Xiaomi S1 Active : Battery Life is Reasonably Good
Battery life in a smart watch is undeniably important and can have a significant impact on your overall experience with the device, depending on how you intend to use it. Therefore, the question arises: is the Xiaomi S1 Active’s battery life up to par? After a full week of testing, it can be concluded that the device’s battery life capacity is quite reasonable.
In my experience, I can usually get around 6.5 days of battery life from the device, but if I use GPS tracking for an hour each day, the battery life drops to 5 days. These figures are significantly lower than the 12 days of battery life that the device claims to achieve using their usual metrics. Here is a brief summary of my final findings.
| Category | Rating |
| Speciality | Smart Features |
| Battery Economy Without GPS Tracking | 2/5 |
| GPS Battery Consumption Rate Per Hour | 5/5 |
| Overall battery Economy | 3/5 |
| Final Score | 10/15 |
When I perform a battery life test using the Xiaomi S1 Active, I prefer to test its ability based on two parameters. The first parameter is using the device in the same way that I typically use it. The second parameter is repeating the process with 1 hour of GPS tracking each day. Once the battery is consumed by 90%, the test will end. This ensures that the results are consistent.
As you can see, the S1 Active performed extremely well when it comes to GPS battery consumption. This is great news for anyone who loves to track their GPS workouts. When it comes to battery economy, the S1 Active didn’t perform that well. In this article, I am going to explain why the S1 Active performs so well in this regard and share my test results. Additionally, I will be comparing the S1 Active to other devices currently on the market to see how it stacks up.
My Typical Usage
I think it’s important to note that this part of the battery life test is significant because everyone’s usage varies. I’d like to give you a clear understanding of how much battery life I typically get from my regular usage, so you can compare it to your own usage and see how well the S1 Active performs. GPS tracking is only done after the first test. Here’s a list of my typical usage for this test.
- All day heart rate tracking including sleep tracking
- AOD : 20-25 screen activations
- 50 minutes workout tracking
- 20 messages
- 1 hour of GPS tracking
Battery Life Economy is Fairly Good : 2 out of 5
In regards to the economy of battery life, the S1 Active did not perform well and therefore received a rating of two out of five. Based on my typical usage, I would consider myself a very light user when it comes to utilizing any of the watch’s features. On a single charge, I have been able to achieve at least six and a half days of battery life, which is still pretty impressive. However, it is fair to say that a rating of two out of five is fitting for the S1 Active, as there are other smart watches available on the market that can last up to twelve days.
| Feature | Result |
| Battery life Economy | 14% per day |
| No of days | 6.5 |
| Star rating | 2 out of 5 |
How Do I Go About Rating The S1 Active’s Battery Economy
In terms of testing the battery economy of a device, I have developed a rating table that takes into account all of the devices that I have previously reviewed. This rating table provides an accurate representation of how other devices on the market perform based on my typical usage. It is crucial to have a set of testing criteria in place to ensure that the device is evaluated fairly and without any biases.
The S1 Active battery economy is 14% per day based on my typical usage. The S1 Active is very close to a 3 star rating. A lot of the devices that I have tested sit in the 3 to 4 star range, so I will show you that next.
| No Of Stars | Economy |
| 5 Stars | Up to 6% |
| 4 Stars | 7% – 10% |
| 3 Stars | 11% – 13% |
| 2 Stars | 14% – 16% |
| 1 Star | 17% and over |
How Does The S1 Active’s Battery Economy Compare to Other Devices
At the present moment, the S1 Active is positioned in the center of the table at this point in time. If preserving battery life is a significant aspect for you, then you can make a comparison of how the S1 Active measures up against other smartwatches that I have assessed. It is far from achieving the same level of battery economy as the Huawei Watch Fit 2, but at least this way it can provide you with some assurance before you decide to purchase it.
| Rank | Brand | Series | Specialty | Economy | Stars |
| 1 | Garmin | Forerunner 55 | Multi Sport | 4% | 5 |
| 2 | Fitbit | Inspire 3 | Health | 9% | 4 |
| 3 | Huawei | Watch GT3 Pro | All round | 10% | 4 |
| 4 | Huawei | Watch Fit 2 | All round | 10% | 4 |
| 5 | Huawei | Band 7 | All round | 10% | 4 |
| 6 | Xiaomi | S1 Active | Smart Features | 14% | 2 |
| 7 | Fitbit | Versa 4 | Health | 15% | 2 |
| 8 | Fitbit | Charge 5 | Health | 15% | 2 |
| 9 | Samsung | Galaxy Watch 5 Pro | Smart Features | 17% | 1 |
| 10 | Huawei | Watch GT3 | All round | 18% | 1 |
| 11 | Polar | Ignite 3 | Fitness | 23% | 1 |
| 12 | Samsung | Galaxy Watch 5 | Smart Features | 25% | 1 |
| 13 | Samsung | Galaxy Watch 6 Classic | Smart Features | 30% | 1 |
GPS Battery Consumption Rate is Excellent : 5 out of 5
Regarding GPS battery consumption, individuals who consistently use GPS to track their exercise know that it can significantly deplete the battery, and there may be a situation where it is unable to last the entire day. Fortunately, with the S1 Active, the device performs exceptionally and receives a perfect 5 out of 5 score in this category.
| Feature | Result |
| GPS battery consumption | 5% hour |
So to get an idea of how much battery life is consumed based on my typical usage with one hour of GPS tracking per day, you can get up to 5 days on a single charge, here is a full break down of the results.
| Feature | Result |
| Battery life Economy | 14% per day |
| GPS battery consumption | 5% per hour |
| No of days | 5 days |
How Do I Rate The S1 Active For GPS Battery Consumption
When it comes to the rating of the GPS battery consumption, I have utilized the same thought process that I used when I created the Battery economy rating table based on the many devices that I have assessed. At least that way I can judge the device fairly and without any biases.
The below table is what I use to judge the Battery consumption rate. Since the S1 Active only uses 5% of battery per hour, it deserves its perfect score of 5 out of 5
| No of Stars | GPS Battery Consumption Rate |
| 5 | Up to 7% per hour |
| 4 | 8% to 12% per hour |
| 3 | 13 to 15% per hour |
| 2 | 16 to 19% per hour |
| 1 | 20 % or more |
How Does The S1 Active Compare in The Market For GPS Battery Consumption
At the moment the S1 Active is siting at first equal amongst other devices, such as the Huawei Watch Fit 2, Garmin Forerunner 55 and the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro. Any device that is equal to the Fitbit Versa 4 or better is a 5 star device. One real impressive thing about the S1 Active is that it’s very affordable, but the Huawei Watch Fit 2 costs 25% less than the S1 Active
| No | Brand/Smart Watch | Consumption Rate | Star Rating |
| 1 | Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro | 5% | 5 |
| 2 | Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 Classic | 5% | 5 |
| 3 | Garmin Forerunner 55 | 5% | 5 |
| 4 | Huawei Watch Fit 2 | 5% | 5 |
| 5 | Xiaomi S1 Active | 5% | 5 |
| 6 | Huawei Watch GT3 Pro | 6% | 5 |
| 7 | Huawei Watch GT3 (power saver mode) | 6% | 5 |
| 8 | Polar Ignite 3 | 6% | 5 |
| 9 | Fitbit Versa 4 | 7% | 4 |
| 10 | Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 & 4 | 9% | 4 |
| 11 | Huawei Watch GT3 (performance mode) | 13% | 3 |
| 12 | Fitbit Charge 5 | 20-22% | 1 |
Final Conclusion
Thank you so much for your time and attention and I hope you have learnt a lot about how I go about testing the battery life of smartwatches. My hope is that you can use this information to determine if the S1 Active is a good fit for you.
The battery economy of the S1 Active doesn’t seem very disappointing when you can get close to 6.5 days of battery life. However, it is rated only 2 out of 5 for battery economy because there are other devices in the market that can offer you way more.
If I am being completely honest, I would be extremely happy if my device were to last for up to 6.5 days on a single charge. This is because it is significantly better than some of the more high end devices on the market, where it is often necessary to charge the device on a daily basis.
Regarding the GPS battery consumption rate, the S1 Active received a perfect score of 5 out of 5 and is one of the top brands when it comes to GPS battery consumption. This means that if you are someone who uses GPS tracking frequently, this is a device that you can rely on to track your GPS signal for an extended period of time. I am currently to a GPS tracking accuracy test so I will provide those results shortly.
It’s a real pity that the battery economy wasn’t at the same standard as the GPS score. Then again I still think that the device is good value for money. Once again thank you for reading and if you do decide to buy one, based of this article then you know that you are getting a good product.
