The Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 6 or Mi Band 6 is currently the best and most affordable alternative to the expensive fitness tracking smart devices available in the market today.
Launched earlier this year the newest from the Mi Band series boast of a bigger and clearer 1.56″ Full Screen AMOLED touch display and up to 30 workout and sports tracking modes that includes cycling, basketball, yoga and even basic stretching.
I don’t do competitive sports but I am very much actively engaged into cycling both as a means of transportation and as a fitness workout. And here are some of the things that I liked about this new device from Xiaomi:
It’s super visible but extra light
The best thing about this device is probably its display! While the design is almost exactly the same as the Mi Band 5 and Mi Band 4, the display screen however is so much brighter and bigger – Mi Band 6 has upgraded to a 1.56″ large full screen AMOLED touch display that is really very responsive. Approximately 50% more screen space than its predecessor and with 326PPI resolution at up to 450 nits. Its tempered glass and anti-fingerprint coating makes it very visible during the day, more so at night. The device plus the strap adds a very insignificant load to the bearer – as if you’re not wearing the Mi Band 6 at all.
For a cyclist who’s tracking his performance during a ride, this is probably the most important thing they’d want in a wearable smart device. To see everything they need to see at a glance.
Functionality
It has a lot of very useful functions both for sports or workout tracking and health tracking, plus it tells you the time 🙂
Let me begin by saying that this device is water resistant up to 5ATM so you can use this during severe weather condition, while showering or an intensive swimming workout.
The Mi Band 6 is designed with a fitness tracker which includes a total of 30 workout variables from basic stretching and yoga, to pro sports like gymnastics and kickboxing, made possible by its advanced sensors. You can also preset up to 6 common fitness activities to ensure key stats for sporadic bouts activity throughout the day are accurately recorded and factored into daily activity metrics.
For cycling, the Mi Band 6 connects to my phone via the Mi Fit App to give me a comprehensive profile of my ride – duration, speed, distance, elevation, heartrate and more. Plus the band alerts me with a gentle vibration every time I achieve a milestone during the ride. I can then record this on the band and monitor my progress every day. By the way, Mi Band 6 also supports connection with Strava which gives me more options.
The Mi Band 6 is also a health tracking device which adds SpO2 measurement plus a more accurate heart rate monitor that works perfectly on daily activities. For intensive workouts, the sensor tends to go over the board sometimes at peak but it’s fairly useful still. The smart device also features an enhanced sleep tracking function that monitors naps, sleep cycles including REM and sleep breathing quality. The Mi band 6 also comes with stress monitoring, a deep breathing guidance function, as well as a female health tracking function that provides comprehensive health insights as well as menstrual cycle data tracking.
PAI
Aside from all these features, I think what’s very useful for me when it comes to keeping track of my health and fitness is the band’s 7-day PAI monitor. PAI stands for Personal Physiological Activity Indicator. Based on heart rate data, daily activity intensity, and multi-dimensional dynamic comprehensive evaluation on personal physiological dat, it is then converted into an intuitive PAI value using an algorithm to help you understand your physical condition. By maintaining a certain intensity of daily activities or workouts, you can obtain your PAI value. According to the HUNT Fitness Study, keeping your PAI value above 100 will help reduce the risk of death by cardiovascular disease and increase life expectancy. So, in other words, your PAI reminds you to be active and alerts you when you’re already turning into a couch potato.
Other Features
You may customize your Mi Band 6 display to suit your daily fitness and health tracking needs and there are over 60 ways you can do it.
Also by simply connecting your band to your phone via bluetooth you can also perform basic functions such as selecting music and as a remote shutter for your camera.
Its 125mAh LiPo battery is said to last up to 14 days on stand-by mode. Magnetic quick clip-on and clip-off charging time is about less than 2 hours.
And probably the best thing about this device is its price. The Mi Band 6 is sold in the Philippines for only 1,990 pesos! All that for below the 2K mark, and did I mention that it tells you the time 🙂
Wishlist
Well, I am solved with the Mi Band 6! Perhaps the only thing that I’d want, if I can add something to it, is that it’s already NFC-capable and with on-board GPS. More phone functionality like messaging and call alerts. But I guess that would add more on the price tag.
| Display | • | Full screen 1.56’’ AMOLED display o Resolution: 152 x 486 pixels, 326 PPI o Screen brightness: Up to 450 nits o Adjustable brightness modes |
| • | 60+ band displays | |
| • | Tempered glass with anti-fingerprint coating | |
| Dimensions | • | Dimensions: 47.4 x 18.6 x 12.7mm |
| • | Adjustable strap length: 155 – 219mm | |
| • | Strap colors: Black, Orange, Yellow, Olive, Ivory, Blue | |
| • | 5 ATM water resistant | |
| Function | • | Customizable function module |
| • | 30 fitness modes o 6 auto detection modes: walking, treadmill, cycling, rowing machine (ergometer), elliptical | |
| • | SpO2 tracking | |
| • | Sleep tracking (Sleep breathing quality, REM, and naps) | |
| • | Breathe exercise | |
| • | Stress monitoring | |
| • | Female health tracking | |
| • | PAI (Personal Activity Intelligence) | |
| • | Idle alerts | |
| • | Camera remote shutter | |
| Battery | • | Convenient magnetic charging |
| • | 125mAh LiPo battery | |
| • | Charging time: less than 2 hours | |
| • | ≥ 14 days of standby time | |
| Sensors | • | PPG heart rate sensor |
| • | 3-axis accelerometer sensor | |
| • | 3-axis gyroscope sensor | |
| Connectivity & Compatibility | • • | Mi Wear app Mi Fit app |
| • | Strava app compatible | |
| • | Bluetooth 5.0 | |
| • | Android 5.0 and above | |
| • | iOS 10 and above | |
| Package Inclusion | • | Mi Smart Band 6 x 1 |
| • | Strap x 1 | |
| • | User manual x 1 | |
| • | Charging cable x 1 |
