Xiaomi’s Smart/Mi Band series has reached legendary status in the world of inexpensive smart wearables with the right amount of health and activity tracking features at an enticingly low asking price. Not to mention the bevy of first and third-party band options and multiple-week battery life. We’ve now got a Smart Band 8 review unit and these are our first impressions ahead of our detailed review.
Band 8 gets an updated metal frame and a new watchband attachment mechanism which attaches directly to the tracker. There’s an audible click when swapping between bands via the attachment buttons neatly located on the back of the Band 8. This is still one of the most lightweight fitness trackers out there and you can forget it’s on your wrist after a few minutes of wearing.
The screen size and resolution on Smart Band 8 are just like the Band 7 – a 1.62″ AMOLED with 192 x 490 pixels but Xiaomi updated the refresh rate to 60Hz which feels noticeably more fluid compared to past Mi Bands. Band 8 also supports up to 600 nits of peak brightness in auto mode and Xiaomi finally added an auto brightness feature.
Xiaomi also sent out a few of its new Band 8 accessories – the green check pattern calf leather watch strap and the stylish pendant accessory that allows you to wear the Band 8 as a fashion accessory. We also got the rubberized green running clip which attaches to your shoes for more detailed running metrics.
Xiaomi band 8 calf leather watch strap, pendant accessory and running clip
Xiaomi claims Band 8 brings up to 6 days of battery endurance with Always On Display (AOD) mode and up to 16 days with typical usage. We’ll make sure to test these endurance claims alongside all of the health and activity tracking features so stay tuned for our full review coming next week.
