The Xiaomi Mi Watch is a great smartwatch. However, there are a few problems. If we had to summarize the Mi Watch’s flaws in one sentence, it would be: While the features are extensive, the depth of the features is limited.
The ebbs of your heart rate and energy levels, as well as your stress level and sleep quality, can be tracked. However, the numbers don’t always match up. It was not easy to tell the difference between sleeping and lounging in bed. The stress tracker, however, was unable to differentiate between these two activities. We didn’t find all of these modes to be wrong. However, we did find them useful.
There are more than 100 fitness-tracking modes. They vary in complexity and depth, but they can be very useful and the GPS is very handy for many of them. You can track many metrics to give you detailed information about your exercise. However, you will need the Xiaomi Wear app for all of this feedback.
Although some workouts aren’t as detailed as running, which is undoubtedly the most popular, factors such as altitude and location don’t make it easy to do Tai Chi. We found that most of the information was accurate, though distances sometimes felt a little off.
An imperfect experience is to be expected given the Xiaomi Mi Watch’s affordable price tag, but to its credit it has a long-lasting battery and lightweight, easy-to-forget-about, design, so you’re not going to spend time idly fiddling with it or constantly putting it on charge. It’s a huge advantage to be able to forget your smartwatch even when it’s not in use.
The smartwatch is ideal for people who are interested in keeping an eye on their fitness and health without having to know all the details. It’s a good smartwatch for this audience, but it isn’t great.
Xiaomi Mi Watch Price and Availability
The Xiaomi Mi Watch is priced at PS119, or around $165, AU$210. Although it may be available in Australia, Xiaomi does not release products in the US.
It is twice as expensive than the Mi Watch Lite, which is its contemporary sibling, and it costs less than a Fitbit Versa 3 (PS199 / $229 / AU$399).
Design
The Xiaomi Mi Watch, like most smartwatches has a body and two removable straps.
The straps are made from thermoplastic polyurethane, which feels like a mixture of rubber and plastic. They are also long and have lots of holes to allow for airflow. The straps are secure and comfortable with two retainers that hold the excess strap in its place.
The watch face is circular and has two crowns. One is for navigation to the app menu and the other to view the workouts list. The watch face is plain and has no embellishments. The watch is very lightweight at under 40g. It can be worn on the wrist easily.
The lugs and ends of the straps were covered in dust, which was easy to remove if the straps were removed.
The Xiaomi Mi Watch is available in three colors: black, blue, or beige. Both the body and straps can also come in your choice of color.
Display
The display of the Xiaomi Mi Watch measures 1.39 inches in width. It’s also quite bright, so it is easy to see even in direct sunlight. It’s made of AMOLED technology, which makes it extremely colorful. This is useful because it allows you to easily see information while working out.
The screen’s fluid motion was amazing, especially when scrolling through menus and post-workout breakdowns. Although Xiaomi has not revealed the refresh rate, we would guess that it is higher than most smartwatches. This responsive screen can be very enjoyable to use, especially if it’s something you have never experienced before.
The device comes with four watch faces, but you can download a wide range of other options on the app. You can’t use your own image as background. This is something that a few watches don’t offer.
Software and performance
Xiaomi Mi Watch runs on Xiaomi’s smartwatch operating system, MIUI, which appears to be based on its smartphone OS.
You can swipe left and right from the main watch face to view a heart rate graph and your energy level. Also, check the weather and air quality. A button will allow you to check your blood oxygen levels. Music controls are available.
The app list will open when you press the top crown. However, the icons don’t have titles so it can be difficult to locate the feature you want. You’ll need to get used the app list. For example, stopwatch, alarm, and timer all have clock icons.
After getting used to the Mi Watch’s confusing menu, the interface was a lot easier to use. You don’t have to swipe through many menus in order to find the tool or feature that you want, and everything is clearly laid out.
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