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Xiaomi Mi Band 6
Xiaomi’s Mi Band range is undoubtedly one of the most successful on the fitness tracker market. The cheap wristbands have come a long way since the first model launched in 2014 without a display. Fast forward to 2022, and we’re waiting for the Mi Band 7. It will be a follow-up to the Mi Band 6, which is still one of the best inexpensive activity trackers you can buy right now. So what is Xiaomi doing to improve the next-generation Mi Band? Here’s a complete rundown of all the Mi Band 7 rumors and a wishlist of changes we’d like to see.
Xiaomi Mi Band 7: release date and name
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Xiaomi has been sticking to the numbered approach to naming new Mi Band models for a while now. There is no indication that the company would do anything different this time. Xiaomi has dropped the Mi branding from some of its phones so could release the next iteration as the Xiaomi Band 7, but we’re not sure.
The next fitness tracker should be launched as Mi Band 7 in China and Mi Smart Band 7 in other regions such as Europe and India. Unfortunately, Xiaomi doesn’t officially sell the Mi Band range in the US, but interested buyers can always import the international models from third-party websites.
See also: The best smartwatches you can get right now
As for the release date, the Mi Band 6 was launched in China on March 29, 2021. So we are almost on its first anniversary and it is time for Xiaomi to announce a successor. On the other hand, the Mi Band 5 didn’t hit the market until June, so Xiaomi could launch the Mi Band 7 around that time. There’s no official word on the upcoming tracker’s release date, but given the leaks, we could hear something in the coming weeks.
Design and display
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From left to right: Xiaomi Mi Band 6, Xiaomi Mi Band 5
According to a recent leak from a tipster well versed in sharing information about unreleased Xiaomi wearables, the Mi Band 7 could get a bigger screen this year. While the leaker didn’t reveal the exact size of the screen, they noted that the Mi Band 7 would have a 192 x 490 ticker compared to the Mi Band 6’s 1.56-inch 152 x 486 display. makes sense since Xiaomi has tried to put bigger screens on Mi Bands in recent years.
That said, the display on the Mi Band 7 would probably also be an AMOLED, just like the Mi Band 6.
Last year, a wild leak also suggested that Xiaomi is preparing a Mi Band model with a 360-degree flexible display. A leaker shared an image of what they believe was a slide from Xiaomi’s internal company presentation. In it, Xiaomi apparently referred to a device called Mi Band X that has a magnetic buckle and a thin and light design. This device could be the Mi Band 7 or any other future Mi Band. But there is no way of knowing if the presentation slide was indeed real or if the information is completely false.
Specifications and Features
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Xiaomi’s Mi Band range does a great job at tracking basic fitness and health, and it looks like the company is making some welcome additions to give the new Mi Band even more capabilities.
According to the leak mentioned above, the Mi Band 7 could be the first in the series to come with built-in GPS. The line usually features connected GPS, which essentially uses your phone’s GPS for tracking. An internal GPS chip would make the Mi Band 7 a good choice for those who don’t want to take their phone with them.
Notably, built-in GPS would also require a larger battery as it tends to suck a lot of power. Leaked information suggests that the Mi Band 7 could have a power-saving mode that would presumably disable specific sensors, notifications and other power-hungry features, possibly including GPS.
Elsewhere, the Mi Band 7 is said to introduce a Smart Alarm feature that would wake the user 30 minutes before the alarm goes off if the tracker detects light sleep.
An Always-on Display is also on the cards for the Mi Band 7. Again, this is something that would eat up the battery pretty quickly. Therefore, the power saving mode makes sense to have.
It looks like the Mi Band 7 will also add password protection to lock the tracker so others can’t access your fitness data.
You can also expect new watch faces and added fitness tracking modes.
app
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The Mi Fit app just switched to Zepp Life. That’s because the manufacturer of the Mi Band – Huami – owns the Zepp brand and uses it for its own Amazfit wearables. A better app would certainly be a welcome change once the Mi Band 7 launches. The updated app promises a better user experience. Although, we should use it to see how well it works.
Meanwhile, Xiaomi has also merged its two Xiaomi Health and Xiaomi Wear/Xiaomi Wear Lite apps into a single app called Mi Fitness.
You should be able to use both apps depending on which one you want with the Mi Band 7.
Xiaomi Mi Band 7: what we want to see
With the rumors and leaks out of the way, we would also like to see Xiaomi make a few changes and adopt some new features.
Make NFC universal
One of the biggest drawbacks of Mi Band models launching outside of China is the lack of Near-Field Communication (NFC). Last year, the company finally corrected this when it brought an NFC-enabled version of the Mi Band 6 to Europe. The Mi Smart Band 6 NFC is compatible with MasterCard payment terminals for contactless payments. We hope Xiaomi makes this a universal feature on all Mi Band 7 models available worldwide, while expanding contactless payment options and supported banks. Currently, the banks that allow payments from the Mi Band 6 are very limited.
Improve heart rate monitoring and sleep tracking
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In our Mi Band 6 review, we noticed that the heart rate sensor on the tracker struggles with intense workouts, although the resting heart rate readings were very accurate. Checking the heart rate every 30 minutes also resulted in spotty data, while eating up battery life every minute.
The Mi Band 6 also failed to accurately capture sleep data such as wake time and REM sleep. The sleep scoring method was not very reliable in our experience. The feature that tracks breathing quality while sleeping also failed to impress, as neither the app nor the wearable gives any real context to the data collected.
We hope Xiaomi improves on these issues on the Mi Band 7.
Bigger battery
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The Xiaomi Mi Band 6 received a 125mAh battery that promises 14 days of “normal” use. However, in our experience, battery life took a serious hit with advanced features like respiratory score, all-day heart rate tracking, and more. If the Mi Band 7 does indeed get features like an Always-on display and built-in GPS, it would definitely require a bigger battery or better optimization. The good news is that Xiaomi may have already checked this item off our wish list. Alleged mentions of the Mi Band 7 on multiple certification websites show a 250mAh cell. That’s a pretty significant upgrade.
Don’t mess with the design, but…
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Finally, we think Xiaomi should not mess with the design of the Mi Band 7. The current pill-shaped design with the slim band is functional and works. A bigger screen would automatically mean a small design change, which would be good. However, the band’s straps are pretty dull and only come in solid colorways. Xiaomi could use some more exciting, sportier straps to give the wearable a fresh look this time around.
That’s all we have on the Mi Band 7 for now. What would you like to see from Xiaomi’s new fitness tracker? Thread your wishlist in the comments section below.
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This post Release date, specs leak and what we want to see
was original published at “https://www.androidauthority.com/xiaomi-mi-band-7-3126826/”
