Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 5 review: the essentials at a reasonable price, no more and no less

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Sober, Discreet, And Comfortable :

The Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 5 benefits from a simplistic design. Don’t hear this as a negative review, it’s just that it would be hard to digress for lines and lines about the aesthetic peculiarities of this product for the simple reason that it doesn’t really have any. The connected bracelet is extremely sober.

The oval plastic case is covered with a layer of reinforced glass housing a small rectangular screen. This is underlined by a small tactile button identifiable by a thin circle, very discreet. The upper part of the slab is not being used. An area as wide as a third of a nail therefore always remains black in this area. Granted, this is wasted space, but we can probably agree that it is negligible.

The lower part of the case, the one that is in contact with the top of your wrist, houses the heart rate sensor of the Mi Smart Band 5, as well as the magnetic connector on which to plug the bracelet to recharge it with the cable provided in the box. of the device.

The rubber strap covers the entire sides of the device, but it remains easy enough to remove to be replaced if you wish: just press hard enough on the case while pulling one of the straps in. the other way around. The buckle of the said bracelet is made of aluminum and takes the shape of a pin. With thirteen levels of fit, there is little chance that you will fail to adjust it to the size that suits you best. Personally, I have a very thin wrist, but I could still grip the Mi Smart Band 5 very well and there were still four more holes left.

Thanks to the rubber strap, the device is quite comfortable to use in the sense that it is never really awkward to wear – except after an intensive workout during which you have sweated a lot. The Mi Smart Band 5 weighs just 11.9 grams and is water resistant thanks to its 5 ATM certification. More generally, we should remember above all that this is not a fashion item, unlike some connected watches which take special care in the look.

A Sufficient Screen, But A Little Narrow :

The 1.1-inch AMOLED display offers a resolution of 126 x 294 pixels. Nothing exceptional then, but it is sufficient for the vast majority of uses that you will have. Some may regret the narrowness of the panel which can be confusing when you want to read certain messages on the Mi Smart Band 5.

However, apart from this scenario, the screen does its job very well with a brightness that could be a little higher for a really optimal readability in all circumstances, but in fact, I had to squint only two or three times in a month.

Xiaomi Mi Fit: As Complete As Scrapped

It is a basic interface available to the user. Roughly speaking, there are three ways to navigate in it: the simple press to access a particular function, the touch button at the bottom to go back (it also allows you to turn on the screen), and the sliding of your finger in the direction of the vertical to navigate in the menu. You can also slide your index finger horizontally on the main screen to view more information such as the weather or the music player.

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The fact that the interface is basic does not prevent you from being able to personalize it, in particular by choosing the watch face that you like the most from your smartphone via the Mi Fit application, which is essential for using your Mi Smart Band 5 to its full potential.

Moreover, it is from the Mi Fit application that you will also be able to manage your notification options – in particular to be able to read your WhatsApp messages on the bracelet, this is not activated by default. It is also possible to manage the arrangement of the menu options on the Mi Smart Band 5, to program the time slot during which the screen should light up by raising your wrist (to avoid being dazzled during your sleep), or activate the night mode to reduce the brightness of the panel from a certain time.

The Mi Fit app is packed with a whole bunch of features to polish your experience with your Mi Smart Band 5 and I didn’t even mention the vibration settings or the ability to take a photo remotely with your smartphone to take a selfie. – this experimental option is hidden in the “Laboratory” tab of the application, on the bracelet you have to go to the “More” menu to find it.

Unfortunately, the Mi Fit platform is still a bit messy and does not take the user by hand enough. He will need to take the time to conscientiously explore every corner of the application to make sure that he is not missing out on a practical feature. A small problem also bothered me: when changing my smartphone as part of a test, the application no longer recognized my account – even when trying to change my password – and I had to redo an account and reset the bracelet and lose my data saved on it. I hope this concern is not widespread.

Finally, note that you will not be able to reply to your messages from the bracelet. Also, picking up an incoming call is not possible. The Mi Smart Band 5 especially wants to warn you that you have to look at your phone to discover your notifications. On a more technical level, note that the device has 512 KB of RAM and 16 MB of storage.

A Good Tool For Grass Athletes :

The Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 5 has a heart rate monitor, a gyroscope, and an accelerometer. It counts your number of daily steps, your stress level, your heart rate, monitors your sleep (to indicate the phases of deep sleep), and also offers a PAI function. This is a “personal vitality index” which is calculated based on your gender, age, heart rate, etc. The higher your score out of 100, the better. Based on your index, the Mi Smart Band 5 may recommend some exercises to perform to do even better.

Moreover, speaking of exercises, the Mi Smart Band 5 recognizes up to eleven workouts (running, cycling, skipping rope, swimming, etc.) to indicate the duration of your workouts, and the number of heartbeats. per minute, the number of calories expended and, if applicable, the distance traveled.

In other words, the Mi Smart Band 5 keeps track of activity well, without overdoing it. The information gathered is very classic, but it will suit a large number of people simply looking to know if they have been active enough during the day. The bracelet is also useful for more seasoned athletes, as long as they are not necessarily looking for a slew of data of all kinds. With this product, they will have a good base.

All your information is then logged on Mi Fit so that you can see your history and the times you have achieved your goals.

From the application, you will also be able to determine the detection frequency of your heart rate or activate the “Activity monitoring” option: when your Mi Smart Band 5 detects that you are exercising, it automatically increases how often your heart rate is detected for more accuracy. It may have a small impact on battery life.

An Autonomous Bracelet :

The Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 5 can boast of having good autonomy with its 125 mAh battery that is a little damaged by the tiny screen. On average, you can easily last two large weeks without recharging the connected bracelet. By increasing the frequency of activity readings, that endurance may be reduced by a day or two, but overall the device really lasts.

You will be able to leave for several days of hiking without forgetting the charger and you will not have to worry particularly, the bracelet will remain functional. Also, note that it took me a little less than two hours each time to regain 100% battery power.

Price And Availability Of The Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 5 :

The Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 5 cost 41$ and it’s available in Amazon.