Xiaomi, Redmi and Poco smartphone owners often notice a mysterious process called Mi Picks on their installed list. It's not always visible on the desktop, but it actively consumes resources in the background and periodically pops up as banner ads. What is this hidden mechanism and why does it so insistently demand attention?
At its core, Mi Picks is an embedded system service developed by Xiaomi to promote third-party software. In fact, it is a recommendation aggregator that analyzes your actions and offers to download “useful” games or utilities. For many users, this becomes a source of irritation, as advertising can appear in unexpected places of the interface.
Let’s see in detail whether it is possible to safely get rid of this component without disrupting the operating system MIUI or HyperOS. Understanding the nature of this application is the first step to clearing the smartphone from intrusive marketing.
Purpose and functionality of the Mi Picks application
Mi Picks' primary goal is to monetize the user base, and unlike the standard app stores you see right away, it acts as a background agent, collects user preferences and generates personalized offers, often responsible for the appearance of ad windows after unlocking the screen or when cleaning memory.
Technically, it's not a virus or malware in the classical sense. It's a legitimate part of Xiaomi's ecosystem, integrated into firmware. However, its behavior often borders on disrupting device comfort. The system can use Mi Picks to (push) discount notifications on the Mi Store or new features of the company's services.
⚠️ Note: Complete removal of system components through ADB This can cause an unstable interface. Be careful when using forced uninstallation commands.
It is important to distinguish between regular browser ads and system pop-ups. If the ads appear on top of other applications or on the desktop, it is likely that this service or the related MSA modules (MIUI System Ads) are activated.
Where to find Mi Picks on Android
Finding an app in the standard app menu is difficult, because developers often hide the icon. To find Mi Picks, you need to go to deep system settings. The path may vary slightly depending on the version of MIUI, but the logic remains the same.
You need to open your smartphone settings, then go to the Apps section and select All Apps. In the upper right corner of the screen, click three dots and activate Show System Processes (or Show System Services), only after this procedure, a hidden component will appear in the general list.
The application may be called differently depending on the firmware region: Mi Picks, GetApps or simply Recommendations. In the process list, it is often referred to by the batch name com.miui.misys or a similar variable name associated with system services.
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If you can’t find the app by name, search the settings by entering “advertisements” or “recommendations”.
Once detected, you can see how much space the app cache takes up and when it last started, and it often turns out that the process is active all the time, even if you haven't opened any stores.
Instructions for disabling advertising and recommendations
The safest and most recommended way to deal with intrusive offers is not to remove, but to disable personalization functions, which preserves system integrity but removes annoyances. With the new versions of HyperOS and MIUI 14+, settings have become more transparent.
First, you need to disable ad personalization. Go to Settings → Passwords and Security → Access to Personal Data (or System Services). Find msa (MIUI System Ads) and Mi Picks in the list, then turn off the access slider. The system will ask you to wait 10 seconds before confirming.
☑️ Checklist for disabling ads
Next, clear the application itself. Go to Settings → Apps → All apps, find Mi Picks and click Clean → Clear Everything. This will reset the algorithms’ accumulated recommendations to factory ones.
It's also worth checking the settings of specific applications where ads often pop up. Explorer, Theme and Security have separate "Receive recommendations" switches.
| System component | Where to look for settings | What to turn off | Risk of failure |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSA | Passwords and security | Access to personal data | Low. |
| Mi Picks | All applications | Notification and access | Low. |
| GetApps | GetApps settings | Push notifications | Medium. |
| Topics | Profile → Settings | Personal recommendations | Low. |
After all the manipulations are done, the amount of advertising debris will be reduced by 90%, and the remaining 10% may be banners in the applications themselves, which cannot be disabled by system methods.
Complete removal via ADB (for advanced)
If standard methods don't work, you can take drastic measures: you can only remove the Mi Picks system application with the help of the ADB (Android Debug Bridge) toolkit and a computer connection, which requires care.
First, activate the developer mode. Go to About Phone and quickly click on the MIUI Version (or OS Version) 7 times. Then, in advanced settings, turn on USB Debugging. Connect your smartphone to your PC with a cable.
adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.miui.misysThis command will remove the app for the current user, visually it will disappear from the list, and the processes will stop running, but when you reset the phone to the factory settings (Wipe Data), the service will return automatically.
List of commands to remove other advertising modules
It is not recommended to remove critical system libraries by relying on their name. Mi Picks is relatively safe to remove, but related services may be needed to run widgets or themes.
Impact on productivity and battery
Many users are asking: is the game worth the candle? Does Mi Picks affect the speed of the smartphone? The answer is unequivocal: yes, background processes consume resources. Constant collection of data about geolocation, installed applications and browsing history loads the processor.
This has several negative consequences: First, it increases battery consumption, especially in standby mode; second, it can be micro-freezed when it unlocks when the system tries to load fresh ads; and third, it consumes mobile traffic.
Disabling this service is one of the easiest ways to extend battery life on older Xiaomi and Redmi models. Freeing RAM from advertising modules also makes working with heavy applications smoother.
Alternatives and safety of use
After disabling Mi Picks, users are often left without a convenient app store unless they install an alternative.Standard Google Play fully covers the needs of most, but some prefer third-party directories.
As safe alternatives, you can consider F-Droid (for open source), Galaxy Store (if available), or proven stores like APKPure. The main thing is not to download applications from dubious sources, since the risk of malware in them is much higher than in official directories.
⚠️ Warning: Removing system components may disrupt automatic driver updates or design themes. Always have the original firmware on hand to flash in case of a critical failure.
Data security also plays a role, and by disabling data collection services, you're improving your digital hygiene, Mi Picks is transferring anonymized, yet unrelated, information about your habits to the company's servers, and blocking this channel is a step toward greater privacy.
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Disabling Mi Picks doesn’t break the phone, but makes it cleaner and faster by removing intrusive marketing.