How to remove date from a photo on your Xiaomi phone

Modern Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones have powerful cameras that can take professional shots. However, many users are annoyed by automatically adding a date and time stamp directly to the image, a feature that is enabled by default in some versions of MIUI or HyperOS firmware, can spoil the composition of the frame and require additional editing.

Fortunately, Android provides flexible tools to manage this setting. You don't have to be a technician to change the settings. You just need to know where the menu switch is hiding. In this article, we'll go into detail on all the ways to disable watermarks, and we'll also explain how to delete the date from the images you've already taken.

Sometimes the problem is not with the basic camera settings, but with specific shooting modes or third-party applications. We'll look at different scenarios, including using a standard interface and third-party software. The right setup will allow you to save the original look of the photos without unnecessary inscriptions.

Disabling the date stamp in a standard camera

The easiest and most effective way is to change the settings of the built-in Camera app. The interface may vary slightly depending on the version of MIUI or HyperOS, but the logic remains the same. You need to find the section responsible for additional shooting parameters.

Open the camera app and tap the three horizontal bars in the top right corner of the screen. In the menu that appears, select Settings. Scroll down to the "Additional" or "Camera Settings" section, and that's where the switch is that activates or deactivates the watermarks.

Find an option called "Time Mark" or "Date and Time." If it's ticked or the slider is active, just click on it to turn off the feature. After that, all new pictures will be saved in their pure form. The changes will take effect instantly, you don't need to reboot the device.

It's worth noting that in some regions or on global firmware versions, this feature may be hidden or renamed. If you don't find a direct option, check the Watermarks section. Sometimes the date stamp is combined with the phone model logo into one common parameter.

Managing watermarks and model logo

Beyond the date, users often come across the word "Shot on Xiaomi" or the name of a particular model, such as the Redmi Note 12.These elements are also watermarked and managed in adjacent menus.

In the same camera settings menu, look for the option "Watermarks." When you go to this section, you will see several options. Here you can separately manage the device logo and time stamp. To completely clean the frame, you need to turn off all active items in this list.

Note that in Portrait mode or when using certain filters, the system may automatically suggest adding a stylish frame or signature. Check the preview carefully before you lower the shutter so as not to capture any extra graphics.

Some users prefer to leave the model logo but remove the date. Xiaomi's flexibility allows. Just leave the "Device Model" option on, but make sure the "Time Mark" switch is off.

Features of the modes of Profi and Video

Pro mode provides manual control of exposure, focus and white balance settings, in which watermark settings may behave differently, and often the settings set in normal photo mode do not automatically apply to professional photography.

When you switch to Pro mode, go back to the settings through the menu. Make sure there's no time stamp. Some versions of the interface have global settings, but others have customizations for each shooting mode. Consistency is important for comfort.

When recording videos, the situation is similar. If you shoot videos and notice a date on them, check the settings of the video mode. Often users forget that there may be different configuration subdivisions for photos and videos, especially in older versions of MIUI.

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Use Pro mode to disable all automatic enhancements, including stamps, to ensure that no hidden setting adds extra graphics to your creativity.

Also worth mentioning is Documents Mode, which is that when scanning texts, the system often automatically adds the scan date to the angle of the frame for archiving, which is usually located in the top toolbar inside the scan mode, rather than in the general camera settings.

Use of third-party applications for shooting

If Xiaomi’s standard camera seems overloaded or doesn’t provide you with the necessary control, you can use third-party software. Apps like Open Camera or Google Camera (GCam) give you full control over what gets into the final image.

In Open Camera, you have to go to the settings (cogs), select Photo Settings, and find Date/Time, and you can select No to completely disable the stamp. This app is completely free and has no ads, making it a great alternative.

Popular among enthusiasts, GCam also allows flexible watermarking. In the About Program and Settings -> Watermark settings, you can remove the tick from the "Enable watermark" box, which is especially true for owners of budget models who want to get the quality of flagships.

Installing third-party software requires permission to access the camera and storage. Modern versions of Android request these rights on first launch. Data security when using trusted applications from the Play Market is guaranteed.

How to delete the date from the already ready photos

If you forgot to turn off the stamp in advance and the date is already captured in the photo, you can't remove it with regular gallery facilities, because it's part of the pixels of the image. However, there are effective methods of retouching. Simple framing is the fastest way if the composition of the frame allows you to lose part of the edge.

For more complicated cases, use retouch tools. The Xiaomi Gallery has a built-in editor. Open a photo, click Change, select More, and find the Lasto tool or Retouch tool. Paint the date carefully, and the algorithms will fill the area with a background color.

For professional results, it's better to use specialized applications like Snapseed or TouchRetouch. In Snapseed, the "Dot" tool works wonders. Scale up by date and swipe through the numbers. The program automatically detects the surrounding background and replaces the text.

It is important to understand the difference between the metadata and the image itself. EXIF-The data of the file, even if you erase it from the image, when you send the photo to messengers, this data can be seen by the recipient in the properties of the file.

Working with EXIF metadata and privacy

Many people confuse the visual stamp on the photo and the technical information sewn into the file. EXIF (Exchangeable Image File Format: Date, time, camera model, GPS-coordinates and exposure settings. EXIF It can, but it won't hide it visually if it's already drawn on pixels.

However, if your goal is privacy, cleaning up EXIF is critical, and when you upload a photo to social networks (VK, Telegram as a file), this data can be accessed. In Telegram, when you send it as “Photo” (compressed), the metadata is deleted automatically, but when you send it as “File” it is stored.

Metadata editors can be used to manage metadata on your phone, and they can completely erase your history, including geolocation, which is useful if you plan to share your photos publicly and don't want to "light up" your location or the exact time you shoot.

⚠️ Attention: Removal EXIF-Once cleaned, you won't be able to know when and where the image was taken using the file's standard properties. Always save the original to the cloud or backup.

Xiaomi’s built-in gallery allows you to view EXIF-Open the photo, click "More" (three dots) and select "Details" and all the technical information will be there. Some third-party galleries have a "Clear Data" function before sending it.

Problems with firmware and third-party launchers

In rare cases, a date stamp may appear due to launcher errors or a specific theme. If you have installed a third-party theme from Themes, it may have its own camera widget settings. Try going back to the standard theme "Classic."

It's also worth checking if you have a third-party camera widget installed on your desktop. Some widgets have their own settings and can duplicate functions, in which case you need to edit the settings of the widget itself, rather than the main application.

If nothing helps, there may have been a crash in the camera app's cache.Cache clearing often solves "stuck" settings issues.Go to Settings → Annexes → All applications → Camera. → Clean up → Clear the cache. It won't delete your photos, just temporary program files.

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Cleaning the Camera app cache is a safe and effective way to fix interface display errors and reset “big” settings without affecting personal files.

In situations where software methods are powerless, you can consider resetting the camera settings to factory settings, which is usually at the bottom of the camera settings menu, which will return all settings to a store-like state, which is guaranteed to remove any strange labels if they were caused by a failure.