Review of sports watches Xiaomi Amazfit Pace - an advanced version of Mi Band

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

A smart gadget with Strava support and advanced physical activity monitoring.

Xiaomi Mi Band is still one of the most popular fitness gadgets. The secret is simple: low price, excellent performance, wide functionality. The success of the device prompted the developers to release a full-fledged smartwatch with a color display and advanced features. The result is not just a fashion accessory, but a smart assistant for any workout.

Specifications

CPU	Ingenic XBurst M200S (2 cores, 1.2 GHz + 300 MHz)
RAM	512 MB
Persistent memory	4 GB (eMMC)
Interfaces	GPS, Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi (via smartphone connection)
Antenna	Internal
Operating system	Own add-on based on Android 5.1 without application support
Sensors	GPS, heart rate sensor, barometer, accelerometer
Protection	IP67 (dust and moisture resistant)
Battery	240 mAh, up to 5 days of operation in normal mode and about 30 hours with GPS on
Display	1.34 inches, 320 × 300 pixels
Versions	A1612 (English), A1602 (Chinese)

Appearance and usability

The Amazfit Pace body is perfectly polished. The only protruding element is the control button on the right side. It is almost impossible to accidentally click on it.

The strap is made of soft silicone. Despite the manufacturer's claims that the material is hypoallergenic, sensitive skin may react with irritation. It's all to blame for the need for the closest contact of the bottom of the watch with the skin.

Here are the contacts for the charging station and the optical heart rate sensor. The latter received a modified design and learned to work in several modes, including constantly taking readings.

It is curious that for Amazfit Pace it is not necessary to purchase an original strap, you can take it from other watches.

Display

The main element of the Amazfit Pace is a large color display with a touchscreen. The touch layer works only after activating the watch with the control button, so that accidental presses are completely excluded.

There is no color inversion. The viewing angles are exactly 180 degrees. The backlight can be adjusted for active and inactive modes, but even the maximum level does not seem dazzling.

The technology used provides excellent clarity and legibility of the image even at low brightness. Up to the point that taking pictures of the Amazfit Pace screen becomes problematic: you see everything that happens on the display even under the bright sun, but the camera does not know this.

Operating system and desktops

Amazfit Pace runs on a proprietary operating system, which is why they are incompatible with applications for Android Wear and other smartwatches.

The hardware of the watch is different from other Chinese counterparts, so flashing Amazfit is fraught with certain risks. The Chinese version turns into Russian rather well with minor translation flaws, but with illiterate actions, changing the language becomes a long and difficult procedure.

The official English version is free of this flaw. Messages from a smartphone in Russian are displayed without problems.

In the inactive mode, the screen displays information updated at intervals of 30-60 seconds. Smartphone messages are displayed without turning on the backlight, touchscreen and the screen itself, the display time can be adjusted.

Functionality

The capabilities of the watch depend on the watch face style that you can select when you first connect your device to your smartphone.

Work with Amazfit is carried out by swipes up and down and left and right. Swipe down allows you to view messages from your smartphone or system notifications of the fitness gadget itself. Swiping up on the home screen takes the user to the system clock settings. In the menu, you can change the general parameters of the watch face, establish a connection with a smartphone and change some parameters that are important when using the Amazfit Pace offline.

In the background, the device counts the steps, the distance traveled (in accordance with the indicated height) and measures the pulse several times a day. Using a swipe to the right, you can get to the menu with sports settings, allowing you to choose the type of activity. The algorithm for calculating steps, distance and heart rate depends on this parameter. Almost everything is available: running (including treadmill), strength training, cycling, and uphill climbing. The GPS module must be turned on for the watch to run and work outdoors.

Amazfit writes a sufficiently detailed and accurate track of walks and refuses to work without communication with satellites. The device even specifies a separate parameter - work with GPS (in active mode). In it, the battery lasts only for 30 hours, while in normal mode - for five days. The recorded track can be viewed when connected to a smartphone in Google Maps.

Swiping to the left on the Amazfit start screen gives you access to several functional watch faces. It hides an audio player, information about the heart rate, track (for the outdoor training mode) and distance traveled, an alarm clock, reminders to move, sleep and activity statistics in general.

The player only works with the internal memory of the Amazfit Pace and a wireless headset connected directly to the watch. There is no player control on the phone.

The watch has a smart alarm, and from the looks of it, it actually works. But do not forget that this function requires a complex calculation, which may not be suitable for a specific user.

There are two modes of operation for the heart rate sensor: you can take a manual measurement at the right time, or use undocumented automatic measurement algorithms. In this case, the watch takes measurements after a certain period of time, which depends on the set type of activity.

Companion apps

The statistics displayed on the Amazfit screen can only be used for the current cursory assessment: the screen is small, the graphs are compressed to the limit. Therefore, the main access to the collected data, as well as the synchronization settings, are hidden in the proprietary Amazfit application. Without it, the initial connection and synchronization of the watch and smartphone is impossible.

After choosing a watch face, setting up sync options, alerts and units of measure, you can forget about the Amazfit app. Moreover, it allows you to connect to Strava, using the popular sports system as the main way to process data and visualize statistics.

Instead of Strava, to measure and view statistics, you can use the proprietary Xiaomi Mi Fit sports application with built-in synchronization with Google Fit.

An important difference between Mi Fit was the ability to combine Amazfit statistics with information from other smart Xiaomi gadgets for fitness: weights, sneakers and Mi Band.

Do you know how to replace Mi Band

Amazfit Pace is a logical continuation of the popular Xiaomi fitness trackers. It is a sports accessory, personal trainer and assistant. The functionality of Amazfit as a smartphone companion does not stand out from the background of many similar devices, although it does offer the minimum required set.

Surely there are those who will lack a microphone, an NFC module (which is not needed without Android Wear 2.0) or some additional functions. Nevertheless, the Amazfit Pace has much more pluses than minuses. Among them:

• stylish appearance;
• comfortable design;
• good display;
• wide sports opportunities;
• the possibility of autonomous use;
• sync with Mi Fit and Strava.

Disadvantages of Amazfit Pace:

• own operating system;
• complex Russification.

Considering the Amazfit Pace as a convenient sports gadget with support for most types of activity, Strava and GPS - $ 125 shouldn't be a serious reason to abandon a purchase. It is the cheapest fully functional fitness accessory available on the market. Smarter than the Mi Band 2 with a screen.