The Xiaomi Mi Band 4 Fitness Tracker is the latest in its range of Fitness Trackers. It is still the latest as Xiaomi has not yet launched Mi Band 5 at the time of writing this article. Mi Band 4 release date in India was on 17th September 2019. There was a lot of hype regarding the Mi 4, mainly because Xiaomi is known to make low-cost products with good quality, and the Mi 4 is no exception as fits in almost everyone’s budget for the features it offers.
The Mi Band 4 battery life lasts for 20 days, but can sometimes last up to 25 to 30 days ( according to my personal use ) if an inbuilt display is used. It supports 3rd party apps. Wallpapers can be changed and it has an option for Live wallpapers. Mi Band 4 strap looks and feels quite durable as I have used it for 8 odd months till the time of writing of this article.
The Xiaomi Band 4 Fitness Tracker has an option of different themes which can be downloaded. The Mi Band 4 display is 39.9% bigger than Mi Band 3, it has a 0.95 inch AMOLED color with a full touchscreen display and a resolution of 240 x 120 pixels, and brightness, which can be adjusted. It comes in 5 different strap colors, Mi Band 4 colors are Orange, Purple Black Burgundy, and Beige.
Table of Contents
Mi Smart Band 4 Design
The electronics of the Mi Smart Band 4 are encased in a plastic capsule that fits snugly inside a silicone band. The screen is on the capsule, and there is a single capacitive button below the screen. The heart rate sensor and charging connections are located at the capsule’s base. To charge the Mi Smart Band 4, remove the capsule from the band and insert it into the charger.
The Mi Smart Band 4 capsule does not fit nicely into the charger. It kept popping out before finally fitting in, which was inconvenient. This is the product’s most serious design flaw. ( my experience )
The Mi Smart Band 4 is pleasant to wear for extended periods. We wore it during the day and at night and never found it to be a hindrance. The band also provides a snug fit.
The Mi Smart Band 4’s 0.95-inch AMOLED display is an excellent feature. The colors are vivid, and the text is clear. We had no trouble reading it in direct sunshine, albeit the writing for alerts was a little too tiny.
The capacitive button beneath the display and the touchscreen are both responsive. The Mi Smart Band 4’s user interface is pretty decent in our opinion. The display shows exercise information, alerts, heart rate, and so on by swiping up or down. This list may be customized using the Mi Fit app on your paired phone. The music player may be accessed by swiping left or right. The music controls functioned fine, but it took a few seconds to load the song title and playing controls, which we thought was too sluggish.
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Mi Smart Band 4 Performance
The Mi Smart Band 4 provides a large number of helpful functions, including the ability to track several sorts of activities, including swimming, sleep tracking, continuous heart rate monitoring, and alerts. Our main issue with this gadget was that most of the beneficial functions were hidden by default and had to be enabled manually via the app.
For example, sleep assistant (which helps collect exact sleep data), alerts, and the ability to wake the display when you lift your wrist were all off when we started using this device. The final one in particular is such a basic feature that it should be the default setting. This difficulty is exacerbated by the fact that these options are not easily accessible.
It’s worth noting that when we activated each of these functions, we received a warning notice notifying us that battery life would be affected as a result. However, we believe that potentially missing out on some of the Mi Smart Band 4’s top features is not a justifiable trade-off.
Mi Smart Band 4 Companion App
We’ve long admired the Mi Fit app’s quality, pointing out that it’s far superior to the companion applications for various fitness bands priced higher than Xiaomi’s Mi Band series. Even now, our opinions on the Mi Fit app are essentially unchanged. We think it looks beautiful and makes it easier to access the information you need. A few data items, such as historical statistics for exercise and running, were a little difficult to access because they weren’t in an apparent place. This, though, is a minor complaint.
We would have preferred to see the Mi Smart Band 4 on the main screen rather than under the Profile page. This would allow us to change the wearable’s settings and watch faces more rapidly. Speaking of watch faces, there are a lot of them for the Mi Smart Band 4, and we loved a lot of them. There are several watch faces available, and you can even build unique watch faces using photographs from your smartphone. Only the backdrop photo may be altered for custom watch faces, however, there are three display styles for a little diversity in terms of what’s displayed on the screen.
Another wonderful feature is the option to customize the Mi Smart Band 4’s vibrating pattern. The wearable vibrates far too forcefully by default. The device can display app notifications, as well as caller ID and previews for text messages, emails, and all third-party app alerts. If you receive too many notifications, you should use the Mi Smart Band 4 to establish a mild vibrating pattern. This one change transformed notifications from an inconvenience to a valuable function. You cannot, however, establish a separate vibration pattern for various apps or users.
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Mi Band 4 Fitness Tracker Features
With the Mi Band 4, heart rate is tracked and monitored automatically 24/7 with its heart rate sensor. The Mi Band 4 app tracks your steps, heart rate, and calories burnt, either walking, running, cycling, or on the treadmill. You can go swimming with the Mi 4 Band because of its 5ATM waterproof, and it can record 12 different data sets, like distance, strokes, and more.
Mi Band 4 sleep tracking is done to a near accuracy with deep sleep monitoring. The Mi Band gets weather news for the next 6 days. When connected to a mobile through Bluetooth, calls can be rejected or silenced or get notifications, but we can’t receive calls as there is no mic. With the Mi Band, we can put the mobile on Silent Mode. The Mi Band has a countdown timer and music controller. We can put a password or swipe lock. There are custom watch faces, you can also import photos or pics and flaunt your Band.
Mi Band 4 Fitness Tracker Specifications : Technical
Name | Mi Smart Band 4 |
---|---|
Model | XMSH07HM |
Fitness Tracker Net Weight | 10.6g |
Fitness Tracker Net Dimensions | 4.68 x 1.78 x 1.26 cm |
Wristband Material | Thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) |
Clasp Material | Aluminum Alloy |
Adjustable Length | 15.5-21.6 |
Compatible with | Android 4.4/iOS 9.0 or above |
Battery Capacity | 135 mAh |
Battery Type | Lithium polymer battery |
Input Voltage | Dc 5.0 V |
Input Current | 250 mA Max. |
IP Rating | 5 ATM |
Frequency | 2402-2480 MHz |
Operating Temperature | -10° C to 50°C |
Wireless Connectivity | Bluetooth 5.0 BLE |
Source: Mi Smart Band 4 User Manual
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PROS
- Tracking activities with precision
- Vibrant display
- Swim-proof
- Notification vibration patterns can be customized
- Battery life is decent
CONS
- The charger is proprietary and ill-fitting
- Several tracking features are turned off by default
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Conclusion
The Mi Smart Band 4 is another excellent product in the Mi Band family. We were impressed by its display, comfort, and exercise tracking accuracy. The Mi Fit app is still pretty nice, and the option to customize notification vibration patterns is a godsend. However, the Mi Smart Band 4’s default settings block numerous important functionalities. It’s also a pity that Xiaomi went with a subpar proprietary charger this time. If you can put up with these annoyances, the Mi Smart Band 4 is one of the best low-cost fitness bands on the market right now, and it’s well worth the price.