The Xiaomi Smart Band 7 global edition is official – and we now know exactly what the budget tracker will offer.
The fitness tracker dropped in China last month, but it's now heading to Europe and the US.
And it's already been a storming success in China, and Xiaomi announced on Weibo that it's shipped over 1 million Mi Band 7 trackers in the first month.
Read on for everything you need to know.
Mi Band 7 at a glance
| Specs | |
| Dimensions | 46.5 x 20.7 x 12.25mm |
| Screen size | 1.62” AMOLED |
| Screen res | 192 x 490, 326 PPI |
| Weight | 13.5g |
| Sensors | PPG, SpO2, 6-axis accelerometer, gyroscope |
| Water resistance | 5ATM (50m) |
Xiaomi Mi Band 7: Bigger, better screen
As you can see from the press renders above, the look and feel of the Mi Band 7 has stayed in line with the classic Xiaomi Mi Band design – so things aren't too much of a departure.
The screen has grown, and the band features a 1.67-inch AMOLED display, up from 1.56-inch on the previous generation.
And the screen resolution has also jumped to 192 x 490. Xiaomi claims that the usable screen area has jumped 25% from the Mi Band 6 (full review) – so it should be easier and more pleasant to use.
A big change is that the screen can now be always-on, so it won't turn off when you're not interacting with it. As part of that upgrade, Xiaomi has launched 100 watch faces, with low-power versions when the band is dormant.
And it comes in a range of colors with Black, Orange, Olive, Pink, Ivory, Blue. There will also be Neon green, Neon orange, Khaki green and Khaki blue extra band options available.
Same sensors, new metrics
The amount of tracked workouts has also been increased from 30 to over 120 – with some tracking of movement (jumping etc) within activities.
Those that use their Mi Band 7 for serious workouts will enjoy the post-workout recovery advice, which uses Excess Post-exercise Oxygen Consumption estimates. It will advise you how many hours or days to take a break after a workout session.
It will also estimate Training load, Recovery duration and Training effect of each workout – which means the Xiaomi is edging into Garmin territory.
VO2 Max estimates and workout intensity feedback are also onboard, which makes the Mi Band 7 a better partner for those that work out hard.
Swimming tracking has also been boosted, and the Mi Band 7 will recognise 4 swimming styles, as well as tracking of snorkelling.
New health features
And there’s a handful of new health features too.
The SpO2 sensor, which was introduced on the Mi Band 6, will now continuously monitor blood oxygen levels, and alert if they drop below 90%. That could have interesting applications for those suffering with respiratory illness – although we’re sure that it will come with the usual caveats about not being designed for medical purposes
It will also keep tabs on stress levels, and alert if it detects high levels.
Sleep tracking is also on board, and the Mi Band 7 will look at breathing quality during rest – which can be a sign of underlying conditions such as sleep apnea.
Better battery life
Battery life is stated as 14 days typical use by Xiaomi and 9 days of heavy use, up from just 5 days on the Mi Band 6.
However, that doesn't include using the always-on display and it's not clear to what extend the SpO2 features are used within these estimates, so we'd advise you to wait for our full review.
Xiaomi has revealed there will be a new version of the Xiaomi Mi Fitness app for storing health and fitness metrics. Earlier this month, it revealed that older devices would revert to using the Zepp Health app.
Pricing and locations
Xiaomi has dropped the Mi Band 7 in European countries, and we're yet to get word of a US release or pricing. However , the band always reaches the US via Amazon and resellers.
The price has jumped from the Mi Band 6, and starts at £54.99/€49.99 – a big increase from the MSRP of €45.99 for the Mi Band 6.
We're waiting to get hold of UK pricing, and we'll update as we get it.
How we test
James is the co-founder of Wareable, and he has been a technology journalist for 15 years.
He started his career at Future Publishing, James became the features editor of T3 Magazine and T3.com and was a regular contributor to TechRadar – before leaving Future Publishing to found Wareable in 2014.
James has been at the helm of Wareable since 2014 and has become one of the leading experts in wearable technologies globally. He has reviewed, tested, and covered pretty much every wearable on the market, and is passionate about the evolving industry, and wearables helping people achieve healthier and happier lives.