Your Xiaomi is getting stuck, apps are late, and animations are twitching? This is a common problem faced by owners of the brand's smartphones, from budget Redmi to flagship Mi and POCO. Brakes can manifest themselves in different ways, from barely noticeable lags when scrolling through social media feeds to the complete "reflectiveness" of the system for 10-20 seconds. 80% of the time it is not "iron" but software settings, background processes or outdated software.
Before you take your phone to the service center, try to figure it out for yourself. We analyzed hundreds of user complaints on forums (including 4PDA, Mi Community and XDA Developers) and identified 12 key causes of brakes characteristic of Xiaomi devices. Some of them solve in 5 minutes, others require more deep tuning. It is important to understand that if the phone starts to slow down after 1-2 years of active use without resetting to factory settings, this is a normal consequence of the accumulation of digital “garbage” – and it can be eliminated without losing data.
1. Overloaded RAM (RAM)
The most obvious reason for the lag is a lack of RAM. Xiaomi smartphones (especially budget models like Redmi 9A or POCO M3 with 2-3 GB of RAM) aggressively optimize background processes, but sometimes the system does not cope with resource management. If the multitasking menu opens 15+ applications and free memory is less than 300 MB, wait for the hang-ups.
How to check:
- 📱 Open the Settings. → The phone. → Memory (or Settings) → Annexes → State of memory in MIUI 12+).
- 📊 Pay attention to the schedule of use RAM. If less than 20% is free, this is a critical value.
- 🔍 See which applications consume the most memory (Memory Use section).
Decisions:
- ❌ Close unused apps manually (swipe up the multitasking menu: MIUI It optimizes the background processes itself, and forced closure can make things worse.
- ⚙️ Turn on the Cleanup function RAM in the security settings (Settings) → Annexes → Cleanup).
- 🛠️ For Advanced: Turn off window animation in Developer Settings (how to enable – see Section 5).
⚠️ Attention: If after cleaning RAM The phone is still slowing down through 5-10 The problem is deeper, perhaps cache contamination or storage failure (see sections). 3 and 7).
2. Completed storage (internal memory)
MIUI begins to slow down when internal memory is filled by 90% or more, and it is not only about user files (photos, videos), but also about the system cache, which takes up to 10-15 GB. For example, Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro with 128 GB of memory after a year of use out of the box can be only 10-20 GB of free space — and this is a critical threshold.
How to check:
- 📁 Go to Settings. → Warehouse.
- 🔎 Note the categories System Data, App Cache and Other – they often “bloat” to several gigabytes.
- 📊 If less than 10% of the total volume is free, we must clean it immediately!
Ways to make room:
- 🗑️ Remove the app cache: Settings → Annexes → Select an application → Warehouse → Clear the cache.
- 📸 Move photos and videos to the cloud (Google Photos, Mi Cloud) or to a memory card (if supported).
- 🎮 Remove unused games – they take up to 1-2 GB each (check in Settings) → Annexes → Size-based sorting).
- 🔄 Use the built-in Cleanup utility (Settings) → Annexes → Cleanup → Deep cleaning).
| Category of files | How much does it take? | How to clean up |
|---|---|---|
| Cash app. | 1-5 GB | Manual cleaning or through cleaning in MIUI |
| System data (logs, dalvik-cache) | 500 MB-2 GB | Resetting cache in recovery (Wipe Cache Partition) |
| Downloads (APK, archives) | 300 MB-1 GB | Delete through Files → Downloads |
| Residual files of remote applications | 100-500 MB | Use SD Maid or Files by Google |
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If your phone is slowing down when connecting to your PC in file transfer mode, try using Mi. PC Suite instead of standard MTP-This will speed up the data exchange and reduce the load on the system.
3. Contaminated cache of system and applications
Cache is a temporary file that creates applications and the system itself to speed up work, and over time, it accumulates, fragments, and slows down the phone instead of helping, especially after major MIUI updates, when old cache files conflict with new versions of the software.
Signs of a "cached" system:
- 🐢 Slow opening of Galery, Settings or Phone.
- 🔄 Applications suddenly shut down or restart.
- 📱 The phone is warm and discharged faster than usual.
How to clean the cache:
- 🧹 Clearing the cache of individual applications: Settings → Annexes → Select an application → Warehouse → Clear the cache.
- 🔧 Cleaning the system cache (reboot required): Turn off the phone. Press the power button + Volume up to enter Recovery. Select Wipe Cache Partition (use volume buttons for navigation). Confirm action and restart.
- 🛠️ Automatic Cleanup: Enable the option in Settings → Annexes → Cleanup → Autocleaning.
⚠️ Warning: Don't confuse Clear cache and Clear data! The second action will delete all the settings of the application (for example, logins in social networks or progress in games).
☑️ Checklist for cleaning the cache
4.Outdated version of MIUI or firmware
Xiaomi regularly releases updates for its smartphones, but many users ignore them for fear of bugs. Meanwhile, outdated firmware is one of the main causes of brakes. For example, MIUI 12 had a memory management problem that led to lags in multitasking. MIUI 13 fixed it, but only for devices that received an update.
How to check the relevance of the firmware:
- 📲 Go to Settings. → The phone. → Updating the system.
- 🔄 Click Check for Updates.
- 📅 If the last update was more 2-3 Months ago, it’s time to update.
What to do if the update does not come:
- 🌍 Check the firmware region: sometimes updates are delayed for specific countries. → Additionally. → Region (but it will reset the phone!).
- 🔧 Install the update manually: Download the latest firmware for your model from the official website MIUI Downloads. Place the file in the phone's root folder (not in the folder!). Go to Settings → The phone. → Updating the system → Three points. → Select a firmware file.
Fastboot
TWRP
What if the phone brakes even more after the update?
5. Included developer functions and debugging
Many users include a developer mode to fine-tune the phone (for example, to speed up animations or unlock the bootloader).However, some options activated in this menu can significantly slow down the system.
- 🔄 Do not turn off the screen during charging - leads to overheating and trottling of the processor.
- 📡 Debugging by USB — It is constantly stored in the memory of the adb service, which consumes resources.
- 🎮 Fictitious Locations – Conflicts with Geolocation Services.
If you are not sure what settings you touched, just reset all the developer options to standard (button at the top of the menu).
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Even if you haven’t manually activated the developer mode, some apps (like Game Turbo or Second Space) can enable it automatically.
6.Viruses, malware and “junk” applications
Xiaomi allows the installation of applications from unknown sources (APK), which opens the door to viruses and adverts. Even if you did not download anything suspicious, malicious code could penetrate through:
- 📱 Pirate Games or Modified Games APK (For example, with ACMarket or BlackMod).
- 🔗 Links in messengers (WhatsApp, Telegram) with the offer of “free” services.
- 📎 Investments in letters or SMS (Even from known contacts, if their accounts are hacked).
Signs of infection:
- 📢 Constant advertising in the status line or on top of other applications.
- 🔋 Fast battery discharge (virus mine cryptocurrency in the background).
- 📡 Unknown Internet connections (check in Settings) → SIM-maps and networks → Traffic).
- 📱 The phone is warming for no apparent reason.
How to check and clean:
- 🛡️ Install antivirus (Malwarebytes, Bitdefender or built-in security from Xiaomi).
- 🔍 Run a full scan.
- 🗑️ Remove all suspicious apps (check the list in Settings) → Annexes → All applications, sorted by installation date).
- 🔧 Reset network settings (Settings) → SIM-maps and networks → Resetting network settings if the virus could have been substituted DNS.
⚠️ Warning: Some viruses masquerade as system applications (e.g. com.android.system) If the antivirus finds a threat but can't remove it, make a complete reset of the phone to factory settings.
7. problems with the drive (capacity, wear, errors)
If all the software methods are tried and the phone is still slowing down, the hardware is to blame. Most often the problems are with the internal drive (eMMC or UFS), over time, the memory cells wear out, there are broken sectors, and the system begins to stumble when reading / writing data.
How to check the state of the drive:
- 📊 Install the app AIDA64 DevCheck.
- 🔍 Check the Warehouse section – if the value of the drive is below 90%, it is a worrying sign.
- ⚡ Run a read/write speed test (in the same utilities). 5.1 norm — 200-300 MB/s, for UFS 2.1 — 500-800 MB/s if the speed is lower in 2-3 Once again, the storage device has degraded.
What to do:
- 🔧 If the phone is warranty - bring to the service center (the problem can be covered by a warranty).
- 🛠️ For older devices 2-3 Try to flash your phone over Fastboot (sometimes it temporarily restores the storage capacity).
- 🆕 If nothing works, get ready to change your phone. eMMC/UFS It is usually inexpedient (the cost is comparable to buying a new smartphone).
It is possible to prevent the wear of the drive:
- 📵 Avoid completely draining the battery (this causes sudden shutdown and file system damage).
- 🔋 Do not use cheap charging – voltage surges harm both the battery and memory.
- 🗑️ Clean the cache regularly (see Section 3).
8.CPU overheating and trottling
Xiaomi smartphones (especially on Snapdragon 7xx/8xx series processors) are prone to overheating, which causes trottling - a forced performance decline to protect against damage, as a result of which the phone begins to "lay down" even in simple tasks.
Causes of overheating:
- 🎮 Long-term gaming sessions (especially in Genshin Impact, PUBG Mobile).
- 📹 Video recording in 4K streaming.
- 🔋 Fast charging (especially if you use your phone while charging).
- 🌡️ High ambient temperature (for example, the phone was lying in the sun).
- 🛠️ Faulty battery (blown or worn-out).
How to diagnose:
- 🌡️ Install. AIDA64 And check the temperature of the processor in the Sensors section. 40-45°C in plain, until 60-70°C under load. 80°C is the critical value.
- 📊 Turn on the display. FPS Temperatures in games via Game Turbo (Settings) → Special facilities → Game Turbo).
Ways to lower the temperature:
- 🧊 Remove the case (especially silicone – it worsens the heat sink).
- 🔋 Do not use your phone while charging.
- 🎮 Limit it. FPS in games (select 30 or 45 in the graphics settings) FPS 60).
- ⚡ Enable Performance Mode in Game Turbo (paradoxically, but sometimes it helps spread the load better).
- 🛠️ If the battery is swelling, replace it immediately.
⚠️ Warning: If the phone overheats even in a simple (for example, when watching a video), this may indicate a malfunction of the motherboard or thermal paste.