Amazfit may soon let you choose what data goes to the cloud

Zepp Health looks like it is getting ready to give Amazfit users a bit more control over what gets sent to the cloud.

We found new settings in the latest Android APK for health, fitness and profile data. Instead of one big cloud-sync switch, Zepp appears to be working on separate controls for each type of data.

Separate controls for different types of data

New strings in Zepp 10.8.6 include “Sync Health Data to the Cloud”, “Sync Fitness Data to the Cloud” and “Sync Profile Data to the Cloud.” There is also an option labelled “Turn Off All Data Sync.”

That suggests users may eventually be able to keep some information local while continuing to sync other categories. The APK also contains separate warnings explaining what happens when each type of syncing is disabled.

Fitness data appears to include workout records, exercise heart rate, PAI, training load, VO2 max, lactate threshold and coaching information. Health data covers the broader wellness side of the Zepp platform.

The code changes go beyond strings. Zepp 10.8.6 also adds privacy-related components, including an activity called EquipmentPrivacyRestrictedActivity, suggesting Zepp Health is building UI and restrictions around these settings.

Some features would stop working

The trade-off is that several Zepp features appear to depend on cloud access.

If profile syncing is disabled, the app can show messages such as “Contacts Unavailable” and “Limited Equipment Management.” Challenges may also become unavailable or stop updating when the required data is no longer being uploaded.

That is probably why Zepp is spelling out the consequences before users switch syncing off. Local-only storage would provide more control, but some services that rely on account-level or server-side processing would no longer function normally.

One of the clearest examples involves LifeLoad. The APK contains a message explaining that the app has received a LifeLoad voice recording from a watch, but cannot send it to the cloud for interpretation because health-data syncing is turned off.

That tells us the recording itself can come from the watch, while interpretation appears to happen online. The APK also indicates that disabling health syncing can prevent LifeLoad events from being used by HybridCharge.

A more granular privacy setup

If Zepp Health does roll these controls out, Amazfit users would get a lot more say over what gets sent to the cloud. It would not just be a simple on or off switch. You could potentially keep some data local while still syncing other parts.

For now, this is still only something we found in the APK. Features like this can change, stay hidden or disappear completely before release, so we will have to see whether Zepp Health actually switches them on in a future update.