Live photos of the Xiaomi Mi Band 5 leak

No device captures the value for money credo that Xiaomi lives by more than the Mi Band. The latest version of the fitness tracker, the Mi Band 4, includes a color AMOLED display, monitors your health (including heart rate and sleep trackers), and keeps track of your physical activities all for a price that is under $40. It also is one of the few Xiaomi products that you can buy in the states.

Earlier this month, an image of the device allegedly leaked and at the time we questioned the legitimacy of the image. Today, a post on Chinese social media site Weibo (via Gadgets360) reveals two live photos of what-again we must use the word allegedly-is the Mi Band 5. The new image shows that the device will feature a new charging system that plugs right into the device; the current model requires you to remove the Mi Band 4 screen capsule from the band and put it in a cradle (making sure that the two pins on the capsule line up correctly). The cradle has a USB-A plug that can connect right into some power banks or a plug that can connect to an outlet.

Besides being easier to charge, the Mi Band 5 is rumored to feature support for Alexa. That's Amazon's digital assistant, and if true, it could mean that the new MiBand will have a microphone and a speaker for the first time. Previously the device used haptic feedback to communicate with the user. On the other hand, this might simply mean that the Mi Band will activate Alexa on another device. This makes more sense since the fitness tracker might not have the processing power inside to host a digital assistant.

The Mi Band 5 is said to offer NFC support, but it isn't clear whether that is only available for the models sold in China which was the case with the Mi Band 4 last year. However, back in October a report surfaced claiming that the connectivity feature will be available in the states with the MiBand 5. That will allow the device to offer some type of mobile payment service for users in the U.S. And the latest version of the fitness tracker is believed to feature a menstrual cycle tracker and monitors the user's blood oxygen level. This is a health-related feature that is supposedly being added this year to the Apple Watch 6. Some medical professionals believe that there is a connection between severe cases of coronavirus and low blood oxygen rates. Readings between 94% and 100% are normal

Another leak calls for a pretty decent increase in the screen size from last year's .95-inch display to a 1.2-inch display, and there is further speculation that the fitness tracker will support some type of camera controls allowing users to snap a picture on their phone using the device. The Mi Band 5 will reportedly track 11 different activities including new ones like yoga and indoor bicycling, and cost 200 CNY (equivalent to a little over $28 USD at current exchange rates).

The Xiaomi Mi Band 5 is expected to be released next month. Last year the Mi Band 4 launched on June 11th so it wouldn't be much of a stretch to see its successor hit the market around the same time this year.