Connecting Honor smart watches to the Xiaomi Redmi smartphone: all ways and life hacks

Honor smartwatches and Xiaomi Redmi smartphones are a popular combination among users, but their synchronization often raises questions. Despite the fact that both brands belong to different ecosystems (Huawei and Xiaomi respectively), connecting gadgets to each other is quite real.

In this article, we will explore all the current ways to connect the Honor MagicWatch 2, Honor Watch GS 3, Honor Watch ES and other models to Redmi Note 12, Redmi 10, Redmi 9 and others. We will focus on solving typical problems: Bluetooth errors, lack of notifications, failures in the transmission of health data, and also tell you how to circumvent regional restrictions and use all the functions of the watch even on informal firmware.

Why Honor Watch doesn’t want to connect to Xiaomi Redmi

The main reason for the difficulties is the competition of ecosystems: Huawei (owner of the Honor brand) and Xiaomi actively block cross-platform compatibility of their gadgets so that users buy devices within the same line. For example, the official Huawei Health app may refuse to work on Redmi smartphones with global firmware, and Mi Fit does not support Honor watches at the software level.

Key pitfalls:

• 🔒 Region-Blocked: Some Honor Watch models (e.g, GS Pro) require a Chinese version of Huawei Health that is not installed on Redmi with European firmware.
• 📱 Limitations MIUI: Xiaomi’s proprietary shell aggressively optimizes the background work of applications, which is why the Bluetooth connection is broken.
• 🔄 Version conflict: If the latest firmware is installed on the watch and the old version of the app is installed on the phone (or vice versa), synchronization may not work.

But there are workarounds. APK-Third-party versioning or customization through Notify & Fitness for Huawei is a universal solution for wearable devices.

Method 1: Connect via the official Huawei Health app

This is the most reliable method, but it doesn't work on all Redmi smartphones.

1. Download Huawei Health from AppGallery or from Huawei’s official website (if you have a global version of Redmi, the app may not appear on Google Play).
2. Register for a Huawei ID account (required! without it, the watch won’t connect).
3. Turn on Bluetooth and GeoData on your phone.
4. Start Huawei Health, click Devices → Add Device → Watch and select your model.
5. Follow the instructions on the screen when the clock appears. QR-code, scan it through the app.

If the app does not find the watch:

• 🔄 Reboot both devices.
• 📱 In Redmi settings, go to the Apps → Huawei Health → Permissions and enable all permissions including AutoRun and Background.
• 🛠️ Install Huawei Mobile Services (HMS Core) from APKMirror – without this component, the application may not work.

Enable Bluetooth and geolocation |Install Huawei Health and HMS Core|Give all permissions to the app |Disable battery optimization for Huawei Health|Reboot phone-->

Important! On some Redmi models (e.g. Redmi Note 11 with MIUI 14), Huawei Health may give an error, "Device not supported."

⚠️ Note: If your Redmi runs on custom firmware (e.g. Pixel Experience), the official Huawei Health app will not work.

Method 2: Alternative Connection with Notify & Fitness

If Huawei Health refuses to work, the universal Notify & Fitness for Huawei app will be a salvation.It supports most Honor Watch models and is compatible with MIUI.

• ✅ It works without Huawei. ID.
• ✅ Supports notifications from messengers and calls.
• ✅ Allows you to adjust dials and track activity.

Instructions:

1. Download Notify & Fitness from Google Play or from 4PDA (if the app is not available in your area).
2. Turn on the Pair Device mode on the watch (usually activated via Settings → Bluetooth on the watch itself).
3. In the app, click Connect Device → Honor Watch and select your model.
4. Confirm the pairing on both devices.

After connection:

• 🔧 Configure the notifications in the Notifications section.
• 📊 Synchronize steps, sleep and pulse data in Health Data.
• 🎨 Install custom dials through Watchfaces.

Notify & Fitness does not support Honor’s proprietary features, such as measuring blood oxygen levels (SpO₂) And some models, and it's going to require Huawei Health.

💡

If notifications do not arrive on the clock, go to the Apps in the Redmi settings → Notify & Fitness → Notifications and enable the option "Show notifications".

Method 3: Manual Bluetooth connection (without applications)

This method is suitable for basic synchronization (calls, alarm clocks), but will not allow the use of health functions.

1. On the Honor watch, go to Settings → Bluetooth and activate visibility.
2. On Redmi, open Settings → Connected Devices → New Device.
3. Select your watch from the list and confirm pairing.

Limitations of the method:

This is a good way to do it if you only need basic features, like sports or call alerts, but you should set up one of the specialized apps to make full use of the watch.

Problem Solving: The clock is connected but the functions are not working

Even after successful pairing, users often face typical problems, and let's look at the most common ones and their solutions:

1.No notices are coming.

Reasons and methods of correction:

• 📵 Battery optimization: B MIUI Go to Settings. → Annexes → [Your watch app] → Battery and turn off optimization.
• 🔔 Notification settings: In the app itself (like Notify & Fitness), check if notifications are enabled for the apps you want (WhatsApp, Telegram, etc.).
• 🔄 Conflict with other gadgets: If other smartwatches or fitness bracelets are connected to the phone, turn them off.

2.The clock is constantly off

This is a problem for Redmi because of the aggressive optimization of MIUI.

• 🔋 In the phone settings go to the Apps → Huawei Health/Notify & Fitness → Permissions and enable AutoRun and Background Activity.
• 📱 Install the Don’t Kill My App from Google Play to help you set exceptions for background processes.
• 🔄 Restart the clock (press the power button for 10 seconds).

3 Health data are not synchronized

If steps, pulse or sleep are not displayed in the app:

• 📊 Check if synchronization is enabled in the clock settings (Settings) → Health data → Synchronization).
• 🔄 Update the watch firmware through the official Huawei Health app.
• 🛠️ Remove and re-add the watch in the app.

Model Compatibility: Which Honor Watches Work with Redmi?

Not all Honor Watch models connect equally well to Xiaomi Redmi, and the table below shows the latest compatibility data (based on user tests in 2026):

If your model isn’t in the table, check compatibility on the 4PDA or Xiaomi.eu forums. Also look for the regional watch firmware: Chinese versions (CN) may not work with European smartphones.

💡

For maximum compatibility, update the watch firmware and apps to the latest versions. For example, Huawei Health 13.0+ works better with MIUI 14 than older versions.

Additional life hacks for Redmi users

A few useful tips that will make it easier to use the Honor Watch with Xiaomi Redmi:

1. Turn off Smart Optimization in MIUI: Go to Settings → Special Features → Battery Optimization and add the Watch app to the exceptions.
2. Use two-way synchronization: Set up data export from Huawei Health to Google Fit via Settings → Accounts → Google.
3. Increase Bluetooth connection time: In Settings → Connected Devices → Bluetooth settings turn off the Auto Shutdown option.
4. Customize gestures: In some Honor Watch models, you can enable music control on Redmi by shaking your hand (relevant to MagicWatch 2).

If you are actively involved in sports, we recommend installing the Strava or Adidas Running app and syncing it with Huawei Health, which will allow you to analyze your workouts in more detail than in the standard application.

💡

To save battery power, turn off automatic pulse measurement in the background. To do this, go to Settings → Heart Monitor → Measurement interval and select Manual.

FAQ: Frequent questions about connecting Honor Watch to Redmi