Connecting Xiaomi Smart Watches to Samsung Phone: A Complete Guide from A to Z

Synchronizing Xiaomi’s smartwatches with a Samsung phone is a task that seems simple at first glance, but often raises questions among users, because the ecosystems of these brands are built on different principles: Xiaomi’s MIUI is optimized for working with its own devices, and Samsung’s One UI is focused on Galaxy gadgets. However, this does not mean that connection is impossible, you just need to consider a few key nuances.

In this article, we will not only discuss the standard Bluetooth pairing procedure, but also how to get around common errors, from the lack of notifications to problems with displaying health data. Particular attention will be paid to the Mi Band 7/8 Pro, Xiaomi Watch 2 Pro and Redmi Watch 3 Active models, as they are most popular among owners of Samsung smartphones. If you have already tried to connect a watch but encountered the message “Device is not supported”, do not despair: in 90% of cases, the problem is solved by setting up access rights or updating the firmware.

1. Compatibility of Xiaomi smart watches and Samsung phones: what you need to know

Before you start connecting, it’s important to understand which Xiaomi models officially support Android devices and which may require additional manipulation. Most Xiaomi smartwatches and fitness bracelets use the Mi Fitness app (formerly Mi Fit), which is available on Google Play and is compatible with any Android 6.0+ smartphones.

• ✅ Full compatibility: Mi Band 3/4/5/6/7/8, Xiaomi Watch S1/S2, Redmi Watch 2/3, Amazfit GTR/GTS (These models work with Samsung without restrictions.
• ⚠️ Partial compatibility: Xiaomi Watch 2 Pro and Mi Band 8 Pro – may require manual notification settings due to protocol features BLE 5.2.
• ❌ Limited support: Xiaomi Mi Watch (first generation) and some Kit versions may not sync sleep or pulse data.

Important: Samsung phones based on One UI 4.0+ (Android 12 and later) automatically limit the background activity of applications to save battery. This can lead to intermittent synchronization of data between the watch and the phone, especially if you use power optimization mode.

⚠️ Note: If your Samsung phone is running Android 13+, Before connecting, turn off the “Automatic Bluetooth Shutdown for Power Saving” function in the settings. Otherwise, the connection will break every 10-15 minutes.

2.Preparing Samsung phone for connection

To avoid pairing errors, you need to set your smartphone up correctly. Start by checking the following parameters:

1. Turn on Bluetooth and make sure that the “Visibility for All” mode is active (in the Settings menu → Connections → Bluetooth).
2. Update your phone’s firmware: Go to Settings → Software Update and install the latest security patches.
3. Remove old versions of Mi Fit or Zepp Life apps if they were installed earlier – they may conflict with Mi Fitness.
4. Activate geolocation (even if you don’t plan to use GPS on your watch) – this is required for the device search function to work properly.

Pay special attention to the resolution settings for the Mi Fitness application:

Install the app from Google Play| Allow access to contacts (for notifications)| Allow access to location | Turn off battery optimization | Enable auto-start-->

If you use a Samsung Knox or corporate profile, temporarily disable it – it can block data exchange with wearable devices, and check if the phone has cache clearing applications (such as CCleaner or SD Maid) that could delete system files necessary for Bluetooth LE to work.

Mi Band 7/8|Xiaomi Watch 2 Pro|Redmi Watch 3|Amazfit (under the Xiaomi brand)|Another model.-->

3. Step-by-step connection instruction

Now, to the synchronization process itself, follow the instructions strictly in steps to avoid the typical errors:

1. Install the Mi Fitness app from Google Play (don’t use the APK from third-party sources!). Once installed, open it and sign up through your Xiaomi or Google account.
2. Add a new device: click on the + icon in the upper right corner and select your watch model from the list. If there is no model, select "Other device".
3. Activate the pairing mode on the watch: For Mi Band: touch the touch button 3 times in a row. For Xiaomi Watch: hold the side button for 5 seconds until it appears QR-code.

Confirm the connection.

Update the watch firmware

Mi Band 8 Pro

Xiaomi Watch 2 Pro

BLE

Samsung

If the error "Can not find the device" appears at the connection stage, follow the following steps:

1. Reboot your phone and watch.
2. In the Bluetooth settings of the phone, remove all previously saved Xiaomi devices.
3. Turn off Wi-Fi on your phone – sometimes it interferes with a stable Bluetooth connection.
4. Try connecting elsewhere – some 5GHz routers are jamming BLE.

4. Notification setting and data synchronization

Once successfully connected, you need to configure notifications and health data synchronization, and Mi Fitness blocks most notifications from third-party apps (like WhatsApp or Telegram) by default to fix this:

1. Open Mi Fitness → Select your watch → Notifications.
2. Activate the "Show notifications" switch.
3. In the Apps section, manually add the programs you want to see on your watch (e.g. Samsung Messages, Gmail, Viber).
4. In Samsung phone settings, go to the Applications → Mi Fitness → Notifications and allow notifications to be accessed.

For proper synchronization of steps, sleep and pulse data:

• ⏱️ Turn on "Continuous monitoring of heart rate" in the clock settings (battery discharge will increase by a factor of two). ~15%).
• 📊 Allow Mi Fitness to access "Physical Activity" in your phone settings (Settings) → Annexes → Mi Fitness → Permits).
• 🔄 Manually update the data by pulling the screen down in the Mi Fitness app's main menu.

⚠️ Note: If notifications are late (or not coming at all) after setting up, check if Samsung Knox blocks them.

5. Solving common mistakes

Even with the right setup, users often face typical problems, and let's look at the most common ones and how to fix them.

Error: "The device is not supported"

This error usually occurs when trying to connect Xiaomi Watch 2 Pro or Mi Band 8 Pro to Samsung phones with Android 13+. The reason for the conflict of versions of the Bluetooth protocol LE. Decisions:

• Update the watch to the latest version via Mi Fitness.
• Install an alternative Amazfit app (if your watch is supported by it).
• Reverse the Mi Fitness version to 5.6.0 (available on APKMirror) – newer versions have removed support for some models.

Problem: Watches quickly discharge when connected to Samsung

If the battery goes down in 1-2 days instead of the 7-14, the background synchronization processes are to blame.

• Turn off Continuous Heart Rate Monitoring and leave only Intelligent.
• Reduce the frequency of data synchronization in the Mi Fitness settings (Section "Autosynchronization").
• Disable notifications from unnecessary apps (such as games or social networks).

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If Xiaomi watches do not detect pulse when connected to Samsung, try calibrating the sensor: in the watch menu, select Settings → Sensors → Calibration of pulse and follow the instructions on the screen.

Error: Sleep data is not stored

This problem is typical for Samsung phones with One UI 5.0+, where background application activity is severely limited.

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Mi Fitness → Battery.
2. Select "Do Not Limit" in the "Battery Optimization" section.
3. Turn on "Sunset" and "Background Operations".
4. Reboot your phone and watch.

6. Alternative ways of connecting

If the standard Mi Fitness method doesn't work, you can use workarounds, which are suitable for experienced users who are willing to sacrifice some functionality for stability.

Method 1: Notify & Fitness for Mi Band

This third-party app supports most Xiaomi models and offers flexible notification settings.

• It works even on Android 14 phones.
• Allows you to adjust the vibration for different types of notifications.
• Supports data export to Google Fit.

Disadvantages: There is no official support for sleep and stress monitoring.

Method 2: Connect via Amazfit (for compatible models)

Some Xiaomi watches (such as the Amazfit GTR 3 Pro or GTS 4) are sold under the Xiaomi brand in selected regions, and you can use the official Zepp app (formerly Amazfit), which is better optimized for Android:

1. Remove Mi Fitness.
2. Install Zepp from Google Play.
3. Reset the clock to factory settings (hold the 10 seconds button).
4. Connect the watch through Zepp.

⚠️ Note: When using Zepp, you will lose access to Xiaomi’s branded features, such as “Xiaomi Pay” or “XiaoAI Voice Assistant.

Method 3: Manual connection via ADB (for advanced)

If the watch is defined by the phone but is not connected due to software limitations, you can manually give the Mi Fitness app extended rights via ADB:

adb shell pm grant com.xiaomi.hm.health permission.android.permission.ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION


adb shell pm grant com.xiaomi.hm.health permission.android.permission.ACCESS_BACKGROUND_LOCATION




adb shell pm grant com.xiaomi.hm.health permission.android.permission.BLUETOOTH_SCAN




adb shell pm grant com.xiaomi.hm.health permission.android.permission.BLUETOOTH_CONNECT

These commands will allow the application to use Bluetooth and geolocation in the background. To execute the commands will require debugging over USB and installed ADB Tools.

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If none of the methods worked, check to see if the antivirus connection (such as McAfee or Norton) preinstalled on Samsung phones is blocked.

7. Optimizing the work of Xiaomi watches with Samsung phone

After a successful connection, it is recommended to perform a few additional adjustments to improve connection stability and extend battery life.

Setting up energy saving

Samsung phones aggressively optimize background processes, which can cause the connection to the watch to break.

1. Go to Settings → Device Care → Battery → Background restrictions.
2. Find Mi Fitness in the list and select "Do Not Limit".
3. Enable “AutoStart” for the application in the Settings menu → Applications → Mi Fitness → AutoStart.

Synchronization with Samsung Health

If you use Samsung Health to track activity, you can set up automatic data export from Mi Fitness:

1. Open Mi Fitness → Profile → Settings → Sync with Other Applications.
2. Select Google Fit and log in.
3. In Samsung Health, go to Settings → Connected Services and connect Google Fit.

Now, steps, calories and sleep data will be automatically transferred to Samsung Health.

Update the firmware of the watch bypassing restrictions

If Mi Fitness refuses to update the watch firmware with the message “Your device is not supported”, try the following method:

1. Download the latest firmware for your model from the Xiaomi Community website (Firmware section).
2. Place the firmware file (usually with the.fw extension) in the MiFit/firmware folder on your phone.
3. Open Mi Fitness, go to the clock settings and start checking for updates manually.

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To speed up data synchronization, turn off the wrist-raise to turn on screen on your watch before bedtime, which will reduce the number of background operations and extend battery life by 20-30%.

FAQ: Frequent questions about connectivity