In a day we perform many physical activities and the most common of them is walking. What if we could measure the same and also get to know how many calories we have burnt? With the Mi Band you can do just that and many more things.
Off-late we have seen a lot of fitness or rather wearable tech invading our lives in the form of smartwatches that can display time, show notifications, as well as let you click photos. However, these smart watches are pricey and does not warrant a ‘want factor’ for majority of the buyers. Enter, fitness bands. As the name suggests, these bands track your movements, sleep and notify you about your goal and how many calories you have burned. Recently, Xiaomi announced its Mi Band for India priced at Rs.999. But is the inexpensive price tag, motivation enough for you to get off the couch and start burning those calories? Let’s find out.
What’s in the box?
The retail packaging comes with the Mi Band Core, USB cable that acts as a charger, a guide and the rubberised band.
Design, build quality and looks
The Mi Band looks premium and comes with various colour options for the band. The one we are reviewing here is the black colour band. Xiaomi claims that it is made out of military-grade exercise sensor and houses an ultra-slim 8mm battery that lasts up to 30 days. The Mi Band core has three small notification dots that light up as per the goal achieved. The Mi Band looks like a normal rubberised band, however it is IP67 certified, meaning it offers water resistance and can withstand sweat as well as dust. The Mi Band is so light that you won’t feel you have worn anything on your hand. There are additional coloured rubberised and leather bands, which you can purchase separately.
Compatability & Use
The Mi Band works with Android devices running version 4.4 or higher and starting from iPhone 4S running iOS 7 and higher. However, the Mi Band’s smart unlocking feature requires smartphones with MIUI or Android 5.0 and above.
To use the Mi Band and to pair it with your device, you need to download the Mi Fit app from the Play Store or iTunes App Store. We tested the Mi Band with an Android phone, hence the screen shots in this review reflect the Mi Fit app on Android. Pairing the Mi Band with the device takes a few seconds. You only need to switch on the Bluetooth on the phone and wait for Mi Band to light up.
Once paired, you can setup your profile in the Mi Fit app. You can even select the Band light colour from the app that varies from Blue, Orange, Green and Red. You can also select the hand on which Mi Band is worn.
Some of the features we personally liked were Screen Unlock and Incoming call alert. Screen Unlock feature works only if you are on Android 5.0 and above or using a smartphone with MIUI. In short, if the Mi Band and the mobile device is in the vicinity, the phone can be unlocked without having to enter a PIN or a pattern and reverts back to protected lock screen in case the Mi Band goes out of range. With the incoming call feature, you can set the Mi Band to vibrate with lights in case the phone is not picked up in 3 seconds, 5 seconds or more than that. You can set the seconds as per your requirement.
The Mi Band works on Bluetooth LE, which means it consumes less battery. You can even switch off the Bluetooth and only switch it on once you want to sync the Mi Band data with the Mi Fit app.
Activity tracker and other uses
The Mi Band tracks your movements as well as your sleep. With the sleep tracker, the Mi Band notifies you how many times you woke up, how long it took to fall back asleep, how many hours/minutes you were in deep sleep, etc. Unlike other bands that require to be manually set to sleep tracking mode, Mi Band automatically starts tracking the sleep. There’s also smart vibration alarm that gently nudges you trying to wake you up from deep sleep 30 minutes before the actual alarm goes off.
Moreover, in case you want to perform activities like skipping a rope or sit-ups, Mi Fit allows you to set the Mi Band in that mode so that it detects the activity correctly.
Conclusion
Factually, fitness trackers may not motivate you to stay fit, however, it gives you an indication what you are doing and should do. And for people who already follow some fitness regime, Mi Band can help shape it up and give a direction. Priced at Rs.999, we do not have a reason why this fitness band should not be on your wrist. Mi Band will be exclusively available on Mi.com only for people who have pre-registered for the purchase. The sale starts on May 5, at 2PM IST.
Pros: Affordable, Battery Life
Cons: NA
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