8 Days with the Coros Pace Pro: The Ultimate Watch for Running and Hiking
The Coros Pace Pro features a bright AMOLED screen, outstanding battery life, and sophisticated navigation and sports tracking tools, positioning it as a formidable contender against market leaders.
Coros Pace Pro
Coros is stepping up to compete with top tech brands like Garmin, Polar, and Suunto with its latest offering, the Coros Pace Pro. This watch marks the brand’s first venture into AMOLED displays, boasting a bright 1500 nits screen akin to those found in smartwatches. Beyond the impressive display, it features new heart rate and GPS sensors, extended battery life, and enhanced navigation tools, making it ideal for a variety of sports, including running and hiking.
The watch provides a stream of measurements including calories, steps, training sessions, sleep, weather, sunset times, altitude, heart rate, stress management, nocturnal HRV, and notifications. All this data is conveniently organized in an app that delivers detailed insights for even the most demanding users, whether they’re running or hiking.
Illustration: Coros App
The Pace Pro: A High-Performance Watch
After extensive testing, the Pace Pro holds its own against premium running watches like the Garmin Fenix 8, Garmin Enduro 3, Suunto Race S Titanium, and Polar Vantage M3. A significant upgrade from the Pace 3, it features a large (1.3 inch) AMOLED touchscreen that is clearer and brighter. The new battery design provides improved longevity, maintaining 50% power after 15 days of regular use or 6 days on always-on display mode, and up to 38 hours with precise GPS usage. Its navigation capabilities are also enhanced by the addition of offline TOPO maps, showcased brilliantly on its vibrant screen.
The watch’s casing and bezel are made from fiber-reinforced polymer, offering lightness at just 37 grams. It supports various nylon strap options available on the Coros store, although the strap mechanism could be more user-friendly.
Illustration: Coros Pace Pro during a recovery run
Features of the Coros Pace Pro
The watch packs a complete set of tools for training, racing, and recovery. It boasts improved storage for music and offline maps with 32GB and features the fastest processor in its class. This leads to double the performance and three times faster zooming capabilities compared to previous models. Its charging port is redesigned for a minimalistic look and reliable connection, even on the go. Thanks to the new keychain adapter, a single USB-C cable can charge all your devices, reducing waste and environmental impact.
Should You Consider the Coros Pace Pro?
Despite its higher price tag of 399€, the Pace Pro justifies the investment with significant improvements in screen quality, navigation, and battery capacity. If you are looking for a reliable sports watch with an excellent display, the longest AMOLED battery life, and superior navigation, the Coros Pace Pro is a solid choice. It also supports the game-changing Pod 2 accessory.
The Pod2
The POD 2 is a lightweight, waterproof sensor that attaches to your foot or belt to deliver ultra-precise running data. It connects directly to COROS watches, providing real-time measurements and in-depth running technique analysis to enhance training indoors or outdoors. This sensor overcomes traditional GPS limitations like data delays, weak signals, or inaccuracies on treadmills. The POD 2 automatically adjusts its readings based on stride and offers instant data even in challenging environments like hilly terrains with its exclusive “Effort Pace” metric.
The COROS POD 2 meets the demands of serious runners, especially in an era where overcoming the limitations of GPS watches is crucial. In 2024, as innovation becomes key, this product appears to be a significant advancement in democratizing access to professional-quality data.
Illustration: Coros Pod2