Quick Summary
The Amazfit Band 5 is a fitness tracker with Alexa built-in, offering features like blood oxygen monitoring, heart rate tracking, sleep analysis, and 15-day battery life.
The Amazfit Band 5 is an affordable yet surprisingly capable fitness tracker with Alexa built-in. Packing blood oxygen monitoring, 15-day battery life, and a sleek AMOLED display, it delivers strong wellness tracking in a compact wrist-worn form.
In this Amazfit Band 5 review, we’ll break down the key features, performance, and whether this budget-friendly wearable is worth considering as your next fitness companion.
Amazfit Band 5 Review: Design and Comfort
Weighing just 12 grams, you barely notice the Amazfit Band 5 when worn. The curved edges and smooth silicone band offer all-day comfort.
Its 5ATM water resistance lets you safely wear it in the pool or shower. The color AMOLED display looks crisp indoors and outdoors. You can choose from over 40 bright watch face designs.
My only complaint is the proprietary charger; it’s quite small and easy to misplace. More wireless charging would be convenient.
Amazfit Band 5 Review: Fitness Tracking and Features
Even though the Amazfit Band 5’s screen is hard to see, it does have a set of metrics that you can look at after you’ve finished an exercise in one of its 11 sport modes. The continuous heart rate monitor not only keeps track of your BPM during the whole workout, but it also tells you how many minutes you spend in each heart rate zone, which ranges from low to high.
The Fitbit Charge 4 was the first device to use these measures, which seemed like a stripped-down version of Activity Zone Minutes. The Charge 4 can figure out your target heart rate zones based on your age and heart rate at rest. It can also keep track of your progress as you try to reach your weekly goal of 150 minutes in that zone.
The Amazfit Band 5 doesn’t have GPS built in, so I had to bring my phone with me to plan my tasks outside. When I used the Zepp app (iOS or Android), I liked being able to see my biking trail along with my other data. It even told me when I sped up on straightaways and slowed down to enjoy the ocean views.
If you like to do a lot of different outdoor activities, you might be better off with one of the best sports watches with GPS (and sometimes built-in music storage), but the Amazfit Band 5 is fine for tracking steps, calories burned, and heart rate.
Amazfit Band 5 Review: Notifications and Alexa Integration
Having a voice assistant on your wrist is surprisingly handy. Just press the capacitive side button on the Amazfit Band 5 to trigger Alexa.
You can ask Alexa questions, set alarms and timers, check your calendar, play music, and control your smart home. It works for basic requests but doesn’t have the full Alexa capabilities of an Amazon Echo or smartphone.
Setup requires linking your Amazon account to the Zepp companion app. The Alexa integration helps set the Band 5 apart from rival fitness trackers lacking voice controls.
Since Amazfit watch notifications have disappointed me before, I had low hopes. However, the Band 5’s notification system impressed me. I chose which phone alerts to get on my wrist and whether to preview them. I could even ignore calls during a workout.
As with the Wyze Band and Fitbit Versa 2, whispering Alexa commands into your wrist feels James Bond-like. The Amazfit Band 5 lets you use Alexa’s greatest capabilities, like weather reports and smart light settings.
Amazfit Band 5 is a fitness band, but Alexa isn’t a trainer. Instead, Amazon’s voice assistant will aid your daily routine. You can also disable Alexa completely.
Amazfit Band 5 Review: Blood oxygen readings
As a fitness band, the Amazfit Band 5 handles all the essentials capably. It provides continuous heart rate monitoring, including your resting heart rate trends. I found the heart rate tracking highly accurate based on comparisons to dedicated chest straps.
The Band 5 also tracks your steps, calories burned, distance traveled, and sleep cycles. The always-on OLED display lets you check your stats with a flick of the wrist.
One unique health feature is the SpO2 sensor for monitoring blood oxygen saturation. This can help identify breathing issues during sleep. Just keep your arm steady when using the SpO2 measurement.
These days, tracking blood oxygen (SpO2) is a cool health tool. If your blood oxygen level is below average (95 percent or less), it could mean that you have a health problem. And a SpO2 reading is less likely to be wrong than a pulse or blood pressure measure.
A blood oxygen level of 95% to 100% is average for someone who is not having trouble breathing. The Amazfit Band 5 told me that my SpO2 levels were 97% or 98% a few times when I took them myself. The Apple Watch 6 also told me that my blood oxygen level was 100%. Based on what I know about pulse oximetry, I think the numbers from the Apple Watch are more accurate, but it’s not by much.
Amazfit Band 5 Review: Fitness and health tracking
It is possible to track sports with the Amazfit Band 5, and there is a good amount of freedom here.
You get 11 different sports modes, such as running, swimming in a pool, and indoor exercises like indoor rowing and jumping rope. There is no GPS, but you can use the paired GPS on your phone to keep track of things you do outside.
With 11 distinct exercise modes, the Amazfit Band 5 covers most common fitness activities including:
- Outdoor running
- Treadmill
- Walking
- Indoor cycling
- Elliptical
- Pool swimming
- Yoga
- Freestyle workout
The Band 5 is a bit of a mixed bag when it comes to what you can expect. We ran with it outside and found that you have to open the app on your phone first for it to connect to the GPS.
Even though we did that more than once, we still got data like the one below, which doesn’t show the whole run. We didn’t wear a wristband because we don’t like the way it looks, but we did keep the phone on a running belt nonetheless.
It’s the same when it comes to treadmill running in terms of accuracy, though you can calibrate to get more accurate information the next time you use it.
It can also be linked to StraRelive, so you can get praise and make movies of your outdoor activities.
When we took it to the pool, things did get better. It is hard to take in the information because the screen is so small.
Also, the core swim data was the same on our computer screen as it was on the Forerunner 945 and Form Swim Goggles. This was very important. When you looked more closely, though, you saw that some information, like the average speed, wasn’t logged at all.
Amazfit Band 5 Review: Blood and Heart rate tracking
You might choose the Amazfit Band 5 over the Mi Band 5 because it has a more up-to-date BioTracker module of visual sensors. Especially since it runs many health and workout apps.
Resting heart rate is one of the numbers it can give you, which can help you figure out how fit you are right now.
Here is an example of a resting heart rate. It was usually higher than the Garmin fitness tracker and chest strap monitor we used to measure it.
When it was time to work out, we had some pretty big problems. The tracker didn’t record any heart rate data for many of the workouts we logged.
We now think that this could be a mix of things. Perhaps the band didn’t fit well enough, even though it was in the tightest fit setting. There must also be a problem with the program.
When we finally got some numbers, it was pretty much what we thought it would be. The average and maximum heart rate readings were not very close to what a chest strap monitor would have shown.
In the end, this fitness tracker probably won’t work as well as you thought it would for tracking your heart rate while you work out. Even more so if it doesn’t fit right.
Amazfit Band 5 Review: Sleep tracking and stress monitoring
The Amazfit Band 5 has more useful tools for tracking sleep than most other wearables I’ve looked at. Over the course of several nights, it wasn’t always accurate, especially when I drifted in and out of sleep while watching The Umbrella Academy on Netflix. However, it usually gives me a couple more minutes of sleep than the Apple Watch.
But what I liked most about Amazfit’s sleep tracking was that it pushed me to go to bed before 2 a.m., since staying up late could hurt my defense system. It also asked me to use the icons to keep track of what I did in my “wake-up mood” and my “pre-sleep state,” such as having drinks, reading, or working out.
The Amazfit Band 5 doesn’t have a smart wake-up tool like Fitbit’s fitness trackers do. This means it can’t wake you up at the best time in your sleep cycle, but it can tell you how much deep sleep and light sleep you’re getting each night.
Heart rate variability is another way that the Amazfit Band 5 can tell if you are stressed. It can give you a real-time reading and a daily stress analysis chart, but it doesn’t send you warnings. My stress level stayed at an average of 37/100 over the weekend, which meant I felt calm, but it did rise to the mid-60s during a scary spell on Sunday.
Amazfit Band 5 Review: Battery Life
With light to moderate use, the quoted 15 days of battery life on the Amazfit Band 5’s hold up. Heavy usage with constant heart rate monitoring may reduce it to 10 days or so – still impressive longevity.
It charges from zero to 100% in under 2 hours. The long battery life means charging it just a few times a month.
Software and Apps
The Zepp companion app (for iOS and Android) provides deeper insights into your health metrics. It delivers informative graphs of your heart rate zones, sleep stages, SpO2 trends, and more.
Syncing the band and configuring settings is easy in the app. I especially liked the ability to customize watch faces.
Amazfit Band 5: Price And Availability
The Amazefit Band 5 may be purchased in the United States for the price of $49.99. It is only available for purchase through Amazon, and the expected delivery date is November 30.
Amazfit Band 5 Review: FAQs
1. What is the Amazfit Band 5?
The Amazfit Band 5 is a fitness tracker with a wide range of features designed to help you monitor and improve your health and fitness.
2. Can you give me an overview of the Amazfit Band 5 review?
The Amazfit Band 5 review covers the key aspects of the fitness tracker including its design, features, performance, battery life, and more.
3. How does the heart rate monitoring work on the Amazfit Band 5?
The Amazfit Band 5 uses a built-in heart rate sensor to continuously monitor your heart rate throughout the day and during workouts. This helps you track your exercise intensity and overall cardiovascular health.
4. What is the battery life of the Amazfit Band 5?
The Amazfit Band 5 offers a battery life of up to 15 days on a single charge, making it ideal for long-lasting use without frequent recharging.
5. Does the Amazfit Band 5 have GPS?
Yes, the Amazfit Band 5 has built-in GPS which allows you to accurately track your outdoor activities and view your route on the connected app.
6. Can I receive notifications on the Amazfit Band 5?
Yes, the Amazfit Band 5 supports smartphone notifications, allowing you to receive alerts for calls, messages, emails, and other app notifications directly on your wrist.
7. Is the Amazfit Band 5 compatible with the Zepp app?
Yes, the Amazfit Band 5 is fully compatible with the Zepp app, which provides a comprehensive view of your health data, sleep patterns, workout history, and more.
8. Does the Amazfit Band 5 track sleep?
Yes, the Amazfit Band 5 tracks your sleep patterns, including light sleep, deep sleep, and REM sleep stages, providing insights into the quality of your sleep.
9. Can I use Amazon Alexa with the Amazfit Band 5?
Yes, the Amazfit Band 5 features built-in Amazon Alexa, allowing you to use voice commands and control compatible smart devices directly from your wrist.
Final Thoughts
The Amazfit Band 5 impresses me with its extensive features and slim, lightweight design. Health trackers twice the price don’t offer blood oxygen sensing or two weeks of runtime per charge. Alexa integration provides added smartwatch-style convenience too.
While serious athletes would still benefit from advanced metrics and third-party app connectivity on pricier wearables, the Amazfit Band 5 covers the core essentials at a bargain price.
If you want an affordable daily activity and sleep tracker with helpful wellness features like SpO2 monitoring, the Amazfit Band 5 is one of the top options under $50. It nails the basics for both fitness and general use. For budget-focused consumers, the Band 5 is easy to recommend.
