True to their words, Huami officially launched their Amazfit smartwatch today. The watch which has a built-in GPS, a pedometer, a real time heart rate monitor, also displays weather information and is priced at 799 Yuan ($120).

The Amazfit watch has a 1.34” diameter, a 22 mm quick-release replaceable sweat-proof strap, a scratch-resistant ceramic bezel, IP67 certification, 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 512MB RAM, 4GB RAM, Bluetooth 4.0 Low Energy, and WiFi. The display which has a 320 x 300 resolution uses a reflective screen to increase legibility outdoors. There is also an app where users can monitor the readings of the watch.

Huami has designed the watch to be able to store up to 500 songs which you can listen to via a pair of Bluetooth earphones, so you don’t have to take your phone along for a run. They also have a partnership with Watercress FM to provide music streaming.

The watch will also be able to carry out basic smartwatch functions such as call and SMS notifications and have support for Alipay.

Huami says the 280mAh battery will last for 11.6 days if you use it just as a plain watch but normal usage (30 minutes run + 200 push messages) will get you 5 days of life. However turning GPS and heart rate monitoring on will get you 35 hours of battery life.

Full Specifications of Huami Amazfit Sports Smartwatch

• 1.34” 320 x 300 reflective screen
• 22mm replaceable straps
• 4GB ROM
• 512MB RAM
• 1.2GHz dual-core processor
• BLE 4.0 + WiFi
• GPS + GLONASS
• PPG heart rate monitor
• IP67
• 53.7 grams
• 280mAh battery

Availability

There is no news on the watch having other colours but users can change the watch face to suit their preference. The Huami Smartwatch will officially go on sale tomorrow.

The post Huami Launches GPS Equipped Amazfit Sports Smartwatch for 799 Yuan ($120) appeared first on Gizmochina.

A vast number of Smart Watches are currently available on the market. From the Moto 360 to Samsung Galaxy Gear, manufacturers have been trying to achieve the perfect smart wrist companion for a couple of years. However, following the announcement of the Apple Watch, more companies are getting on the smart watch band wagon as the wearable market promises to grow in the upcoming months.

Huawei has already released a smart watch, called TalkBand B1 and Meizu also plans to release a smart wrist band. However, the biggest Apple Watch competitor to seems to be Xiaomi.

Partnering with Huami, the company is aimed at conquering the wearable ID market. Following the success of the Mi Band, Xiaomi has recently announced a second iteration of the smart band as well as the Xiaomi Smart Watch, which seems to be a direct response to Apple’s wrist wearable device.

The Xiaomi Band 2 won’t be that different from its predecessor. With a sporty look and a light design, the band will feature a new NFC sensor in addition to the existing Bluetooth module and accelerator.

“My mission is to make the Xiaomi band (Mi Band) look better,” Huang Wang, CEO of Huami stated in a recent interview with 36 Krypton. “In addition to variety of designs, at the core of the Xiaomi band will be its customization.”

Even more interesting is the direct Apple Watch competitor – the Xiaomi Smart Watch. Improving on the wrist band, the watch will feature a large dial, making pulse wave velocity identification possible. Currently, the technology has two major problems – light pollution and high energy consumption.

“Apple did made a lot of progress in health tracking with the Apple Watch, but they also had to give up a lot of health-related functions,” researchers told 36 Krypton. Doing accurate measurements and identifying biological signs with such a small device seems to be a problem and researchers state that “in order to improve the accuracy of pulse reading and other health-related measurements, the wrist wear should be solid and well-positioned, which is hardly achieved with a smart watch.”

However, Huang Wang is certain that the engineers of Huami have managed to deal with those difficulties, while achieving an amazing design. Whether or not the new Xiaomi Smart Watch will be able to deliver on said promises is still to be seen. However, Huang said that the their previous experience in the development of consumer electronics, will help them achieve a great product at an affordable price.

What’s more, the Xiaomi Smart Watch will feature a special design and be made with brushed metal material, similar to the one used in smartphones, such as the HTC One (M8). Although, Huang did not reveal any information regarding the overall shape of the device, he noted that “the watch industry has been around for many years and the classic dial shape is the most popular, as everyone can see.” He also added that “For everyday purposes, smart watches are relatively thick, thus they can sue some trimming of the design, so it looks more pleasing.”

Huami have also made sure to get the best software engineers on their Smart Watch team, as well. Lin Bin and Hugo Barra, Huami and Google employees, stated that “the [Xiaomi Smart Watch] user experience will be the best.”

All in all, Huami seem to be pretty confident in their ability to deliver a worthy competitor to the Apple Watch. Furthermore, according to Huang, the Xiaomi Band 2 and the Xiaomi Smart Watch will come at a lower price, compared to other devices on the market.

Will the company be able to deliver on their promises? Only time will tell!

The post Xiaomi Smart Watch Details Revealed in Response to the Apple Watch appeared first on Gizmochina.