Verict - Xiaomi with improvements in detail
The Xiaomi Smart Band 10 is not a major new product, but rather a refinement. This is particularly evident in the new, larger, and brighter display, which is especially noticeable in direct comparison.
Above all, the Smart Band 10 is a very good fitness tracker that impresses with its accurate measurements and lightweight feel. Usability and customization options are also very good. Still, we would like to see improvements in certain details, such as sleep tracking.
Pros
Cons
Price and availability
Xiaomi offers the Smart Band 10 in two versions, which differ only in the casing material: aluminum for the standard Band 10 and ceramic for the 'Ceramic Edition.
The Ceramic Edition is available exclusively in white, while the standard model comes in 'Mystic Rose,' 'Midnight Black,' and 'Glacier Silver.' Our test unit is the black version. The Smart Band 10 has also become more expensive, with an RRP starting at €50 (~$58), and an additional €10 (~$11.67) for the ceramic model.
- $61.55XIAOMI Mi Smart Band 10 (2025) - 1.72" AMOLED Display | 21 Days Battery Life | Touchscreen, Multi-Sport Tracker, Activity Tracker, Heart Rate Monitor | BT5.4 - Midnight Black
- $61.51Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 10 (2025) - 1.72" AMOLED Display | 21 Days Battery Life | Touchscreen, Multi-Sport Tracker, Activity Tracker, Heart Rate Monitor | BT5.4 - Mystic Rose
Table of Contents
- Verict - Xiaomi with improvements in detail
- Case and design - Smart Band 10 in a familiar look
- Setup and operation - Mi Fitness app as the control center
- Health and fitness - Smart Band focuses on vitality score
- Display - Xiaomi tracker with very bright AMOLED panel
- Performance and runtime - Smart Band 10 runs smoothly
- Possible alternatives in comparison
The Smart Band from Xiaomi - formerly known as the Mi Band - has become an established name among fitness trackers. For several generations, it has offered a wide range of features at an affordable price. With the predecessor we criticized the lack of NFC and a satellite connection, and this remains unchanged with the Smart Band 10.
Case and design - Smart Band 10 in a familiar look
As a fitness tracker, the Smart Band 10 is relatively slim and elongated. The aluminum housing has no buttons or openings. The band is made of TPU and measures 15 millimeters in width. It is identical to that of its predecessor, so accessories such as necklaces or shoelaces remain compatible.
The band can be changed without tools. With the strap attached, the Smart Band 10 weighs 27 grams; without it, it weighs 16 grams. The strap uses a pin closure, which in testing occasionally came undone, for instance when the watch caught on something. Overall, it feels light and comfortable to wear.
Sustainability
Xiaomi does not provide any information about the carbon footprint of the Smart Band 10. A variety of different bands are available to extend its use and customize it to individual style preferences. Xiaomi also does not provide any details regarding repairability.
Setup and operation - Mi Fitness app as the control center
The Mi Fitness app is required to set up and operate the Smart Band 10. The band can be paired quickly by scanning a QR code, after which personal goals can be defined during setup. A tutorial displayed on the smartphone screen completes the process.
The Mi Fitness app is divided into four sections: Health, Training, Device and Profile. Health serves as a dashboard with tiles for individual topics, showing the most important information at a glance. Tapping a tile opens a submenu with more details.
Under Device, users can view current information about the Smart Band, such as battery status and the active watch face. There is access to a large selection of watch faces, most of which are free. Tracker settings can also be customized in this tab.
In the Profile section, third-party services such as Google Health Connect, Strava, and Suunto can be linked. However, the 10th generation Smart Band does not include a voice assistant.
The Smart Band 10 is operated exclusively via the display. Swiping from top to bottom opens the notifications menu. Swiping from bottom to top opens the app overview. Swiping sideways leads through cards to certain functions.
Additional cards can be added and the order can be changed. Swiping sideways from the edge of the display to the center for one step back in menus.
Telephony and notifications - Smart Band 10 without call options
The Xiaomi Smart Band 10 doesn't have a speaker or a microphone, so you can't make calls with the fitness tracker. However, it does display incoming calls. In our test, notifications also appeared reliably on the Smart Band. A great feature is that you can choose which apps are allowed to send notifications.
Longer texts are shortened, and the band can't display images—only a selection of emojis. You can't reply to messages using the Xiaomi fitness tracker.
Health and fitness - Smart Band focuses on vitality score
All health data is collected and analyzed in the Mi Fitness app. The Mi Smart Band 10 calculates a vitality score. Points are collected through intensive exercise. The software uses age, resting heart rate, maximum heart rate and training data from the past seven days as the basis for the calculation.
The Smart Band 10 can also measure the stress level and issue a warning if it's high. Stress is indicated with a point-based system, and there are also four categories with corresponding emojis."
Activity goals - Xiaomi uses semicircles
In the Mi Fitness app and on the Smart Band 10, Xiaomi provides an overview with three semicircles that represent calories burned, steps, and time in motion. These goals can be customized.
The app also shows you the time you've spent standing and the distance you've covered in kilometers. If you want, the tracker can remind you to stand up to avoid sitting for long periods. However, this doesn't work reliably; sometimes the reminder appears shortly after the user has stood up.
Heart rate, heart rhythm and blood oxygen saturation
The Xiaomi Smart Band 10 can measure heart rate and blood oxygen saturation. The frequency of the measurements can be set. You can choose between smart - the software determines the frequency -, every minute, every 10 minutes, or every 30 minutes. To better evaluate the readings, we compared them with those from reference devices.
We measured heart rate during a bike ride, using a Polar H10 chest strap as our reference heart rate monitor. Both devices give the same resting heart rate. For the power pulse, the average difference between three measurements was just 0.51%, with the largest deviation being one beat per minute.
When measuring blood oxygen saturation, a Braun pulse oximeter 1 was used as a reference device. One measurement shows exactly the same values, while two others had a deviation of only one percentage point. More information on the reliability of the measured values can be found here.
Sleep tracking - Smart Band 10 aims to measure sleep efficiency
The sleep tracking of the Xiaomi Smart Band 10 is extensive when the extended monitoring is activated. Sleep time is displayed on a timeline and broken down into deep, light, and REM sleep. Waking up is also noted.
The percentages of the sleep phases are shown in diagrams, along with the duration of each phase. A new feature, "sleep efficiency," shows how long you were actually asleep compared to the total time you spent in bed. However, the results was not reliable in the test. The tracker sometimes failed to recognize long periods of lying in bed before falling asleep, mistakenly recording them as actual sleep.
The app also provides values for average pulse rate, average oxygen saturation, and average breathing rate during sleep. The software interprets sleep data and offers suggestions for improvement.
Workout tracking - Smart Band 10 with improved Swim training
According to Xiaomi, the Smart Band 10 can track over 150 sports. We primarily used it for cycling and walking. The Smart Band 10 can automatically recognize these movements and four others, and start recording. This works reliably during continuous movement in the test.
Improved swimming training is a new feature. The fitness tracker determines your swimming style, the number of laps, the total number of strokes and the average per lap, SWOLF score, as well as the average speed.
After a workout, the app displays the training effect as well as the training load, regeneration time, and vitality value.
For various workouts, you can set further goals, such as distance, duration, or calories burned. For jogging, the Smart Band 10 also offers interval training and a virtual pacer. The display is easy to read during a workout.
Display - Xiaomi tracker with very bright AMOLED panel
Xiaomi has enlarged the display of the Smart Band 10 compared to its predecessor. The device uses a 1.72-inch AMOLED panel with a refresh rate of 60 Hz. The display bezels are also said to be thinner than the predecessor's.
Xiaomi advertises a display brightness of up to 1500 cd/m², a value we did not achieve in our test. With the ambient light sensor enabled, we measured a maximum brightness of 980 nits.
Even though the Smart Band 10 falls short of the manufacturer's claim, it is brighter than its predecessor and competitors. Without the ambient light sensor, we measured 617 cd/m². The minimum brightness is 2.35 nits.
The Smart Band 10 has an always-on display that can be activated temporarily, smartly or permanently. It can also be quickly and reliably woken up by a wrist turn. In our test, we were able to measure screen flickering at 60 Hz.
| Xiaomi Smart Band 10 | Xiaomi Smart Band 9 | Xiaomi Smart Band 8 Pro | Huawei Band 8 | Amazfit Active 2 | Xiaomi Redmi Watch 4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Response Times | ||||||
| PWM Frequency | 60 | 60 | 60 | 59 | 60 | 166 |
| PWM Amplitude * | 72.3 | |||||
| Screen | -15% | -34% | -60% | 88% | -43% | |
| Brightness middle | 980 | 836 -15% | 643 -34% | 391 -60% | 1842 88% | 555 -43% |
| Black Level * | ||||||
| Total Average (Program / Settings) | -15% /
-15% | -34% /
-34% | -60% /
-60% | 88% /
88% | -43% /
-43% |
* ... smaller is better
Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)
| Screen flickering / PWM detected | 60 Hz Secondary Frequency: 488 Hz |  | |
The display backlight flickers at 60 Hz (worst case, e.g., utilizing PWM) . The frequency of 60 Hz is very low, so the flickering may cause eyestrain and headaches after extended use. In comparison: 53 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 8265 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 343500) Hz was measured. | |||
Performance and runtime - Smart Band 10 runs smoothly
Xiaomi does not provide any information on the SiP installed. In everyday use, the smartband impresses with its smooth operation. Apps open quickly and transitions in the UI are smooth. We did not experience any crashes during the test period.
Battery life - One week of battery life for the Smart Band 10
The Smart Band 10 has a battery capacity of 233 mAh. Xiaomi promises a battery life of 8 to 21 days. We use all the functions, had the health values measured every minute, enabled automatic workout recognition, and received notifications on the tracker. When using the always-on display (AoD), the Smart Band 10 lasts around 6 days before needing a charge.
If the AoD is deactivated, the usage time increases to around 9 days with the same settings. Charging is possible with the included cable, which attaches magnetically to the underside of the device. With an Anker 335 power supply, the fitness tracker is fully charged in 50 minutes. The Smart Band 10 charges from 6% to 33% in just 10 minutes.
Possible alternatives in comparison
Image | Model | Price | Size | Weight | Battery Capacity | Display |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1.  | Xiaomi Smart Band 10 | Amazon: 1. $63.70 Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 10 (202... 2. $61.55 XIAOMI Mi Smart Band 10 (202... 3. $61.51 Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 10 (202... List Price: 50€ | 1.72" | 27 g | 233 mAh | 1.72" 520x212 326 PPI AMOLED |
2.  | Xiaomi Smart Band 9 | Amazon: 1. $29.99 Xiaomi Smart Band 9 Active G... 2. $48.50 Xiaomi Smart Band 9 Global V... 3. $59.09 Xiaomi Smart Band 9 Global V... List Price: 40€ | 1.62" | 27 g | 233 mAh | 1.62" 192x490 AMOLED |
3.  | Xiaomi Smart Band 8 Pro | Amazon: 1. $79.99 Xiaomi Smart Band 8 Pro Fitn... 2. $66.45 Xiaomi Smart Band 9 Pro Smar... 3. $11.98 Chofit Compatible with Xiaom... List Price: 70€ | 1.74" | 37 g | 289 mAh | 1.74" 336x480 336 PPI AMOLED |
4.  | Huawei Band 8 unknown | Amazon: 1. $9.99 Z.DuDuZAZA Bands Compatible ... 2. $11.99 Z.DuDuZAZA Super Soft Bands ... 3. $9.98 E ECSEM Bands Compatible wit... List Price: 59€ | 1.47" | 24 g | 180 mAh | 1.47" 194x368 282 PPI OLED |
5.  | Amazfit Active 2 | Amazon: 1. $99.99 Amazfit Active 2 Sport Smart... 2. $15.99 [2 in 1]BEARDDO Metal Case f... 3. $5.99 Fhyeugfy for A-mazfit Active... List Price: 99€ | 1.32" | 29.5 g | 270 mAh | 1.32" 466x466 353 PPI AMOLED |
6.  | Xiaomi Redmi Watch 4 | Amazon: 1. $117.08 Xiaomi Redmi Watch 4 Smartwa... 2. $44.69 Xiaomi Redmi Watch 5 Lite Gl... 3. $35.70 Xiaomi Redmi Watch 5 Active ... List Price: 99.99€ | 1.97" | 48 g | 470 mAh | 1.97" 450x390 302 PPI AMOLED |
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The selection of devices to be reviewed is made by our editorial team. The test sample was provided to the author as a loan by the manufacturer or retailer for the purpose of this review. The lender had no influence on this review, nor did the manufacturer receive a copy of this review before publication. There was no obligation to publish this review. We never accept compensation or payment in return for our reviews. As an independent media company, Notebookcheck is not subjected to the authority of manufacturers, retailers or publishers.
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