Xiaomi Mi Band 5 review: increasingly innovative, it is confirmed as the QUEEN of low-cost wearables
Just announced on the international market, the Mi Band 5 aroused not a few enthusiasm from the fans of the Asian brand, in consideration of the innovations that featured an NFC sensor with which to pay on Mastercard circuits, a sensor for detecting the SpO2 value as well as to Alexa support. Instead for the Global version of Xiaomi Mi Band 5, none of this is available for users who will therefore have to "settle" for a version that on balance does not justify the generational leap for those who already own a Mi Band 4. For all others instead, you just have to continue reading this review and discover the most interesting news that make this Mi Band 5, however interesting in the eyes of the tech people.
Amazon.it As we said in the preface, the most succulent news have been made available exclusively for the Chinese version of the fitness tracker and I do not hide the fact that I would have been curious to understand how the support towards Alexa works, since there is no microphone hole or even less. any speaker for audio feedback of any command given. That said Xiaomi Mi Band 5 is very similar in general shape compared to the previous generation, so much so that the straps of the Mi Band 4, albeit not 100% compatible, fit in such a way that the fifth generation capsule does not dance and does not run away but tends to stick out perhaps too much.
The original strap, however, is softer and more comfortable to wear even in conditions of intense sweating, and also the closure has been slightly reinforced even if that small but annoying defect remains, where the terminal part remains slightly raised compared to the rest of the bracelet with the risk that it could get hooked on something and therefore become loose.
One of the novelties that immediately catches the eye is the renewed AMOLED display which in addition to being brighter (in fact we arrive at 450 nits compared to the previous 400), it is also slightly larger, taking to a diagonal of 1,1 inches compared to 0,95, XNUMX inches of the previous generation. This was achieved thanks to a better optimization of the frames which allowed an increase in the area with which to interact and on which to read the information, keeping the final dimensions of the product almost unchanged.
The automatic adjustment of the backlight is missing but the increase in brightness means that the readability under direct sunlight is quite enjoyable, at least at the maximum level of intensity that you will not even have to manage for the night hours since through the app you can set the night mode, which can be set at a precise time or based on the twilight time, which in fact decreases the backlighting of the screen to a minimum, thus avoiding annoying "flashes" during the night, as well as setting the wrist gesture lock to revive the display.
In fact, the Mi Band 5 screen can be activated either via the small touch button located at the bottom of the capsule or via the wrist gesture. Pleasant news also for the native watchfaces, which now go to over 100, with a lot of customization possibilities with a background photo even if what was most pleasant is that among the basic ones we find some that are customizable in terms of information displayed, Amazfit GTS style.
Another positive novelty concerns the charging system, which fortunately now is realized through a cable with magnetic attachment, which avoids us to remove the capsule from the strap. The magnet used, however, is really full-bodied in the socket, thus avoiding to disengage even if we move the capsule during the charging phase. However, what seems to have worsened is the autonomy, as with the same settings I used on Mi Band 4 and with the same use in everyday life, I went from recharging the tracker every 7 days on average compared to the previous 12. The values are however completely variable based on the individual settings chosen and use made, for example I could save something by eliminating the receipt of some notification, or by decreasing the lighting of the display etc ..
Probably the decline in autonomy is also due to the fact that Mi Band 5 allows you to monitor multiple parameters, in fact we find the PAI value as an addition but also the monitoring of the stress level, while a new function has been dedicated to the ladies that allows the monitoring of the menstrual cycle, also providing reminders or via app or directly on the band itself.
A step forward was also made with regard to sports monitoring, which now on Mi Band 5 reaches a total of 11 sports including: OUTDOOR RUNNING, TAPIS ROULANT, OUTDOOR CYCLING, CYCLETTE, WALKING, ELLIPTICAL, ROWER, YOGA, ROPE JUMP, POOL SWIMMING and FREE STYLE. You read that right, we can also monitor swimming in the pool, collecting information such as strokes and the lotus pace, considering a resistance certification up to 5 ATM.
Personally I am not a great sportsman, but in my test phase I was able to detect a better precision in the detection of the values of the various activities, as well as a better precision in the step count and heart rate detection, which, moreover, can be calibrated with cadence. 1 minute. Also not to be underestimated is the fact that the Mi Band 5 is able to automatically recognize if you are doing a sports activity (only walking and running outdoors) by alerting you on the display and by vibration to activate the recording of physical activity.
Therefore, the pillars of the case remain such as sleep detection (also improved in terms of data accuracy), the possibility of viewing the weather as well as controlling the music (not only native player but also Youtube and Spotify etc ..) but functions are added such as remote shooting directly from the band (operation with both photos and videos), useful for example for taking photographs in astrophotography mode, which require a perfectly still smartphone.
We also have the relaxation mode (a function that through the coordination of the breath will allow us to relax the tension of our body), the ability to view the time zones up to 6 different global cities.
Of course we have the opportunity to view the app notifications on smartphones directly on the display of the Mi Band 5, which can be viewed individually even if by the same sender and on the same app. We cannot interact in any way and we cannot yet view the emojis, but we can delete them once they have been read, an operation that will also allow them to be deleted from the smartphone, thus obtaining a clean view, once we pick up the smartphone again, avoiding remembering what we had. managed or not. We can of course receive the reminder of incoming calls on the smartphone, changing the notification or hanging up directly from the band, as well as receiving the reminder for sedentary lifestyle, taking advantage of the stopwatch or timer function and finally setting up to 3 different alarms directly from the Mi Band 5, but the times will first be set via the Mi Fit companion app.
And precisely with regard to the application that lives in symbiosis with the Mi Band 5, or Mi Fit, I do not add anything as we now know the features by heart and the news of the case we have listed and will continue to do so, in our blog.
Conclusions
One thing is certain, now Mi Band 5 offers many functions and perhaps the display and the general dimensions of the product are starting to stay a little tight. Overall, net of the shortcomings compared to the Chinese version, this new generation improves in many points of view compared to the previous model, but in my humble opinion they do not justify an upgrade. For all those who want to get closer to the world of smart bands or who own Mi Band models other than 4, then the purchase is highly recommended. The small features added are certainly not revolutionary, but in daily use they make the difference and above all whet the desire to test them. Xiaomi Mi Band 5 does everything that is expected from such a gadget and also offers something more at a very competitive price, but above all everything it does it does in an excellent way.
On offer on Amazon
Xiaomi MI Smart Band 5, 1.1 "AMOLED Screen, Touchscreen, with Monitoring and Sport Functions, Black [Italian Version], xiaomi
to April 16, 2024 14:02
On offer on Amazon
Statistics
| Current price | 54,99€ | April 16 2024 |
| Highest price | 59,99€ | November 18, 2023 |
| Lowest price | 23,78€ | February 14 2024 |
Last price change
| 54,99€ | February 17 2024 |
| 23,78€ | February 17 2024 |
| 54,99€ | February 16 2024 |
| 23,78€ | February 16 2024 |
| 54,99€ | February 16 2024 |
To make the display bigger, he worked on the frames! What does that mean? At most he had to shrink the internal components. AH AH