Mi Band 5 billed to come with an SPO2 sensor, Alexa, and more
Xiaomi's range of affordable fitness bands has been quite a hit among the masses, much like their smartphones. Fans and enthusiasts alike are waiting with bated breath for the newest installment in the Xiaomi fitness tracker saga: the Mi Band 5. We've already managed to get a peek at it, thanks to some leaks. Now, some more information has emerged about the Mi Band 5's features.
According to a forum post, the Mi Band 5 will come with an SPO2 sensor and Alexa built into it. An SPO2 sensor is quite the improvement, as it helps track blood oxygen levels and alert the user should there be any discrepancy in it. The feature will come as a boon for people suffering from respiratory issues such as Asthma, COPD, and CPAD.
The post also states that international variants of the Mi Band 5 will come with Alexa out of the box. Alexa is (just about) everywhere, and its addition to the fitness tracker will incentivize a lot of Alexaholics to buy it. The Mi Band 5 will also come with a menstrual tracker that will display critical information such as fertile days, ovulation period, and an approximate date for the next period.
The Mi Band 5 also has an interesting new feature in the form of personal activity intelligence (PAI). It will use recorded parameters such as height, weight, age, BMI, and heart rate to determine the exact amount of exercise you need to remain healthy. The feature is already present on the Mi Band 4 but has been disabled on purpose. Xiaomi is likely to flip the switch at a later point to bring the Mi Band 4 on par with its successor.
Some of the other improvements of the Mi Band 5 include the addition of five new activities, the ability to click pictures using the wearable, a world clock, and a calendar. However, there is one feature that will remain exclusive to the Chinese version of the tracker, and that is support for NFC. Support for NFC is expected to arrive on the Mi Smart Band 5, which is an entirely different device altogether.
There is still uncertainty around the Mi Band 5's release date. It has made an appearance on several certification websites, indicating that the final product is ready. Rumor has it that a Chinese release will commence sometime in late August, followed by a global unveiling a few weeks later. Its price should be around the $30-$40 range, but we wouldn't be surprised if it went up to the $50 mark, considering all the new features it brings.
