Featuring a pronounced sports-oriented design, a 1.6 inch display and 5 ATM water resistance, the Lenovo Ego seems like strong competition — at least on paper.

Lenovo Ego vs. Xiaomi Mi Band 3: specs

First, let’s take a quick look at the main specs of Lenovo Ego and Xiaomi Mi band 3.

Lenovo HX07 Ego vs. Xiaomi Mi Band 3: design

The first thing that absolutely stands out about the Lenovo Ego is the watch’s bold athletic design. We have got used to reviewing smart watches that look almost exactly the same, and amidst the sea of Apple Watch-like devices, the Lenovo Ego is a breath of fresh air.

The Ego looks like a professional sports watch — and, this is what the device aims to be coming with a very nice set of tracking features — but we will get to that in a bit.

The Lenovo Ego comes with a 1.6 inch anti-reflective monochrome screen and features a night light mode. The Mi Band 3, on the other hand, uses a smaller 0.78-inch monochrome OLED screen with 2.5D curved tempered glass protection on top. Naturally, the Lenovo Ego boasts more display real estate to display your fitness data and would be the obvious choice for those who prefer large screens. The downside of this would be that the watch looks and feels quite bulky on the wrist.

Lenovo HX07 Ego vs. Xiaomi Mi Band 3: features and sports tracking

When it comes to sensors, the two smartwatches are equipped with pretty much the same functionality. They both come with Accelerometer, Gyroscope and Heart Rate Sensor and are capable of tracking popular sports activities like running, walking, hiking and even swimming, monitoring your sleep, etc.

Swim tracking is a really great feature to have onboard — and is especially impressive for budget smartwatches like the Lenovo Ego and the Xiaomi Mi Band 3. Both watches are 5 ATM waterproof — and this means you can keep each of the watches on when taking a shower after a workout and even take each one for a dip in the pool.

Both watches will alert you about incoming messages, calls, social media updates, etc. You can also use the Lenovo Ego or the Mi Band 3 as remote camera triggers, which a lot of users find to be very useful to have onboard.

Lenovo HX07 Ego vs. Xiaomi Mi Band 3: battery life

Both watches claim to offer up to 20 hours of battery life on a single charge. The Mi Band 3 comes with a 110 mAh battery and its 20-hour battery life claim has proved to come very close to reality. For the Lenovo Ego and its promise of 20 hours on a single charge, the user jury is still out.

Lenovo Ego vs. Xiaomi Mi Band 3: the price matter

What has made the Mi Band 3 smartwatch so popular among users was its value for money offer. Available for just $30, the watch features a modern lightweight design, comprehensive sports tracking (including swimming tracking), long battery life and more.

The Lenovo Ego offers pretty much the same functionality (including swim tracking and long battery life) and at the same price — the watch is currently available for $29.

Lenovo HX07 Ego vs. Xiaomi Mi Band 3: which smartwatch should you choose?

Here’s where things get tricky: it’s not easy to give a clear-cut recommendation as to which watch would make the best fitness companion. Even though the two devices offer similar functionality and come with the same price tag, they cater to different users.

The Mi Band 3 is a classic smart watch when it comes to design. It’s small, lightweight and can well be worn as a fashion accessory as well as a a fitness tracking device.

The Lenovo Ego, on the other hand, is meant for those who want to commit to an athletic look. The watch is bulkier, with a larger display and looks like one of the recent G-Shock releases. Just like the Mi Band 3, it comes with a variety of tracking features and is capable of all the functionality one would expect of a smart watch.

Thus, in this case, we’d say that the final decision as to which watch to go with will depend primarily on your personal preferences. With that, there is basically no right or wrong choice here: both smart watches offer great value for money when it comes to fitness tracking and battery life and, at least for now,  you won’t be able to find a better deal on the budget fitness tracker market.