What to do if Xiaomi Redmi 8 started to lag and brake: the full guide

The Xiaomi Redmi 8 is one of the most popular budget smartphones, but even it is not immune to performance problems. If your device is slow to respond to touch, stutter when scrolling through a menu or suddenly “hang” for a few seconds, these are sure signs that the system is failing. 80% of the time, the reasons are not in the hardware, but in the software settings that can be fixed yourself.

In this article, we’ll look at all the possible causes of lags on Redmi 8, from overloaded memory to firmware conflicts, and give you step-by-step instructions to fix each of them. We’ll focus on the hidden features of MIUI that most users ignore but can radically speed up your phone. If you’ve tried to reboot your device and it hasn’t worked, read on.

1. Diagnosis: how to determine the cause of lags

Before you start the "treatment", you need to understand what exactly is slowing down your Redmi 8.

• 📱 Slow animation – transitions between screens occur in jerks.
• ⏳ Hanging – the phone does not respond to touch for 5 to 30 seconds.
• 🔄 Spontaneous reboots — especially when running heavy applications.
• 🔋 Overheating – the body becomes hot even under minimal load.

To narrow down the range of possible problems, perform a quick diagnosis:

1. Run Settings → About Phone → MIUI version and press 5 times on “Kerole” This will open the CIT menu (Xiaomi internal test).
2. Select Single Test → CPU Stress and wait for the results. If the test shows errors, the problem is in the processor or overheating.
3. Check the free memory in Settings → Memory. If less than 1 GB, the reason is a lack of RAM.

If after diagnosis it is revealed that the CPU is loaded 90%+ in simple or free memory less than 10%, move to the next section. Otherwise, the problem may lie in the hardware (see section 6).

2. Cleaning up memory and cache: the first step to speeding up

The most common cause of brakes is clogged memory. Redmi 8 has only 2-4 GB of RAM and 32-64 GB of internal memory, so even 10-15 installed applications can create a critical load.

Step 1. Clean up the app cache

• 🧹 Go to Settings. → Annexes → Application management.
• 🔍 Sort by size (click on three dots in the upper right corner).
• 🗑️ For each application >100 MB, click Clear Cache (not data!).

Step 2: Delete unnecessary files

• 📁 Open Files → Cleanup (the Garbage tab).
• 🎵 Delete temporary files, duplicate photos and downloads older than 3 months.
• 📥 Check the Download folder — often gigabytes of unnecessary stuff are accumulated there APK.

Step 3: Optimizing the Autoboot

Many apps run when you turn on your phone and hang in the background, consuming RAM.

1. Go to Settings → Battery and Performance → Autostart Management.
2. Turn off auto-run for instant messengers (except the main one), games and underused programs.
3. In the Virus Protection → Optimization section, click “Clean” (this will close the background processes).

If after cleaning the lags remained - go to the system settings.

3. set up MIUI for maximum performance

MIUI is Xiaomi's brand shell, which is known for its heavy interface, but it has hidden features that can speed things up by 30 to 50 percent.

Cancel animations

The transition animations are beautiful, but the weak phones slow down.

1. Activate Developer Mode: Settings → About Phone → MIUI version (click 7 times).
2. Back to Settings → Additionally. → For developers.
3. Find the items: Scale of window animation → No animation Size of transition animation → No animation Duration of animation → Disable

Switch to Easy Mode

MIUI has a simplified interface for weak devices:

1. Go to Settings → Special Opportunities → Easy Mode.
2. Turn on the option and select “Simplified Home Screen”.
3. Reboot the phone.

Background activity shutdown

MIUI aggressively caches applications that eat up RAM to limit this:

1. Settings → Battery → Select mode to save charge (even if the battery does not run down).
2. In Settings → Applications → Permissions → Autorun, turn off background activity for all applications except instant messengers.

💡

If after disabling the animation, the phone reacts faster, but the interface seems “sharp” – return the animation scale to 0.5x instead of completely shutting down.

4. Update firmware and reset settings

Outdated firmware or conflicting updates are a common cause of lag. Redmi 8 officially supports MIUI 12.5 (based on Android 10), but many users experience bugs after updates.

Verification of the relevance of firmware

1. Go to Settings → About the phone → System update.
2. If you have an update, install it, but only through Wi-Fi.
3. If there are no updates, but the lags appeared after the last update - try to roll back (see below).

Resetting settings to factory

If the phone started to brake after updating or installing apps, a soft reset (without data loss) will help:

1. Go to Settings → About the phone → Reset settings.
2. Select Reset all settings (not “Erase all data!”).
3. Confirm the action. The phone will restart, but the files and applications will remain.

Firmware rollback (if the lags appeared after the update)

If the problem started after the MIUI update, you can return the old version.

1. Download the necessary firmware from the official Xiaomi website (choose Redmi 8 and Global region).
2. Rename the file to update.zip and place it in the root of the phone’s memory.
3. Go to Settings → About Phone → System Update → Three-point → Select a firmware file.

If the reset and upgrade didn’t help, the problem could be in the hardware.

5.Iron check: battery, memory and overheating

If the software methods have failed, it is worth checking the physical condition of the phone. Redmi 8 is particularly prone to three hardware problems:

Battery wear and tear

The 5,000 mAh battery degrades over time, and if it wears more than 30%, the phone starts to brake at a low charge (below 20%).

1. Enter the dialer code ##4636##.
2. Select Battery Information and see the Wear Level parameter.
3. If the value is >30%, it is time to change the battery.

To check the temperature:

1. Install the CPU Monitor app from Google Play.
2. Run a stress test, and if the temperature is above 65 °C, clean the phone.

Problems with internal memory

If the phone is stuck on the logo or spontaneously restarts, there may be a flash memory error.

1. Connect Redmi 8 to your PC and start the cmd (command line).
2. Enter the command: adb shell dumpsys diskstats
3. If the answer has I/O error, the memory is damaged.

💡

If the phone overheats to 70°C+ in plain, that's critical! Turn it off immediately and let it cool. Continued use could damage the motherboard.

Radical measures: flashing and replacement of components

If none of the previous methods worked, there are extreme measures that should only be taken if you are confident in your actions or are willing to go to a service center.

Installation of custom firmware

Stock MIUI can be slowed down by unnecessary services, and the alternative is lightweight firmware like:

• 📱 Pixel Experience (Pure Android without a Pixel Experience) MIUI).
• 🚀 LineageOS (stable and fast)
• ⚡ Havoc-OS (with additional optimization features)

The installation will require:

1. Unlock the bootloader through the Mi Unlock Tool.
2. Install TWRP Recovery (Castom Recovery)
3. Switch the selected firmware through TWRP.

Replacement of thermopaste

If the Redmi 8 overheats and brakes, the problem may be with the dried thermal paste.

1. Take the phone apart (you need a plastic mediator and a hair dryer to soften the glue).
2. Clean the old paste with the processor alcohol.
3. Apply a new thermopaste (such as Arctic MX-4) with a thin layer.

Battery replacement

If the battery is swollen or its capacity has fallen below 70%, it must be replaced. The cost of the original battery for the Redmi 8 is about 1500-2000 rubles.

• 🔋 The phone turns off at 20-30% charge.
• ⚡ Charging is jerky or not at all.
• 🌡️ The battery warms strongly when charged.

💡

Before replacing the battery, check if it is swelling. To do this, put the phone on a flat surface and spin - if the case is "playing", the battery needs to be changed urgently!

7. Alternative solutions: if nothing helps

If you’ve tried everything but Redmi 8 still does, consider these options:

Using the phone in safe mode

Safe mode only loads system applications, and if it doesn't have lags, the problem is in one of the apps installed.

1. Press the power button before the off menu appears.
2. Press and hold “Switch off” until a request for safe mode appears.

Purchase of an external storage device

If internal memory is overloaded, transfer some of the data to a microSD (up to 512 GB).

1. Insert a memory card (SanDisk A1) recommended.
2. Go to Settings. → Memory. → Default storage and select SD-map.
3. Move apps through Settings → Apps → [Select App] → Storage → Change.

Cloud services instead of local storage

If your phone is slowing down due to a lot of photos/video, transfer them to the cloud:

• 🖼️ Google Photos is an automatic download of compressed copies.
• ☁️ Mi Cloud – 5GB free for Xiaomi owners.
• 📁 Yandex Drive – 10 GB at registration.

Buying a new phone

If the Redmi 8 is released in 2019, its "iron" is morally outdated.Consider upgrading to:

FAQ: Frequent questions about lags on Redmi 8