It’s been a week since I started using the recently released Mi Watch Lite. Here are my thoughts on the watch.
Design
Priced at S$99, the watch comes in three colours of black, ivory, and navy blue. The straps are available in additional colours of pink and green.
The Mi Watch Lite is a simple smartwatch with basic features. There is a single button on the watch to control the apps. It’s 41mm frame is mostly plastic, so the watch itself is quite light at 35 grams.
It is also 5 ATM water resistant.
Straps
It is easy to put on, with a standard strap design of buckle and loop. It is also very comfortable to wear. The straps can be removed and replaced by clicking a button at the base of the straps.
Display
The touchscreen LCD display is good enough with relatively vibrant colors.
Additional watch faces can be customised and synced through the Xiaomi Wear app. Whilst there are quite a few watch faces to choose from, most are similar themed designs with different color schemes. There is currently no official way to make your own watch faces or download third-party ones.
Functions
The functions of the watch are quite basic. It only has Bluetooth connection capabilities. It also does not connect to WiFi or LTE Networks and does not have Near-Field Communication.
Since it has basic smartwatch functions, its performance is just good enough for the watch to function adequately. The actual internal hardware of the watch has not been specified by Xiaomi. There is a slight delay when using the raise to wake function. While it’s not as apparent during regular use, it’s quite obvious when you’re in the middle of a run or gym session.
The watch has basic apps like heart rate monitor, sleep monitor, timer, stopwatch, alarm, and workout modes. It can be connected to a phone via Bluetooth but can also be synced and updated through the Xiaomi Wear app which I felt is a bit bare bones. The large animated character in the app does not have much use at all and that space could have been used for other things like relevant statistics related to the user’s lifestyle.
Apps
The Mi Watch Lite cannot download additional data, such as music or apps. Music that is played through a phone can be controlled through the watch with simple playback controls.
Battery
The 230mAh battery provides a good length of use for about nine days on a single charge or even longer with moderate use.
The Mi Watch Lite might not have the more advanced features that higher end smartwatches have, but it’s built well. The size is just right and it’s extremely easy to use. It’s a great pick for anyone who needs a no-frills and easy-to-use smartwatch that just works.
Watch the video for a full review.
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