How to turn on the age on the camera Xiaomi: a detailed guide with pictures

Xiaomi’s age-reflection feature on smartphones is relatively recent, but it has become a useful tool for many users: it automatically adds age to photos (if a face is recognized), which is especially useful for tracking children’s growth or creating themed albums. However, not everyone knows how to activate and customize this option correctly — it is hidden in the depths of the MIUI menu and can vary depending on the device model and firmware version.

In this article, we’ll look at all the possible ways to turn on age on Xiaomi’s camera, including hidden settings, solutions for older MIUI versions, and workarounds if the feature doesn’t work. You’ll also learn how to calibrate facial recognition to more accurately determine age and which models support this option. If you encounter an “Unable to determine age” error, here you’ll find reasons and ways to fix them.

What is the “Age on Camera” feature and why you need it

The age-recognition feature in photos is part of Xiaomi’s facial recognition technology that analyzes facial features in a picture and roughly determines a person’s age, and the result is displayed as a numeral (e.g., “5 years”) directly in a photo or in a file metadata, which works on artificial intelligence algorithms similar to those used in photo editing applications.

The main advantages of the function:

• 📅 Child growth tracking: automatically captures changes in the child’s appearance in photos, creating a visual chronicle.
• 🎉 Thematic albums: simplifies sorting of photos by age group (for example, for birthdays or family archives).
• 🔍 Search by metadata: in the gallery Xiaomi can search for photos by age indicated in tags.
• 🤖 Integration with AI-services: some applications (e.g. Mi Gallery) use this information to generate collages or slideshows.

It is important to understand that the accuracy of age determination depends on several factors: camera quality, lighting, angle of shooting and even facial expression. In some cases, the algorithm can be mistaken by ±2-3 years, especially in children under 5 years of age or the elderly.

What Xiaomi models support age display

The feature is not available on all Xiaomi devices, and it appeared in MIUI 12 and has been expanded in subsequent versions.

If your model is not on the list, check for the feature experimentally: open the camera, take a face picture and check if the age tag appears in the upper right corner of the preview screen. On some devices (for example, the POCO X5 Pro), the option is activated only after manually turning on in the camera lab.

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On smartphones with a Snapdragon processor 8 Gen 1/2 (for example, Xiaomi 12S Ultra function works more precisely thanks to hardware acceleration AI-task.

Step-by-step: how to turn on the age on the camera

The activation process depends on the version of MIUI and the device model, and below is a universal algorithm that is suitable for most modern Xiaomi smartphones:

1. Open the Camera app on your device.
2. Go to Photo (main camera) or Selfie (front camera) mode.
3. Touch the badge. ⚙️ Settings in the upper right corner of the screen.
4. Scroll down and find the section. AI-function or recognition of persons.
5. Activate the Age Tag (or Age Tag in English firmware) switch.
6. Go back to the picture and take a face test, and your age should be shown as a yellow mark.

If the camera settings do not include the item Show age, try an alternative method:

Open Camera → Settings → Lab |Find the AI Age Detection |Enable the slider |Reboot the camera app-->

On some devices (e.g. Redmi Note 11 Pro+), the feature is hidden behind regional restrictions, in which case changing the firmware region to India or Global through system settings (Settings → Additional → Region) will help.

Adjusting the accuracy of age recognition

To make the algorithm as accurate as possible, follow these guidelines:

• 📸 Lighting: shoot in natural light or use an annular flash. 30-40%.
• 👤 Pose: face should be turned straight to the camera (anface), without tilting or turning the head.
• 👓 Accessories: Remove glasses, caps or scarves that cover part of the face. The algorithm analyzes key points (eyes, nose, mouth).
• 📱 Distance: optimal distance to the camera — 30-50 Too close or far away a position distorts the proportions of the face.

To calibrate recognition on your device:

1. Take 5-10 photos of one person from different angles (face, easy left/right turn).
2. Open the Gallery → Albums → People → and choose the face of this person.
3. Click More → Set up recognition and confirm the correct age manually.

The system will remember your edits and will take them into account in subsequent shootings. Note: calibration is reset after updating the firmware or resetting the camera settings.

Problem Solving: Age is not displayed or is incorrectly defined

If the feature is enabled but age is not shown in photos, check the following points:

Pay special attention to the following nuances:

⚠️ Note: On custom firmware devices (like LineageOS or Pixel Experience), the age feature may not work due to the lack of proprietary Xiaomi libraries.

If the problem persists, try resetting the camera settings:

Settings → Applications → Application Management → Camera → Storage → Clear data

After resetting, all user settings (including face calibration) will be deleted, but the age feature must be re-enabled.

Alternative ways to add age to photos

If your device does not support the built-in feature, use one of the alternative methods:

• 📱 Third-party apps: Age Camera (Google Play) - adds an age stamp to any photos. FaceApp - determines the age and offers editing. MiXplorer - allows you to edit EXIF-hand-marking.
• 🖥️ PC editing: Use Adobe Lightroom to add a text tag. In ExifTool, you can change the metadata of a photo by adding an Age field.
• 🤖 Google Photos: Upload photos to Google Photos and use the Face Search function – the system automatically groups the pictures by age (approximately).

Automation via MacroDroid can be used to automatically add age when shooting on supported devices:

1. Create a macro with the trigger "New photo in the gallery".
2. Add the "Run Task" action using the Age Camera in the background.
3. Configure the saved processed photo in a separate folder.

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Third-party age apps can send your photos to external servers.

Tips for using the age function

To make the most of this feature, follow the tips from Xiaomi’s experienced users:

• 📅 Create a separate album in the gallery for photos with age marks, which will make it easier to find and create collages.
• 🔄 Regularly update the firmware: in new versions MIUI The algorithm of recognition is improved (for example, in the MIUI 14 error decreased by 15% compared to MIUI 12).
• 📊 Use data for analysis: export the metadata of the photo (via MiXplorer) to the CSV and plot the growth of the child.
• 🔒 Configure privacy: disable uploading photos to the cloud if you do not want age tags stored on Xiaomi servers.

For advanced users, if you can work with ADB, you can manually activate hidden camera settings.

adb shell settings put global camera_ai_age_enabled 1

It will force the age function to be activated even on unofficially supported devices, and be careful that the wrong ADB commands can disrupt the camera.

FAQ: Frequent questions about age feature on Xiaomi