For several years now, the panorama of fitness smartbands has had an undisputed protagonist in the smartbands proposed by Xiaomi. Last year, the Mi Band 3 could have seemed, if not a step backwards, a minor update.
This time, however, Mi Band 4 will not disappoint expectations: the undisputed queen of smart bracelets is back. Something is still missing for perfection, but considering the price, you will love it. Here because.
On an aesthetic level, the changes are not radical. It certainly differs in some elements from the previous model, but if you look at it from the off, the less attentive may not even recognize it at first sight. It offers the classic elongated shape, typical of its predecessors, with a small button placed on the lower part of the central body.
Speaking of the body, it can be detached from the classic silicone strap, which unfortunately becomes necessary for recharging. Change the dock for charging the bracelet, which loses its previous shape, in favor of a slightly different concept, which now houses the central body entirely.
The main difference from the past is in the display. This time, in fact, Mi Band 4 abandons black and white in favor of a color display with AMOLED technology , from 0.95 inches , with resolution 120 x 240 . This is a huge step forward compared to Mi Band 3, which had disappointed due to the inability to read the information on the screen under sunlight.
From this point of view, Mi Band 4 is certainly not at the level of an Amazfit Bip, which with the reflective display has no rivals, but still manages to be more readable under direct sunlight, especially if you choose to set the brightness. to the utmost.
The display is touch screen, and it will therefore be possible to interact with the UI by tapping and sliding, while the soft touch button will be used mainly to return to the initial watch face.
Among the strengths of the bracelet is water resistance: 5ATM certified , it can be used in the shower or even in the pool. He is a not insignificant “pro”, considering that Mi Band 4 aims to be a companion on a daily basis, 24 hours a day.
The UI is simple: main screen with a customizable watch face, while with a slide down or up you access the other functions: Status, where the number of steps, distance traveled, calories and sedentary alerts are shown ; again, in the scrolling menu there is the item for calculating the heartbeat, notifications, weather, and workouts.
Mi Band 4 can track numerous activities, from swimming to running, from cycling to gymnastics. Unfortunately, the GPS is missing . This is the lack that makes this smartband not perfect, but it is a justifiable absence if you look at the selling price, just over 30 euros.
The absence of GPS, of course, does not prevent you from going for a run only with the band on your wrist, without a smartphone in tow, but you will have to do without position data. just to be clear, the bracelet will record the technical data of the race, but it will not be able to locate the position and record the route.
Xiaomi Mi Band 4 also improves heart rate recording, compared to previous models. While on Mi Band 3, but also in 2, the inability to detect the heartbeat during the various measurements was not uncommon, this time Mi Band 4 seems to be always ready to record heartbeats.
It is not among the fastest to do this, but after a few more seconds of patience the data will be shown on the screen. It is also possible to set an automatic measurement every few minutes: if you choose to detect it every 10 minutes, you can also activate notifications for an irregular heartbeat. This is a particularly welcome feature.
We were a little disappointed, to be honest, with the sleep tracking. The bracelet correctly detected when we went to sleep, and when we woke up, but it did not do the same with the minutes we woke up during the night: certain we woke up for a good half hour, if not more (due to the heat), the bracelet only counted 9, showing us long hours of deep sleep for the rest, when it wasn't.
The rep limb notifications deserves particular attention. Improved. It is possible to view the text of incoming messages for almost all apps, such as Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp, Telegram and many others, but without the possibility of replying in any way.
Furthermore, the small elongated screen does not help in the display of the text: in short, the notifications, while fully functional and comfortable, do not appear to be the strongest point of the bracelet.
In any case, the presence of the BT 5.0 ensures an always stable and precise connection with the smartphone, and we did not register any connection loss during our tests.
The pairing is always stable, and the operation always guaranteed. Among other things, the band can also control the music playing on the smartphone, even when it comes from streaming services, such as Spotify.
The autonomy of the bracelet is to be rewarded. The battery of just 135 mAh allows you to use the bracelet for about 2 weeks , without having to recharge it. Thank goodness, because the charging system is not excellent.
As in the previous models, the band must be extracted from the silicone bracelet, having to fit it into the appropriate dock. Over time, removing the body from the bracelet could damage the band.
It would have been appropriate to study a mechanism that would allow Mi Band 4 to be recharged as is the case with all current smart watches, without the need to separate the body from the strap.
Speaking of the bracelet, it looks very similar to its predecessors: comfortable to wear, and with a firmer grip this time, which returns a greater feeling of stability.
The application to be used on smartphones is Mi Fit , increasingly complete, thanks to the numerous updates made by the development team. The home screen is all about workouts and fitness data.
It immediately shows the steps taken, and the information on sleep, on the last heart rate detected and on the weight, which can be set manually by the user, or obtained automatically from the Mi Scale scale.
The app then allows you to manage the incoming notifications of the desired apps, in addition to being able to change the quadrant, among the predefined ones, set alarms, reminder alerts, sedentary alerts, set daily goals, decide whether to unlock the smartphone with the bracelet, set a PIN for the band if it is removed from the wrist, and more.
It should be noted that during the tests, Mi Band 4 was updated with the Italian language . Not only will the UI therefore be 100% understandable, but thanks to this update it will be possible to read the ID of an incoming call on a smartphone on the small display: before the update, the incoming call did not show the caller's name on the screen. .
Conclusions
Mi Band 4 is a big step up from previous models. The color display makes the user experience better, more modern and attractive. The display, at maximum brightness, is more readable in the sun than the predecessor, although not at the levels of Amazfit Bip.
The connection with smartphones is precise and punctual, as are the incoming notifications. There are many sports that it can track, even if it does not offer GPS functions (except when the smartphone is paired), while the autonomy does not disappoint: even at maximum brightness and with automatic beat detection (10 minute interval) you can forget about the battery charger for several days.
Excellent 5 ATM certification, which will allow you to wear the band all day long. Ultimately, at the moment, it's the best of the budget bands.
At the moment it is in super offer on GearBest, where you can buy it for just 29 euros .
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