Modern smartphone users are constantly faced with the need to save large amounts of visual information. Whether it is correspondence in the messenger, an article in the news portal or a long receipt for payment – a standard screenshot often cuts off an important part of the content. Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and Poco devices are in a better position thanks to the built-in features of the shell MIUI and HyperOS. Scrolling screenshot allows you to capture the content of the entire page, automatically “shopping” the image as you go down.
In this article, we will take a look at how to activate and use long-scroll mode, what the limitations of this feature are in 2026, and what to do if the expansion button does not appear. You will learn not only to create screenshots, but also to process them correctly to keep the text readable and clear details, this knowledge will turn your smartphone into a powerful tool for working with documents and web content.
To start with, creating a composite image requires a stable operation of the system's graphics engine. Unlike conventional images, where a single frame of a screen buffer is captured, it dynamically captures multiple frames and combines them in a programmatic way. The real-time processing algorithm analyzes the boundaries of interface elements so that the seams between the parts are invisible. Understanding this process will help you avoid common mistakes, such as lubricating text or the appearance of artifacts at joints.
It's important to note that not all apps are equally good at supporting this technology. Some developers block the ability to create screenshots at all (like banking apps), and others have a complex layout that can confuse the scrolling system. However, in most standard cases - browsers, social networks, notes - the feature works flawlessly. Next, we'll look at specific activation methods.
Basic activation method through the preview menu
The most common and convenient method available on all current Xiaomi firmware versions is to use a pop-up menu immediately after you take a normal shot. When you take a standard screenshot (by a combination of buttons or gesture), a thumbnail appears in the upper right corner of the screen for a few seconds, and that's when you need to be alert and responsive.
So you'll see some icons in the thumbnail, and what we're interested in is a button that's marked with two rectangles with a down arrow or a Scroll sign, and clicking on it triggers the automatic capture process, and the screen will slowly move downwards, grabbing the content, and you can stop the process at any time by touching the screen, or you can wait until the system reaches the end of the page.
☑️ Check before creating a screenshot
Keep in mind that the quality of the final image is directly dependent on the speed of the screen refresh and the performance of the processor at the time of shooting. If the device is experiencing a load, the system may suggest lowering the resolution or interrupting the process. In such cases, it is recommended to close the background tasks. Also remember that the maximum length of such a “scroll” is limited software — usually about 100,000 pixels in height, which is equivalent to about 15-20 screens of a smartphone.
⚠️ Warning: Don't try to quickly scroll through content with your finger while you're taking a long screenshot. The system itself regulates the rate of capture. Manual intervention will cause tears, duplicate sections, or complete failure of the function.
Use of side menu and additional tools
The second option is for those who prefer not to rush into saving or miss the moment of the miniature: in the shells of MIUI 13/14 and HyperOS, there is an extended screenshot menu called through the sidebar or long pressing on the gallery preview, which gives more control over the process and allows you to select the Full page mode after the photo is taken.
To use this method, take a regular screenshot, then go to the Gallery app and open the file you just created. From the bottom menu, select the option “More” (three dots) or the edit button. Among the tools available, often the “Long Screenshot” or “Glue” feature is found. The system will prompt you to scroll back again or automatically process the open page if the application supports it.
The advantage of this approach is that you can preview, you can see which area you're going to capture, and you can adjust the capture start, and this is especially useful when you're working with websites that have dynamic banners at the top of the page that you can better eliminate from the final image, and it also allows you to combine multiple images manually if you don't automatically scrolle.
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Use No Sound mode before creating long screenshots. Notifications that pop up during the scrolling process can be captured on the final image, which will spoil the view and require additional framing.
Keep in mind that side menus take longer to work with: If the content on the page is dynamic (like a live news feed or countdown timer), it’s best to use the first, faster method to avoid dissynchronizing data between the top and bottom of the image.
Customize gestures and hotkeys in MIUI and HyperOS
To improve the efficiency of working with screenshots, it is recommended to configure the ways to call them to yourself. The standard combination of the buttons “Loudness down” + “Power” is not always convenient, especially on large smartphones. The Xiaomi system settings provide several alternatives that significantly speed up the process.
Go to Settings → Additional Features → Screenshots. Here you will find the Three Finger Switch. By activating it, you can take pictures simply by swiping three fingers from top to bottom across the screen. This action can be combined with then clicking the scroll button. Quick Commands is also available, allowing you to assign a screenshot to a long press of the Menu button or other navigation key.
- 🖱️ Three fingers: The fastest method requires sensitivity calibration in the same settings.
- 🔘 Menu button: Convenient if you use a classic navigation bar instead of gestures.
- 🗣️ Voice control: You can activate it via Google Assistant or Xiao AI, I said, "Take a screenshot».
- 🖊️ Style: Stylus-enabled devices (rare for Xiaomi, but possible) have their own gestures.
Special attention should be paid to calibrating the gesture with three fingers. If screenshots are created too often by accidental touch or, conversely, the system does not respond, change the speed of the swipe in the settings. Correct sensitivity setting is the key to comfortable use. After setting up, try to take several test shots in different applications to make sure that the work is stable.
| Activation method | Speed of access | Convenience | Risk of false positives |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buttons (Loudness + Power) | Medium | High. | Low. |
| Three-finger gesture | Very high. | Average. | Medium. |
| Side menu | Low. | High. | Absent. |
| Voice command | Low. | Low. | Absent. |
Editing and processing long images
Once you've created a long screenshot, you often need to edit it. Xiaomi's built-in editor offers powerful tools to work with these files. You can cut the extra edges, add annotations (arrows, text, marker highlighting) or break a long image into parts. The latter feature is especially useful for posting on social media where there are limits on file size or aspect ratio.
To split an image, open a screenshot in the gallery, click Change, and select the Cut tool. Some versions of MIUI have an automatic "Separate" mode that finds logical gaps between content blocks. If there is no such mode, use the manual framing grid. Save the result as a copy so that the original remains in the archive.
The format of the save also matters. By default, the system uses JPEG for photos and PNG for screenshots with text. For long screenshots, it is better to choose PNG, since this format uses lossless compression, which is critical for the readability of small text after zooming. The format can be changed through the camera settings or while saving the edited version.
Metadata is important. A long screenshot can contain geolocation and time of creation of each segment. If you plan to share an image publicly, check the file's properties and delete it if necessary. EXIF-data through privacy settings when sent to messengers.
Typical problems and ways to solve them
Despite the system’s fine-tuning, users may encounter difficulties. One of the common problems is that the scroll button is simply absent or inactive (gray).This almost always means that the current application does not support composite image creation or the content on the screen is static and non-scrollable, and may also be due to a lack of RAM.
Another common situation is the layout on the final image, which can overlap and the images can break, and this happens if the page is dynamically loaded or the ads change during the screenshot, in which case the system does not have time to sew the frames correctly.
⚠️ Note: If you use third-party themes, they may conflict with the system interface for creating screenshots. If you have errors, try switching to a standard theme. MIUI/HyperOS check out.
To resolve memory problems, close all background apps before creating a long screenshot. If the problem persists, clear the Screenshot system app cache through the Settings menu. → Annexes → All applications → Screenshot. → Clean.In rare cases, it helps to reboot the device, which resets the temporary buffers of the GPU.
Function Limitations and Application Compatibility
It's important to understand that a long screenshot is not a magic wand. There are technical limitations that are dictated by the security and architecture of Android. For example, in banking applications, encrypted messengers (incognito mode) and streaming services, the creation of any screenshots, including long ones, is locked at the system level. You will see a black screen instead of content.
There are also length limits. As mentioned earlier, there is a limit of 100,000 pixels. If you try to capture a very long article, the system will stop at that limit. To get around the restriction, you can take a few overlap screenshots and then stitch them in specialized sticker apps, although built-in tools can not do this.
Why is the screenshot in some browsers empty?
Compatibility with video calling apps is also limited: you can't take a long screenshot of a conversation during an active call if the app blocks the recording of the screen, which is normal security behavior that can't be circumvented without root rights, which in turn is not recommended for ordinary users.
Alternative solutions and third-party software
If Xiaomi's built-in tools don't suit you or work incorrectly in the app, third-party developers come to the rescue. There are many screenshot apps in the Google Play store, such as Stitch & Share, LongShot or Tailor. They use the Accessibility principle to automatically scrolle and glue.
The main advantage of third-party apps is the flexibility of settings: you can specify the exact scroll speed, capture area, format of the output file, and even add watermarks automatically, but they also have a disadvantage: they require wide permissions and access to your data, which can raise questions from a privacy perspective.
When using third-party software, watch permissions carefully. Let's only access screen and storage. If an application requires access to contacts or a microphone to create screenshots, that's a wake-up call. In 2026, most users prefer to stay in the MIUI ecosystem because of its optimization, but having an alternative is always helpful.
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The built-in MIUI/HyperOS function is the most energy efficient and secure, and it is worth resorting to third-party software only in case of specific tasks that are not solved by regular means.