How to take a screenshot on Xiaomi Redmi 9A: all the ways from standard to secret

Xiaomi Redmi 9A remains one of the most popular budget smartphones even years after its release — and not surprisingly: reliable hardware, long support for updates and simple but functional MIUI firmware. But many users still do not know that this phone can take screenshots not only in the standard way. In this article, we will analyze all possible methods, from classic to hidden chips, which are not written even in the official manuals.

You'll learn how to save screens with physical buttons, gestures, voice commands, and even ADB (for advanced ones), and how to save screenshots, edit them right in the gallery, and why sometimes you can't get a screenshot the first time, and if you just bought a Redmi 9A or just want to master it 100%, this is the guide for you.

1. Standard method: power and volume buttons

This is the most reliable and versatile method that works on all Xiaomi smartphones, including the Redmi 9A.

1. Open on the screen what you want to capture (message, page in the browser, map, etc.).
2. At the same time, press the power button (right) and the volume reduction button (left).
3. Hold them for 1-2 seconds until you hear the characteristic shutter sound of the camera and see the animation of the save.

⚠️ Warning: If you press the buttons too long (more than 3 seconds), a forced reboot of the phone will work. 9A This is especially true because of sensitive sensors.

Where to look for a finished screenshot? It is automatically saved in the Gallery → Screenshots folder (or DCIM → Screenshots in the file manager). The file will be in.png format with the resolution corresponding to your screen (usually 720×1600 for Redmi 9A).

Press buttons strictly simultaneously |Do not release to the beep |Check the save notification |Open gallery for editing-->

2. Screenshot with three fingers (MIUI gesture)

The MIUI firmware feature is the ability to take a screenshot with a simple swipe three fingers down, which is convenient when holding the phone with one hand and pressing the buttons with the second is uncomfortable.

How to turn on:

1. Go to Settings → Additional settings → Buttons and gestures → Screenshot gestures.
2. Activate the swipe switch with three fingers.
3. (Optional) Set the swipe direction down or up.

Now just swipe three fingers from top to bottom (or bottom to top if you change the settings) and the screenshot will be saved automatically, and a quick edit panel will appear at the top of the screen.

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If the gesture doesn't work, check if the protective glass or cover is disturbing. On the Redmi 9A, the sensor sometimes doesn't recognize touches on the edges of the screen.

⚠️ Note: this method may conflict with navigation gestures (if you use swipes instead of buttons), in which case, turn off the screenshot gesture or reconfigure the direction.

3. Google Voice Assistant or XiaoAI

If the buttons are jammed or your hands are busy, you can take a voice screenshot, either with the built-in XiaoAI (Chinese assistant Xiaomi) or Google Assistant.

Method 1: Google Assistant

1. Activate the assistant with your voice (OK, Google) or press the Home button (if you use navigation buttons).
2. Tell the command to “take a screenshot” or “Photography the screen.”
3. Confirm the action in the window that appears.

Method 2: via XiaoAI (Chinese firmware only)

Press the Power button for 1-2 seconds to call the assistant, and say in Chinese: "" (jiétú - "screenshot"). On global versions of MIUI, this method, unfortunately, does not work.

4. Screenshot in games and applications with lock

Some apps (banking, secure messaging, games) block the screenshot for security reasons, and Redmi 9A shows this as a notice saying, “Screenshots are forbidden.”

How to get around the restriction:

• 📱 Use the second phone: take a picture of the main device screen on another smartphone.
• 🖥️ Connect to the PC: through ADB or programs like Scrcpy can take a screenshot to bypass locks.
• 🎥 Screen recording: Enable recording (Notification Panel) → Screen recording, then extract the frame from the video.

⚠️ Attention: bypassing screenshot blocking in banking applications (Sberbank, Tinkoff, etc.) may violate security rules!

5. Editing and managing screenshots

After you take a screenshot of Redmi 9A, you see a thumbnail in the bottom right corner of the screen.

• ✏️ Edit: crop, add text, draw arrows or blur part of the image.
• 📤 Share: send to the messenger, cloud or mail.
• 🗑️ Delete: If you don't need a screenshot.
• 🔍 Text recognition: Google Lens function or MIUI Text Scanner will extract text from the image.

Redmi 9A has a Scrolling Screenshot feature in MIUI 12.5+, which automatically captures long pages (such as chats or websites) into a single file. To activate, click on the thumbnail and select Scrolling after a standard screenshot.

Where the screenshots are stored:

• 📁 /storage/emulated/0/Pictures/Screenshots/ — mainfolder.
• 🖼️ The Gallery has a separate album "Screenshots».
• ☁️ If sync with Mi Cloud is enabled, copies are saved to the cloud.

6. Screenshot Problems on Redmi 9A and Their Solutions

Sometimes you can't take a screenshot the first time, and we'll look at the mistakes and how to fix them.

⚠️ Note: If after the update MIUI Screenshot gestures stopped working, reset gesture settings in Settings → System system → Resetting settings → Reset your gesture settings. It won't delete your data, but it will return the standard combinations.

If none of these methods work, check if guest mode or children mode is activated, and some MIUI functions are blocked.

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Redmi 9A with MIUI 13+ has a feature called “Private Mode” for screenshots: they are not saved in the gallery, but sent directly to the protected folder. Enabled in Settings → Privacy → Confidential Mode.

FAQ: Frequent questions about screenshots on Xiaomi Redmi 9A