Touch Assistant in Xiaomi Redmi Note: A Complete Guide to Features and Setup

If you own a Xiaomi Redmi Note smartphone (any model from Note 7 to the current Note 13 Pro)+), You've probably noticed on the screen a small translucent circle or a strip that appears when you make certain gestures. MIUI, It's designed to make it easier to navigate the interface with one hand, but many users either don't know about its capabilities or turn it off because they think it's useless, and yet, using it wisely can make it much faster.

In this article, we will discuss in detail what the touch assistant in Redmi Note is, what tasks it solves, how to customize it for your needs, and why some users prefer it to standard Android gestures.

What is a sensory assistant and why do you need it?

Touch Assistant (originally Floating Touch or Assistive Ball) is a virtual button that floats over all applications and interfaces. MIUI. It was introduced by Xiaomi as an alternative to classic navigation gestures and hardware buttons.The main goal is to make it easier to control a smartphone with one hand, especially on devices with large screens (from 6.5 inches and above).

It's basically the same as AssistiveTouch on the iPhone, but with advanced Android capabilities.

• 🔙 Return to the previous screen (analogue of the "Back" button")
• 🏠 Go to the main screen (analogue of the home button")
• 📱 Open the list of recent applications (similar to the button "Recently")
• 🔄 Quickly switch between applications
• 🛠️ Access additional functions (screenshot, screen lock, etc.)

It’s important to understand that touch assistant isn’t just a replacement for standard navigation buttons, it offers additional features that are not available in basic Android, such as quickly opening the notification bar, launching a voice assistant, or even creating custom gestures for specific actions.

How to turn on and off the sensory assistant

By default, the touch assistant can be disabled on new Xiaomi Redmi Note devices. To activate it, follow the following steps:

1. Open the Settings.
2. Go to the Additional Settings section.
3. Choose the Touch Assistant (or Assistive Ball in English).
4. Activate the switch at the top of the screen.

Once turned on, a semi-transparent circle (the default is gray) will appear on the screen. To turn off the assistant, you just go back to the settings and deactivate the switch. You can also temporarily hide it by dragging the icon to the edge of the screen, it will disappear, but it will remain active and appear on the next swipe from the edge.

Include in Settings → Additional settings → Touch assistant

Select the display style (circle, stripe, dot)

Set up transparency and size

Add the necessary functions to the Quick Access menu

Check the gestures.-->

Note that on some Redmi Note models (for example, Note 10 Pro or Note 12 Pro)+) The path to settings may be slightly different due to versions MIUI. If you do not find the item "Touch Assistant" in the additional settings, try searching by settings (the icon of the magnifier at the top of the screen).

The main functions and gestures of the sensory assistant

The touch assistant in Xiaomi Redmi Note supports several types of interaction that can be combined for convenience.

One of the most useful features is the Quick Access menu, which opens when you single tap on the touch assistant, and by default, it contains 5 icons:

• 📱 Home - Returns to the main screen
• 🔙 Back – similar to the return button
• 📄 Recent – Opens a list of recent apps
• 📷 Screenshot – instantly takes a screenshot
• 🔒 Locking - Turning off the screen

You can customize this menu by adding other features, such as starting a voice assistant, turning on a flashlight, or quickly accessing favorite apps, which we'll talk about in the next section.

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If the touch assistant interferes with the video, it can be temporarily hidden by dragging it to the bottom edge of the screen and automatically reappears the next time you swipe from the edge.

Advanced settings and customization

One of the key benefits of the touch assistant in the Xiaomi Redmi Note is the flexibility of settings. You can not only change its appearance, but also add your own features or even create custom gestures.

1. Changes in appearance

In the settings of the sensor assistant, you can select:

• 🎨 Shape: circle, stripe or dot
• 🌈 Color: Default gray, but you can choose from any palette
• 👁️ Transparency: 20% to 100%
• 📏 Size: small, medium or large

2.Setting up the Quick Access Menu

To add or remove features from the menu:

1. Open the settings of the touch assistant.
2. Select the Quick Access Menu.
3. Click Change and add the desired icons from the list of available ones.

Among the useful functions that can be added:

• 🔦 Flashlight - fast on/off
• 🔍 Search – opens a global search by device
• 📊 Traffic Monitor – shows mobile internet usage
• 🔋 Power saving mode – quick access to battery settings

3. Creating user gestures

In the firmware MIUI 13 and later, you can assign your own actions to gestures with touch assistant:

• 🖱️ Double swipe left – Opening a selected application (e.g. cameras)
• 🔄 Circular swipe - launch of voice assistant
• 📥 Retention + Swipe down – Opening the notification panel

To do this, select Gestures and assign actions in the touch assistant settings, a feature that is especially useful for users who want to maximize one-handed smartphone experience.

Touch Assistant vs Standard Navigation Gestures

Many users of the Xiaomi Redmi Note are wondering: which is better – touch assistant or classic navigation gestures Android?

As you can see from the table, the touch assistant wins in functionality and one-handedness, but loses in terms of visual cleanliness of the interface.

• 👍 Touch assistant is suitable for those who appreciate additional features and often use a smartphone with one hand.
• 👍 Standard gestures are preferred by users who want a clean screen without additional elements.

By the way, Xiaomi Redmi Note can use both methods at the same time, for example, leave standard gestures for basic navigation, and the touch assistant configure only for quick access to screenshots or flashlight.

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Touch assistant is especially useful on models with large screens (Redmi Note 11 Pro, Note 12 Pro)+), Where to reach the top edge with one hand is difficult.

Hidden capabilities of the sensory assistant

Beyond the obvious features, the touch assistant in Xiaomi Redmi Note hides a few useful features that not all users know about.

1. Quick switching between applications

If you hold the touch assistant and swipe to the right, you'll see a list of the latest apps, but few people know that you can drag an app icon from this list to the touch assistant to pin it to the quick access menu, which is convenient for commonly used programs.

Brightness and volume control

In gesture settings, you can swipe up/down to the touch assistant to adjust the brightness or volume, which eliminates the need to reach for the top curtain or side buttons.

3. Access to system tools

In the quick access menu, you can add not only standard functions, but also:

• 📡 Mobile data – fast on/off internet
• 📶 Flight mode - convenient on the plane or subway
• 🔇 Silent mode - quickly turn off the sound
• 🔄 Autoturn – lock/unlock the screen turn

4.Running the voice assistant

If you are using Google Assistant or Xiao AI, You can set the touch assistant to hold it up by running the voice assistant, which is more convenient than saying "OK, Google" or holding the button home.

5. Hidden mode for games

In some firmware MIUI There's a game mode feature for touch assistant, which when activated, becomes translucent and does not interfere with gameplay, but still remains available for quick action (for example, a screenshot of a victory).

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If the sensor assistant disappears after the update MIUI, Try resetting it or rebooting the device, sometimes it helps to get it back in place.

Frequent problems and their solutions

Despite its convenience, the touch assistant in the Xiaomi Redmi Note sometimes behaves incorrectly, and here are the most common problems and ways to solve them:

⚠️ Warning: If the touch assistant doesn't respond to touch, check if Do Not Disturb or Game mode is enabled.

1.The touch assistant doesn't appear

Possible causes and solutions:

• 🔄 Rebooting the device – sometimes a simple reboot helps.
• 📱 Update MIUI — Check for updates in Settings → The phone. → Updating the system.
• 🛠️ Resetting settings – in the touch assistant settings, select Reset settings".
• 🔧 Conflict with other apps – disable gesture customization apps (e.g. Edge Gestures).

2.Touch assistant interferes with games or videos

Decisions:

• 🎮 Hiding in full screen mode – in the assistant settings, enable the option “Hide in full screen applications".
• 🖥️ Reduce size – set minimum size and transparency.
• 🔄 Disabling gestures - in the game settings you can turn off the response to swipes by assistant.

3.The sensory assistant is spontaneously activated

This may be due to:

• 👆 Screen Sensitivity – Check if the sensitivity is too high in the display settings.
• 🧤 Protective film or glass – sometimes they interfere with the correct operation of the sensor.
• 🔧 Conflict with other gestures – disable similar features in other apps.

⚠️ Note: On some Redmi Note models (such as the Note 9 Pro), the touch assistant may conflict with the Double-Tap function to wake up. If you notice delays, turn off one of the features.

FAQ: Answers to Frequent Questions