Xiaomi Mi Band 3 confirmed for Mi 8 event this week

Xiaomi’s Mi Band fitness trackers are among the world’s most popular wearables. Now, the company has announced that the latest iteration, the Mi Band 3, will be revealed on May 31.

The news was confirmed by Xiaomi senior vice-president Wang Xiang on Twitter. He reiterated that the Mi 8 flagship and MIUI 10 Android skin would be revealed too.

The original Mi Band didn’t have a ton of features — it lacks a heart-rate monitor, for one. But at roughly $13, it still ranks as one of the best wearable deals in years. Toss in sleep tracking and vibrating alarm functionality and lengthy endurance, and you’ve got a pretty capable lifestyle tracker for the price.

The Mi Band 2 went a step further by introducing a display, heart-rate monitor, and activity reminders if you’ve been idle for a while. The successor did see a price bump to $40-$50, but fans can still grab the cheaper Mi Band Pulse, which is essentially the original Mi Band with a heart-rate monitor.

So what will the Mi Band 3 bring to the table? Here’s hoping we see a better display and more accurate heart-rate monitor, as our own Jimmy Westenberg wasn’t too happy with either feature in his Mi Band 2 review.

We may have received an early look at the wearable last month, courtesy of Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun. One eagle-eyed Twitter user noticed that the executive was wearing what could be the Mi Band 3 during the Xiaomi Black Shark event.

It’s also believed the Mi Band 3’s user manual may have been leaked (h/t: IT Home via Wareable). The purported manual doesn’t tell us much about the new tracker, save for a similar design to predecessors. But we also see suggestions of screen gesture support, such as horizontal and vertical swipes.