Xiaomi Watch S1 Pro debuted in China in 2022, but it took six months for the company to launch its best watch in the global market. The wearable debuted at MWC 2023 in Barcelona, but we got our hands on it a little early, so now we’re ready to share our test results.
Xiaomi has set a relatively high price for the Watch S1 Pro at €299, up from €229 last year. But we see here not only inflation, the novelty is actually much more powerful and better.
The Watch S1 Pro comes in a single 46mm size and is quite light despite the stainless steel case. We got the Black version with a black fluoroelastomer strap, the whole device weighs 70 grams, of which 48 grams are on the case itself.
Our strap has an Apple style buckle, while the other brown leather option has a more standard solution. The black version is nice because there are no extra loops, and everything is neatly tucked under it, making the whole device look more streamlined.
Watch S1 Pro is equipped with a sapphire crystal that is practically scratch-resistant, and even with the protruding glass, we had no problems in several weeks of active use – no grooves, no scratches, no micro-rubbing, nothing.
Beneath the stainless steel body are a host of sensors to monitor heart rate, blood oxygen levels and skin temperature. The device can be charged wirelessly on all Qi-standard docking stations, as well as using the included magnetic puck.
Theoretically, the watch should also charge from any smartphone with reverse wireless charging, but Xiaomi has officially stated that only some phones from its own portfolio will be able to recharge the novelty. And this is confirmed in practice – we were not able to charge the Watch S1 Pro from the back of phones from other manufacturers.
There are two controls on the right side, the top one is a spinning wheel to scroll through the main menu, and the bottom one is a flat quick action button that we’ve set up to track your running workouts, although it can turn on any other feature on the watch. Although the button is metal, Watch S1 Pro does not support ECG, unlike Huawei Watch GT 3 Pro and Samsung Galaxy Watch5 series.
Let’s now look at the user interface – unfortunately, everything is not very good with it.
Xiaomi is a huge conglomerate that acquires all sorts of businesses and adopts their systems. It has one app for some Home devices and a separate app for other Home devices, and requires Mi Fitness to pair Android and iOS wearables.
The Watch S1 Pro is equipped with Bluetooth 5.2 with BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) to communicate with a smartphone, but it is rather poorly implemented. Watch S1 Pro does not show all notifications even though the app has the necessary permissions.
The alarm app is completely missing from Mi Fitness, and all other features have terrible visuals. It’s frustratingly bad to read your heart rate or SpO2 because for some reason Xiaomi wants the graph to start at 0 despite a healthy heart rate being between 60 and 100 during the day and can drop to 40 at night but never gets close to 0.
What we liked about the Xiaomi Watch S1 Pro is the battery life. This device is equipped with a 500 mAh battery and it takes about 95 minutes to charge it from 0 to 100%. According to official data, the battery lasts for 14 days of normal use or 10 days of intensive use. We can confirm the battery drains in a week and a half with everything on – notifications, Bluetooth calling, raise to wake, blood oxygen, stress monitoring, sleep tracking, alarm clocks, about 180 minutes of active exercise per week , and even control music during these activities.
There is also the Always-On Display feature, which actually cuts battery life in half, meaning that with it, autonomy is about 5-6 days. Unfortunately, the brightness of the AoD is not enough to make the dial legible outdoors on a sunny day.
Using all the sensors is one thing, but accuracy is a completely different topic. Although the Watch S1 Pro did an excellent job of tracking sleep, the heart rate showed a discrepancy of 10% compared to a certified medical device.
We know this is not a medical device, but it can be confusing for athletes who rely on heart rate to determine whether they should push harder or slow down.
Xiaomi has done a great job with the hardware of the Watch S1 Pro, setting the bar even higher for itself and its future smart wearables. It failed to deliver on its promise of software improvements, but battery life, looks, and durability largely make up for the lack of app experience. In the end, the data is poorly displayed only in Mi Fitness – on the watch itself, it is displayed normally.
But is the Xiaomi Watch S1 Pro worth the asking 300 euros? We’d say it’s a bargain if you value looks above all else and don’t plan on using them to train for your next marathon. Long battery life and great design make the watch a great low-maintenance accessory. However, if you’re looking for a serious health tracking tool, there are better options out there.
It is a translation review GSMArena.