. I did finally see similar behavior with the Apple Watch on a 14 mile run on day 6 of the test. Although I am not sure if that is just the nature of the watch software or if it is a result of the small GPS receivers in watches.

Distance Comparison

Other than the difference in elevation, the distance appeared to be right on 7.05 miles between the two watches. Despite the time being basically the same some of the mile splits were as much as 7 seconds different. Additionally the Vertix calculated 140 less calories burned than the Apple Watch.

Heart Rate Comparison

The Apple Watch reported a recorded average heart rate of 141bpm and max of 148bpm. The Vertix reported an average of 151bpm, and max of 171bpm. And the reported number of calories burned by the Apple Watch was 968, where the Vertix reported 828 calories burned.

Day 2 – Dino Rocks 9.1 Miles

For day #2 I chose a different path that combined two of my favorite trails, Dino Cliffs, and Church Rocks. These trails have a bit more vert than the previous days loop. They also varied the terrain by adding some slickrock and sandy sections to the mix.Trails like these are fun and I highly encourage you to try them out. The first thing to point out is that the Vertix still had over 90+% of it’s original charge. This was after both of the last two runs were completed. While I had to charge the Apple Watch at night to ensure I had sufficient battery for the run. The reality of not having to charge the watch every night was starting to sink in.

On this run I noticed similar differences to the first run. The recorded mile split times varied by as much as 22 seconds. But as noted with the vert on day 1 the spits were accepted by Strava as the Vertix recorded them. Previous uploads from the Apple Watch were always adjusted/corrected by Strava. Was this Strava showing a bias toward the Vertix, or just a recognition of more trusted tracking? A minor item was that the Vertix reported 9.1 miles where the Apple watch reported 9.13 miles.

Vert Comparison

Because this wasn’t a loop like day 1 any elevation anomalies were not readily apparent. But the Vertix recorded 1066 feet of vert vs. the Apple Watch’s 797 feet. That just caused me to think, I don’t mind the extra vert 😉

Heart Rate Comparison

On the heart rate front the Apple Watch reported an average of 141bpm and a max of 156bpm. Versus the Vertix’s average of 146bpm and max of 179bpm. The calories burned according to the Apple Watch were 1365, and 1255 according to the Vertix.

The Digital Knob

I found myself really appreciating the Vertix’s enlarged digital knob. It made it very easy to switch between detail screens during an activity. On the Apple Watch I used the WorkOutdoors app, since it provided me with more detailed information than Strava’s app. Switching screens was much more difficult, requiring a triple tap to move between information. And a hard press to finish the activity. This was intended to help keep the watch from accidentally changing screens or ending an activity for you.

With those protections I still found my watch on a different screen or with the activity ended prematurely. I don’t remember the digital knob ever switching screens without my input. A single press on the knob pauses the activity, which has not happened accidentally. And in a software update Coros added a three second hold to finish an activity, ensuring no premature endings.

Day 3 – The 5k

Day 3 found me back on my loop, running a familiar path. But having a bit less time I was not as adventurous as some of the other days. So I opted to push the pace a bit on a 5k. The previously reported issue with the elevation was not as prominent with the shorter length. But it was the pacing that was interesting on this run.

Pace Comparison

The Coros reported a 8:30/mi average pace, and a max of 8:11/mi as my fastest split. Where the Apple Watch gave me a 8:35/mi average pace and a 8:12/mi as my fastest split. But then Strava gave me the fastest average at 8:26/mi and 8:11/mi as my fastest split. But in a change the Vertix recorded a longer distance on this run then the Apple Watch with 3.16 vs 3.12 miles. All in all not a huge difference between the watches reported pace. But it was interesting to note how much of a difference there was on this shorter/faster run. The first day had no difference between average speeds, and the second day was only one second different.

Heart Rate Comparison

The Apple Watch reported an average heart rate of 150bpm, and max rate of 157bpm. While the Vertix recorded an average of 153bpm, and max of 170bpm. So a significant difference in recorded heart rates. Additionally the Apple Watch also recorded a calorie consumption of 429, in comparison to the Vertix’s 354 calories consumed.

Day 4 – Pine Valley Mountain Marathon

Day 4 of my Coros Vertix review was the first double digit mileage run with the Coros Vertix. It was the first run with any major vert involved. And it was my last long training run before the Speedgoat 50k, which would be one week after this run. The Pine Valley Mountain Summit Trail is a back country wilderness trail. It is basically unmaintained for most of the trail along the top of the mountain.

I had run this course a in prior years, but this year the mountain was still covered with snow. So it was going to be a difficult and more treacherous course with snow drifts and fallen trees. But the trail also breaks the 10,000 foot mark in elevation. So I was excited to use the Coros Vertix high altitude blood oxygen monitoring. Hopefully it would reveal that I was going to be ok running Speedgoat, where the elevation repeatedly hits 11,000 feet.

The Pine Valley Mountain Marathon Results

The run was difficult, and ended up being fairly slow, because of all the snow that still remained on the mountain. But it was a good long and tough activity with lots of vert to test the watches performance.

Vert Comparison

One glaring difference was the vert. The Coros Vertix logged as max elevation of 10,056 feet and a total of 6,516 feet of ascent. While the Apple Watch recorded a max elevation of 10,338 feet and 12,808 feet of ascent. Although the Official height of Signal peak, the highest point on the mountain, which we summited, is 10,369 according to Wikipedia.  Here the Apple Watch obviously got a better reading on the elevation, but doubled the elevation gain. So that the results were a bit mixed. The elevation chart from the Vertix shows essentially a flat line on top of Signal Peak. And while it is a fairly flat peak that looks more like the watch was having a problem getting an accurate reading.

Distance Comparison

Right out of the gate there was a major difference with the Coros Vertix logging 26.44 miles. The Apple Watch had gone the extra mile… Literally, and logged 1.17 miles more than the Vertix at 27.61 miles. When uploaded to Strava, it was adjusted slightly to 26.43 miles. So the GPS inaccuracies of the Apple Watch were really apparent here.

Heart Rate Comparison

Heart rate tracking for this long run showed some big differences as well. The Apple Watch reported an average heart rate of 116bpm, and max of 157bpm. While the Vertix reported an average of 131bpm and max rate of 167bpm. Then the Apple Watch reported 5505 calories burned while the Vertix reported 7025 calories burned. Some major discrepancies on heart rate tracking and burning calories.

Coros Vertix SP02 Monitoring

One amazing feature that was highlighted on this run was the Vertix’s high altitude blood oxygen monitoring. With this feature enabled the watch automatically detects when you reach 8,500 feet in elevation. It then proceeds to monitor your heart rate and oxygen levels. If your oxygen levels fall below recommended levels or your heart rate becomes extremely elevated it will warn you. I found this feature very useful to help gauge how I was doing in my Speedgoat preparations. And extra useful when trying to determine if I was overdoing it.

Day 5 – Randall’s Loop Half Marathon

I know the typical thing to do on the week of a race is to slow things down and taper. But for day 5 of my Coros Vertix review I was back on Randall’s loop, but for double the distance of my previous run. And to continue my testing I decided to run basically the same run back to back for a couple days. I figured a half marathon length would make the length long enough to test overall accuracy. And running on the same route/distance would help to see if discrepancies were a fluke or the way things are.

Vert Comparison

The Vertix showed the same reduction in max elevation on each successive loop as it had on previous runs. With a max elevation of 3251 feet reported on the first loop, and 3232 feet on the last. Giving a difference of 19 feet, which isn’t really that much, but it sure makes the graph look funny. The Apple Watch didn’t show the same reduction in elevation, but did vary a bit on each loop. It also reported a high of 3251 feet, but a low of 3235 feet. Total elevation gain was 522 feet on the Apple Watch but 732 feet on the Vertix. So this time around the elevation appeared to match up much better than the previous run. But total elevation gain was off by 30%.

Distance Comparison

On the mileage front the Apple Watch again tracked more distance than the Vertix. But this time it was only 0.1 miles longer than the Vertix’s reported distance. The average paces synced up better as a result, with 10:29/mile on the Vertix and 10:26/mile on the Apple Watch.

Heart Rate Comparison

While Apple Watch tracked an average heart rate of 130bpm and a max rate of 144bpm. The Vertix on the other hand recorded an average of 139bpm and max rate of 159bpm. With the difference in reported heart rates I would have expected different calorie reporting. But the Apple Watch reported 1929 calories burned, while the Vertix came in at 1710 calories.

Day 6 – Randall’s Loop Half Marathon Streak Day 2

For my Coros Vertix review on day 6 I was back on Randall’s loop again, running another Half Marathon+ distance. Again traversing the same distance and trail helps to make a level field for comparison between the watches. This morning was the same as every other with the exception of running across a desert gecko in the early morning hours before twilight.

I should note that since before day 1 starting my Coros Vertix Review I had not had to recharge the watch. It had made it through each of the last 6 days of running and 73.9 miles of running on the initial charge. And the watch still had about 50% of its battery left. In contrast my Apple Watch Series 2 required a recharge every night. And on the Pine Valley Mountain Marathon, it was within 15% of remaining charge when we got back to the car. So I was duly impressed with the battery life of the Coros Vertix. It was performing far beyond anything that I had used before.

Vert Comparison

This morning found the max elevation recorded by the Vertix exactly the same as the day before. With a max of 3251 feet, but the lowest peak was 3228 feet, 4 feet lower than the day before. On the other hand the Apple Watch recorded a max height of 3261 feet and low of 3241 feet.  That was 10 feet higher than the max height of the day previous, and 6 feet higher than the previous days low. Those differences from day to day for each individual watch are well within GPS tolerances, so no real surprise there. But it was cool to see the Vertix hit the same max height with precision.  And with only 4 feet of difference on the low point it looks as if it showing higher precision overall.

Distance Comparison

On distance, the Apple Watch again tracked more distance than the Vertix, but this time only 0.06 miles difference. So it was the smallest difference in distance per mile since my initial run where both watches matched up. And the average pace was pretty close with a 10:51/mile pace on the Vertix and 10:49/mile on the Apple Watch. Fastest mile wasn’t too far off either with 9:19/mile pace on the Apple Watch and 9:23/mile on the Vertix.

Heart Rate Comparison

The differences in recorded heart rate continued on this run. The Apple watch recorded an average of 123bpm and max of 140bpm. On the other hand the Vertix recorded an average of 132bpm and max of 160bpm. The Apple Watch reported an identical number of calories burned as the day before with 1929. But the Vertix reported 110 calories burned less than the previous days run with 1600.

Day 7 – Randall’s Loop Half Marathon Streak Day 3

For day 7 of my Coros Vertix review I returned to Randall’s loop again, running yet another Half Marathon+ distance. Continuing my effort to provide an accurate comparison between the watches.

Vert Comparison

This morning found the max elevation recorded by the Vertix higher than before. Showing a max of 3274 feet, 22 feet higher than that recorded the two days before, and the lowest peak was 3235 feet, 7 feet higher than the day before. On the other hand the Apple Watch recorded a max height of 3255 feet and low of 3241 feet.  That was 6 feet lower than the max height of the day previous, and matching the previous days low. Those differences from day to day for each individual watch are well within GPS tolerances, so no real surprise there. Although the Vertix had quite a bit higher reading than the previous days, the Apple Watch seemed to win this round.

Distance Comparison

As with the day before, the Apple Watch recorded 0.06 miles longer than the Vertix. Making for a consistent tracking on both those runs. And the average pace was pretty close with a 9:40/mile pace on the Vertix and 9:42/mile on the Apple Watch. Fastest mile wasn’t too far off either with 8:41/mile pace on the Apple Watch and 8:40/mile on the Vertix.

Heart Rate Comparison

Differences in recorded heart rate continued on this run. The Apple watch recorded an average of 140bpm and max of 152bpm. On the other hand the Vertix recorded an average of 145bpm and max of 165bpm. The Apple Watch reported an identical number of calories burned for the third day in a row, 1929. But the Vertix reported 83 more calories burned than the previous days run with 1683.

Day 8 – Randall’s Loop Half Marathon Streak Concludes Day 4

I felt that keeping my runs consistent would help to ensure the validity of my Coros Vertix Review numbers. This final day of my half marathon streak I stayed on Randall’s Loop. However, since Speedgoat was looming large on the horizon, just two days away. I wanted to make sure I got at least one rest day in before race day. I know you are thinking, what is he doing? Putting in 60 miles on the same week as an ultramarathon sounds like a dumb thing to do. It definitely was, but my running league had a challenge.

The challenge, #tapermenot, is all about who can get the most miles during a race week, with a different division for each race distance. In other words, besides running the toughest 50k in the world, I was also trying to do it with 60 weekly miles already under my belt. Above all, I needed to make sure that I had a good time, and ensured that I got some good data to test these watches with. So I kept a similar pace to the rest of my half marathon streak and enjoyed the cool morning air. In conclusion of my half marathon, I realized that I would be at about 57 miles for the week, and wanted to be closer to 60.

The Unexpected 5k

I had not decided to run anything extra after my half marathon. But after completing the exact same route that I had run the previous several days, I commenced a final 5k, in addition to my previous miles. I was already tired from the last several days of running, and the last half marathon. So I took it easy on this final chunk of trail. Certainly, it had been a long week, but it wasn’t over yet. The Coros Vertix and other Coros watch models have a nifty feature that tries to estimate your stamina. As a result it gives you an estimate on how long it will take you to recover from the activity you have just completed.

I forgot to record exactly what figure it gave me at this point, but I remember that it specified about 1.8 to 2 days for recovery. As a result it was obvious that I was not going to be able to fully recover before Speedgoat started. In short, it was going to be a tough race day.

Vert Comparison

This morning found the max elevation recorded by the Vertix lower than the day before. Showing a max of 3258 feet, 18 feet lower than that recorded the day before, additionally the lowest peak was 3238 feet, 3 feet higher than the day before. On the other hand the Apple Watch recorded a max height of 3261 feet and low of 3219 feet. Ending up 6 feet lower than the max height of the day previous, and 22 feet lower than the previous days low. The readings for vert continued to be acceptable and within normal GPS error thresholds.

Distance Comparison

Surprisingly the Apple Watch recorded the exact same distance as the Vertix. Making this the first time since day1 that the watches tracked the same distance. As a result the average pace was virtually identical with a 10:09/mile pace on the Vertix and 10:10/mile on the Apple Watch. However the fastest mile was a bit off, registering 8:59/mile pace on the Apple Watch and 9:13/mile on the Vertix.

Heart Rate Comparison

Differences in recorded heart rate continued on this run. The Apple watch recorded an average of 128bpm and max of 145bpm. On the other hand the Vertix recorded an average of 138bpm and max of 157bpm. The Apple Watch reported a slightly lower number of calories burned compared with previous days, 1925. Meanwhile the Vertix reported 59 fewer calories burned than the previous days run with 1624.

Day 9 – The Speedgoat 50k

The final day of my Coros Vertix review was race day on the 2019 Speedgoat 50k. I have run a couple 50k races before but nothing could have prepared me for what ultimately awaited me on the trail. A 50k with over 11,000 feet of vert over the amazingly rugged course. Additionally record snowfall in the area over the winter had the ski resort allowing skiing through July 4th 2019.

A Snowy Summer Route

Because of the conditions there was still a ton of snow on the ground 16 days later when the race was held (check the pictures out for reference). Most importantly, regardless of the amount of snow on the ground we were still able to run the race. Consequently though, the snow did present some interesting course changes. Specifically there were dozens of locations where you had to butt slide down the snowy incline. And in one place (pictured) all the runners had to ascend directly up a snowy slope. Then slide back down the same route on our final descent. This unique challenge added a lot of fun to an already amazing race.

One Final Test For the Vertix

Like all the previous tests, I ran Speedgoat with both the Coros Vertix as well as the Apple Watch Series 2. But unlike my Apple Watch which had received a full charge overnight in preparation for the grueling course. The Vertix had not received any additional charge since the initial charge I had given it after opening the box. So by the time I got to the starting line the watch had already been used for 105 miles, and almost 25 hours of GPS usage. In addition to the approximately 215 hours in normal watch mode.

With that usage over the last 10 days the Coros Vertix still had just over 30% of the battery remaining. Never before had I set out for a critical run/race without a fully charged watch. I had great faith in the watch based on it’s performance thus far, but I was still a bit nervous that the 30% wouldn’t be enough. But there was no time for hesitation, the starting gun fired and the race began.

Trying to be a SpeedGoat

Setting off up the mountain I was quickly edged to the middle of the pack and we trotted along eating vert with each step. I turned on my favorite trail past time, an audio book, and methodically plodded along enjoying the scenery.

The Speedgoat course is a vicious meat grinder, you get to the summit of 11k feet just to be sent back down the opposite side of the mountain. And then get turned around to head back up to the 11k foot summit again. As a result after a couple times you can get very disheartened, I know I did. But as with any ultramarathon it is only completed by continuing to put one foot in front of another until you are at the finish line.

The Effects of High Altitude

I had not been up above 8,500 feet since my run on Pine Valley Mountain, day 4. And although I had tried to get up on the mountain regularly in the weeks leading up to Speedgoat, I was not fully prepared for the altitude. Fortunately the Vertix’s SPO2 monitoring capability kept me aware of how my body was performing in the high altitude environment. I feel that Coros had put some significant effort into that sensor/system, and it helped to keep me aware of how my body was doing. Whenever my heart rate would jump over a certain level the Vertix would notify me. As a result I was able to adjust my effort to return my heart to a lower rate.

After finishing my final ascent of the summit with my bruised and battered body I headed downhill to the finish line. I remember thinking how amazing the day had been, despite or because of the toil. I tried to take the beauty of the scenery in to its fullest, and although it wasn’t a fast time by any means, I was satisfied with the 11 hour finish I received.

Checking the Vertix Battery

After finishing the race and ending my run on both watches I found that I still had 10% of the battery left on the Coros Vertix. As well as about the same amount on my apple watch. I was floored, that after all the miles and GPS time over the previous 10 days, and an epic 50k, that it would still have 10% of its battery left. It was just crazy to me. I was super impressed, and if that were the only thing that the Vertix did well, it would totally have made it worth the investment alone.

Vert Comparison

So after this epic run it was time to check how the two watches performed. The Coros Vertix logged as max elevation of 10,856 feet and a total of 10,732 feet of ascent. While the Apple Watch recorded a max elevation of 10,938 feet and 12,933 feet of ascent. Although the Official height of Hidden peak, the highest point on the mountain, which we summited three times, is 11,000 according to Wikipedia.  Here again the Apple Watch appears to have picked up a better reading on the elevation, but added some significant elevation gain. As a result there is no definite winner here.

Distance Comparison

As with previous days the Apple Watch logged more miles than the Coros Vertix. In this case the Vertix logged 32.22 miles, while the Apple Watch logged 35.13 miles. Now I am pretty sure that I had both watches on my person the whole time. But yet my Apple Watch recorded almost 3 more miles than the Vertix. As a result in this area the Vertix is the solid winner, hands down.

Conclusions

Construction

As I conclude my Coros Vertix review I think back over my runs with this watch and I am amazed by it’s robust construction. It is a very durable and reliable watch and is so much more than your average GPS fitness tracker. The housing is made with amazing and lightweight components and materials. They leave you with a watch that is heavy enough to convey its quality while also still leaving it light enough to not weigh you down. The watch will definitely handle whatever you choose to put it through. And the silicone strap keeps up with the rest of the industry for durability and usability.

Battery Life

Beyond the physical construction, the next most notable feature has to be the battery life of the watch. I may have been more conscious of the length of battery life, since I had been using my Apple Watch which required nightly charging. But the battery life in the Coros Vertix is next level for sure. The simple ability to have a health tracking watch that could last for 45 days between charges is a game changer. But then adding the long duration GPS tracking changes everything. 60 to 150 hours of tracking allows you to conquer even the longest of ultra activities without worrying if your watch will die mid event.

In my own testing the battery lasted through 9 days, and almost 37 hours of that GPS tracking for 137.22 miles. Even after all those days and hours of activity tracking, the watch still had 10% battery life remaining, a major win from my point of view.

Charging

My Apple Watch required charging each night and took quite a while to get to 100% battery life available. The Coros Vertix on the other hand was able to be charged only once over those 9 days. And it took less than 2 hours to get it to a full charge. Much less time spent charging the device compared to its usable time between charges.

Accuracy

The tracking accuracy is better in many ways than the Apple Watch I was comparing it against. It appeared to be more accurate in GPS distance tracking. Better at tracking the moving and stopped time/distance. And generally better at tracking the elevation overall. But the main issue it appeared to have was with the peak elevations reported. This issue was only made visible because of the loops I ran on the same trail over and over again. Where the Apple Watch would report slightly different elevations, some lower and some higher, each time I passed the highest point in the loop. As I continued this Coros Vertix Review the watch reported a constantly reducing elevation for the highest point on the loop.

It is possible that the watch is using some algorithm to attempt to increase the accuracy of the elevation measurement each time the same location is traversed. But it seems like the result should mediate all the peaks rather than constantly reduce them. I have hoped that this would be addressed by the Coros development team. But as of yet, it has not made it into any of the feature updates.

Display

The display on the Coros Vertix was unlike anything I had ever experienced before. It has a highly reflective component to the LCD screen that ensures the watch face is extremely visible in sunlight. The liquid crystal display is only capable of displaying 64 individual colors. But those colors are put to good use, offering an amazing presentation given the limited color array.

As a comparison my Apple Watch has a fully lit OLED screen, which can display millions of colors. And this works great at night, giving you a bright easy to read display. But during the day the Apple Watch’s screen can be quite difficult to see, especially in direct sunlight. This is not an issue with the Vertix, its screen stands out in any level of sunlight. The reflective ability also makes it easy to view with the light from a headlamp. And it also has a backlight to make things easy to see at night.

Oxygen Monitor

Having the SP02 monitor that automatically kicks in above 8500 feet was an amazing feature. As a trail runner I have never thought wow I am getting up there in elevation, maybe I should check my oxygen levels. But the Coros Vertix is set to do exactly that by default. So when you get above 8500 feet, where hypoxia could start to occur, it kicks in to help you become aware of potential hazards, like low oxygen in the blood, or higher than normal heart rate. I used it above 10,000 feet on two of my runs over my 9 day review period and found this feature very useful.

Ease of Use

After using the touch screen on the Apple Watch, I wasn’t sure how I would enjoy being relegated to the button and crown on the Coros Vertix. But I am happy to say that it was an easy switch. The button and crown usage was very intuitive and they were large enough to easily use even with gloves on. I had experienced several cancelled runs or other issues with my Apple Watch, because of a wet sleeve, or other moist object being interpreted as my finger. The touch-less interface made that a thing of the past. I have never had my Coros cancel a run on me prematurely.

My Coros Vertix Review Pros and Cons

Pro	Con
Ultra Durable Construction	Inaccurate Peak Elevation(s)
Extreme Battery Life
High Altitude SPO2 Detection
No Touch Screen Interface
Quick Charge Time with Long Battery Life
Great Price to Overall Value
New Functionality Through Firmware Updates Regularly

 

The basic details of each of my runs for this Coros Vertix Review are laid out in the table below to allow the reader to easily reference the differences in recorded distances, elevations, and Heart Rate.