“Too many body fat.” That’s the message that greets me in the morning as I wake up to cultivate my new habit of measuring this, that or the other parameter in a bid to lose weight and become healthier. A fresh obsession with my weight has been set off by Xiaomi’s recently launched Mi Body Composition Scale. Life will never be the same again.

As far as weighing scales go, the Mi smart scale is really good looking. It’s a clean egg-shell white and even has egg-shell like texture when you touch its smooth surface. Well made and unobtrusive in your room, it waits for you to step on and get the stats. It works on four AAA batteries, which do not come bundled with the scale so run out and get them if you’ve ordered this product. The batteries are supposed to last up to a year, but of course we can’t confirm that as it’s just been launched here.

The white smart scale has four round steel circles where your feet will touch when you get on. In the centre is a barely visible Mi logo and up top you’ll see your weight reading light up when you stand on the scale. It’s so clean you won’t want to stand on it with dirty feet.

The smart scale pairs with your smartphone on which you’ll need the Mi Fit app. Connecting was very easily and required little but to stand on the scale - which is what wakes it up. You need to enter some basic profile information into the app , as expected. Overall it doesn’t take long to be up and running with the ensemble.

The Xiaomi scale seemed to be pretty consistent with my weight. It hovered around the same figure (which remain secret) going a little up or down depending on the time of day I was measuring and probably what I’ve eaten. Body weight does fluctuate a little every day and through the day and the scales reflect that. As a weighing scale, I had little quarrel with it, except that I end up having to face the fact of having to lose weight on an everyday basis which is more my fault than the scale’s.

Apart from pure weight, the scales give you a whole lot of other information — and that’s where things get tricky. For example, by sending a mild electrical current through one foot and to the other (you can’t feel it), the scales purport to calculate your BMI, body fat ratio, visceral, muscle and bone proportion and even your water level. It isn’t just the current that does the trick, but a comparison with a big database of readings and ‘complex algorithms’ as Xiaomi calls the process. Meaning it’s intelligent guesswork, in a sense, and in my opinion should just be used as a rough indicator and not for serious medical input. If your muscle mass is too little, well, you’d better build them up with some appropriate workout. If your water content is too low, see if drinking more water helps - that much can only do good.

But it is my contention that we tend to get seduced by numbers and take them as sacrosanct in the bargain. All of us know very well when we need to lose some kilos and weed the fat stuff out of our diets.

Whether one of the many numbers we’re fed go up and down a bit on a routine basis, an obsession with them surely isn’t the target for anyone. Looking at some of the numbers you get from the Mi scale, or any other similar product, every single day is probably overkill. It’s also not very useful as you can’t do much about it in the short term. Take the weight seriously enough, and the rest as rough guides, making sure there’s enough gap between readings.

This scale also includes an activity tracker, but the input has to come in from Xiaomi’s Mi Band. If you’re interested in the complete picture that adds up to the body score you get through the scale, it’s best to get the fitness band as well.

The app itself isn’t the easiest and neatest, to my mind. It needs a serious dose of intuitiveness and ease. But it does the job and certainly can’t serve as the excuse to not keep an eye on your weight and get into shape.

Price: ₹1,999

Pros: Great price, neat and good looking product, large easy to read numbers that light up, lots of measurements and stats

Cons: Unintuitive and slightly confusing app, restricted to the Mi Band for activity input, the app doesn’t include calorie recording options

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