Xiaomi’s current smartphones, including the popular Redmi and Poco series, are equipped with high-resolution cameras. Images taken on 48, 64 or even 108 megapixel arrays are incredibly detailed, but take up a significant amount of internal memory. Image compression is becoming a critical process for users who often share media files through instant messengers or want to save space.
Users often experience a situation where one photo weighs 10-20 megabytes, making it impossible to send quickly over the mobile Internet. The MIUI or HyperOS Android operating system offers built-in tools for working with the gallery, but they are not always obvious. Understanding the principles of compression will help you effectively manage the storage of the device.
In this guide, we’ll break down all the available methods, from standard system functions to the use of specialized applications. You’ll learn how to change the resolution of a shot, convert it to a lighter format, and set up the camera to automatically create optimized copies. An 80-90% reduction in file weight often occurs without any visible loss of quality on the smartphone screen.
Built-in editing tools in the MIUI Gallery
The standard "Gallery" application in Xiaomi smartphones has a hidden functionality that allows you to change the image parameters without installing additional software. This method is the most secure and does not require an Internet connection. To start working, you need to open the desired picture and click on the edit button.
In the menu that opens, you should select a cropping or resizing tool, which is often indicated by the icon of a rectangle with arrows, where the user can manually set new resolution parameters, for example, reduce the picture to the standard 1920×1080 or 1280×720.
After the change in geometric dimensions, the system will offer to save the result as a new copy or replace the original.
⚠️ Note: When you save the original photo on top of the original, the high-resolution original photo will be lost without the possibility of recovery through the standard cart, unless cloud sync is enabled.
Additionally, the editor can reduce the quality of the save, if this option is available in your version of the shell. Even a minimal zoom reduction of 10-15% visually almost imperceptible on the phone screen, but gives a tangible gain in megabytes.
☑️ Pre-editing checks
Set up camera settings to save space
So that you don't have to shrink the size of the photo on your Android Xiaomi Redmi phone after each shot, it's advisable to set the camera up in advance. The Camera app settings have a lot of parameters that affect the final file size. First of all, pay attention to the aspect ratio and shooting modes.
High Resolution or 108MP creates huge files that are rarely needed in everyday life. Turn off this mode for normal shooting by switching to standard mode, which uses pixel binning technology (dot combining), which gives a high-quality picture of 3-5 MB instead of 20-30 MB.
Also worth checking is the save format settings, some models support the HEIF or HEIC format, which provides better compression while maintaining quality compared to the classic JPEG. Switching to this format saves up to 50% of disk space.
What is the difference between JPEG and HEIF?
Don't forget about the AI Improvements feature, which, although it makes the colors brighter, sometimes it makes the file size bigger because of the complex noise processing, and you can experimentally determine if that parameter affects the weight of your images in a particular lighting scenario.
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Turning off 108MP and switching to standard shooting mode is the most effective way to prevent memory overflow in the future.
Using Online Services for Compression
If the built-in tools don't work, online compressors come to the rescue, a method that's convenient because it doesn't require app installation, but necessitates having an active Internet connection. Popular services like TinyPNG or CompressJPEG run right on Chrome or MI Browser.
The way these services work is by cleverly removing the extra color data that the human eye barely notices, so you upload a photo, the server processes it, and you suggest you download an optimized version, a process called lossy compression, but the losses are usually minimal.
For Xiaomi users, it is important to consider the limits of free versions of such services. Often you can only process 20 images at a time or files up to 5 MB. However, for the one-time task of reducing the size of several important photos, this is ideal.
⚠️ Please note: Do not upload photos of documents, passport data or images to public online services, as you transfer files to third parties.
The processing speed depends on the speed of your Wi-Fi or mobile connection. With a weak signal, the download and download process can take longer than the editing itself in the gallery.
Specialized compressor applications
For regular work with large volumes of photos, you can install a specialized application from the Google Play store. Programs like “Image Size”, “Photo & Picture Resizer” or “QReduce Lite” provide advanced control over compression parameters, which allows you to set a target file size in kilobytes, which is important for uploading photos to government services sites or visa centers.
In such applications, you can flexibly adjust the DPI (dots per inch) and percentage of quality. For example, posting a photo on a site often requires a photo weighing strictly up to 200 KB. The application automatically selects the compression ratio to meet this limit, maintaining the maximum possible clarity.
Most compressors support batch processing, and you can pick 50 photos from Redmi and reduce them in a few clicks, which saves you a lot of time compared to manually processing each image.
Some advanced utilities allow you to save the original aspect ratio or add watermarks. When choosing an application, pay attention to the permissions it requests - access to the gallery is necessary, but access to contacts or a microphone is suspicious.
Comparison of formats: JPEG, PNG and WebP
Understanding the difference between file formats will help you choose the right type of save. Xiaomi smartphones are default shoots in JPEG, but when editing or converting, you can choose a different format. Each of them has its own compression features and application areas.
The PNG format uses lossless compression, which is ideal for screenshots, graphics and images with text, but the weight of such files for photos will always be large. JPEG, on the contrary, sacrifices some data for small size, which is great for photos.
Google’s WebP format is becoming more popular in the Android ecosystem, delivering better quality than JPEG at a smaller file size, and many modern apps and browsers are perfectly supportive of the format, making it a preferred climical format for web publishing.
| Format | Type of compression | Transparency | File weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| JPEG | Lost. | No. | Medium. |
| PNG | No loss. | Yes. | Big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big big |
| WebP | Both types. | Yes. | Small. |
| HEIF | Effective. | Yes. | Very small. |
When converting from PNG to JPEG, it is important to keep an eye on the appearance of artifacts to reduce size. If there is text in the photo, it can become unreadable when compressed strongly, in such cases it is better to leave PNG or use moderate quality settings.
Lifehacks: Compression through messengers
The fastest and lazy way to reduce the size of a photo on Android is to use instant messengers. Telegram, WhatsApp and Viber apps have built-in compression algorithms that work when sending an image, a method that often helps when you need to send a photo urgently, and it does not pass because of the size.
To implement this method, create a chat with yourself (Favorites in Telegram or own number in WhatsApp). Send the original photo there. The messenger will automatically compress the image. After that, just open the photo and save it to the gallery of the device.
Telegram can adjust the compression ratio. If you send a photo as a File, the quality will remain the same. If you send it as a Photo, you will use standard compression. WhatsApp has an "HD" button that you need not press if your goal is to maximize weight loss.
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When sent via WhatsApp without an HD button, the compression will be very strong, which can make text in a photo unreadable. Use this method only for landscapes and portraits.
This method is good because it does not require any extra software installation and works even with a weak smartphone processor, since the main load falls on the messenger servers. However, metadata (date of shooting, geolocation) is often deleted when such a transfer is made.