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Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 4 Review: Old Body, New Soul

Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 4 Review: Old Body, New Soul 9

We’ve got our hands on the whole suite of Xiaomi’s latest wearable products. After the review of the Redmi AirDots Youth Edition, this is our quick review of the Mi Band 4. Let’s get right into the design.

Design

Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 4 Review: Old Body, New Soul 10

First thing you’ll notice picking the Mi Band 4 up is the all-new colour display. It was reminiscent of when i upgraded from my Nokia 3310 to a Nokia 6230. But, of course, the Mi Band 4’s colour display is much more advanced. It’s packed with a lot more customisation features than before. From changing watch faces to scrolling through the menu, downloading custom animation watch faces, I’ve never been happier to check what time it was.

Apart from that, the Xiaomi Mi Band 4 might not look like it has changed much, and that’s okay. It’s been a year and I’m still in love with how sleek the Mi Band 3 looks. The Mi Band 4 retains that same elegance that shines through when worn on the wrist.

The exterior of the Band 4 is similar to its predecessor – the Mi Band 3. Because of that, the Mi Band 4’s band can easily be replaced with any Mi Band 3 replacement bands you may have lying around at home.

Comfort

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The Mi Band 4 is still as comfortable as ever. The band is still made of hypoallergenic material so it feels smooth on the wrist and it most likely wouldn’t cause any allergic reactions. I say most likely because everyone’s skin is different, so it might differ for some users.

The band has a clean surface on the side with nothing jutting out on the sides. This means that it won’t “dent” your hands. The Mi Band 4 is so lightweight that when i’m running or exercising, i didn’t even realise I’m wearing it. The design and heft fits in so well on your wrist that you’ll dismiss it’s even there. In my case, that’s a good thing because the last thing i want is having to keep adjusting my wearable.

Connectivity

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Setting up the Mi Band 4 was an even faster and easier process compared to setting up the Mi Band 3. The “Mi Fit” app detected the Mi Band 4 very quickly, single tap and I was paired. After that, all it needs is a quick firmware update and I was ready to go.

During my testing, I’ve never had the Mi Band 4 disconnect from my phone and that’s great. There are instances where I’ve tried other smartwatches that wouldn’t even show the time correctly because it got disconnected at some point.

Tracking

I’m going to go ahead and say I am not the super athletic type, so i don’t do long distance runs or have intense swim sessions. My time with the Mi Band 4 was short but i managed to go for a quick jog with it. On the “Mi Fit” app, it says i ran for 2.43km whereas the “Nike Run” app tracked that i’ve run 3.45km. I kept track of the time i ran, and the Mi Fit got that right.

I stopped the tracking on the Mi Fit as soon as i stopped running, but the app continued recording the walk home, which explains the additional mileage and time. I only turned off the app tracking when i got into the house. That explains the difference in data recorded.

But for general tracking, the Mi Band 4’s data serves as a good reference to how far and how long you’ve ran, calories you’ve burnt during your session, as well as your average heart rate while exercising. And that is good enough for me.

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Battery Life

Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 4 Review: Old Body, New Soul 16

The Mi Band 4 has a slightly lesser battery life of 20 days compared to the Band 3, which is 20 days. That being said, it is still a lot better than some fitness trackers or even smartwatches that requires recharging every one or two days. The Mi Band 4 comes with a redesigned charging dock and it feels more secure, which is definitely a plus.

Conclusion

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For the price, it’s too good to not give the Mi Band 4 a try. It’s light, packed with features and just really good to look at. It can even be used to talk to XiaoAI – Xiaomi’s personal assistant – to control your smart home, but the feature is currently only available in China. I may not be able to use it now, but hopefully it’s something i can try for myself in the future.

The Mi Band 4 is the BEST fitness tracker under $60 to grace my wrist and I firmly believe it will remain so until the next iteration of the Mi Band is released. To other fitness trackers out there, you’re welcome to challenge this title.

Written By

Chief Content Developer at The AXO

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