Xiaomi is bringing three of its most affordable fitness trackers to UK shores, just in time for Christmas. The Mi Smart Band NFC, Redmi Smart Band Pro, and Redmi Watch 2 Lite are all scheduled to launch here on December 16.
Xiaomi's announcement was light on details, but the three devices already have listing pages on Xiaomi's online store. The links aren't easy to find through the company's homepage, but we've done some digging and found that the Redmi Smart Band Pro is priced at £44.99, the Mi Smart Band 6 NFC is £49.99, and the Redmi Watch 2 Lite is £59.99.
2 days until it's time for change!#RedmiWatch2Lite #MiSmartBand6NFC #RedmiBandPro are coming to the UK on December 16th! pic.twitter.com/f41jJ1ZitnDecember 14, 2021
The Mi Smart Band 6 NFC is an updated version of the original Mi Smart Band 6, which we reviewed earlier this year. It was built in collaboration with MasterCard, and allows you to make contactless payments on any MasterCard terminal. That gives it a real edge over Fitbit Pay, which is built into most of the company's current lineup of fitness trackers, but is only supported by a small handful of UK banks.
The Mi Smart Band 6 NFC also has a microphone, with support for Amazon Alexa so you can control your smart home devices.
The original Smart Band 6 costs just £40, and includes several features you'd expect to find on devices several times the price, such as all-day stress tracking, a pulse oximeter for monitoring blood oxygen saturation, and a great looking AMOLED display.
We found its workout tracking a little lacking (its heart rate measurements were disappointing), but it gives you a lot for very little money and is a good choice if you're looking for a watch that'll nudge you to make healthier choices like going to bed earlier, or walking to the shops rather than driving.
It went on sale for €55 when it launched in Italy recently, so its UK price of £49.99 is what we'd expect.
One for the runners
The Redmi Watch 2 Lite is another affordable fitness tracker, and has a 10% larger display than its predecessor, the original Redmi Watch Lite.
Like the Mi Smart Band 6, it offers all-day heart rate monitoring, SpO2 tracking, and stress monitoring, but there's one key difference that'll appeal to anyone who's interested in tracking sports.
Unlike the Mi Smart Band 6 NFC, which piggybacks on your phone's GPS, the Redmi Watch 2 Lite has its own satellite positioning chip, which provides more accurate location tracking during runs, walks, and bike rides. It supports four of the biggest positioning systems (GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and BDS), allowing it to pinpoint your location more accurately.
It landed in Germany, Italy and Spain earlier this week priced at €69.99, which lines up neatly with its £59.99 UK price tag.
The cheapest option
Rounding out the set, the Redmi Smart Band Pro is very similar in terms of features to the Mi Smart Band 6, but with a wider and shorter display. That makes it easier to read text such as phone notifications on screen, though you'll need to scroll a little more to view lists.
It has all the same sensors as the Smart Band 6 (including an accelerometer, optical heart rate monitor, and SpO2 sensor), plus connected rather than on-board GPS.
It's the cheapest of the new trio, but at £45.99 a little more expensive than the Smart Band 6, so if you're on a tight budget than you may prefer to opt for the slimmer screen and save yourself £5.
Analysis: Watch out, Fitbit
The name 'Fitbit' is synonymous with fitness trackers in the UK, but Xiaomi is clearly aiming to steal a chunk of the more established company's lunch – and there's a chance that it may succeed.
The trio of Xiaomi watches coming on the 16th are clearly aimed at the budget end of the market, but they're very impressive for the price. A £50 Redmi device isn't going to come with a stylish stainless steel case like the Fitbit Luxe or Charge 5, and you're not going to get access to workouts led by Will Smith, but if your needs are simple then the cheaper option is well worth investigating.
As we mentioned earlier, Xiaomi also has a major advantage over Fitbit in the UK, thanks to its contactless payment system. You can use Fitbit Pay with pretty much any credit card connected to Curve, but Xiaomi's partnership with MasterCard takes out this extra step and makes NFC payments much more convenient.
- We've tested and ranked the best cheap running watches
