Coros Pace 4 Review – Wonderfully Light Powerhouse for Runners Rated

The prior Coros Pace 3 made for a popular sports watch with its lightweight design, fitness tracking features and long battery life. Its successor, the recently launched Coros Pace 4 aims to improve on its predecessor in endurance, performance and features while keeping to a reasonable price tag. 

We got our hands on a unit for field testing and after taking it on the trail and through the better part of a weekly routine, here’s our Coros Pace 4 review where we share if this ultralight sports watch is worth its RM1,099 price tag.

Coros Pace 4 Review – Upgrades That Matter

After the success of the prior Pace 3, Coros improved on what worked in the new Pace 4 and it feels like a natural, well thought out evolution rather than a drastic overhaul. The Coros Pace 4 retains the brand’s signature lightweight design and doubles down on its endurance-focused philosophy with improved battery life rated for up to 19 days on a single charge in normal smartwatch mode.

Our Coros Pace 4 review unit came in a shade of white with a matching silicone band though it also can be acquired in black with either a nylon or silicone band. 

Built from polycarbonate, the case of the watch is just 11.8mm thin and weighs 40g with the silicone band. It was often the case that I even forgot I was wearing it on account of how amazingly light it felt, especially compared to other smartwatches I have worn for testing. Oddly the white colourway lacks a nylon band variant which further shaves the weight down to just 32g.

In terms of build and design, our Coros Pace 4 review sample doesn’t visually differ all that much from the prior Pace 3 save for the inclusion of the new Action button seen on the Coros Apex 4.

The Action button is handy for quick tasks like turning on the backlight, dropping voice pins or switching data screens during a workout.  Action button aside, the Pace 4 retains the same crown and back button as the Pace 3. The Pace 4 also has a built-in mic that allows users to record personal audio notes and commentary mid-run.

The underside has a PPG Heart Rate sensor and blood oxygen sensor as well as a charging port that uniquely comes with a small charging adaptor which has a USB-C port which accepts any USB-C cable.

What makes it brilliant here is that the charging adaptor comes with a rubber keychain holder that neatly fits onto your house or car keys, ensuring that you can take the adaptor with you wherever you go and simply juice it off any conventional charger.

Up front, the 1.2-inch AMOLED screen offers up 1,500 nits peak brightness and 390 x 390 pixels resolution which is brighter and sharper than its predecessor the Pace 3 which used a 1.2-inch Memory-in-Pixel (MIP) display which isn’t as bright and has a lower 240 x 240 resolution. The new Pace 4 also uses tougher mineral glass to protect the dial.

During testing, I found that the improved brighter display was bright enough for use in sunlight and offered up punchy colours, great contrast and solid visibility in brightly lit conditions. 

What blew me away though was its battery life. Coros claims that it offers up to 19 days in smartwatch mode and up to 41 hours with GPS enabled, which lined up with my experience when using it. 

Even after wearing it for a week and a half in smartwatch mode with a few test runs of its High GPS mode which actively checks satellites in orbit for enhanced positioning when working out, I still haven’t worried about charging it.

This is a significant advantage over smartwatches from some competing brands that often need charging every couple of days. Best of all, the compact, keychain-sized charging adaptor mitigates any worries about not being able to charge it when I’m out for a trip which adds additional peace of mind.

Coros Pace 4 Review – Smart features and daily use

In day-to-day use, the Coros Pace 4 feels like a watch that’s clearly built for runners and fitness training first, with smart features comprising a modest but decent set for day-to-day scenarios for most casual users.

During testing, my Coros Pace 4 review unit offered reliable step tracking, heart rate tracking as well as sleep monitoring and activity detection with the watch covering all the key sports I participate in including running, cycling, swimming and even pickleball. 

GPS performance is a noticeable improvement thanks to dual-band tracking, however during my testing, the GPS did add some erroneous mapping data when I was playing pickleball in a semi-outdoor court but it tracked amazingly well when I was out for a jog around my neighbourhood. Sleep tracking proved accurate when compared with other devices that I used alongside it.

In terms of smartwatch features, the Coros Pace 4 offers a relatively basic but functional feature set. When paired with my Android smartphone, I got notifications just fine and while there is no deep app ecosystem or the ability to stream music, I did appreciate the ability to play stored music off the onboard 4GB storage and the media controls did get the job done for a quick playlist to accompany my workout though the watch does not have speakers. 

One feature I genuinely liked is the built-in microphone for voice pins which let me quickly record notes mid-run without breaking stride.

The biggest downside though is that customisation for the action button is limited to mostly sports modes related tasks and there’s not much to tweak for normal smartwatch functions. The interface can also feel less intuitive if you’re coming from an Apple or Garmin smartwatch but if your focus is fitness training over smartwatch bells and whistles, the Coros Pace 4 delivers.

Should you buy the Coros Pace 4?

While it offers the most benefit for serious or enthusiast runners, the Coros Pace 4 offers excellent value for what it offers.  It is feather-light, has excellent battery life and gets a vibrant display that’s worth showing off.

All in, the Coros Pace 4 is a compelling, decently priced choice if your priority is fitness tracking especially if you’re a runner though it lacks a deep ecosystem or extensive customisation options. 

Coros Pace 4 review unit courtesy of Coros Malaysia. For more details please visit https://pangurunning.com/goods/detail/4352