Honor Band 6 Review – Larger Screen, Bigger Battery, Simply Awesome

If you ask if I have my personal and most anticipated smartwatch/smartband that I am actually looking forward to having, my answer is yes. And it is a no brainer that the new Honor Band 6 is one of the smarbands of 2021 that I look forward to. 

Why you may ask? It is simply because of the screen design. I must admit. The new Honor Band 6 looks better than the narrower Honor Band 5 and the recently reviewed Mi Band 6. The rectangular screen is not too small for my use nor is it too big. To me, the display size is just right. 

There are many other smart bands out there that have a similar look as the Honor Band 6. I got mine from Banggood.com and I must say, I am pleased with the Honor Band 6. I received the China version but English is available. When I first turn the band on, it shows all in chinese characters but after pairing with my phone, it will follow the default language from the phone.

Here’s where it gets a little complicated if you’re not a Huawei phone user. In order to use the Honor Band 6 for non Huawei HarmonyOS users, you will have to download an additional app (apart from the Huawei Health app) to be able to use the band. You first need to download an app directly to your phone called Huawei Mobile Services Core, or HMS Core for short. It is an Android APK file and you can simply open the file and it will ask whether you want to install or not. Just go for it. 

Once the app is installed, you can then fire up the Huawei Health app and you’re ready to pair. The pairing process is very straightforward and easy. 

The Honor Band 6 works really well on any Android devices. However, iOS users may not get to utilize the full function of the Honor Band 6. This may be something that needed to be addressed by Huawei because the Honor Band 6 is good, in my own personal opinion.

Honor Band 6 – First Impressions

When I opened the Honor Band 6 box, the band itself was the first thing that I saw. It is very light but yet sturdy. As I said, I like the screen size. There is a single button on the right side of the band used for the home button and activating the screen, to name a few. 

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For the initial start, pressing and holding the side button will turn on the band and I was greeted by the Honor logo. The display is awesome. It is an AMOLED display and it is 1.47 inches in size, which is bigger than the Honor Band 5. This is a good upgrade where you can see more data clearly. 

The strap is made of UV-treated silicone which is soft and comfortable when wrapped around the wrist. Most of the time I don’t feel it strapped on my wrist. And I often forget that I have it on. The strap is quite narrow, making it look a little awkward. But I kinda got used to it. 

You will also find the USB charger cable in the box. Attaching the band with the charger is very snappy and it is magnetized for an easy secured attachment. Also around the back, you can see the heart rate monitor sensor and the charging pins below it.

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The Honor Band 6 has a 5 ATM water resistant rating and you can dive in up to 50 meters in depth. It also means you can wear it for a swim and with the fitness app function, you can track your swim stats. 

User Experience 

Navigating the menu on the Honor Band 6 is easy and responsive. Swiping left or right will loop back to the main screen. Swiping up or down from the main screen will bring you to the settings and quick access to manual heart rate or SpO2 tracker. 

One of the main reasons to get a fitness band is to track your health data and stats. From my experience of using the Honor Band 6, the collected data are quite accurate. Just like many other fitness bands, the Honor Band 6 can keep track of your heart rate, SpO2 level (for blood oxygen), stress level, sleep tracking and menstrual cycle tracking for the ladies. 

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You can have the band keep track of your heart rate continuously or leave it to check once every half hour or so. Leaving it on all the time can drain out the battery quicker. SpO2 level checking can only be done manually because you will have to sit still to get an accurate reading. 

What I like most about the Honor Band 6 is the sleep tracking feature. With that, I can know my nightly sleeping patterns and whether I have enough deep sleep moments or not. 

For fitness tracking, things can be a little more fun. There are 96 different sets of sports activities that you can track with the Honor Band 6. There will be something for everyone. The most I used is for walking, since that’s the only thing we can do right now because of the lockdown. It will monitor the heart rate and SpO2 level while doing any of the activities. And the stats are quite useful. 

If you are doing lots of outdoor activities or much into sports, this is the band for you. 

The Huawei Health app shows tons of your fitness data for your reference. You can keep on tracking your fitness and health stats all the time and it will be synced with Huawei Cloud to safely store your data online. And if you switch to another Huawei or Honor band, you can sync back your data to the new band if you wish to. 

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As for the watch face, there are an abundance of watch faces you can choose from the Huawei Health app on your phone. I had trouble choosing the right one for my taste because there are so many of them. Again, there will always be something for everyone. 

The Honor Band 6 is powered by a 180mAh battery that can last up to 2 weeks on a single charge provided that you don’t turn on the continuous heart rate monitor. And to charge it from 5% to 100% will take under an hour. That is quite good. 

Conclusion

Like I said earlier, if you’re looking for a good and affordable fitness band, this is the one you should consider. It has a larger screen, great display, long battery life and the health monitoring is quite accurate. 

The size is just right that even my wife is interested in it. I may get one for her too since she said the Honor Band 6 is the better looking one compared to those she has seen elsewhere. 

Too bad I don’t get to fully test the fitness function just yet due to the current lockdown situation here in Malaysia. But once the restriction is lifted, I will definitely go out for a jog or go swimming with the Honor Band 6. 

The Honor Band 6 is affordable for everyone and you can also get it from Banggood.com website. I got mine from the website and they will be having a sale this coming 6.6 so you may not want to miss on that. The current discounted retail price is US$52.99 but you may want to check it out during the 6.6 sale too. 

My conclusion of the Honor Band 6, simply awesome.

Banggood.com 6.6 Bargain Sale link: https://ban.ggood.vip/Ywrk