How to link Honor phone and Xiaomi watch: Step-by-step instructions

Integrating wearables into everyday life requires a stable connection between gadgets, and often users of the Android ecosystem face the need to connect devices of different brands. Honor smartphones, running on the basis of modern versions of the operating system, are compatible with trackers and smart watches from Xiaomi, but the process of their initial setup has its nuances. The main difficulty lies not in the hardware, but in the software that manages the synchronization of health data and notifications.

To successfully pair, you will need not only Bluetooth enabled, but also a properly installed intermediary application. Mi Fit was used for this purpose, but now the functionality has moved to the Zepp Life application (formerly known as Mi Fitness in some regions, but for classic bracelets it is better to use Zepp).

In this article, we will discuss in detail the algorithm of actions that will avoid common errors when searching for a device. You will learn how to properly configure permissions for the background operation of the application so that the connection does not break down, and what steps to take if gadgets “can not see” each other. A critical point is to install the Zepp Life application from the official store Huawei AppGallery or Google Play, since modified versions may not work correctly with Honor services.

Preparing devices for synchronization

Before you start the pairing procedure, make sure that both devices are ready to work. Charge Xiaomi watch or fitness bracelet Mi Band to at least 20-30%, as in the process of updating the firmware, which often occurs immediately after connection, low charge can lead to interruption of the process.

Make sure your phone has GPS and Bluetooth enabled. Unlike just connecting headphones, smartwatches require geolocation for initial region settings and precise timing. On Honor smartphones with MagicOS shell or old EMUI, these settings are often in the quick access curtain, but for reliability, it's best to check them in the main settings menu.

There is a common misconception that the device must first be “tied” in the standard Bluetooth menu of a smartphone. This is a mistake: if you try to connect the clock through the Android system settings before installing the application, this can cause a driver conflict.

Installation and configuration of the Zepp Life app

A key element of the Xiaomi Wear ecosystem is the aggregator app. For Honor phone owners, the best choice will be the Zepp Life app (formerly Mi Fit), which can be downloaded from the Google Play store if you have Google services installed on your device, or found in the official Huawei AppGallery app store, which is preinstalled on most of the brand’s modern smartphones.

After downloading and installing the application, you need to register an account. This is a prerequisite, since all statistics are stored in the cloud. You can use your phone number, email address or log in through social media accounts such as Facebook or Google. When registering, select a region carefully - for users from Russia and CIS countries, it is usually recommended to choose the appropriate country or region "Russia" so that the servers work with minimal latency.

Once you log in, the app will ask for a number of permissions. To work properly, Honor must provide access to location, contacts (to sync the phone book), notifications and, critically, allow you to work in the background. Without the last item, the phone's energy saving system can kill the sync process, and you will not receive notifications about calls on your wrist.

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When you set permissions on Android 12 and above, the system may request confirmation of access to Bluetooth devices nearby several times.

The process of pairing the clock and the phone

When the preparatory stage is complete, you can go to the direct connection of devices. Open the Zepp Life app and go to the Profile tab (usually the far right icon in the bottom menu). In the list that opens, find the Add Device or + button. The app will prompt you to choose the device type: watch, bracelet or scale. Select the category corresponding to your Xiaomi gadget.

Now, take your watch in hand. If it's new, it'll automatically go into search mode. If the device has been used before, you may need to reset to factory settings through the menu of the watch itself (usually Reset or Factory Reset in the device settings). The screen will start scanning the devices. As soon as the name of your model appears (such as Mi Smart Band 7 or Amazfit Bip), click on it.

The watch and phone will have a confirmation code, and make sure the codes match, and confirm the pairing by pressing a button on the touch screen or a physical button on the watch case, which can take anywhere from 10 seconds to a couple of minutes, while keeping the devices within 1 meter of each other.

After a successful connection, the app will offer to update the firmware of the watch. It is strongly recommended not to ignore this step, since older versions of the software often contain bugs that prevent stable work with new versions of Android on Honor smartphones.

Set up notifications and permissions in Honor

Honor smartphones are known for their aggressive energy saving policy, which can interfere with the work of background processes. To ensure that Xiaomi watches consistently receive notifications from Telegram, WhatsApp or system calls, you need to manually configure the Zepp Life application. Go to the Settings of the phone, find the Apps section and find Zepp Life in the list.

From the app menu, select Battery Consumption or Battery Management. Set the "Start Auto" and "Background" modes. It is also recommended to turn off the "Save Battery" option specifically for this app, which will give the system a signal not to interrupt the connection to the clock, even if the phone screen is turned off.

Then you have to configure the notifications themselves. Go back to the Zepp Life app, go to the device profile, and find the Application Notifications section. Here you will see a list of all the programs installed on your Honor. Activate the switches opposite those messengers and services that you want to see on your watch. Without this setting, the clock will only vibrate when you call.

⚠️ Note: If you don’t see the app you want in the Zepp Life permission list, try sending one test message to it. Some programs appear in the permission list only after the system has recorded the first incoming notification.

Solving Common Connection Problems

Despite the standardization of protocols, sometimes the pairing process is not smooth. One of the common problems is that the Honor phone sees the device but writes "Connection Error" or "Failed to create a pair." In this case, it often helps to clean the Bluetooth cache. Go to the Bluetooth settings, find your watch (if there is one) in the list of stored devices, and click "Forget" or "Delete." After that, reboot the phone and try to connect again through the application.

Another situation is that the watch is plugged in but not synchronizing data or time is lost, which may indicate a conflict of versions of the application. Delete Zepp Life, download the latest version and keep a close eye on permission requests when installing, sometimes it helps to completely reset the watch to factory settings through the menu of the tracker itself.

If the problem is that the phone stops “seeing” the clock some time after you connect, check the power saving settings mentioned above. Also make sure the phone doesn’t have Flight or Traffic Savings mode on, which can block background data transfers.

Additional functions and data synchronization

Once you've set up a successful setup, you'll have a lot of health monitoring, and Xiaomi watches that can track not just your steps, but also your sleep phases, your blood oxygen (SpO2) and your stress, and they'll be stored in the Zepp Life app, giving you a detailed picture of your health, and you can set your goals by step and get vibrational reminders if you sit still for a long time.

For sports enthusiasts, a choice of training modes is available. When you start activity on your watch (running, cycling, swimming), pulse and route data (due to built-in or telephone GPS) will be recorded and subsequently synchronized.

Music control is also available, and you can pause, switch tracks, and adjust volume right from your wrist, and to do this, the music player on your phone needs to be started, and it's convenient when you're exercising, when you don't want to take your phone out of your pocket or your sports belt.

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Regular data synchronization occurs automatically when you open the application, but for accuracy of statistics, it is recommended to open Zepp Life at least once a day.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

⚠️ Note: When you reset the clock to factory settings, all data stored on the device since the last sync will be deleted.