What the icons in the top left corner of Xiaomi Redmi mean: a full guide

Owners of Xiaomi and Redmi smartphones often face a situation when unfamiliar symbols appear in the status bar, causing confusion. The screen of the device is full of information, and it is difficult to understand whether the mobile Internet is working or just a Bluetooth indicator is on. The upper left corner is an area of increased concentration of important system indicators that control communication and basic functions of the device.

This visual cipher is a must for every user to respond quickly to changes in the gadget. MIUI and its new version of HyperOS provide detailed feedback through these characters. In this article, we will explore in detail what lies behind each icon, why their number changes and how to manage their display.

Basic indicators of the network and SIM cards

The most prominent group of characters on the left side of the screen is always connected to mobile. And that's where you see the designations. SIM-If you have two SIM cards installed on your device, the system will display two separate signal level indicators, often marked with the numbers 1 and 2.

Next to the signal level divisions, the type of network the smartphone is connected to is usually displayed: it can be G, E, 3G, H+, 4G or 5G. The appearance of the letter E instead of the usual 4G indicates that coverage in your area has deteriorated, and the Internet speed has dropped to the minimum values of the EDGE standard.

• 📶 Scale divisions – show the current power of the received signal of the base station.
• 📡 Letters (G/E/3G/4G) — indicate the data transfer technology.
• 🔼🔽 Up and down arrows – signal the process of data exchange (download or unload).
• ❌ Cross or exclamation point – lack of communication or identification problem SIM.

It is important to distinguish between the state when the network indicator is gray and when it is active. The gray color often means that the SIM card is identified, but the network is not found yet or the phone is in flight mode, which is turned off programmatically for this card.

⚠️ Note: If you see a cross-over icon SIM-If you're going to have a card, it means that the phone isn't reading the chip, try rebooting the device or retrieving the tray, wipe the contacts, and repaint the card.

Sometimes users notice that the 4G+ icon appears and disappears, which is normal for frequency aggregation technologies, where a smartphone combines multiple communication channels to increase speed, but the constant jumps between 3G and 4G can quickly land the battery.

System notifications and operating modes

In addition to communication, the top left corner (and the area next to it) is actively used to display the operating system's operating system statuses, and you can find icons that report on modes that change the behavior of the smartphone, for example, activation of Do Not Disturb mode is displayed as a crescent, blocking audio notifications.

Another important indicator is the alarm icon, and if you set your wake-up time, the little alarm clock will hang in the status bar all the time, reminding you that the sound won't be silenced even in silent mode (depending on the settings), and you can also see a symbol of energy saving that changes the color scheme of the interface and limits the background processes.

Newer versions of MIUI 14 and HyperOS have added privacy indicators, so if an app uses a microphone or a camera, a corresponding green dot or icon may light up in the corner to warn you about the recording, an important data security feature that cannot be ignored.

• 🌙 Crescent – activated silence mode or “Do not disturb".
• ⏰ Alarm clock – set an active alarm clock task.
• 🔋 Battery with leaflet - power saving mode is included.
• 👁️ Eye or dot – screen recording or camera use with background app.

It is worth noting that some icons, such as the display of the current day of the week (Mn, W), can appear depending on the chosen theme. Xiaomi’s standard interface rarely displays text symbols of days in the upper left corner without third-party modifications, preferring widgets on the desktop.

Connection indicators: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS

While the classic Android wireless icons are traditionally on the right, they can be shifted or duplicated in some design themes or interface settings. However, knowing their designations is critical. The Wi-Fi fan symbol shows the quality of the connection to the router.

If there's an exclamation point next to a Wi-Fi fan, it means that the wireless Internet isn't working, even though there's a connection to the router. It's a common problem that requires checking the password or settings of the router. The Bluetooth icon in the form of a characteristic rune appears when the module is turned on, and the flashing symbol means finding devices or pairing.

The NFC icon deserves special attention. On Xiaomi smartphones, it may not be displayed constantly, but only appear when the phone is brought to the payment terminal or tag, but you can activate its permanent display in the settings for quick control.

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To quickly check why there is no Internet when Wi-Fi is turned on, click on the network icon in the notification curtain - the system will diagnose the connection.

Specific icons of the MIUI and HyperOS interface

Xiaomi’s shell is famous for its functionality, but sometimes redundancy of visual elements. One of the most annoying to many users is the ad icon or recommendation icon, which can appear in different angles, although more often it pops up as banners.

For example, the Second Space icon can be displayed if you switch to this isolated mode of working with a separate set of applications and files, a useful feature for separating personal and work information, but its indicator is often confused with a system error.

⚠️ Warning: If you see an hourglass-like icon or a rotating circle in the corner of the screen constantly, this may indicate that the application optimization process has stalled after the system update.

Also worth mentioning are indicators associated with Mi Account and cloud services. Synchronization can be displayed with short-term icons at the top of the screen. If synchronization is stuck, the corresponding symbol can hang for a long time, requiring user intervention in the cloud settings.

• 👤 Human Silhouette – Second Space or Guest Mode activated.
• ☁️ Cloud – the process of synchronizing data with Mi Cloud.
• 🔄 Circular arrows – update applications or systems in the background.
• 📍 Geometry – active use of geolocation by a specific application.

People often ask about the "R" icon in the circle, which is not a bug, but a Roaming indicator, which lights up when you're out of your operator's coverage and using partner networks, and in international roaming, this can lead to significant costs if you don't have a special tariff.

Managing the Display of Status Bar

Many users want to clean the top of the screen of unnecessary visual noise. Fortunately, Xiaomi allows you to flexibly adjust which icons will be displayed constantly and which only when events occur.

To change the display settings, you need to go to the settings menu. The path may vary slightly depending on the version of MIUI, but the logic remains the same. You need to find the section responsible for notifications and status bar. Here you can turn off the display of Internet speed, percentage of charge (if they are duplicated in widgets) and other elements.

Also worth a look at, "Advanced Settings," which often hides switches to display the day of the week, charge when you connect cables and other system messages, and disabling extra elements makes the interface cleaner, but deprives you of some important information.

Settings → Notifications and Control Center → Status Bar

Note that system icons such as signal strength or discharged battery cannot be turned off.This is a security and Android standards requirement that ensures that the user will always see critical information about the state of the device.

Diagnostics of badge problems

What if the icon is missing or appears where it shouldn't be? Often, a banal reboot of the interface or the smartphone itself helps. However, if the persists problem persists, it's worth checking the settings of specific services, for example, the disappearance of the Wi-Fi icon when the module is turned on may indicate a driver failure.

In the event that the network icon flashes or changes continuously for no apparent reason (you are not moving), this could be a sign of a malfunction of the antenna module or wear and tear. SIM-Try placing the card in another phone to prevent damage, and the problem may be that the operator's base stations are not working properly.

Don’t forget to update the system. Xiaomi regularly releases patches that fix interface bugs, including errors in the rendering of the status bar. If you notice strange behavior of icons after the update, you may want to wait for the next patch or, conversely, roll back to the previous version of the firmware.

⚠️ Warning: Do not attempt to delete system files that render the interface through root-righted file managers, which can lead to a phone bootloop.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)