Lowest price ever according to PriceSpy. It's usually $45-55. (There's a Smart Band 6 also out and it's $75-85.)
I've got the Smart Band 4 and it's pretty good. You have to create a Mi account to access the mobile app that it syncs with, although you don't need your phone with you for the band to work properly.
Can you get watch style straps(with a latch)? My old man wants a new smart watch but has dexterity issues with the style straps that this one has
Only third-party off Ebay etc. I've seen some for $20 or so, not a very common style for this sort of product unfortunately.
Also add in SHIPPY21 for free shipping
Are these worth getting these days? I own the Mi Band 4 and though it's quite nice and the battery lasts super long, I don't really like how small the screen is. Besides, most of the functions are pretty basic. Luckily I know how to make it trigger Google Assistant and use it with Tasker and MacroDroid, but otherwise, it's really just a super basic gadget. I mean, is it even worth spending $80 for a Mi Band 6 (or whatever the current version is)?
Was thinking why not just get something like this instead? It's around $30~$35 and with bigger screen and most of the functions seem to match what my Mi Band 4 offers anyway:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002551975851.html?spm=a2…
I feel like those super cheap watches wont be the most responsive things, similar to buying a cheap phone, it'll work but be slow and not a pleasant experience. Of you're looking to go for now features than a simple fitness band I seriously considered an amazfit bip. For the money they looked great and if you get the slightly older model with the transflective display it has ridiculous battery life compared to other watches.
Well, super cheap phones nowadays are getting really good. Oneplus, Poco F1 and pretty much any Xuaomi devices are cheap compared to Samsung and yet they run flagship specs.
In fact, these Xiaomi bands are cheap compared to other brands. But now they are getting more expensive…
They are but I'd liken these cheap watches more to something like a sub $100 smart phone which while usable isn't nice and probably won't be that accurate. The tech in them is small and hard to get right, the fitness bands have less in than the watches which is how they come in cheaper. As I said the amazfit and Xiaomi watches for about $100 seem like really good options that balance budget and user experience nicely as an entry point. Its still cheap for what you are getting but will probably encourage you to use it a lot more. They are probably more "mid range" than budget and the phones listed I'd say I'd consider them the lower mid range equivalent.
Then again I have used a $35 on the past and while not pleasant it was better than no phone at all and made a surprisingly good car MP3 player using bluetooth to just leave plugged in on the glove box.
I used to have a proper smartwatch and that was useful as a heads-up display (glance at notifications/messages) and for controlling music, but I found that most days I didn't feel compelled to put it on because there wasn't a stand-out reason to use it and half the time it was low on battery anyway.
With a fitness tracker I leave it on a table near the door and put it on when I go out in order to count my steps. For that alone I'm cool with the $39 it cost me. I don't mind if it gets scratched or rained on or sweaty because it's a cheap device that does one thing reasonably well, and I don't need it to do anything else. If I want to leave it in a drawer until January that's fine too, I know that it'll charge up and work fine because it's a decent product.
I've owned two shitty Ebay/AliExpress wearables and I think I would have got more joy out of taking that money and putting it in a blender.
I watched a few reviews and they said from the 4 to the 5 isn't worth it. 6 might be tho. Delays in shipping from China might affect AliExpress shoppers
No idea around the 5..
But I have the 6, and it's FANTASTIC.. honestly I have lost a bunch of weight since getting it. Primarily due to the fact it makes everything like a game :D
Thanks for that. Will wear one on each hands 😉
should get the 6 instead, has much bigger display, just bought one for my daughter
6 was on sale a about 2 weeks back was around $55 ( i listed it here somewhere)
Pretty sure it'll go on sale again before the end of the year
i am hoping it goes on special for black friday… that pricing is around aliexpress pricing after you factor in taxes and shipping so not too bad.
The pairing with Gadgetbridge became annoying after the MiBand 3 :-(
Had a MiBand 5. I thought it was very good compared to my Wife's Fitbit Charge 4 - and it was only about 1/4 of the price at the time. It did lack the altimeter, (barometer), and the SPO2 measurement. The MiBand 6 has the SPO2 now. For the price these devices are very good indeed. I found the app very good. The colour screen is great and indeed if you want to compare they are pretty damn accurate compared to the Fitbit. The Fitbit Charge 5 is $299 which is more than 3 times the price of the MiBand 6 and they dropped the altimeter/barometer so they have the same capabilities. I'd buy the MiBand 6 instead of the Fitbit. However the MiBand watches have one Achilles heel - the strap. It can open far too easily by itself and then the thing can fall off. I put a small rubber O-Ring on mine which I would slide up for an extra bit of security and that worked very well untill one day when I was mowing the lawn and later found the MiBand had gone missing. I think it fell into the garden bin and got taken away by the bin man lol. Anyway after that I got a Fitbit Charge 4 to match the Wife's one but if/when that dies I'm inclined to get another MiBand - IF they improve the strap !
I bought a few third-party straps off Ebay/AliExpress for $5-10, nice and quick to swap over to a different one if you need to.
While it does suck the default strap isn't as good
There's straps galore
https://www.aliexpress.com/wholesale?trafficChannel=main&d=y…
Also how'd you find the screen scratch/damage resistant wise?
Does it need a screen protector?
The screen on my Band 4 isn't very scratch-resistant, but I haven't scuffed it very much (I've never scratched a phone screen either, I'm just one of those people). If you're a bit harder on your devices than me then getting a screen protector from Ebay/AliExpress would be a good idea. I should probably get some myself, I just had a look and it's less than $1 for five.
Is it worth waiting for Mi Band 6 with NFC ?
Great deal. The band works really well and the straps are compatible with the newer Mi Band 6 ones too