Redmi Watch 5 Active: Unboxing And First Impressions
- 2-inch flat LCD
- 500 nits of brightness
- Metallic body
- Huge bezels
- HypeOS UI
- Built-in Alexa
- Auto workout detection
- IPX8 rated protection
At an MRP of Rs 4,999 (available on e-commerce sites for Rs 2,799), the Redmi Watch 5 Active is a worthy daily companion as it combines an ample amount of style quotient with function and usability. Well, this is the ultra-short version of our quick review. For the detailed version, keep reading.
The Watch 4 was never launched in India but here we are with the recently launched Redmi Watch 5 Active and this is my first impression and quick review of this smartwatch.
The packaging felt really light. In fact, it was lighter than I expected. The box contains the following things:
The watch has a metallic body and feels sturdy in terms of build quality. The display is flat and looks huge. The actual display, however, is a bit smaller due to the watch’s large bezels. The 2-inch LCD looks sharp and bright. The 500 nits of brightness works wonders.
The watch gets TPU straps out of the box which seem and feel premium. I got the grey variant and they look good. The lugs are designed a bit differently from what we usually see in smartwatches. They are a bit on the sleeker side. On the right side of the watch, we see the lock/power button. At the bottom, we have the sensors and the speaker and mic combo.
The watch has an IPX8 rating, which is basically a step below the 50 ATM water resistance we saw in the Redmi Watch 3. It is also important to note that there is no swim workout mode provided in the smartwatch. There is, however, a very interesting feature to get rid of excess water inside the watch which can be accessed via the quick settings menu.
The Redmi Watch 5 Active gets Xiaomi HyperOS out of the box. For someone who has been using the Xiaomi 14 for a few months now, this felt like home. The icons are similar to what I see in the Xiaomi 14. The resemblance in the user interface definitely adds to the whole experience. In case, the user is not familiar with HyperOS and its UI, the intuitiveness and ease of use that come along with the HyperOS handle the rest.
One of the USPs of this smartwatch is the integrated Alexa. I must say that having a virtual assistant on your wrist is a neat party trick. The watch can also be used to control smart home apps if they are already connected to Alexa. an interesting thing with the built-in Alexa is that you will not be able to start a workout via voice commands nor will you be able to play music. Maybe soon.
The Watch 5 Active has a mobile app that offers a better user experience especially when it comes to health parameter tracking.
As mentioned above, the watch runs on the Hyper OS by Xiaomi. It is fairly easy to use and is very user-friendly. The fundamentals of this watch are more or less the same. You tap and hold the home screen to be able to change the watch face. A swipe down will lead to the notifications panel while a swipe up will lead to the quick settings menu. Swiping right would result in an array of widgets as well as Alexa.
Bluetooth calling has become an essential selling point in smartwatches and the Redmi Watch 5 Active does not fall behind in this regard. Users can not only pick and reject calls but they can also respond with a text message, similar to what we see in smartphones.
The audio quality is better than I expected indicating that the speakers in this smartwatch are of good calibre. The same can be said for the mic. Calls that were attended on the smartphone were effortless in terms of the ability to talk to the person at the end of the line.
It goes without saying that all smartwatches are now fitness trackers. Truth be told, that is a necessity these days. The Redmi Watch 5 Active offers a wide gamut of health and fitness features and they are as follows:
We conducted the banana test and thankfully the watch did not disappoint by picking up a pulse off the banana. The watch also has 140 workout modes pre-fitted. How well do these work? We will be finding out in the full review. The watch also offers automatic workout detection, something we saw in the CMF Watch Pro 2 as well. You’ll need to turn this feature on in the settings, though. Simply go to Settings > Auto detect and then turn on the auto-detect feature.
Redmi claims a battery life of up to 18 days of battery life and we are yet to test that. However, if you are using features like 24-hour heart rate monitoring, all-day raise to wake, workout detection and Bluetooth calling, a more realistic runtime would be 2 to 3 days. Especially if you’re someone like me who uses all of the above at the same time.
Is this the best budget smartwatch out there? Well, saying that might be jumping the gun. While the LCD might seem like a trade-off at first, it doesn’t hit you directly. What I’m trying to say is that you do not really miss the LED panel despite it being a must-have in 2024. The LCD works just fine, however, it does mean that you won't have Always on Display. The built-in Alexa might be the winner in this watch for many. It is a unique feature that helps the Watch 5 Active stand apart from the competition. Another element that stood out in this product is the accuracy during workouts. Add the HyperOS UI, the numerous watch faces and 500 nits of peak brightness to this mix and you have yourselves a smartwatch that can hold its own in a very competitive segment. For the price tag of Rs 2,799, this smartwatch makes a good case for itself.
For more such content, keep following BW Businessworld and BWTV.
