Much of the change that Xiaomi has delivered in the Smart Band 8 is present in the outer design, and this is the biggest factor in giving the tracker a fresh feel. And largely thanks to being able to see that shiny metal frame, the look has now elevated far above previous generations. And if the battery is low and you're seeking a bit of juice to get you through the day, charging speeds are also rapid. Naturally, you won’t be able to track your heart rate during workouts if you have the Smart Band 8 in Pebble Mode, but you can see this data if you have it on the wrist as normal. Xiaomi’s proprietary OS is also very zippy - a feeling that's is aided by that bump-up in refresh rate we referenced earlier.

Band 8 - Xiaomi UK Xiaomi Smart Band 8 - Xiaomi UK

The SpO₂ feature is not intended for diagnosis, prevention, monitoring, prediction, or prognosis of any disease; investigation of physiological processes; or any other medical purpose. It was able to consistently register when we fell asleep and got out of bed (as demonstrated below), and sleep stages - once you turn on advanced monitoring - can roughly stay in line with Oura’s gold standard tracking. More than 200 new fashionable watch faces with exclusive always-on display to give you a constant source of inspiration for your outfits.As you run, you can check your stride frequency, stride length, impact force and impact style, making it easy to adjust your running form in real time. An hour-long, aerobic run will see the Smart Band 8 advise taking the next 63 hours off to recover, meanwhile, and tag the workout as mostly anaerobic despite an average HR reading of 153. It can track your sleep too and - thanks to a 16-day battery - you won't need to charge it every day to make use of that feature. The unique chain design not only makes the band lighter and more comfortable, but the stylish look means it is sure to become your go-to accessory. With a wide range of straps and pendant accessories, as well as a variety of official matching watch faces, you can always find a unique combination to match your style.

Band 8 Active - Xiaomi UK Xiaomi Smart Band 8 Active - Xiaomi UK

The UI is entirely touchscreen controlled too, with basic swiping and tapping gestures to scroll through the function list which includes things like heart-rate, workout, and other fitness and health-based functions. Thanks to a few attachments from Xiaomi, like the pendant (shown below) and running clip (more on this later), this pill-shaped tracker is now much more versatile, too. Especially if you’ve previously been put off by the lack of polish in the design, or you’re a runner who craves some more advanced insights, the Smart Band 8 is even worth an upgrade from the previous generation.There are thankfully some insights that are a bit more useful, though, and they generally come from when the device is instead attached to your running shoe. I've only had a short bit of time with it so far, but I really like the simple one-button mechanism for releasing the strap from the tracker. Some are classic, analogue styles, others are colourful and playful, there are digital ones, and even some that come with games to play when you're bored.

Band 8 review - Wareable Xiaomi Smart Band 8 review - Wareable

After you end a workout, the breakdown in the Mi Fitness app will include your footstrike pattern, as well as graphs relating to ground contact time, flight time, flight ratio, and impact force. This splits your night’s sleep into either light or deep sleep, though this expands to include REM sleep and heart rate monitoring (leading to more accurate sleep stage information) after you enable the setting. Sometimes this kind of mistake happens when personal details - weight, age, or height - haven't been entered, and therefore have a knock-on effect on HR zones, but this isn't the case here. The Smart Band 8 is a superb option for those who want an ambitious and affordable tracker, offering a refined design that improves both looks and functionality. Battery life during actual use depends on various factors such as settings, operation and usage environment, and may differ from the laboratory data.In that time, his areas of focus and expertise have mostly been smartphones and smartwatches, but with experience filming for the channel, he's equally adept at reviewing cameras. As shown above, all three devices registered a maximum reading of around 170 BPM on one test run, while the average reading was 4BPM higher than Garmin and 8BPM higher than Whoop - both much more in line with our effort. The positive here for the Smart Band 8 is that we didn’t encounter any glaringly incorrect data, in which the heart rate readings never got going or spiked way too high, as is sometimes the case with cheaper devices.

Band 8 hands-on: Comprehensive fitness tracking on a budget Xiaomi Smart Band 8 hands-on: Comprehensive fitness tracking on a

This isn’t too far away from Xiaomi’s estimations, and, overall, is pretty good going for a device like this.I've only had a short time to play with it, but it certainly doesn't seem slow or overly laggy so far. Xiaomi Smart Band 8 has been upgraded with Easy-detachable Straps that not only allow you to easily switch between different strap designs and materials, but also allows you to remove the strap entirely. The big downside here is that you’ll still need to set up a workout from your phone and take it with you on your run, but the data does seem to have some value. And other times these kinds of metrics improve in accuracy after a few weeks of wear, but nothing within the app seems to suggest this is the case. Its name may have changed from 'Mi Band' to 'Smart Band' since it was first released, but Xiaomi's budget fitness tracker line shows no signs of slowing down after nearly a decade at the top.