Xiaomi is no stranger to wearables. The Chinese company that started out making smartphones has expanded its portfolio over the years by making all kinds of tech gadgets, not only for individual users but also for the home. As far as wearables go, Xiaomi has had a history of releasing fitness trackers that are very popular with the masses thanks to its very affordable price range. But it was not until a year or two ago that Xiaomi ventured into making proper smartwatches. And now we finally have the Xiaomi Mi Watch in Malaysia, months after it was first unveiled to the world back in September 2020.
What Is The Xiaomi Mi Watch?
The Mi Watch is Xiaomi’s stab into the smartwatch market that is currently dominated by Apple. You may have heard of the Xiaomi Amazfit smartwatches, which are actually made by a company called Huami. It collaborates with Xiaomi to design and manufacture Xiaomi-branded smart bands, watches, scales, and other accessories. The Mi Watch, on the other hand, is a smartwatch made entirely by Xiaomi itself.
Prior to announcing the Mi Watch, Xiaomi had also released the Mi Watch Lite and Mi Watch Color, with the latter only made available in selected countries.
Specs
The Xiaomi Mi Watch sports a 1.39-inch rounded AMOLED display with 454×454 pixel resolution. The screen has a brightness level that goes up to 450 nits and is protected by scratch-resistant Corning Gorilla Glass 3 along with anti-fingerprint coating. You will find two physical buttons on the watch case to help you navigate the interface. Tipping the scale at 32g (without the straps), this is also one of the lightest smartwatches around.
The Mi Watch is equipped with six different sensors: 3-axis accelerometer, 3-axis gyroscope, geomagnetic sensor, air pressure sensor, ambient light sensor, and optimised PPG heart rate sensor. You will be able to track your Sp02 level, also known as oxygen saturation in your blood, thanks to the heart rate monitor. This is much like the Apple Watch Series 6’s blood oxygen tracking feature. The smartwatch also has built-in GPS to track your real-time location.
Features
Feature-wise, it offers as many as 117 fitness modes which should cover all forms of exercises you can think of, including water activities. You can safely bring it to the water as the smartwatch has 5 ATM water resistance (up to 50m deep). Xiaomi’s smartwatch also lets you track your sleep as well as your stress levels.
Additionally, you also get over 100 watch faces to give the smartwatch all kinds of different looks to suit all occasions. When paired to your smartphone, you can use the Mi Watch as a camera viewfinder and a remote camera shutter trigger. These are all on top of the standard smartwatch functions like delivering notifications and letting you read messages from your phone.
Another thing to note is that the Mi Watch also comes with Amazon Alexa support. However, the smart assistant is not officially available in Malaysia at the time of writing.
The Mi Watch is compatible with both Android phones (Android 4.4 and above) and iPhones (iOS 10.0 and above).
Battery Life
It goes without saying that battery life remains one of the most important features in a smartwatch (or any mobile device for that matter). The good news is that Xiaomi is touting a 16-day battery life on the Mi Watch with continuous usage. So, technically you would only need to charge the smartwatch twice a month.
Xiaomi Mi Watch Price In Malaysia
In Malaysia, the Xiaomi Mi Watch has an official price tag of RM469.
Xiaomi Mi Watch Availability In Malaysia
The Xiaomi Mi Watch was released in Malaysia on 20th January 2021. It is now available for purchase online at the official Xiaomi e-store on Shopee. Alternatively, you can get one at all physical Authorised Mi Stores as well as other retailers.
The watch case comes in a choice of Black, Navy Blue, and Beige. Meanwhile, the straps are available in Black, Navy Blue, Orange, Yellow, Olive, and Beige.
For An Even More Affordable Option, There Is The Xiaomi Mi Watch Lite
As mentioned earlier, the Mi Watch is not the only smartwatch released by the company as it has also brought in the more affordable Xiaomi Mi Watch Lite into Malaysia.
The Mi Watch Lite has a square watch case that houses a 1.4-inch TFT colour display, unlike the Mi Watch. Among its features are heart rate tracking, sleep monitoring, built-in GPS, and 5 ATM water resistance. You will also find 11 sports modes as well as over 120 watch faces in the smartwatch.
In terms of battery life, you can expect nine days of usage out of the Mi Watch Lite on average. Meanwhile, continuous GPS usage in sports mode will yield around 10 hours of battery life before it needs charging again.
You can purchase the Xiaomi Mi Watch Lite in Malaysia here. For more on smartwatches, you can check out our heart rate monitor watch recommendations.
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