Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones often face the unexpected effect of creating selfies: on the preview screen, the image looks like you used to see yourself in the mirror, but after saving the picture, the picture “turns” into the usual position for others. This behavior causes bewilderment among users who expect to see in the final photo exactly what they saw on the display at the time of shooting, this discrepancy between expectation and reality is often perceived as a software failure or bug, although in fact it is a regular function of the Android operating system and the shell of MIUI or HyperOS.
Understanding how SLR works is critical for bloggers, video tutorials, or just want to make it look natural. In standard mode, the front camera displays a mirror image for ease of framing, but saves the file in the “real” form so that the text on the clothes is read correctly and the asymmetry of the face does not cut the eyes of others. However, many users prefer mirror imagery, because it seems more familiar and aesthetic.
In this article, we will take a closer look at the physics of the process, explain the difference between the preview and the final file, and provide step-by-step instructions on how to change settings for all of the Chinese giant’s current smartphone models, where to look for hidden switches in the camera interface, how to fix the situation if the photo is already saved incorrectly, and what alternative methods are available for processing images.
What is SLR and why does the camera turn the photo over?
The phenomenon we see is deeply rooted in the psychology of perception and the technical limitations of early digital cameras. When you look in a mirror, your brain gets used to a particular arrangement of facial features. Any deviation from that mirror map seems odd or even unattractive. A front-facing camera, in preview mode, emulates a mirror to make it convenient for you to straighten your hair or align your clothes. However, technically, the camera sensor captures the image as it is seen by a third-party observer.
Why does the final photo flip? This is to avoid cognitive dissonance when other people view photos. If all selfies were mirrored, the inscription on your T-shirt would be reversed and the hair partition would be on the wrong side. Android defaults to using EXIF metadata or software (turns) the matrix when saving to bring the image to the "real" look. This is especially important for video calls and document scans, where the orientation of text and objects should be absolute.
⚠️ Note: In some older versions of the firmware MIUI The setting may have been called “Save Preview” or other logical meaning, so always check the result with a test shot after changing the settings.
Xiaomi’s modern image processing algorithms allow users to decide which option they prefer. Engineers have provided flexible settings that overlap standard system behavior. It’s important to understand that turning on or off this feature does not affect the quality of the matrix or light sensitivity, changing only the geometric orientation of the pixels in the final file.
Where to find mirror selfie settings in MIUI and HyperOS
The interface of the standard Camera app in the MIUI shells and the new HyperOS has been changing, but the logic of the settings has remained fairly consistent. To find the right switch, you need to open the camera app and go to front-facing mode, and that's where the specific face-processing options become active.
In the top corner of the screen (usually right), there's a menu button, often denoted by three horizontal bars or a setting icon, and clicking on it, you're in the general settings menu, and you're going to look for a section that's specifically related to the front camera, and it can be called differently in different firmware versions, but most often it's just a Settings item inside the camera menu or a separate tab.
The key parameter we're interested in is usually called "Mirror front camera" or "Save preview." In the English version of the firmware, it's designated as Mirror front camera or Save selfie as preview. If this switch is activated, the saved photo will look exactly like it did on the screen while shooting. If it's turned off, the photo will be "real" (inverted relative to the preview).
- 📸 Open the Camera app and switch to the front module.
- ⚙️ Click on the menu (three bars) in the upper right corner of the screen.
- 🔍 Select the "Settings" item (cog icon).
- 🔄 Find the “Mirror Front Camera” option and activate or deactivate it as needed.
It is worth noting that on some global firmware versions, this item may be hidden deeper or absent from the basic interface if the manufacturer decides to standardize the behavior of the camera to the requirements of a particular region, in such cases, it is recommended to check for system updates or use alternative configuration methods, which will be discussed below.
Step-by-step instructions: how to turn on and off the reflection
The process of changing the image orientation settings does not require superuser (Root) rights or a connection to a computer. All manipulations are performed directly on the smartphone screen. Below is a detailed instruction that will help you adjust the camera to your preferences.
First, make sure you're in photo mode rather than video, although settings are often synchronized. After you go to the settings menu, carefully review the list. The item you're looking for may be in the "Additional" or "Extended Settings" group. In newer versions of HyperOS, the interface has become more minimalist, and the switch is sometimes brought to the first level of the camera settings menu.
☑️ Checking camera settings
When you change the slider, make sure you take a control shot, compare it to what you see on the screen. If the text on the clothes reads correctly (from left to right), but looks inverted relative to your usual reflection in the mirror, then the "real" view mode is on. If the text is reversed and the face looks familiar, mirror saving is on.
| Switch status | Screen view (Preview) | View of the saved photo | Readability of text |
|---|---|---|---|
| On (Mirror) | Reflected | Reflected | Overturned |
| Off (Standard) | Reflected | Real (not reflected) | Normal. |
| Video mode | Reflected | Depends on the model. | More often than not normal |
| Activated. | Like in a mirror. | Like in a mirror. | Right to left. |
| Deactivated. | Like in a mirror. | How people see | Left to right |
| Auto (by default) | Like in a mirror. | How people see | Left to right |
Video recording on the front camera in MIUI is often saved by default in the "real" form, regardless of the photo settings, so that when editing and superimposing effects there are no problems with the orientation of objects.
Why the settings may be confused or absent
Users sometimes complain that after a system update, the desired switch disappears or stops working.This can be due to changes in Android security policy or bugs of a particular firmware version. System updates often reset user preferences to factory values, so after a MIUI or HyperOS update, the camera settings are worth checking.
Another reason is the use of third-party camera apps, where if you installed a program from Google Play (like Open Camera or Camera MX), it will ignore the system settings of the native app and use its own processing algorithms, in which case you should look for the switch already in the menu of the third-party application, usually in the “Turn” or “Orientation” section.
⚠️ Note: Using modified versions of the camera application (GCam ports) can cause the mirror function to malfunction, as these applications often have their own processing rules. EXIF-data.
Regional features are also worth considering: in Chinese firmware versions (CN ROM), the camera logic may differ from the global (Global ROM), and in Chinese versions, the behavior in which the default photos are saved mirrored is more common, since in the domestic market this is considered the preferred standard for selfies.