Rumours told us that an updated Xiaomi Mi Band was on the way, and today it was finally announced over on the official Xiaomi website.
The Mi Band 1S won’t replace the original Mi Band but will sell alongside it at a slightly higher cost. The original Mi Band is now on sale in China for 69 Yuan, while the new model comes in at 99 Yuan.
Visually each band is almost identical to one another, with the same metal fronted main unit that sits inside a rubber wrist strap. Functions are similar too with a 3 x LED notification system, the ability to alert you to notifications (with a gentle vibration feature), sleep monitor, calorie counter and of course exercise recording.
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There is one new feature though and that is the rear facing optical heart rate monitor which will take your pulse as required. Adding the heart monitor has meant a slight increase on main unit size with the new 1S measuring 37mm long, 13.6mm wide and 9.9mm deep. This probably means that the new model cannot fit in the older wrist straps.
The IP67 rated band retains the same size 45mAh battery, and as the heart monitor isn’t always active you should be able to get close to the originals 30 day battery life. Xiaomi will realise the new Xiaomi Mi Band 1S on November 11th for 99 Yuan, international resellers will offer the wearable soon after.