Xiaomi Smart Band 10 Pro NFC Review: Great Band, Limited Payments

The Xiaomi Smart Band 10 Pro NFC should theoretically be the easiest model in Xiaomi's fitness-band lineup to recommend. It takes the excellent Smart Band 10 Pro and adds contactless payments. The catch is that those payments are much more restricted than the NFC badge might suggest.

Everything else is excellent for the price. There's a bright 1.74-inch 60Hz AMOLED display capable of up to 2,000 nits peak brightness, built-in five-system GNSS, a 350mAh battery, 5ATM water resistance, more than 150 sports modes and Xiaomi's upgraded optical heart-rate sensor. Sleep tracking also gains average nighttime HRV, giving the Pro considerably more recovery information than the standard Smart Band 10.

Fitness performance is one of its biggest strengths. Independent testing of the closely equivalent Pro hardware has produced extremely good heart-rate results against a Polar H10 chest strap, while GPS performs well enough for casual running and cycling. The single-band positioning system can struggle more around buildings, however, so this remains a fitness tracker rather than a serious multisport watch.

Battery life is similarly strong. Xiaomi advertises as much as 21 days under light use, 15 days under normal use and eight with always-on display enabled. Real-world Pro testing around 13 days with extensive health monitoring makes those numbers believable within the right settings rather than universal expectations.

Then there's NFC. Payments go through Xiaomi Pay rather than Google Wallet, and supported banks and cards vary by region. Notebookcheck's German test, for example, found only a handful of supported banks. That means the single feature separating this model from the normal Pro could be practically useless to some buyers.

The remaining limitations mirror the Pro: no app store, Bluetooth calls, speaker or sophisticated notification responses, while the Mi Fitness companion app still trails the better wearable ecosystems for presentation and actionable health guidance.

That makes the buying decision unusually simple. Check Xiaomi Pay support before ordering. If your everyday card is supported, the Smart Band 10 Pro NFC is Xiaomi's most complete fitness band. If it isn't, save the money and buy the standard Smart Band 10 Pro instead—you lose almost nothing else.