Mi Band 4 vs Honor Band 5i: Best fitness band of 2020

Honor Band 5i was unveiled a few days ago and it is stirring things up in the budget fitness band segment which has seen quite a lul ever since the Mi Band 4 was launched in India in September last year.

Xiaomi tried to give the market a bit traction with Mi Band 3i which was a toned-down version of Mi Band 3 but it didn't quite take off, possibly due to the Band 3 itself being available at a discounted price of Rs 1,599.

But Honor Band 5i seems to be packing a punch and competes directly with the Mi Band 4.

Priced at Rs 1,999, Honor Band 5i which is almost similar to its bigger sibling, is a great option. The most notable differences are built-in USB connector, a lower-resolution LCD display, and a slightly different band.

Display - Mi Band 4

While the built-in USB connector is a welcome change, the lower-resolution display makes one feel that it is a toned-down version of Honor Band 5. The LCD display is slightly inferior to AMOLED display when it comes to sunlight legibility.

Mi Band 4 with an AMOLED display wins over Honor Band 5i when it comes to outdoor visibility but the difference is negligible indoors.

Charging - Honor Band 5i

But the charger with Xiaomi's fitness band makes Honor Band 5i look better. Its first-in-the-segment USB connector is really convenient and eliminates the hassle of carrying a charger around.

Fitness tracking - Honor Band 5i

The SpO2 monitor in Honor Band 5i will also take things up a notch but that would be when it becomes available. For now, Honor's official website states that the availability varies depending on markets and regions and it will be available at a later stage via an OTA update.

The Honor Band 5i once again surpasses Mi Band 4 when it comes to fitness tracking features, but only by a slight margin. Both the bands do a great job in activity tracking but sleep tracking abilities of Honor's fitness band are simply amazing and its step counting is also slightly more accurate than Mi Band 4.

Learning from the earlier models, Honor has improved upon the new features like music control that were introduced with Honor Band 5 and Mi Band 4. For example, Honor Band 5i remains at the music control screen for almost 40-45 seconds while this is not the case with the likes of Mi Band 4.

Third-party apps - Mi Band 4

Mi Band 4 wins big-time on supporting third-party apps. From dozens of watch faces to a bunch of other tools, Xiaomi's fitness band can become really customizable with the help of third-party apps.

Which one to buy?

This one remains tough but if we try to put it straight, Honor Band 5i seems a little better in fitness tracking and has cosmetic upgrades over Mi Band 4 which makes it seem more futuristic. But Xiaomi's offering does better when it comes to personalization and display.