Xiaomi Smart Band 9 review

13 October 2024
Good form factor, lots of features, but the lack of GPS may be a dealbreaker.

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Several things are missed from the review which I might add:
1. Upgrades from Mi Band 8 is not only brighter display but also much better battery. On AOD with all notification from every app turned on, 30 mins HR measurements, and workout once a day I got only 4 days tops. Seems to be 50% better on Mi Band 9.
2. There are 3rd party app that you can use to increase the band's functionality, such as screen mirroring, Google maps navigation, and more custom watch faces. You can even nibble the notification filtering to something as intricate as "excluded word" or "combined several notifications into one if on quick succession" to reduce phone-screen time to only most important.

    • J
    • Jason
    • IUu
    • 18 Oct 2024

    Eric20, 14 Oct 2024The formula for safe pulse rate during exercising is (22... moreDo you never exercise?? Lol. An average heart rate of 152 for an exercise is not "dangerous" hahaha.

    Dude, vo2 max training has been shown to be the biggest predictor of increasing lifespan, for humans. That would require you to routinely increase heart rate above 180 bps if you are a man in his 20s or 30s.

      I had the 4, then got the 6. Waiting for the 9 to arrive from Aliexpress now.

      I wouldn't have bothered with the upgrade from 6 to 9 were it not for water ingress into the watch, seeping in from the edges of the display.

      This happened after I washed the floors with water and bleach while wearing it apparently, so don't wear it when using domestic chemicals I guess.

      Looks like the bleach in the water must have dissolved the rubber seals.

        Upto Mi Band 3, you could use an aftermarket app for privacy reasons.

        On Mi Band 4, you could use aftermarket app, but it required a modified Mi app to leak the "key" for the specific Mi Band.
        Which means Mi made it tough to use aftermarket apps, and they NEED our data for mining, and later versions toughened this further...
        I have Band 4 and it still rocks! I only use it as a watch (and rarely step tracking and stopwatch, etc) without my phone connecting to it in any way.

        Can anyone confirm the privacy situation with Band 9, or Band 8 or even 7?
        Can I activate it once and keep using it forever like Band 4?

          • ?
          • Anonymous
          • Sr6
          • 15 Oct 2024

          AltFantasy, 15 Oct 2024...why do you want to "bootloader unlock" a liter... moreI want to flash custom ROM on it and then install special A.I. app that will call robotaxi when I talk to my watch.

            Anonymous, 14 Oct 2024Does it have adb and fastboot access? Can you unlock bootlo... morethe answer is most probably no, but why do you even want to "bootloader unlock" a bloody fitness band? it's made for people who actually go outside and exercise, not for some stuck-up, slow-witted NEET to mess with.

              Anonymous, 13 Oct 2024How much does this thing cost and can you root it? Bootload... more...why do you want to "bootloader unlock" a literal fitness band? there's a reason why nobody cares about jailbreaking even an old Apple Watch, or an old Samsung Gear Fit, etc.

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                • Markiz
                • gIP
                • 15 Oct 2024

                Had one for 3 weeks.
                Had Amazfit GTS 4 Mini before.

                Step and sleep are about the same. Wore them both for few days to compare. +/-100 steps difference, and tiny difference in sleep stages. Good enough for me. Total amount of sleep is all I care about, since I can't really affect anything else.

                Works faster and is brighter compared to amazfit.

                Biggest issue is slow automatic brightness and AOD not having generic black and white mode, since theme AODs are often GRAY on black, which is not visible in direct sunglight.

                  • R
                  • Radu
                  • ajN
                  • 15 Oct 2024

                  I have Mi8. When you do a running workout, the distance measured by the band is always innacurate. I walk a specific distance measured = 5km. When i run on exactly the same distance, wourkout shows only 3.6 km, something like tbis. And also Google Fit app, and alao Samsung Healyh App, and these two are showing correctly 5km. So always, at a running workout, is onnacutate. I hope they solved this with 9 version. I can live with this, but still, it's annoying.

                    • ?
                    • Anonymous
                    • Sr6
                    • 14 Oct 2024

                    Does it have adb and fastboot access? Can you unlock bootloader on this thing?

                      • ?
                      • Anonymous
                      • yVI
                      • 14 Oct 2024

                      Dgg, 13 Oct 2024Have the 8, it is garbage...steps not accurate, heart rate ... moreAt least its cheap

                        MAJID, 14 Oct 2024i clocked at 185bpm many times. (in my cardio jogging)The formula for safe pulse rate during exercising is

                        (220 - age) x 0.8

                        Don't sustain too high a pulse rate as it could trigger arrhythmias or even heart attacks.

                          • M
                          • MAJID
                          • srY
                          • 14 Oct 2024

                          Eric20, 13 Oct 2024The pulse rate of 152 bpm is very high. A deep sleep of 3 h... morei clocked at 185bpm many times.
                          (in my cardio jogging)

                            Again lackluster review of watch faces and AOD mode. You don't mention how many watch faces are hardcoded into the watch and can't be replaced by your own and you don't mention how AOD mode works, whether its AOD watch faces are blacked out active ones or just something entirely different than the active watch face you've selected.

                            Two of HUGE things that make use of Smart Band 7 Pro much worse than it was expected, because of these two things. You can barely install anything on it because so many pointless watch faces are preinstalled and can't be removed and AOD modes are total hit and miss. Some are blacked out versions of normal active watch face and others are entirely different ones. Stuff like this HAS to be mentioned in reviews, otherwise what's even the point of review if you just glance over things like "it has AOD". Yeah, I know that, I just don't know if it's good or garbage. And you don't describe that in a review.

                              Having the option to clip it to the ankle is really nice. I work on a walking pad with a standing desk. Whatever watches I wear won't record my steps (Samsung Watch 5, Huawei GT3, and Fit2, Garmin Venu2s, Apple Watch gen 3). Cannot wait to try these bands.

                                • K
                                • K
                                • D09
                                • 14 Oct 2024

                                Since this form factor is more suitable for sleep tracking compared to a smartwatch...xiaomi should work on the accuracy of sleep tracking for this device form factor.

                                More than a billion people in the word don't get either proper or sufficient sleep. If this device ( or the next version of this device) accurately tracks sleep it could help a lot of people and therefore sell a lot more.

                                  • ?
                                  • Anonymous
                                  • Sr6
                                  • 13 Oct 2024

                                  How much does this thing cost and can you root it? Bootloader unlockable? Is it running HyperOS or what?
                                  It looks so good. Imagine talking to your rooted jailbroken Smart Band and calling Elon's Robo Taxi to pick you up for a ride.

                                    • D
                                    • Dgg
                                    • kmM
                                    • 13 Oct 2024

                                    Have the 8, it is garbage...steps not accurate, heart rate off and sleep monitor is garbage.... keeps time though

                                      • I
                                      • I.
                                      • XDm
                                      • 13 Oct 2024

                                      Had a few of those starting with the very first one. They used to be very reliable (gen 1, 2, 3) but after that quality significantly degraded. Within a year of purchase they all break down one way or another. Huge disappointment.

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                                        • Another one
                                        • gDk
                                        • 13 Oct 2024

                                        The watch doesn't sync with Google fit. The App coming with it is a real nightmare, it is different app than band 7 or 6 ... It is really step backwards!

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