How to connect the fitness watch Xiaomi Mi Band to the phone: instructions with photos and tips

The Xiaomi Mi Band fitness bracelets remain among the most popular wearables due to the combination of affordable price, long-term autonomy and wide functionality. However, beginners often have difficulties with the first connection - the gadget is not determined by the phone, the application does not see the bracelet, or synchronization is interrupted. This article will help avoid typical errors and properly configure pairing the first time.

We'll look at the current versions of the bracelets (Mi Band 8, Mi Band 7, Mi Band 6), the features of connecting to Android and iOS, as well as solving common problems. The instructions are suitable for both new devices and those reset to factory settings. If you have already tried to sync the gadget and encountered an error, skip the basic steps and go straight to the "Troubleshooting" section.

1. Preparation for connection: what will be needed

Before you start setting up, make sure you have everything you need:

• 📱 Smartphone on Android 6.0+ or iOS 12.0+ Bluetooth 4.2 or later
• 🔋 Xiaomi Mi Band bracelet (minimum 20% charge)
• 🌐 Stable Internet connection (for downloading applications and updates)
• 📲 Mi Account or Zepp Life (can be created during setup)

Important: Mi Band 7/8 bracelets require Mi Fitness (formerly Zepp Life) app, whereas the old Mi Fit app will do for Mi Band 5/6. We recommend using Mi Fitness for all models, which supports more features and is updated regularly.

If you use Huawei or another phone without Google services, download it. APK-file only from verified sources. Before installation, allow the installation of applications from unknown sources in the phone settings (Settings) → Security → Unknown sources).

2. Step-by-step instructions: how to connect Mi Band to the phone

The synchronization process takes no more than 5 minutes, if you follow the algorithm:

1. Turn on Bluetooth on your phone and make sure the bracelet is charged.The Mi Band screen should display a greeting or percentage of charge.
2. Install the Mi Fitness app (links above) and open it. When you first start, accept the terms of use and log in to your Mi/Xiaomi account (or register a new one).
3. Click Add Device** (+ in the upper right corner). Select your bracelet model from the list.
4. Follow the on-screen hints: the app will prompt you to confirm pairing on the bracelet (touch its screen or press a button).
5. Wait until the sync is complete. The bracelet can reset, that's okay.

Critical: If the bracelet vibrates during the connection stage, but the phone has a "Disconnected" error, try turning off Bluetooth, restarting the application and trying again, and 80% of the time this solves the problem.

After successful connection, the application will offer:

• 🔄 Update the firmware of the bracelet (we recommend you agree - this will fix bugs and add new functions).
• ⚙️ Set up basic parameters: units of measurement (km/mile), target number of steps, notifications.
• 🔔 Allow access to contacts and notifications (optional but useful for displaying incoming calls).

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If you have Mi Band 8 with NFC, activate contactless payment in the Wallet → Add a card. Mastercard and Visa cards of most Russian banks are supported.

3. Setup of the bracelet after connection

Basic synchronization is just the first step, and to make the bracelet work as efficiently as possible, configure is as follows:

3.1. Basic settings in Mi Fitness

• 📊 Activity goals: Set a daily step rate (recommended 8,000-10,000 for beginners).
• 💤 Sleep tracking: Enable automatic mode in Profile → Sleep settings.
• 🔔 Notifications: Select applications that will duplicate alerts on the bracelet (for example, WhatsApp, Telegram).
• 🔋 Energy Saving: For the Mi Band 7/8 Activate Always-On Display (Constantly Active Screen) in the Display → Always-On.

Screen personalization

The Mi Band bracelets support interchangeable dials to set a new one:

1. Open Mi Fitness → Profile → Dials.
2. Choose a category (sports, minimalist, animated).
3. Click "Install" - the dial synchronizes with the bracelet in 10-20 seconds.

The Mi Band 8 features interactive dials with weather, pulse and calendar widgets, which can be downloaded from the official store in the app or downloaded through third-party services (such as Amazfit Watch Faces).

4. Frequent errors and their solutions

Even if you follow the instructions correctly, you can have a problem, and let's look at the typical problems and how to fix them:

⚠️ Warning: If after several attempts the bracelet has not connected, reset to factory settings. To do this, press and hold the touch button on the bracelet for 10-15 seconds until vibration appears.

For Mi Band 6/7/8 models with synchronization problems, forced reboot helps:

1. Connect the bracelet to the charger.
2. Press and hold the button for 20 seconds.
3. Turn off the charger and try to connect again.

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If the bracelet was previously connected to another phone, be sure to delete it from your Mi Fitness account on your old device.

5. Features of connection to iPhone (iOS)

iPhone owners often face additional nuances when syncing Mi Band.

• 🔒 Apple restrictions: Always-On Display and Music Control features may not work as well due to iOS policies.
• 📱 Background Synchronization: For proper notifications, turn on Settings in iPhone Settings → Mi Fitness → Background update.
• 🔄 Firmware updates: On iOS, bracelet updates take longer to load – ensure a stable Wi-Fi connection.

If the bracelet does not display incoming calls after connecting, do:

1. Open your iPhone settings → Notifications → Mi Fitness.
2. Turn on the option to Show on the lock screen.
3. In the Mi Fitness app itself, go to Profile → Notifications → Incoming calls and activate the switch.

⚠️ Note: On iPhone with iOS version below 14.0 Mi Band bracelets 7/8 You may not be able to display emojis in notifications. Update the system if it's critical.

6 How to connect Mi Band to multiple phones

Officially, the Xiaomi Mi Band bracelet can only be synced to one device at a time, but there are workarounds:

Partial synchronization with two phones

If you need to duplicate notifications on a second phone (for example, work and personal), do:

1. Connect the bracelet to the main phone via Mi Fitness.
2. On the second phone, install the Notify & Fitness for Mi Band app (available on Google Play).
3. In the application settings, select the bracelet model and allow access to notifications.

This method allows alerts to be received on both phones, but step, sleep and pulse data will only be synchronized with the main device.

6.2 Complete transfer to another phone

To reconnect the bracelet to the new smartphone:

1. On an old phone, open Mi Fitness → Profile → My devices → Select a bracelet → Delete the device.
2. On the new phone, log in to the same Mi/Xiaomi account and repeat the connection procedure.

Important: If you are using Mi Band 8 with Mi Pay, you will have to re-connect your bank cards after reconnecting.

7. Compatibility with other devices

Xiaomi Mi Band bracelets can be connected not only to smartphones, but also to other gadgets.

Synchronization with the tablet

The bracelet is technically compatible with Android tablets, but there are limitations:

• 📛 The tablet should support Bluetooth 4.2+.
• 🔋 The autonomy of the bracelet will decrease due to constant synchronization with the large screen.
• 📱 Some features (such as call notifications) will not work.

To connect, follow the standard instructions, but note that Mi Fitness may not display correctly on large screens (solved by enabling the “Phone interface” mode in the tablet settings).

7.2. Connection to a laptop or PC

Direct synchronization of the bracelet with the computer is impossible, but there are workarounds:

• 💻 Use an Android emulator (e.g. BlueStacks) to install Mi Fitness.
• 📊 Exporting Health Data through your Account Mi/Xiaomi in.csv format for analysis in Excel or Google Sheets.

⚠️ Note: Emulators can cause suspicious activity to block your account. Xiaomi may view PC login as an attempt to hack. We recommend using this method only for data export, not for constant synchronization.

FAQ: Answers to Frequent Questions