Merge Duplicate Contacts
When contacts get saved by different apps or sync sources, the same person can end up listed twice in your Xiaomi contact list. This duplication clutters your call log, messages, and search results, making it harder to reach the right entry fast. MIUI includes a built-in way to link matching entries back into a single, clean contact.
Turn on TalkBack
Once TalkBack starts running, every tap on the screen gets read aloud instead of performed right away, which throws off anyone who did not expect the phone to switch to gesture-based navigation. This screen reader is essential for blind or low-vision users, but a stray touch inside the Accessibility menu can turn it on by accident too, changing how the whole interface reacts to touch. Knowing exactly where the toggle sits helps you switch it on deliberately or turn it back off if the phone suddenly stops responding to normal taps.
Set Default Account for New Contacts
If you keep getting asked which account to save a new contact to on your Xiaomi phone, MIUI has no default target set. This happens when Google Account, Mi Account, and one or both SIM cards are all active on the same device. Every save then triggers a manual account pick, which slows down quick contact entry.
Turn On/Off Switch to Speaker Automatically
If your Xiaomi phone keeps the call on the earpiece even after you pull it away from your face, or the speaker never kicks in on its own, a hidden accessibility feature is likely involved. This function relies on TalkBack and sits inside a section labeled Experimental, which is why most people never find it. Without it enabled correctly, calls stay locked to the earpiece no matter how you hold the phone.
Set Monthly Data Usage Limit
If your Xiaomi phone still enforces the data limit from an old tariff, warnings or automatic data cut-offs can trigger at the wrong point in your billing cycle. The Monthly data limit value under Data usage does not update itself when your plan changes or your provider raises your allowance. You have to adjust it manually to match the new tariff.
Turn USB Tethering On or Off
When you plug your Xiaomi phone into a PC or laptop to share its mobile data, the computer often prompts you to pick a connection type instead of connecting automatically. This happens because USB tethering sits in a separate toggle from your regular USB file-transfer mode. Without switching it on first, the cable only charges the phone or transfers files instead of sharing the data connection.
Change the Default Keyboard
Installed a new keyboard app on your Xiaomi phone but typing still opens Gboard? MIUI keeps the previous keyboard active until you manually switch the default under Languages & input. Without that step, the new keyboard stays listed but never takes over text fields.
Factory Reset via Settings
When your Xiaomi phone gets stuck in a lag loop, refuses to accept a new owner, or you just want to wipe it before selling it, a full factory reset is often the only clean fix. The Erase all data function removes every account, app, and system setting from internal storage without a way to undo it. Before you start, it helps to know exactly what gets deleted and what stays untouched.
Add a Contact Shortcut to the Home Screen
Calling the same person every day shouldn't require opening the Phone app, searching your contacts and tapping through to their number each time. On MIUI you can pin a direct contact shortcut to your home screen so a call or message starts in just two taps. This helps most with family, coworkers or anyone else you dial constantly.
Turn Anti Banding On or Off
If photos or videos of screens, TVs or fluorescent lights show dark stripes or a flickering pattern, the camera sensor is reacting to the local power frequency. Xiaomi phones include an Anti banding option that compensates for this, but the wrong setting can make the flicker worse instead of better.
Mirror Navigation Bar Buttons
If the back button and recent apps button feel like they are on the wrong side of the navigation bar, your Xiaomi phone likely has the default three-button layout active. Left-handed users especially notice this, since reaching for the back key on the left edge feels unnatural. A hidden toggle lets you flip the order of these two buttons without changing anything else on the home button.
Share Wi-Fi Password via QR Code
Typing out a long Wi-Fi password for every visitor gets tedious, especially with random letter-number combos. Xiaomi phones can turn your current network credentials into a scannable QR code instead. Anyone with a camera can then join the network without you dictating a single character.
Auto-Update Download Settings
If your Xiaomi phone keeps downloading system updates in the background without asking, it can eat into your data plan or fill up storage at the worst moment. On the other hand, if updates never download automatically, you might miss important security patches for weeks. This behavior is controlled by a single toggle buried inside the MIUI version screen, separate from the mobile data download option next to it.
Create or Remove Dual Apps
Running two WhatsApp or Facebook accounts on one phone usually fails because those apps only allow a single login at a time. Dual apps gets around that by cloning the app into a second icon with its own data and notifications, fully separate from the original. Without setting this up, you are stuck logging out and back in every time you want to switch accounts.
Disable Automatic Video and Image Downloads in Mi Browser
If your mobile data disappears fast while browsing on your Xiaomi phone, Mi Browser might be pre-loading videos and images before you even tap them. This automatic download feature speeds up page loading but quietly eats into your data plan. Turning it off puts you back in control of what actually gets downloaded.
Turn MMS Read Receipts On or Off
If contacts can see the moment they read your MMS messages, or you cannot tell whether your own texts got opened, the read receipt option is likely misconfigured on your Xiaomi phone. This setting works separately from standard SMS delivery reports and needs its own toggle inside the messaging app. On Dual SIM devices, each SIM line can carry a different receipt setting, which often explains why the behavior seems inconsistent between conversations.
Switch Between Front and Rear Camera
Selfies on a Xiaomi phone often need extra light, and the display flashes white to fake a camera flash for the front lens. If you are not sure where the switch control sits or why the screen behaves this way, jumping between front and rear camera during a quick shot or video call gets slower than it should. This affects both the Camera app and any third-party app that uses the same camera controls.
Turn Off TalkBack on Xiaomi
If your Xiaomi phone reads out everything you tap and single taps only select items instead of opening them, TalkBack is active. This screen reader changes how touch works across the whole system, which makes normal navigation confusing if you never meant to turn it on.
Delete Learned Words and Data
If the built-in Xiaomi keyboard keeps suggesting outdated or wrong words, the learned word database is usually the cause. This data builds up over time from everything you type and can make autocorrect feel stuck on old habits. Clearing it resets suggestions without touching your other settings.
App Lock: Lock or Unlock Apps
Anyone who picks up your Xiaomi phone can open sensitive apps like banking, messaging or gallery without extra protection beyond the screen lock. App Lock adds a second barrier for individual apps, separate from your device PIN or pattern. Without it enabled, apps stay accessible the moment the phone itself is unlocked.
Delete a Contact
Contacts opened from Calls or Messages on a Xiaomi phone are the same entries stored in the Contacts app, so removing one wipes it out everywhere at once. Syncing with your Google Account does not stop the local delete from going through, and once it is confirmed there is no built-in way to bring the entry back.
Flip to Silence Ringer: Turn On or Off
If your Xiaomi phone keeps ringing loudly even when you quickly flip it face-down during a call, the Flip to silence ringer feature is likely turned off. When active, flipping the device mutes the ringtone, stops the vibration and turns off the notification light instantly. The caller still hears it ringing though - the call is not rejected or sent to voicemail.
Enable or Disable Captions for Supported Apps
When captions do not appear during playback, or they show up in a style that is hard to read against light backgrounds, the caption settings on your Xiaomi phone are usually the reason. This affects apps that hook into the system-wide caption feature, not just the video player itself. Size, color, and background of the caption text can all be adjusted separately from whether captions are shown at all.
Clear App Cache
If an app on your Xiaomi phone keeps crashing, freezing, or throwing error messages, leftover cache files are often the reason. Over time these temporary files pile up and can overlap or corrupt each other, causing an app to behave oddly even though nothing else changed. Clearing the cache removes that clutter without touching your saved data or settings.