Affordable fitness bands have become more and more popular. Huawei’s latest Band 6 is set to challenge this competitive market. Huawei’s Band 6 has a large AMOLED screen, two-week battery life, and a variety of useful health and fitness features. It is expected to be an attractive alternative to Xiaomi’s Mi Band or the AmazFit U Pro.
The Band 6 is, in many ways, a smaller version of the Huawei Watch fit. It does not have a built-in GPS. The Band 6 looks like the Watch Fit, but it packs in the familiar AMOLED display at its front. It is also smaller and lighter than the Watch Fit. The battery lasts for 9-10 days, which is a strong point of Huawei wearables.
The Band 6 runs Lite OS. This OS has the majority of the fitness and tracking suites found on Huawei’s higher-end wearables. The software limitations of the Band 6 include not being able share data with third-party apps such as Strava and limited customization. Despite these limitations, Lite OS is a great choice because of its easy-to-use UI.
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The Band 6 allows you to track many different workouts, which are all easily accessible from the menu. You can also track your health via the Band 6, including all-day heart rates, stress levels, SpO2 monitoring, sleep tracking, and even daily heart rate. You can view basic data on the watch, or you can go to the Huawei Health App to see detailed charts and breakdowns of your performance.
Here is where the Band 6 has problems. It can be difficult to pair the Band 6 with a smartphone. Data sync can sometimes be slow. We often experienced inaccurate data being synced with the app. This required several sync refreshes. The band uses your smartphone’s GPS for route mapping, so this finicky connection can sometimes cause problems with outdoor runs or walks.
A minor issue is that push notifications from the Band 6 can sometimes be delayed. The messages that do show up in your notification panel are sometimes truncated and you will need to pull out your smartphone to see the entire message.
The Huawei Band 6 is a very attractive fitness band, especially considering its low price. The Band 6 is a good option for consumers, but we aren’t sure where it fits in Huawei’s entry level fitness tracker lineup. We recommend the Watch Fit to replace the Band 6.
- Huawei Band 6 on TVC-mall WW at US$1.09
Huawei Band 6 Price and Availability
The Huawei Band 6 is available for purchase at Huawei Experience stores and online, or select third-party retailers. It costs PS59.99 / AU$139/AED 229 (about $85) You can choose from four colors: Graphite black and Forest Green which include a dark gray watch case; Amber Sunrise and Sakura Pink which include a watch body with a gold-hued color.
You could also purchase the Amazfit Bip U Pro for that same price. It comes with a GPS. The Huawei Watch fit is a better option than the Band 6. It has similar features and performance.
Huawei Band 6 design and display
- Rubber straps for small bodies
- Lightweight to wear
- Beautiful screen
The Huawei Band 6 appears to be a slim Huawei Watch Fit, but it has a simpler and more basic design. The watch’s body is made of polymer and has a metallic texture on the sides. It also houses the sensors.
Rubber straps are thin and have a soft texture that feels good against the skin. It is resistant to dust and can be easily wiped off if your wrists become sweaty. The Band 6 won’t allow you to swap out straps, which is understandable considering the price.
The Band 6 is extremely lightweight, making it easy to wear throughout the day. It also doesn’t dig into your skin which is another plus. The Band 6 is also water-resistant to 50m, so you can take it to the pool and not have to take it off after a quick shower.
The front of the Huawei Watch Fit features a 1.47-inch AMOLED display that is vibrant and responsive. However, it’s not as smooth and sharp as the Huawei Watch Fit’s display. The Huawei Watch Fit’s high aspect ratio was a favorite feature. It’s also a smart design choice for the Band 6, which keeps the band’s size small while still providing a lot of information.
Huawei Band 6 fitness and tracking
- More than 90 fitness options
- Decent is good for tracking fitness, but it lacks some of the finer features
- Some smartphone pairing difficulties
The Band 6’s most notable feature is the versatile suite of fitness- and health tracking features that can be found on nearly every Huawei wearable. The three-ring activity system is similar to Apple’s activity rings and allows you to set goals for calories, standing time, and exercise hours.
The Band 6’s 90+ workout options can track many activities, including running, swimming, cycling, and walking. Simply swipe through the workouts on the menu and tap the start button to get the band started. If you don’t wish to scroll through the menus, there’s an automatic workout detection that works almost every time.
This band monitors your heart rate and helps you determine if you are hitting your target heart rates zones. Although the workout results were accurate, real-time and resting heart rates often showed a few beats higher than the Garmin Venu or the Apple Watch SE.
After you are done, you can view the summary of the band or the Huawei Health app to see detailed information and charts. It’s a great fitness app that shows your data visually. You will find helpful tips and a lot of information in this app.
Problem is slow and tedious smartphone pairing and app sync processes. It can take the Band 6 a while to pair with your phone. Firmware updates and pending data syncs may take several minutes. This can be frustrating. We also encountered problems every once in a while where the app displayed incorrect or different data from what was on the band. Although the issue is fixed after a few forced resynchronizations, it can be quite annoying due to how slow that process can sometimes be.
Breathing exercises, stress monitoring, and all-day SpO2 monitoring are just a few of the notable features. This monitors your body’s overall condition and can point out potential problems. We love the way that the companion app displays detailed information about sleep tracking and how it works.
The Band 6 isn’t a smartwatch and lacks many of the essential features. Your phone will not send push notifications for longer than a few seconds. You’ll need to take your phone with you. You can also set alarms, see weather conditions, and control music playback.
Battery life for Huawei Band 6
- 180mAh batteries last about a week and half
- Regular exercises bring that down by a few weeks
- Uses a proprietary charger
The Band 6’s battery life, like most Huawei wearables is impressive. The Band’s Lite OS, which is a minimal version of Huawei’s operating system, uses power efficiently. It can last for a week and a quarter with its 180mAh battery. This is a lot more than you would get from other fitness bands at this price.
Your mileage may drop if you do heavy exercise, have multiple workouts per day, and have SpO2 monitoring and heart rate enabled. However, with moderate to light use, you can get approximately 10 days of battery endurance on a single recharge – which is a little less than Huawei’s two week battery life claims.
The Band 6 has a two-pin cradle which attaches magnetically to the back of the Band 6. It takes less than an hour to charge the Band 6 from zero to full.
Should I purchase the Huawei Band 6
It’s a good deal if…
A fitness tracker is a great option for those who are looking to save money.
The Band 6 is a handy tracker that can be used to help you get started with a healthy routine or improve your workouts. The band has a premium feel and look thanks to the display. It is easy to use and has a lot of features, including all-day SpO2 monitoring, stress monitoring, and sleep tracking. These features are usually reserved for expensive fitness watches.
A lightweight band is what you want
The Band 6’s light, comfortable feel is one of our favorites. We didn’t feel the band digging into our workouts, and sweat doesn’t accumulate or is easy wiped off.
Long battery life is important
It’s important to have a device that can be charged once and forgotten about for at least a week, given the amount of devices we use daily. With heavy to moderate usage, the Huawei Band 6 lasts for a week and a bit thanks to its low-powered Lite OS and small battery.
It’s not worth the risk if…
Smartwatches are what you want
Although the Band 6 is excellent at tracking your health metrics and casual exercise activity, it will not be able to integrate with third-party apps or be used as an extension of your smartphone. The Band 6 cannot sync data to third-party apps such as My Fitness Pal or Strava.
Software issues can cause you to be confused
The Band 6’s inept pairing with smartphones and slow sync that occasionally results in inaccurate data being synced from the band is a major problem. We wish the Huawei Health app displayed useful metrics and advice in a more visually appealing manner.
You would like to keep track of extensive exercise
Although the Band 6 can track most indoor and short-distance fitness events, it is not as good as something like an advanced analytics tool. If you are a serious athlete or train hard for a sporting event, you may want to consider investing in something that can provide more detailed data and analysis. Software issues mean that the band isn’t great at tracking outdoor runs. It relies on your smartphone to track routes and it isn’t as accurate than a band with an integrated GPS.
