Checking battery degradation on Xiaomi: step-by-step instructions and hidden chips

The lithium-ion batteries in Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones inevitably lose capacity over time. Even when used carefully in 2-3 years, the battery can degrade by 20 to 30 percent, leading to rapid discharge, sudden shutdowns and overheating. But how do you know exactly how worn your device's battery is? There are several methods, from built-in MIUI tools to engineering codes and third-party applications.

Many users mistakenly assume that if the phone holds a charge "like new", then the battery is fine. However, the degradation of the capacity often manifests itself not immediately: first, battery life is reduced at high loads (games, video shooting), and later the device begins to turn off at 15-20% charge. In this article, we will discuss 7 working methods of checking battery wear, including hidden Xiaomi functions that do not require root rights.

1. Check through the Battery Status menu in MIUI

The easiest way to measure battery wear is to use the built-in battery status menu in MIUI firmware, a feature available on most Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO models released after 2019. However, there is a caveat: on some devices, the menu is hidden and requires activation through an engineering menu.

To open it up:

1. Go to Settings → Battery and Performance.
2. Slap the gear icon (⚙️) top-right.
3. Select Battery Status (on some models, Battery Health).

In the window that opens, you will see two key parameters:

• 🔋 Current capacity is the actual battery capacity per mAh (e.g., 3,800 out of 4,000 mAh).
• ⚡ Degree of wear – Percentage of capacity loss (e.g. 5% means that the battery has lost 5% of its original capacity).

⚠️ Note: If you don't have Battery Status on your menu, it doesn't mean there's no feature on some models (e.g. Redmi Note 10 Pro or the Redmi Note 10 Pro). POCO X3 Pro) it is hidden and requires activation via the code ##4636## (more in the next section).

Normal wear indicators:

• 🟢 Up to 10% – battery in excellent condition.
• 🟡 10-20% - mild degradation, noticeably reduced working time.
• 🔴 20–30% – heavy wear and need replacement soon.
• ⚫ Over 30% critical condition, battery may suddenly shut down.

Engineering menu: hidden codes for diagnostics

If you don't have battery health information in the settings, you can use engineering codes, and these commands open service menus that display battery technical data, including voltage, temperature and actual capacity, and it's important that the codes don't work on all models, but it's worth trying.

The most effective codes for Xiaomi:

• 📱 ##4636## - Main Engineering Menu (select Battery Information).
• 🔢 ##6484## - battery test (on some models).
• 🔋 ##64663## - Alternative code for checking battery status.

And then you enter the code, and you'll see a table with the parameters.

• Level is the current charge in percentage.
• Voltage - voltage (normal: 3.7-4.2 V at 100% charge).
• Temperature - temperature (optimally: 25-35 ° C).
• Health – battery health (if any).

⚠️ Note: If the code is entered after the code is entered, the message "Code is not supported" means that the manufacturer has disabled access to the engineering menu on your model).

💡

If the engineering menu opens but there is no battery data, try entering the ##284## code, which will activate the battery test on some POCO devices.

3. Signs of battery degradation without diagnosis

You don't always have the time or the ability to run tests, and you can also tell if you're wearing a battery by the indirect signs that you see in everyday use, and if you notice at least 3 of these symptoms, the battery is probably degraded.

• 🔌 The phone discharges by 20-30% per hour in standby mode (without active use).
• 🔥 The body heats up strongly when charging or during games.
• ⚡ The device suddenly shuts down at 15-20% charge (real charge below the displayed charge).
• ⏳ Full charge time increased to 3-4 hours (using the original RAM).
• 📉 The percentage of charge "jumps" (for example, from 40% immediately to 20%).
• 🔋 The battery is swollen (seen on the raised screen or back cover).

Especially critical if the phone turns off at 30-40% charge, which means that the battery controller is not calibrating the residual capacity correctly, and the real charge is much lower, in such cases, you need to force calibration (discharge to 0% and charge to 100% without interruptions), or replace the battery.

On Xiaomi models with fast charging support (for example, Xiaomi 12 Pro, Redmi K50 Gaming), the degradation is even more pronounced: the device may stop supporting maximum charging power (for example, instead of 120 watts it will charge 60 watts), this is due to the fact that the worn-out battery is not able to safely receive high currents.

Run a resource-intensive application (such as a game) and watch the discharge|Check the temperature of the body after 10 minutes of charging|Estimate the battery life in standby mode|See if the battery is bloated (closely on the screen at the edges)-->

4. Third-party applications for deep diagnostics

If the built-in MIUI tools don't give you the full picture, you can use third-party apps that analyze data from the battery controller and provide detailed information, including actual capacity, number of charging cycles, and even the forecast of remaining life.

Top.-3 Proven applications for Xiaomi:

• 📊 AccuBattery – shows wear, temperature, discharge rate and charging history. Suitable for all Android 5.0 models+. Cons: requires calibration (multiple charging cycles for accurate data).
• 🔍 CPU-Z — Battery displays health, voltage and battery technology (Li-ion/Li-Po). Plus, no root required.
• 🛠️ AIDA64 — A professional tool with detailed battery information, including factory capacity and current status.

How to use AccuBattery (Step-by-step):

1. Install the app from Google Play.
2. Charge your phone to 100% and turn off charging.
3. Use your smartphone as normal until the charge drops to 15-20%.
4. In the Health section, look at the percentage of wear.

⚠️ Note: Some apps (such as Battery Guru) may show inaccurate data on Xiaomi smartphones due to restrictions MIUI If the values are very different from the built-in tests, trust the official data.

5. Check through ADB (for advanced users)

If you're willing to use the Android debugging bridge (ADB), you can get the most accurate data about the battery, including the actual capacity, the number of charging cycles, and even the date of battery production, which requires a PC and minimal command line skills.

Instructions:

1. Turn on Developer Mode on your phone: go to Settings → About Phone and tap 7 times on the MIUI version.
2. Return to Settings → Additional → For developers and activate Debugging over USB.
3. Connect your phone to your PC, install ADB Tools and execute the command:

adb shell dumpsys battery

In the conclusion, find the lines:

• Capacity is the current capacity in mAh.
• Voltage is voltage.
• Temperature is temperature.
• charge counter is the amount of charge consumed (in μAh).

To calculate the wear, compare capacity with factory capacity (for example, if the factory capacity is 5000 mAh, and the current one is 4200 mAh, the wear will be 16%).

⚠️ Attention: Teams ADB It may vary depending on the version MIUI. Some firmware requires adb shell dumpsys batterystats to obtain battery data.

💡

ADB is the most accurate way to test, but it requires preparation. If you're not sure about your skills, use apps or an engineering menu.

6.How to extend the life of a battery on Xiaomi

Even if the battery has already partially degraded, you can slow further wear by following a few rules.

• 🔥 Overheating (over 40)°C).
• ⚡ Deep discharge (below 10%).
• ⚡ Fast charging on a continuous basis.
• 📱 Long-term storage with full charge (100%).

Recommendations for extension of service:

• 🔌 Charge your phone to 80-90% in everyday use (use Optimized Charging in your phone) MIUI).
• ☀️ Avoid direct sunlight and don’t leave your phone in your car in the summer.
• 🔄 Every 2-3 months, perform a full discharge-charging cycle (0–100%) to calibrate the controller.
• 🛌 Do not leave your phone on overnight charge (especially with fast charge).
• 🔋 If you don’t use your phone for a long time, keep it with a 40-50 charge%.

On models that support wireless charging (for example, Xiaomi 13 Ultra, Mix Fold 2) avoid the constant use of wireless chargers – they heat the battery more than wired.

💡

MIUI 14 and later has a hidden Smart Charging feature that automatically limits the charge to 80%. To enable it, go to Settings → Battery → Battery Settings → Smart Charging (not available on all models).

7.When is the time to change the battery to Xiaomi

Even with careful use, Xiaomi’s battery needs to be replaced after 2-3 years of active use, but there are clear signs that it’s time to change the battery immediately:

• 🔋 Capacity fell below 70% of the factory capacity (for example, 2800 mAh instead of 4000 mAh).
• 💥 The phone swelled (seen by the deformation of the case or screen).
• ⚡ The device shuts down at 30-50% charge.
• 🔥 Battery heats up to 50°C and above in plain.
• ⏳ Autonomous life has decreased by 2-3 times (for example, instead of 8 hours – 2-3 hours).

The cost of replacing the battery in Xiaomi service centers:

⚠️ Note: When replacing the battery with Xiaomi with fast charging (67W, 120W), use only the original batteries. Analogs may not support high currents, which will lead to slow charging or overheating.

FAQ: Frequent questions about Xiaomi battery degradation