Set up time on Xiaomi fitness bracelet: from synchronization to manual adjustment

Xiaomi fitness bracelets are some of the most popular wearables on the market, but even they sometimes have trouble displaying time, whether the watch went off for a few minutes after resetting, or the bracelet stopped syncing with the smartphone at all. In this article, we will discuss all the ways of setting time, from automatic synchronization through Mi Fitness to manual adjustment on the device itself.

Many users mistakenly think that the Mi Band bracelet updates time on its own, like a smart watch. In fact, all models (except the Mi Band 8 Pro) depend on the data of the smartphone. If the phone is not set correctly time zone or Bluetooth is disabled, the bracelet will show the wrong time. Next you will learn how to fix it in 2 minutes, even if you have an old Mi Band 3 model or a new Xiaomi Smart Band 8.

If your bracelet shows a time difference of exactly 1 hour (for example, 13:00 instead of 14:00), the problem lies in the time zone settings on your smartphone - this is the most common bug in owners of Xiaomi and Redmi.

1. Automatic time synchronization via Mi Fitness

The main way to update the time on the bracelet is synchronization with the Mi Fitness app (formerly Mi Fit), which works for all models, including the Mi Band 5/6/7/8 and the Xiaomi Smart Band Pro. The algorithm is simple: the bracelet receives time and date data from the smartphone every time it connects via Bluetooth.

To start the synchronization:

• 📱 Open the Mi Fitness app on your smartphone.
• 🔄 Scroll down on the main screen to the block with the bracelet and tap it.
• 🔗 Wait for the words "Device connected" (usually takes up the 5-10 seconds).
• ⏱️ The time on the bracelet will be automatically updated.

If synchronization does not occur:

⚠️ Attention: On Android 12+ iOS 16+ Mi Fitness background activity may be blocked. Check the permissions in the phone settings: Settings → Annexes → Mi Fitness → Battery → No restrictions.

Bluetooth is on on the phone|Mi Fitness app has access to location|The time zone on the phone corresponds to the real one.|Bracelet charged at least 20 times%-->

2 Manual time update via bracelet menu

If automatic synchronization doesn't work, you can manually update the time directly on the wristband, which is suitable for the Mi Band 6/7/8 and Xiaomi Smart Band Pro models, which have a touch screen. On the Mi Band 5 and older, there is no such feature - you have to use the app.

Instructions for screen bracelets:

1. Scroll down the main screen of the bracelet to “More” (or “Settings” on the Mi Band 8).
2. Select “System» → «Date and time».
3. Slip on "Synchronize" (on some firmware - "Update").
4. Wait for the message “Successful” (usually takes 2-3 seconds).

Important: The Mi Band 7 Pro and Xiaomi Smart Band 8 Pro have the option of Auto Update Time – it must be enabled so that the bracelet syncs every 30 minutes without connecting to the phone.

3. Correcting time zone failure on a smartphone

In 60% of cases, the wrong time on the bracelet is due to the wrong settings on the smartphone itself, especially for users who:

• 🌍 Traveling between time zones;
• 📱 They use custom firmware (MIUI, LineageOS);
• 🔄 Often reboot the phone.

How to check and correct:

1. On Android: Go to Settings → System → Date and time.
2. Activate the options: Automatic Date and Time; Automatic Time Zone (or select it manually).

iPhone

Settings → Main → Date and time

Automobile

If the bracelet still shows the wrong time after these actions, try:

⚠️ Note: On some models Xiaomi/Redmi/Poco s MIUI 13/14 There is a bug when system time is lost after rebooting. Solution: disable Battery Savings for the Mi Fitness app.

Yes, always synced automatically |Sometimes gets lost by 1-2 hours |Shows time a few minutes apart |Not synced at all-->

4. Resetting the bracelet to factory settings

If none of these methods worked, the last option is to completely reset the bracelet, which will delete all the data (steps, training, alarm clocks), but often solves time synchronization problems.

How to reset:

1. On the bracelet: go to Settings → System → Reset (on Mi Band 5 and older, the path may be different).
2. Confirm the action by clicking the tick.
3. After restarting, connect the bracelet to Mi Fitness again.

💡

Once reset, the bracelet can show the time in 12 hours (AM/PM) instead of 24 hours. To fix, go to Mi Fitness → Profile → Settings → Time Format and select 24 hours.

5. Features of setting the time on different models

Not all Xiaomi bracelets work the same way, and the key differences are:

For the Mi Band 8 Pro and Xiaomi Smart Band 8 Pro, there is an additional feature called GPS synchronization, and if the bracelet is connected to satellites (for example, while running), it can update the time regardless of the phone.

1. Turn on GPS on the bracelet: Settings → Connections → GPS.
2. Start an outdoor exercise (such as running).
3. After the satellites are fixed, time will be updated.

6.Time problems after firmware update

Firmware updates often break time synchronization, for example, after upgrading the Mi Band 7 to version 1.20.8.1, many users complained about the time reset by January 1, 2000.

• 🔄 Reconnect the bracelet to the application (Mi Fitness) → The device → Shut down. → Reconnect).
• 📥 Firmware rollback (if available).
• ⏳ Waiting – sometimes bugs are fixed in the next update.

How to check the firmware version:

1. On the bracelet: Settings → About the device → Software version.
2. In the appendix: Profile → Device → Information.

💡

If the bracelet shows 00:00 or the date 2000 after the update, don't panic - this is a standard bug when the sync fails. Just reconnect the device to the phone, and time will recover.

7. Alternative synchronization methods (for advanced)

If standard methods do not work, you can try:

• 🤖 Use it. ADB-For example, forced synchronization via the terminal: adb shell am broadcast -a com.xiaomi.hm.health.ACTION_SYNC_TIME Developer rights and included debugging are required USB.
• 🔄 Install third-party software like Notify & Fitness for Mi Band (works with Mi Band) 5/6/7).
• 📡 Change region in Mi Fitness (sometimes helps with time zone bugs).

There are few alternatives for iPhones, with Apple restricting access to Bluetooth devices, and the only way to work is to reset the bracelet and reconnect.

FAQ: Frequent questions about setting up time on Xiaomi