Mi Band 6 vs Mi Band 7: What’s new with the Xiaomi Mi Band 7

Summary of Mi Band 6 vs Mi Band 7;

  • Slightly bigger screen display. It has a 1.62” display vs the 1.56” on the Mi Band 6
  • Brighter display of upto 500 vs 450 in Mi band 6
  • Continuous blood oxygen saturation monitoring 
  • More powerful CPU; Dialog 14706 vs the Dialog 14697 on the Mi band 6
  • Has a bigger battery of 180mAh battery vs 125mAh on the Mi band 6
  • Is slightly heavier weighing 13.5g vs 12.8g on the Mi band 6
  • Bluetooth 5.2 LE vs 5.0 on the Mi band 6
  • Available in China for CNY 239($35)

Xiaomi just announced the latest iteration to its most popular fitness band, the Mi band 7. The Mi band 7 succeeds last year’s Mi band 6 sporting a bigger brighter AMOLED screen and battery and a slightly more powerful CPU. Frankly, the Mi band 7 isn’t a significant upgrade from last year’s model. So if you’re looking for an upgrade, it’s probably not worth it. However, if you’re getting a fitness band for the first time, the Mi band 7 seems to be the most refined model in Xiaomi’s fitness band product catalog.

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Alright, digging into the details, the Mi band 7 now features a 1.62″ AMOLED display up from 1.56″ from last year’s Mi band 6. Obviously more screen real estate, about 25% generally means better user experience since you pack more User Interface elements without cramming the screen. The screen is also alot brighter packing 500 nits compared to last year’s 450 nits. To Match the bigger display, Xiaomi has also increased the battery capacity of the Mi band 7 to 180mAh up from 125mAh in last year’s model. However, you’re most likely to get the same 7-14 day battery life as last year’s model despite the bigger battery capacity.

The Mi band 7 also seems to weigh a bit more. At 13.5g compared to 12.8g on last year’s model, the band 7 weighs more although 0.7g won’t be noticeable on your arm wrist. Xiaomi also upgraded the CPU on the Mi band 7. You now have the Dialog 14706 processor versus the Dialog 14697 on the Mi band 6. This means you get a lot more smoother transitions and animations on the user interface.

The features have remained largely the same. You now have Continuous blood oxygen saturation monitoring on the Mi band 7. Last year’s model has blood oxygen saturation or SpO2 monitor but only when you want to know your SpO2 value. With this year’s model, can you set the fitness band to measure your SpO2 after a set time interval. You also get AliPay and Mi AI app for the Chinese versions and Amazon’s Alexa smart voice assistant for the global version of the Mi Band 7.

There’s still no built-in GPS on the Mi Band 7. This has been a long-awaited feature on the Mi band fitness band, but Xiaomi has still not included it on this year’s model. You however, can get the GPS in the Mi Band Pro. Also if you want built-in GPS, you’ll have to get their smartwatches such as the Mi Watch 2.

The Mi band 7 is currently available in China for the price of CNY 239($35). This is more or less the same price as last year’s model at its launch. The NFC model, which supports payments to AliPay, will cost slightly more.

 Mi band 7Mi band 6
Weight13.5g12.8 g
Dimensions46.5 mm x 20.7 mm x 12.25 mm47.4 × 18.6 × 12.7 mm
Display1.62 inch AMOLED Display1.56" AMOLED display
Resolution 192 x 490 pixels,326 PPI152*486 pixels
Brightness500 nits, adjustable450 nits, adjustable
ProcessorDialog 14706Dialog 14697
Battery180 mAh125 mAh
Bluetooth5.2 BLE5.0
SpO2Continuous SpO2 monitoringOn-demand SpO2 monitoring

Price

Xiaomi has unveiled the Mi Band 7 for the global market. The Mi band 7 goes for $50 on Amazon while the Mi band 6 goes for $40.

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