Xiaomi smartphone users often face a situation where a standard emoji set seems limited or inconvenient for fast communication, especially in the popular expression “stoneface» (🗿), It became a meme and a way to express stoicism or irony in correspondence. MIUI HyperOS, this symbol is not always in sight, which causes confusion among the owners of gadgets.
The problem of finding a specific character often lies not in the lack of a function, but in the peculiarities of organizing the system keyboard or the version of the Android operating system. In this article, we will discuss all possible ways to activate and quickly access this emoji, including hidden menus and settings of third-party applications.
It’s worth noting that the display of graphical characters is directly dependent on the firmware version and the default keyboard. If you recently updated your Xiaomi, the layout of the elements may have changed, requiring a new approach to navigating the text input menu.
Search through the Gboard system keyboard
Most modern Xiaomi smartphones have Google’s Gboard keyboard installed by default, and it’s where the most common character is found if you know the right sequence of steps. The standard path involves moving to the emoji section, where all characters are broken down into logical categories for user convenience.
To access the stone face, you need to click on the emoji icon in the lower left corner of the keyboard, then select the tab with objects or faces, depending on the version of the application. Sometimes the symbol can be hidden in the subcategory "Different" or "Symbols", since technically it is an image of a statue, not a living person.
- 🔍 Click on the emoji icon in the corner of the keyboard.
- 🗿 Look for a tab with images of objects or faces.
- 📂 Check the category “Travels” or “Objects».
- 📝 Use keyword search within the emoji menu.
It’s important to understand that the algorithm for sorting commonly used emojis can vary depending on how often you use them personally, and if you send other characters frequently, the stone face may move to the bottom of the recommended list.
⚠️ Warning: If you don't see the search icon inside the emoji menu, your version of the Gboard app may be outdated.Update the app via Google Play Market.
Some users prefer to use voice input or keyword search built directly into the emoji bar, which greatly speeds up the process, especially if you need to quickly send a character in the middle of a dialogue.
Use of the “Frequent” and “Recent” functions
Android has the ability to remember frequently used characters, and the mechanism of this feature is based on the analysis of your activity in messengers and social networks, to “stone face” appeared in quick access, it is enough to find and send once.
After the first use, the symbol is automatically attached to the Frequently Used panel, which is usually located at the top of the emoji selection menu, eliminating the need to search the depths of directories each time to find the desired image.
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If you delete the keyboard app or clear its data, the history of frequent emojis will reset and the symbol will have to be searched manually again.
However, there are situations where the system does not remember choices, which can occur when using Incognito mode in some applications or when working with corporate profiles where there are restrictions on collecting usage statistics.
For forced addition to the favorite on some versions of the shells MIUI can be used long-term click on the symbol, although the standard Gboard does not yet support manual fixing specific emoji in the top of the list, relying only on automatic statistics.
Alternative keyboards for extended access
If the standard Xiaomi and Gboard tools don’t suit you in functionality or design, you can always resort to installing third-party solutions. The text-input application market offers many options with unique customization capabilities.
One popular alternative is the Facemoji or Emoji Keyboard keyboard from various developers, which often have more convenient navigation by category and allow you to create your own sets of commonly used characters.
| Keyboard name | A search for emoji | Customization | Weight of the application |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gboard (Standard) | There is. | Basic | Easy. |
| Facemoji | Expanded | Tall. | Medium. |
| Kika Keyboard | There is. | Tall. | Heavy. |
| Microsoft SwiftKey | There is. | Medium | Easy. |
When installing new keyboards on Xiaomi, additional permissions must be provided. The MIUI security system can warn of the potential risk of data interception, since the keyboard has access to all the input text.
After installing the new keyboard, remember to activate it in the system settings. Go to Settings → Additional settings → Language and input → Keyboard management and put the switch opposite the new application in the active position.
Configure quick access and keyboard shortcuts
For those who use stoneface all the time, the best solution is to create a text shortcut, and the text-replacement feature allows you to replace a short combination of letters with a long phrase or a specific character.
To set this up on Xiaomi, go to the language and input settings, select your keyboard, and find "Dictionary" or "Replace text." Here you can create a rule, for example, when you type "(rock)" will appear a character. 🗿.
- ⚙️ Open the keyboard settings.
- 📖 Go to the "Dictionary" or "Personal Dictionary" section».
- ➕ Add a new phrase: in the abbreviation field, write a code, in the word field insert an emoji.
- ✅ Save the changes and check the work in any input field.
This method works at the system level, so it will be active in all applications, from Telegram to notes. It is a universal solution that does not depend on updates to the keyboard application.
⚠️ Note: Do not use too short or frequent words as shortcuts (e.g., “ok” or “yes”), or you will not be able to type plain text normally.
Also, keep in mind that syncing dictionary can occur through a Google account, and if you change your phone, your text replacement settings can automatically be pulled up to the new device, which is very convenient.
Display problems on different versions of Android
Owners of older Xiaomi models, such as the Redmi Note 8 or Mi 9, running on older versions of Android, may find the stone face symbol displayed as an empty square or question mark, due to the lack of support for a specific Unicode character in the system's fonts.
Emojis are added with each Unicode update, and if the phone's firmware hasn't received updates in years, the new characters may not be known to it, in which case replacing the system fonts may help, but it's a risky procedure.
Risks of replacing system fonts
A safer way is to use emoji aggregator applications that render an image over text or copy it as a graphic object rather than a text symbol, but in most instant messengers, the recipient will still see a square if they have an old system.
It is recommended to check for system updates in the Settings → About Phone → MIUI version. Often manufacturers release security patches and update character libraries even for older devices.
Specificity of messengers: Telegram, WhatsApp, Viber
Different communication apps can interpret and display emojis differently. Telegram, for example, has its own set of graphic images that may differ from the system on Xiaomi.
WhatsApp uses an emoji set that depends on the operating system of the sender and the receiver, and if you send a stone face from your iPhone to Android, the recipient will see a native version of that symbol.
- 🟢 WhatsApp: Uses system fonts Android/iOS.
- 🔵 Telegram: Has its own unique set of emojis.
- 🟣 Viber: Partially uses system, part of its stickers.
- 🔷 Instagram Direct: Depends on the keyboard and OS.
In some instant messengers, you can find this symbol through a built-in sticker search. Type the word "stone" or "moai" into your sticker search, and the app will offer you graphical options that often look more expressive than a standard text emoji.
☑️ Checking the display of emoji
The context of communication always dictates the appropriateness of using the symbol “stone face”.