Xiaomi expanded its wearables portfolio in its home country on Tuesday by launching its first-ever smartwatch. Xiaomi Amazfit is also titled by the company as the world's first smartwatch with a 28nm GPS sensor. It was launched at ¥799 (around Rs. 8,000) in China.
Xiaomi Amazfit is co-developed by Huami, the company's wearable partner and goes on sale from Wednesday. Featuring premium specifications such as dust and water-resistant build, scratch-resistant ceramic bezel, heart rate sensor and a 22mm interchangeable band, Xiaomi Amazfit is a worthy competitor for its price.
The company did not reveal the details of the Amazfit's international availability, especially in India, where it has a strong presence in both smartphone and wearable category. But it is expected to eventually arrive in India.
Xiaomi Amazfit features a sporty circular dial measuring 1.34 inches and has a 300x300 pixel resolution. But it certainly doesn't match the classy look of smartwatches like Moto 360. Under the hood, it has a 1.2GHz processor, which is paired with 512MB RAM and 4GB storage. The heart rate sensor sits at the surface of the rear panel with continuous tracking of the wearer's heart beat. To keep the power running, the Amazfit features a 200mAh battery, which according to the company can last up to 5 days with GPS turned on.
Users looking to extend the battery life can use Amazfit to track steps, which will then deliver up to 11 days of runtime, according to PhoneRadar. Like any other smartwatch, Xiaomi Amazfit also works with any Android smartphone via MiFit app.
With the launch of its first smartwatch, Xiaomi has also partnered with Alibaba to support mobile payments through AliPay service. This feature is unlikely to be featured in India when released, but the company would need to tie up with Google for sharing its Android Pay.
