Xiaomi Mi Band 3

The Mi Band 3 is still better than myriad affordable options that we witnessed this year. The design works, build is durable, battery life is decent (if not as good as advertised), there is a heart rate sensor (which is good to have, right?), you can check notifications directly on your wrist, and it’s water resistant.

While it adds a few meaningful features without any increase in price, I still am not particularly drawn to it, primarily because of its activity tracking limitations. There isn’t much point to those step counts if you know the stats were augmented on a bus or bike ride. Also, a fitness tracker should be able to start tracking your runs without using the phone.

To be fair, that’s exactly how I have felt about low-cost fitness trackers for some time now. But considering the cost factor at play, we can surely cut the Mi Band 3 some slack.

So, if you haven’t tried a fitness band before, we would recommend that you go for the Mi Band 3 to start with. Only when you try a fitness band first hand will you know what works and what doesn’t for your specific needs, and whether or not you will be wearing it after a month when the novelty wears off.

There isn’t a better option than Mi Band 3 that comes to mind even if you consider bands that cost twice as much. If you are still using it after a few months, you may as well consider investing in more expensive options for your next upgrade.read more →