Screen goes out when you call Xiaomi: a complete guide to elimination

The situation of the screen going out when you call on a Xiaomi smartphone is familiar to many users of the MIUI shell.You hold the phone to your ear and the display safely shuts down to prevent accidental cheek pressing, but sometimes it stays black even after the conversation is over, or doesn't light up at all until you put the phone down.This is annoying, as you have to blindly look for the shutdown button or wait for the call to end to see who called you.

The reason lies in the incorrect operation of the proximity sensor, which can be blocked by a protective film, contaminated or have a software failure in the system. Owners of Redmi Note 9, Xiaomi Mi 11 and older devices often face this because of the location of the sensor under the screen or in the upper end of the case. In this article, we will discuss in detail why the screen goes out in time, and provide working methods for calibrating and disabling this feature.

In some cases, the problem is solved by simply cleaning the top of the smartphone, but often requires intervention in hidden engineering menus or installing third-party applications. MIUI has specific settings that can conflict with the operation of sensors, especially after firmware updates. We will consider both standard diagnostic tools and radical methods of solving the problem when standard methods do not help return the device to normal operation.

The principle of operation of the proximity sensor in MIUI

Understanding how the proximity sensor works will help you deal with the problem more effectively. Xiaomi and Redmi smartphones use an infrared sensor, usually located at the top of the screen or under the display, which emits an invisible beam and reads the reflected signal. When you hold the phone to your head, the distance to the object decreases and the system receives a command. PROXIMITY_NEAR, After that, the screen goes off to save energy and lock the touch screen.

But in budget models and some notch-drop flagships, the sensor can be software-based or less sensitive. MIUI-based Android processes this data with a certain delay. If the calibration is knocked down, the phone may think it's in your pocket or ear, even when it's on the table. That's why calibrating through the CIT engineering menu is the most reliable way to get the sensor back to its sense of distance.

It's important to note that protective glass and film that don't have a special cutout or a transparent zone above the sensor can distort the signal. The light is scattered into the glass, and the sensor "sees" the obstacle where there is none. In such cases, the screen goes out chaotically, and the conversation turns into a fight with the gadget. Sometimes it helps to remove the case if it has thick sides that overlap the top of the display.

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If you've recently changed the screen or glass, make sure the repairman uses quality adhesive and doesn't fill the sensor area.

Software settings and functions-assistants

Before you go through the complex engineering codes, you need to check the basic interface settings. There's a Mode in Your Pocket feature in MIUI that often conflicts with the proximity sensor during calls, which is designed to block random taps, but in practice often causes the screen to go out and not turn back on, and disabling this option solves the problem in 30% of cases.

Also worth paying attention to call settings. The standard Phone app from Xiaomi or Google can have its own nuances. For example, incoming call settings sometimes have the option "Switch off screen while you're talking." If it's active, the system will force the display to be extinguished on any call, ignoring the position of the phone in space. Check for switches in the Settings menu → System applications → Phone.

Another important aspect is the accelerometer and the gyroscope, and if these sensors are not working properly, the phone may misidentify that it is being held to the ear, and in these cases, recalibration of all sensors at once helps, sometimes the screen goes out because of a conflict of third-party launchers or designs that intercept control of the display. Try switching to the standard theme "Classic" for verification.

CIT engineering menu and sensor calibration

The most effective way to solve the problem when the screen goes out for no reason is through hardware calibration via the CIT menu (Customer Integration Test).This is a hidden diagnostic section available on all Xiaomi devices. To log in, open the Phone app and type in the code ##6484#. If the code does not work, go to Settings → About Phone → MIUI version and quickly click 7-10 times on the version logo until the notification “You became a developer” appears, then find the “Engineer Menu” or “CIT” option in the main settings.

In the test list that opens, look for the Proximity Sensor. Click on it. You'll see two values: Distance and State. Ideally, when nothing covers the top of the phone, State should be 0.0 or Far. If you close the top with your palm, the value will change to 5.0 or Near. If the values jump or don't change, you need to calibrate. Press Calibration and follow the instructions on the screen: usually close the sensor with your hand, and then remove it.

After successful calibration, be sure to restart the device. MIUI applies new sensor settings only after a full turn on cycle. If the screen goes out after the procedure, it may be a hardware problem or a system-level software conflict. In some firmware versions, the calibration button may be inactive - in which case try to clear the Settings application data or reset the settings to factory ones (pre-saving data).

Third-party applications for sensor control

If Xiaomi’s regular methods fail, Google Play apps like “Proximity Sensor Reset & Fix” or “Sensor Test” come to the rescue, and these tools allow you to force the sensor driver to reset or change the sensitivity threshold, and they are especially useful when the screen goes out due to software bugs after an Android update, installing such an application can become a temporary “crutches” that allow you to use the phone comfortably.

One popular solution is an app that forcibly turns off the proximity sensor during a call. This is a radical method: the screen only goes out on the timer or power button, but not from the sensor. This is convenient if you often talk on the speakerphone or use a headset, but do not want to accidentally hit the chill button with your cheek. However, be careful: without the sensor, the risk of unlocking the phone with your face in your pocket or pressing an unnecessary button during a conversation increases.

There are also apps that blacklist the sensor, and you can configure them to ignore the proximity sensor for certain contacts or applications (like WhatsApp, Viber), which is a flexible approach that allows you to keep the feature active for normal calls, but disable it where it interferes, but such applications require constant permissions on top of other windows, which can reduce overall system performance.

Hardware causes and physical impact

You can't rule out a physical breakdown. If the screen goes out all the time and the calibration doesn't work, maybe the sensor just went out of order or got dirty. Dust, pocket pile or greasy film can block IR radiation. Gently wipe the top of the screen with a microfiber dipped in alcohol solution (don't pour liquid directly onto the phone!). Make sure there's no dust in the speaker that could block the sensor.

In models with a subscreen sensor (for example, some versions of the Redmi Note), the problem may be due to the unplugged display. If the screen has moved even slightly from the frame, the distance to the sensor changes, and it stops reading data correctly. In this case, the screen goes out chaotically or does not go out at all. Visually, this can be seen by iridescent spots or uneven lighting around the edges.

Another rare but possible cause is damage to the plume after a fall, and the impact could have moved the sensor connector located on the board or the display plume, and if you recently dropped your phone and the fading screen started to get worse right after that, it's probably the hardware. Programming dances with the drum won't help here, you'll need a specialist diagnostic.

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If after removing the protective glass and calibration, the problem persists on 100% of devices of one model, most likely, it is a bug of a specific firmware version, and it is worth waiting for an update from the manufacturer.

Resetting settings and radical methods

When nothing works, the final argument is a complete reset, which will delete all your data, so make sure to back up your data to Google Cloud or your computer. Reset will bring all system settings, including sensor drivers, back to factory. It often happens that after updating MIUI, configuration files are left with errors that cause a failure when the screen goes out in a bad time.

To reset, go to Settings → About Phone → Settings Reset. Select “Erase All Data.” Once you reboot, the phone will look like new. Don’t install all the apps at once — check your calls first. If the problem is gone, it means that some third-party application or accumulated software debris caused the conflict. If the clean system didn’t work, the probability of hardware malfunction is close to maximum.

As a last resort, if the screen goes out, but the touchscreen works (you can feel the shutdown button), you can use voice commands or a headset. But this is only a temporary solution. Constantly fighting the fading screen reduces the quality of life, and if the phone is guaranteed, safely carry it into service. Replacing the sensor module or the plume usually does not take much time.

⚠️ Attention: Using untested applications to "boost" the sensor signal can cause the processor to overheat and quickly discharge the battery.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

⚠️ WARNING: When you try to repair yourself or disassemble the phone to clean the sensor, you may damage the moisture-retarding membranes, resulting in a loss of warranty.Be extremely careful.