Is wearing a health tracker in the form of a bracelet such as Huawei Band, Xiaomi Smart Band or Samsung Galaxy Fit2 a smart choice if even a basic smartwatch already has many interesting and useful features and functions for users to monitor health and see the user's sports activities.
Maybe the use of this smart bracelet is suitable if you want something light in the hand, damaged can buy new without crying because of loss, or maybe even comfortable to wear 24 hours because it is small and more comfortable for those who sleep hard without worrying about damaging the screen. In this article, I will share my experience of using Xiaomi Smart Band 7 for a few weeks as my daily watch. I will also give an opinion on whether this product is worth owning and worth upgrading from the Xiaomi Smart Band 6?
Specifications
The Xiaomi Smart Band 7 doesn’t have much of a change with the Xiaomi Smart Band 6. The most noticeable difference is in the screen size, but if placed side by side it’s hard to see the difference between these two health trackers. The new model uses a 1.62-inch AMOLED screen with brightness support up to 500 nits and also supports the Always-on display feature. Xiaomi also added more than 100 watch faces compared to the previous 60 which was only.
The next difference is on the battery. With a larger screen and AOD support, the battery also needs to be bigger with the capacity this time being 180mAh with the promise of lasting up to 15 days of light use and 9 days of heavy use. This version also has 120 sports modes, supports continuous SpO2 monitoring, adds VO2 Max count support, has a notification system for aerobic and anaerobic exercises, can allow time for recovery as well as load exercise types
Others are just the same and there is no other difference. The controls are also the same, i.e. full contact with finger gestures. The clock face can be modified to add its own widgets such as site number, battery status and so on depending on the clock face used. It can be said to be like Complications on the Apple Watch.
Like the Xiaomi Smart Band 6, this model also does not require the user to remove the watch from the watch strap and can be directly charged via an easy -to -use magnetic cable. The watch strap also stays comfortable and doesn’t cause itchy hand skin, and most importantly it can be taken for swimming as it has 5ATM water protection.
Usage Experience
I was already using various variations of the Xiaomi Smart Band, at that time this product was still called the Mi Band. From the screenless version with LED lights only, the mono screen version, the color OLED screen with buttons and the full screen version. Since there is a screen, the main change is in terms of controls only - either through buttons or screen touch gestures. So I don’t feel foreign using this Xiaomi Smart Band 7, even though the screen is bigger.
It’s still easy to use, the controls are also simple with one scroll on each section like down for notifications, up for the app tray and to the side to see access to favorite apps with data displayed. It's smooth and fine, no time lag or stuck, no problem tethering the device to the phone and also no problem in data monitoring.
Xiaomi adds a lot of sports modes and health monitoring functions, but the ones I use a lot are for heart and sleep monitoring. The data obtained when compared to the Apple Watch, there are few problems. The Xiaomi Smart Band 7 displays vastly different data from the Apple Watch Series 7. The Apple Watch I can confirm has more or less the same data as the TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra. This means, heart monitoring is not a strength on this bracelet.
To sleep, strangely enough it is more or less the same. So what I can conclude is - just for the heart of the Xiaomi Smart Band has a bit of a problem. The use of applications such as SpO2, pressure test and other applications it runs smoothly only. The music controls are also fast, but the slow ones are the camera controls.
Over the course of a few weeks of use, I used this product alongside the iPhone and it has a usage experience that I can accept if I want to make the Xiaomi Smart Band 7 as a backup health tracker.
Does the battery last?
By activating Always-on Display, always receiving notifications and using while sleeping for 24-hour monitoring-the Xiaomi Smart Band 7 I found can last up to 4 days maximum only. I just couldn’t stand the 9 days as promised. This means, this product needs to be charged every 4 days and no longer lasts around a week like the old model. Large screens, AOD and round -the -clock monitoring use a lot of power and a device as small as this is not the best choice for using all the advanced features.
The given magnetic charging is very easy, as the device does not need to be removed from the watch strap. But it was still not very fast and took over an hour. It’s also a short, small cable that I’m sure will be easily lost.
What Can You Do With The Application?
Xiaomi Smart Band 7 can be used in conjunction with two apps, namely Mi Fitness (old name Xiaomi Wear Lite) and Zepp Life (old name Mi Fit). Both applications use more or less the same interface. While it can be used with Zepp Life, it can’t be used with the Zepp app - because it’s specific to Amazfit products only.
The app I use is Zepp Life, to me it’s just fine. But a bit fibrous and unorganized. For example, the device on the main screen does not look neat with a display of cards of different sizes and confusing graphics. I feel this can be changed by arranging in the form of tiles and also cards and users can arrange by drag and drop. The Workout section for walking, running and cycling has the best interface.
Others are still similar to the previous Mi Fit, just not sure why there can be two apps that can be used. Will Xiaomi continue to use the Zepp system?
Conclusion
With the price of smart watches already increasingly affordable and more brands starting to offer their respective iterations, the use of health trackers in the form of bracelets like these may no longer be an ideal option. It’s not a bad product, just a lot of very features and shortcomings make the use of a basic smartwatch probably now even better.
But don't look for something too basic, where the features and functions are like a Mi Band but the screen is the size of a clock. I find it hard to recommend the Xiaomi Smart Band 7 to the public, but what other options are there for a good usage experience at a price below RM200? I think only Xiaomi still offers a product like this.
What I can't wait to test is the Xiaomi Smart Band 7 Pro. It comes with a large screen, more premium designs and different watch straps. It’s closer to the Huawei Band 7 which to me may have the potential to be a successor to a health tracker in the form of a bracelet and dominate the wearable device market for users just starting out. The price of RM199 is still considered affordable, just save it and wait for the Pro version which is sold at a price below RM300 in China.
Pro
The screen is bigger, prettier and clearer
More sports modes to choose from
Various additional applications that can be used to monitor data
Cons
Still the same design
The battery does not last long
Extremely sensitive screens often touch the clock face settings
Heart data is not very accurate