Redmi Watch 5 Active or Xiaomi Smart Band 9 Active: what six reviews and 20 comments say

The Redmi Watch 5 Active and the Xiaomi Smart Band 9 Active are two of Xiaomi's cheapest wearables. One is a smartwatch with a 2-inch screen. The other is a fitness band with a 1.47-inch screen. We read both against the same five themes: battery, screen, tracking, comfort and app.

We read four editorial reviews of the watch, published between 8 September and 12 December 2024. We read two editorial reviews of the band, published on 26 December 2024 and 26 February 2025, and the 20 reader comments under GSMArena's band review, dated 26 December 2024 to 30 June 2026. Every page was read on 12 October 2026.

The sample is thin, and it is uneven. We found no owner tier for the watch that we could read: the maker, retailer and forum pages we tried answered with an access error or a bot check, and we did not go around them. The band has one forum-style tier, a comment thread. No source we read is later than the first months after each launch review, so this is a reading of launch-period coverage, not of how either product ages.

Prices are partly unconfirmed. Two Indian reviews, from The Week and Cashify, give the watch a launch price of Rs 2,799 in September 2024. We could not confirm an Indian price for the band. GSMArena lists a suggested price of 25 euros (20 pounds), and CGMag lists 29.99 US dollars. Neither is a rupee price, and neither is today's price.

Consensus

All four editorial reviews of the watch end favourably, as a capable budget watch with a large screen and long battery life. Both band reviews end favourably on value, but GSMArena also names compromises in the display and in step and sleep tracking. Across the reviews we read, the watch is described as the fuller device and the band as the lighter, plainer one.

Our confidence is mixed for the watch: four editorial reviews agree on the broad picture, all from 2024, with no owner tier. It is thin for the band: two editorial reviews that disagree on battery, and a comment thread of anonymous, unverified posts. A consensus here is what a small sample said, and not what either product is.

Recurring strengths

Battery, watch. Three of the four watch reviews report a measured battery life of 8 to 12 days, below the 18 days the maker claims for light use, and still call it long for the price. The fourth, The Week, reports 55 percent charge left after 12 days at 40 percent brightness.

Screen, watch. Three of the four watch reviews call the 2-inch display bright enough to read outdoors: Business Today, The Week and CGMag. Business Today says it comes close to the claimed peak of 500 nits.

Tracking, watch. Three of the four watch reviews call step counting reliable or accurate: Cashify, The Week and Business Today. Two of them, Cashify and Business Today, also call sleep tracking accurate, and The Week calls it adequate.

Battery, band. CGMag reports that the band delivered the advertised 18 days. This is one editorial reviewer's finding, and the other band review disagrees; see the split below.

Screen and app, band. CGMag says the band's screen reads well in sunlight and calls the Mi Fitness app easy to navigate. GSMArena calls the same screen serviceable outdoors and describes the app as customisable, with syncing to Apple Health, Google Fit, Strava and Suunto. Both band reviews agree on the app.

Comfort, band. GSMArena describes the all-plastic band as light at 16.5 grams and comfortable to wear all day. One reviewer, so we treat it as one opinion.

Value, band. One of the 20 comments argues the band is good value against its rivals. One comment is an individual opinion, and we count it as that.

Recurring complaints

Strap and bezels, watch. Two of the four watch reviews, Cashify and CGMag, call the strap awkward to fasten. Two, The Week and Business Today, describe thick bezels around the display.

Missing features, watch. Two of the four, Cashify and The Week, note there is no always-on display. Two, The Week and CGMag, note that the watch cannot reply to messages.

Heart rate and blood oxygen, watch. One reviewer, Business Today, finds the heart rate and blood oxygen readings less reliable than those of pricier watches. The Week reports stress readings that sometimes differed from premium watches by 10 to 12 percent. These are two individual opinions, and the sensor figures are claims as reviewers describe them, not health measurements.

Tracking, band. GSMArena, one of the two band reviews, reports that the band under-reported steps and distance in workouts and recorded sleep and wake times inaccurately, while its heart rate readings matched the rivals it was held against. Among the 20 comments, one describes wake-up times recorded 30 minutes late, and one describes step counts well below another device's.

Hardware failure, band. At least two of the 20 comments describe a band that stopped responding, one of them within ten days and one in hot weather. A further comment says a replacement was refused under warranty. These are anonymous posts. They show that the complaint exists, and not how common it is, and a count of comments is not a failure rate.

Display and design, band. GSMArena calls the 1.47-inch panel dimmer than the OLED screens on pricier bands and lists no always-on display, no built-in GPS and no physical button. At least one comment calls the bezels very large.

Charging, band. GSMArena reports a charge from empty to full took more than 90 minutes. Cashify reports about 1.5 hours for the watch. These are the only two charging times we read.

Where reviewers split

Band battery. GSMArena reports 8 days of moderate use against a maker claim of 18 days, and CGMag reports the full 18 days. The two reviews do not say how each used the band, so we cannot tell whether use or the unit explains the gap. We read this as unresolved.

Watch screen in sunlight. Three of four reviews call the display readable outdoors. Cashify says the LCD struggles in bright sunlight. One outlier against three, and Cashify gives no brightness setting.

Watch app. CGMag and Cashify describe a smooth, easy app experience, though Cashify notes that an account is required to set up. Business Today reports occasional glitches in the interface and inconsistent GPS tracking. Two reviews against one, with the fourth silent.

Watch water rating. Cashify and The Week describe the rating as IPX8 and The Week says it rules out swimming. Business Today says the watch allows swimming. CGMag lists 5 ATM. We do not settle this, because we could not read the maker's page, and a reader who swims should check the maker's rating before trusting any review.

Professional against user. For the watch, there is no user tier to set against the editors. For the band, the editors are mixed on tracking and battery, and the comments lean toward complaints. A comment thread is a self-selected sample, so we read it as a warning sign and not as a verdict.

Who each one is for

The Redmi Watch 5 Active suits a reader who wants a large screen, call and notification handling and about ten days between charges, on the evidence of four 2024 editorial reviews. Those reviews report that its heart rate and blood oxygen readings are less dependable than those on pricier watches, and a reader who wants the watch for health numbers should weigh that.

The Xiaomi Smart Band 9 Active suits a reader who wants the lightest and plainest wearable and who accepts a dim LCD, no GPS and step counts that one review found low. It is the thinner case: two editorial reviews that disagree on battery, and a comment thread that raises hardware failures.

The answer here is a reader, and not a winner. Neither is read across enough owners to say which one people keep wearing.

This is a reading of published reviews, not medical, financial or legal advice. For a decision about your health, your money or your rights, a qualified professional is the right next step, and not a review.

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Sources

No affiliate, sponsor or free-product relationship affects any link below.

• Editorial, Cashify, Redmi Watch 5 Active review, published 16 September 2024.
• Editorial, The Week, Redmi Watch 5 Active review, published 9 September 2024.
• Editorial, Business Today, Redmi Watch 5 Active review, published 8 September 2024.
• Editorial, CGMag, Redmi Watch 5 Active review, published 12 December 2024.
• Editorial, GSMArena, Xiaomi Smart Band 9 Active review, published 26 December 2024.
• Editorial, CGMag, Xiaomi Smart Band 9 Active review, published 26 February 2025.
• Forum, GSMArena, 20 reader comments on the band review, dated 26 December 2024 to 30 June 2026, read on 12 October 2026.

We read six editorial reviews published between 8 September 2024 and 26 February 2025 and 20 reader comments dated 26 December 2024 to 30 June 2026, read on 12 October 2026, read and synthesised with AI, and nothing was tested.