How to change the time on Xiaomi smart watches: the complete guide

Smartwatches are more likely to show the wrong time than you might expect. It's not just an aesthetic problem, because it's the right setting for alarm clocks, physical activity reminders, and sleep statistics. Xiaomi devices and their sub-brands (such as Amazfit or Haylou) are designed in such a way that they don't have their own interface for manually entering numbers on the screen of the gadget.

Many users mistakenly try to find the appropriate settings directly in the menu of the watch, scrolling through the items indefinitely. The key point is that the gadgets of this ecosystem operate in the mode of the slave device. They get the current data about the time and date automatically when they connect to the phone. If the synchronization is broken, the numbers on the display can lag or run forward, which creates confusion. In this article, we will analyze the algorithms of actions to correct the error.

⚠️ Note: Most Xiaomi watches don’t have manual time-setting feature through the device’s screen.

The first step should always be to check the basic connection. Make sure that the Bluetooth on your smartphone is active and the companion app (be it Mi Fitness, Zepp or WearOS) is running. Often, it is enough to just open the application and wait for the status of "Connected" to instantly update the time on the clock. If this does not happen, the problem lies deeper - in the settings of the phone's operating system or in the software failure of the tracker itself.

Time synchronization in the Xiaomi ecosystem

Understanding the architecture of the device helps you find a solution faster. Smart wristbands and watches don't have a built-in GSM module or a permanent Internet connection (with the rare exception of eSIM models). They rely on Bluetooth Low Energy for data transfer. When you set up the watch for the first time, the app reads the time stamp from your phone's system and transmits it to the gadget. Then, every time you connect, you check: if the time on the clock differs from the phone by more than a few seconds, you automatically correct it.

But there's a time zone nuance: If you're traveling or moving to another region, the phone can automatically switch the time, but the watch app can't. In this case, the display will remain the old value. It's also important to consider that some models require constant background work of the application. If Android or iOS system "sleeps" and shuts down the process Mi Fitness or Zepp to save energy, the background synchronization stops and the clock begins to lag.

To work smoothly, you need to allow the app to access geolocation, which is a security requirement of the Android operating system that is necessary for Bluetooth scanning to work. Without this permission, the app will not be able to “see” the watch and, accordingly, transfer relevant data to it. Check that the privacy settings for your fitness application have location permissions (“Always” or “When used”). This is a critical parameter that is often forgotten.

Setup via Mi Fitness and Zepp

The process of time adjustment depends on what software you use. For modern models such as the Mi Band 6, Mi Band 7, Mi Band 8 and the new Xiaomi Watch S1/S2/S3, the main application is Mi Fitness (formerly known as Xiaomi Wear). For older models and devices of the Amazfit brand, the Zepp app (formerly Mi Fit) is used. The interfaces may differ, but the logic remains similar.

In the Mi Fitness app, you need to go to the device profile. This is usually done by clicking on the clock icon at the bottom of the screen or in the top corner. This shows the connection status. If you see the synchronization indicator, run it manually. The device settings section often doesn't have a separate Time menu, as it's taken from the system. However, some firmware versions may require you to manually select a time zone if the automatic determination is not working.

If you are using the Zepp ecosystem, the algorithm is as follows:

• 📱 Open the application and go to the tab "Profile».
• ⌚ Select your device from the list of “My devices».
• 🔄 Pull the screen down for forced data updates.
• ⚙️ Go to Device Settings and check the Time Settings section (if available).

Importantly, in the Zepp app, time settings are often hidden in the System Settings submenu, or Device Settings. There may be a Time Zone. Make sure that it selects Auto or your current city. If you select a particular city that doesn't match your location, the time on the clock will be different from the real one, even if the phone is showing correctly.

Solving time zone and date problems

The most common reason for discrepancies is time zone conflict, which often happens when you switch to winter/summer time (in countries where it is relevant) or when you travel, a smartphone can switch to new times, and the watch app can stay in the old profile, and you get desynchronization for exactly an hour or a few hours, and to fix this, you have to force the correct region in the application settings.

In some cases, hard-time resetting helps, and you can try temporarily changing the time zone on your phone to another (e.g., 2-3 hours ahead), waiting for sync, and then returning it back, and it will force the app to resend the time-tamped data packet to the watch. It's also worth checking the time format: 12-hour or 24-hour. While this does not affect accuracy, format confusion (AM/PM) can create the illusion of error.

If you are traveling, do not forget that GPS-Tracking activity also depends on the right time. If the time is knocked down, the track of your jog in the application may be displayed at the wrong time of day, which will spoil the statistics.

Instructions for watches on Wear OS

Flagship models like the Xiaomi Watch S1 Pro or Xiaomi Watch 2 Pro run on Google’s Wear OS operating system, and the logic is very different from simple wristbands, which have a more powerful OS and sync through the Google Watch app (formerly Wear OS) and Mi Fitness, and the time is pulled directly from Google’s account and Android settings.

To change the time on such clocks:

• 📲 Open the Google Watch app on your smartphone.
• ⚙️ Go to the settings of the connected clock.
• 🌍 Find the "System" item» → «Date and time».
• ✅ Make sure you tick the “Use network time” box».

If the automatic setting is on but the timing is incorrect, try turning this option off, setting the time manually, and then turning on Auto again. This will restart the time service on Wear OS. It's also worth checking the settings in the Mi Fitness app itself, as it duplicates some system features. In rare cases, cleaning the cache of the Google Play Services app on the phone helps.

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Before changing the system time settings, make sure the clock is over 20% charge to avoid interrupting the synchronization process.

Wear OS watch owners should also be aware that resetting to the factory settings may require re-assigning a Google account, and the time synchronization process can take up to 5-10 minutes until the device loads all the background services, during which time can “jump” – this is normal system behavior.

What to do if time is constantly being lost

If you set it up correctly, but after a few hours or after the phone restarts, the time is wrong again, the problem can be in aggressive energy savings. Modern smartphone operating systems (especially MIUI, HyperOS, EMUI) often kill the background processes of fitness apps, considering them unimportant, as a result, the application can not maintain a permanent connection to the clock to transfer current time.

To correct this, you need to add an appendix to the exceptions:

1. Go to the phone settings. → «Annexes».
2. Find Mi Fitness or Zepp.
3. Select “Activity Control” or “Battery”.
4. Set the “No Limits” or “Allow Auto Start” mode.

⚠️ Warning: Without power saving exceptions, the phone can break off the Bluetooth connection in sleep mode, which will stop the watch from receiving time updates.

It's also worth checking if the phone is on "In Air" mode or other network restrictions that can block time reconciliation over the Internet. If none of these methods work, there may have been a failure in the firmware of the watch, in which case the effective method is to completely reset the device to factory settings, which will delete all data from the clock, but return it to its original state, where synchronization should work correctly with the new binding.

Resetting settings and reconnecting the device

When software methods fail, you have to use heavy artillery, which is a radical but often the only surefire way to fix deep synchronization errors. Before you start, make sure you remember your account password (Mi Account or Zepp) because you will need to reauthorize after the reset.

The discharge process is as follows:

Settings of the clock → System → Reset (Factory Reset)

Or through the application: Profile → Device settings → Untie/Reset.

Once the clock is reset, it will go into pairing mode. Don't rush to plug it in right away. First, remove the old device from the Bluetooth list in the phone settings ("Forget the device"). Then re-start the search in the application and pair it. The first time you sync the clock will be sure to request an update to the time and date, and this process will be successful, as the configuration files will be created again.

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A complete device reset often resolves issues that cannot be fixed through normal settings by clearing configuration errors.

Once reconnected, it is recommended to check for firmware updates immediately. Xiaomi engineers regularly release patches that fix Bluetooth and synchronization bugs. The current version of the software is the key to stable operation of all functions, including time display.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)