How to speed up Xiaomi phone as much as possible: expert guide

Owners of Xiaomi smartphones often face a situation when the once-fast gadget begins to hang, open applications for a long time or suddenly close background processes. This does not necessarily mean that it is time to buy a new device; often the problem lies in the software features of the MIUI or HyperOS shell. The system overgrows with cache, and background services begin to consume resources that are necessary for smooth operation of the interface. In this material, we will analyze non-obvious methods that will help to return the former a jump of your device.

Before you start taking radical steps like resetting, it’s worth trying to optimize the software part. Smartphone acceleration is a complex process that requires attention to the details of tuning animations, memory management and CPU operation. Many users are unaware of the existence of hidden engineering menus or the possibility of turning off heavy system services.

It is worth noting that the effectiveness of methods can vary depending on the specific model and version of the operating system. However, the basic principles of Android remain unchanged, allowing you to apply these techniques to most devices of the brand. Below we will take a detailed look at each step of optimization, so you can choose the most suitable for your use case.

Disabling MIUI optimization and working with memory

One of the most effective measures for power users is to disable MIUI Optimization, which controls a lot of background processes and interface elements, but often leads to excessive RAM consumption. To access this setting, you need to activate the developer mode by pressing the MIUI version number seven times in the About Phone section.

After activating the developer mode, go to the corresponding menu and find the item “Enable MIUI optimization”.

⚠️ Note: After disabling this feature, the interface may change and some system applications will stop working correctly, so do this only if you understand the consequences.

In parallel, it is worth checking the settings of extended memory. Modern Xiaomi models offer a Virtual RAM feature that takes some of the internal memory for the needs of RAM. On devices with a fast UFS 3.1 drive and higher, turning this feature on really helps, but on older models with eMMC 5.1, it can, on the contrary, slow down the system due to low read / write speed. If your phone does not cope with multitasking, try changing the amount of virtual memory or turning it off completely for test.

It's also useful to use built-in cleaning tools to manage memory, but you should do it wisely. Don't rely on automatic "accelerators" that just close applications. You'd better manually review the list of running processes in the developer menu and limit background activity for heavy applications that you don't need right now.

Customize animations and interface for instant response

Visual smoothness is often perceived by the user as the overall speed of the smartphone. If the transitions between the screens take too long, the device seems slow. The developer menu hides animation scale parameters, which are set to 1x by default. Changing these values is the easiest way to visually speed up the interface.

Find three options: “Window animation scale,” “transition animation scale,” and “Animator duration scale.” Reverse them from 1x to 0.5x, or even disable them completely (0x) to make it almost instantaneous to open apps and return to the desktop. Android will stop wasting time on rendering extra frames, and the system’s response will become noticeably sharper.

In addition to system animations, you should pay attention to wallpaper and widgets. Live wallpaper and complex widgets with constant updates (weather, currency rates, news) load the processor and consume battery power. Replacing the dynamic background with a static image and removing unnecessary elements from the desktop is not just a matter of aesthetics, but also a way to reduce the load on the GPU.

💡

Use the dark wallpaper on AMOLED-Xiaomi screens not only to save energy, but also to reduce the load on the display controller, which can positively affect the overall responsiveness of the interface.

Also check the refresh rate in the screen settings. If you have a model that supports 120Hz or 144Hz, make sure you choose the default or maximum mode, not the Standard 60Hz mode. High hertz makes tape scrolling and menus smoother, which is subjectively perceived as high system performance.

Managing Autoboot and Background Processes

Many applications in MIUI have a habit of auto-booting and hanging in memory even if you don't use them, which leads to constant consumption of CPU and RAM resources. To control this process, go to the battery settings and find the Auto-Start section, where you need to ruthlessly disable all applications that shouldn't run with your phone, such as marketplaces, social networks and games.

In addition to auto-run, there is a mechanism for applications to work in the background. In the same battery settings menu, select "Applications" and set a background activity limit for each heavy software.

⚠️ Note: Do not limit the use of instant messengers (Telegram, WhatsApp) and alarms, otherwise you will stop receiving notifications and calls on time.

Special attention should be paid to the “Extended Cleanup” feature in the built-in Security app, which allows you to delete temporary files, but also has settings for memory management. Regularly cleaning the cache of heavy applications such as browsers and video services helps keep the system in good shape. Cache can grow to gigabytes, taking up space and slowing down the reading of data.

For advanced users, the Android Debug Bridge (ADB) tool is available to remove or freeze system applications that cannot be removed by standard methods. Removing unnecessary Xiaomi services (such as Mi Video, Mi Music, if you do not use them) can significantly unload the system.

Cleaning the storage and optimizing the file system

A full internal storage is one of the main reasons for the performance of any Android smartphone. When the space runs out, the system has no place to place temporary files and cache, which leads to brakes. Try to keep at least 15-20% of total storage free. If you have a 64 or 128 GB model, this threshold is critical.

Use the built-in storage analyzer to find the files that take up the most space, often forgotten videos, screenshots or messenger cache, Telegram and WhatsApp can set up automatic cleaning of media files so that they do not remain in the phone’s memory forever, and it is also worth checking the Downloads folder, where digital debris often accumulates.

The file system also needs maintenance. Although modern smartphones use advanced algorithms, defragmentation in the classical sense is not necessary here, but formatting the memory card (if it is used) can help. If you store data on a microSD, make sure that it has a high speed class (U3, V30), otherwise it will slow down the entire system when accessing files.

The table below shows approximate cache volumes that can be safely removed in popular applications:

Hidden developer settings for gamers and pros

There are parameters hidden in the developer menu that directly affect the work of the processor and the graphics accelerator. Find the item "Logger buffer size." Setting the "Off" value can slightly improve performance, as the system will no longer maintain a detailed log of events that consumes recording resources.

Also worth paying attention to the background process settings, which can be limited in the Background Process section, and setting a limit of 2 processes will make the system more active in unloading unused applications from memory, which can be useful on older models with low RAM volume, but on powerful flagships can disrupt multitasking.

There is a separate mode for games. In the application "Security" -> "Accelerate games" you can activate the performance mode.

⚠️ Warning: Enabling maximum performance mode in games results in strong body heat and quick battery discharge, use it only when every millisecond is important.

Another important parameter is “hardware acceleration rendering» (GPU Make sure that the tick “Enable the box” 4x MSAA» It is turned off if you are not playing heavy. 3D-Games that require anti-aliasing. Enabling this feature puts a load on the GPU even in a normal interface, which is not necessary for everyday tasks.

💡

The key to the developer menu is not to change all settings at once, make changes on one parameter and test the stability of the system for several hours.

Cardinal measures: Resetting and updating firmware

If software optimization didn't work, you might have some critical errors or file conflicts in the system, and a full factory reset helps, make sure you back up all your important data to the cloud or your computer before you do that, and reset will remove all your apps and settings, bringing your phone back out of the box.

The reset procedure is done through the Advanced Settings menu -> Recovery and Reset. Select "Erase all data." After the reset, don't rush to install hundreds of apps at once. Install only the essentials and watch the phone work. Often, it is the "bloated" software that causes the brakes.

Also check for operating system updates. Xiaomi engineers regularly release patches that fix optimization errors and improve memory performance. Go to Settings → About Phone → System Update and check for a new version. Sometimes switching from one version of MIUI to another (for example, from 13 to 14) can drastically change performance.

In rare cases, you need to flash your device through your computer using the Mi Flash Tool, which allows you to install the system cleanly without any update errors over the air, but it is a complex procedure that requires an unlocked bootloader, which can lead to a loss of warranty.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)