XIAOMI MI BAND 6 REVIEW: IS IT WORTH BUYING?

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XIAOMI MI BAND 6 REVIEW: IS IT WORTH BUYING?

Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 6 - 1.56'' AMOLED Touch Screen, SPO2, Sleep Breathing Tracking, 5ATM Water Resistant, 14 Days Battery Life, 30 Sports Mode, Fitness, Steps, Sleep, Heart Rate Monitor


Specifications

  • Type: fitness bracelet
  • Price: 3 990 rubles
  • Screen: 1.56 inches, AMOLED, resolution 486 x 152 pixels, pixel density 326 ppi, brightness 450 nits
  • Dimensions: 47.4 x 18.6 x 12.7 mm, weight 12.8 g, strap length 155-219 mm
  • Water protection: 5 ATM, you can swim in the pool
  • Communication: bluetooth 5.0
  • Supported systems: Android 5.0 or iOS 10.0 and later
  • Sensors: 3-axis accelerometer and 3-axis low power gyroscope, PPG sensor for heart rate measurement
  • Battery: 250 mAh (or 125 mAh see Battery section), claimed up to 14 days of operation (actually 7 full days, see Battery section), charge 2 hours

Materials:

  • Bracelet capsule: tempered glass, plastic
  • Strap: TPU and aluminum alloy

Functions:

  • Health: heart rate monitoring, sleep phase monitoring (deep, fast, REM), female cycle and ovulation phase monitoring, blood stress and oxygen monitoring
  • Other: PAI Index, Message / Call Notifications, App Notifications, Calendar, Alarm, Clock, Stopwatch, Timer, Music Play Control, Find My Phone, Unlock Phone (MIUI), Remote Camera Shutter *, Weather, Set Activity Goals.
Positioning

The Mi Band line from Xiaomi has been and remains one of the most affordable solutions on the fitness bracelet market.Previously, the series was unique, but today you can easily find similar solutions from other manufacturers, although often, in one way or another, they will be inferior to Xiaomi in terms of price or price / feature set / quality ratio.

With each new version of the bracelet, the Mi Band evolves, becoming better, more interesting and still captivating customers.

Xiaomi among the main selling points of the new Mi Band 6 includes the following:

  • Large AMOLED screen with a brightness of 450 nits and a clarity of 326 ppi;
  • Blood oxygen tracking sensor;
  • Magnetic charging that allows you to charge the bracelet without removing it from the strap;
  • Up to 14 days of battery life;
  • Over 30 exercise modes and automatic detection of six workout types.

Equipment

The bracelet comes in a classic black box.Inside:

  • Bracelet with a strap;
  • Magnetic charging;
  • Manual.
First start-up and application

The bracelet is in the included box by default, waiting for pairing.In general, this, by the way, is a feature of the Mi Band bracelets.They cannot be turned off.In the settings there is an option to reboot, but not shutdown.Why is this done?Apparently, if it were otherwise, then it would be necessary to complicate the design, inventing an option for how to turn it on.

The bracelet needs the Mi Fit app to work.By the way, unlike some other Xiaomi gadgets, which sometimes "dull" when connected to their applications, there are no such problems with Mi Band.If you have not had the Mi Fit app before, you will have to create an account.Fortunately, it is no longer necessary to enter all the details, as you can choose to authenticate with your Facebook account.

Nothing has changed in the application.The main screen displays the latest data.Nothing new.Maybe I didn't pay attention before, but the item "Check balance" was added (this is provided that you have a new smart scale from Xiaomi).And the item "Smart Analysis" appeared, which should give advice on improving the quality of sleep.

Despite the fact that the large screen makes it easier to operate the bracelet, it is better to use the app for basic settings.

In the application you can:

  • Customize the vibration level and vibration options for calls, SMS, notifications, alarms, etc .;
  • Select the language of the bracelet, the function "Raise your hand to automatically light up the screen";
  • An important thing: change the order of the menu on the bracelet (for example, I made it so that the workouts were immediately at the top, and inside the workouts in the first place was swimming in the pool and jumping rope as the most often used);
  • Nice topic: on a smartphone there is an option to find a bracelet, and on a bracelet - to find a phone.The latter works well as the phone starts to play a melody loudly.But looking for a bracelet from a smartphone is an empty idea, only if it does not lie somewhere on a hard surface that allows you to hear vibration.

Perhaps, finally, a few impressions:

  • There is still a limitation that there can be only one fitness bracelet per account.On the one hand, it makes sense that two bracelets are not needed.On the other hand, due to the lack of NFC, I still prefer Mi Band 4 in everyday life. While Mi Band 6 is much more comfortable in the gym (more precisely, it counts pools, etc.).
  • The application logic is a bit weird.Some things can be done only in the application, and some - only on the bracelet.For example, the order of the menu is only in the application, and the choice of screen brightness and backlight duration is only on the bracelet.Although it would be more logical if the application could do everything skillfully.

Appearance and how not to spoil the case of the bracelet

Visually, the bracelet has not changed much.It has become a few millimeters larger, but you will only notice this in a direct comparison.The position of the sensors has slightly changed.

Mi Band 6, like the previous models of the series, is made of high-quality plastic, which, even after active wear, remains like new.The photo below shows Mi Band 4 NFC and Mi Band 5, which have been actively used every day since the release, having been in the cold during this time, and on hikes, etc.The case looks perfect.But the Mi Band 6 looks like it was treated with sandpaper.Xiaomi offered to change the bracelet, but I refused, deciding that this would make the story clearer.

On weekends we went to the countryside and used a mosquito repellent.I took off the bracelet, got a lot of stuff, and then put it back on.It was a mistake.The repellent has corroded the plastic.

If I applied the product over the bracelet, then most likely there would be no problem.This is exactly what my girlfriend did.There is glass on top of the bracelet, and the strap protects the sides.

By the way, we are not talking about any specific remedy, but about the entire category of anti-mosquito sprayers.I found stories of people using other brands and gadgets on the Internet.Any plastic is corroded - even a fitness bracelet, even a smartphone.Someone had a damaged SLR lens.

I am glad that at least the accuracy of the sensors has not changed.Works as before.

Most repellents contain diethyltoluamide (DEET).It is excellent at repelling mosquitoes and ticks, and also has low toxicity.But at the same time it perfectly dissolves plastic and synthetic fabrics.Accordingly, the conclusion is simple.Look at the composition of the repellent.In the picture below, the concentration of diethyltoluamide is 50%.But you should immediately warn that you should not choose repellents with a concentration of DEET below 30%, since such agents simply stop repelling mosquitoes and ticks.

Hope this comment is helpful.

Screen, wallpaper and controls

The screen, of course, is wow and ah!And in general, perhaps, the main motivation is to renew.To be honest, the live screen initially gave me a slight feeling of disappointment.This is due to the rather significant "chin", which at the same time deprives the front panel of the bracelet of symmetry.In all promo images, Xiaomi is absolutely honest and does not mask the chin.However, in the pictures it is not so conspicuous.However, this is noticeable only if you choose full-size colored wallpapers.If you choose a combination of black background and numbers, then everything is perfect.

The AMOLED screen has excellent resolution and a high pixel density of 326 ppi.So, from the point of view of displaying pictures, any photo can be placed on it.It will look great!

There are many ready-made watch faces for the bracelet in the Mi Fit app, but you can also download individual apps specializing in wallpaper from the app stores.

By the way, you can also make personalized wallpapers.There are 5 template options in the application.In fact, the user can only select his own background picture.But overall, not bad either.By the way, the bracelet memory can contain up to 5 wallpapers.And we also have material on how to create a unique wallpaper to your taste. The screen has an excellent 450 nits brightness which makes the screen readable even in the brightest sun.

One of the main advantages of a large screen and high resolution is (you won't believe it!) The fact that a lot more information fits into it.And before, one screen was one option.For example, the Mi Band 4 and 5 have it, and the Mi Band 6 fits up to 3 icons on one screen.

This is especially useful when reading notifications.The notification text takes up the entire screen.When receiving notifications from instant messengers, the bracelet vibrates briefly.Subsequently, notifications can be viewed in the section of the same name.Honestly, I didn't count it, but around a dozen notifications seem to be accumulating, and then they are gradually replaced by new ones. But there is also a slight disadvantage.Despite the large "chin", there is no Home / Back button, as on Mi Band 4. Well, the bracelet sometimes perceives swipes as tapes, so there are ridiculous situations when you get stuck between screens - open the stopwatch, close the stopwatch, open, close ...This mainly happens during training, especially often in the pool, when your hands are wet.However, after a week you get used to it and adjust, so that the number of false touches is significantly reduced.

Battery life

Speaking about battery life, there is one important thing to pay attention to.What version of the bracelet do you have: with or without NFC?

Officially, there is no version of the bracelet with NFC in Russia, and if you buy one, then NFC will not work.However, the NFC version of the bracelet has a 125 mAh battery, while the non-NFC version has a 250 mAh battery.

I have a non-NFC version of the bracelet and the box says 250mAh.

There is no automatic screen brightness, so 5 values ​​are available for the user to choose from.With a bright full color screen, syncing with the phone, using fitness functions and the default backlight duration, my bracelet lasted exactly 8 days.At midnight from Wednesday to Thursday, I charged it to 100%, and on the morning of the next Thursday I had 12%, that is, it would be discharged by night.Quite a decent indicator.

Xiaomi is in partnership with Mastercard, so it is likely that a version with NFC will appear in Russia soon, which can be used to pay.Will it be possible to flash Chinese bracelets to pay in Russia?Nobody knows that.Accordingly, in fact, this is the only moment why, perhaps, you should not rush into a purchase.On the other hand, NFC has a smaller battery.However, this should not be a tragedy if you put wallpaper with a black fill on the bracelet.So, my Mi Band 4 NFC works great for 10 days on a single charge.

About fitness functions
About oxygen sensor

The main fitness change compared to the Mi Band 5 is the blood oxygen sensor.With COVID-19, it has become especially relevant, since one of the symptoms of the disease is a decrease in the amount of oxygen in the blood.Of course, this is not a medical device.However, at the last appointment with the doctor, he showed a value similar to the readings of the device, which was attached to my finger.

With COVID-19, the oxygen level in the blood drops significantly, so the accuracy of the Mi Band 6 may be enough.

Swimming

The bracelet counts swimming pools well and accurately.Except when I swam on my back without using my hands.Then the bracelet believed that I swam not 25 meters, but 50. The Mi Watch Lite did not make such a mistake.But overall I am very satisfied.You can swim, and the bracelet counts the distance and shows the time.It even tries to give the SWOLF index by counting strokes.Accordingly, I have the tools to progress and swim more efficiently.

Jumping rope

Jumping counts, but I have a feeling that a little lying to the big side after time.For example, I counted 1000 jumps, and the bracelet - 1100. However, it is likely that this is just me losing count.In any case, the thing is extremely useful.For once, I started listening to audiobooks and podcasts, not counting.Perhaps it would still be cool if the bracelet itself paused the execution of the action when it realized that you were jumping more.And I would also like the option for the bracelet to vibrate when the specified number of jumps is reached.

Dream

The bracelet considers sleep, as in Mi Band 5 - deep, fast and REM.An option for assessing the quality of breathing in a dream has been added.That is, the bracelet will try to measure the oxygen level in the blood several times a night and give an assessment in points.Accordingly, if you do not breathe well in your sleep, then this is bad.And if it's good, then it's good.Probably the idea that at low values ​​it is worth visiting a doctor for a long time.

Workout

The bracelet supports many types of workouts.But here it is worthwhile to understand that we are talking about measuring the pulse, and sometimes the distance.Some species have specific indicators.For example, a rowing machine has a certain "hold" and rowing frequency, while when working with crossfit ropes - only pulse and time + some indicator of the intensity of the load (like boxing and dancing), which I still have did not fully realize.So many different types of workouts are great for keeping statistics.At the same time, conditional cricket or bowling (there are some) is also great for archery.On your smartphone, in the application, you can always see what indicators you had, sorted by type of workout.At the same time, you can blame Xiaomi here, since the application allows you to watch each individual workout,but it does not provide analytics.It would be cool if they were drawing some kind of charts.For example, when I just started, I swam half a kilometer in 20 minutes, now I quite cheerfully swim 20 pools in 12.5 minutes.And it would be great if one could observe some dynamics in a visual form.

Conclusion: should you buy the Mi Band 6?

If this is your first bracelet, it certainly is.The thing is cool and really helps with sports.Yes, and it motivates well, so, I got carried away with the implementation of the PAI index by 100%.The matter, frankly, is not easy, since it is required to accelerate the pulse to the control values, which in my case are quite high.For example, after half an hour of playing volleyball, a girl's PAI increased by 30 points, but they added only 2 points to me.

If you are the owner of Mi Band 4, then it might be worth it.The new bracelet has a larger screen, and the sensors are able to do the most, and most importantly, they are more accurate.So, in my Mi Band 4 NFC, I can't clearly swim in the pool.The bracelet lies, and sometimes, for some reason, simply refuses to count it.

Mi Band 5 owners don't have to worry.Although if you want a big screen and an oxygen sensor, then you can pamper yourself.

Considering rumors about cooperation with Mastercard and the likelihood of launching an NFC version of the bracelet, it may be worth postponing the purchase.Although here you should evaluate your strength.Now the bracelet costs 3,990 rubles.The version with NFC (by analogy with the Mi Band 4/4 TAS) will cost 1,000 rubles more, that is, 5,000 rubles.And 5 thousand rubles is already a psychologically unpleasant amount.

The main competitor is the HUAWEI Band 6 at a similar price, which seems to be able to do exactly the same thing as the Mi Band 6, but the screen is 1.47 inches, that is, 0.07 inches smaller, but slightly wider.But there are physical buttons, but the battery is 180 mAh.So here, in general, a matter of taste.Download the app from Huawei, from Xiaomi.Look at the interfaces, compare the live appearance of the bracelets and take which one you like best.

Get Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 6 - 1.56'' AMOLED Touch Screen, SPO2, Sleep Breathing Tracking, 5ATM Water Resistant, 14 Days Battery Life, 30 Sports Mode, Fitness, Steps, Sleep, Heart Rate Monitor Here

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