How to turn off the screen on the left of Xiaomi devices: 5 proven ways

On the left of Xiaomi smartphones and TVs, there is often an additional panel with a weather widget, quick settings or content recommendations. For some users, it is convenient, for others, an annoying element that eats up useful space or interferes with watching movies. In this article, we will analyze all the current ways to turn off the side screen on different devices of the brand, from Mi TVs to smartphones on MIUI.

It's important to understand that the sidebar interface depends on the model and the firmware version. For example, on Xiaomi Mi TV 4S/5 it can be a Mi Home panel with a smart home, and on smartphones it can be a Game Turbo or Second Space widget. We'll look at universal methods and nuances for specific devices, including hidden settings that are not obvious at first glance.

If you tried to remove the panel through standard settings, but it didn't work, don't rush to reset the device to factory settings. 90% of the time, the problem is solved by changing several parameters or updating the software. Next, you will find step-by-step instructions with illustrations, warnings about possible errors and answers to frequent questions.

1. How to turn off the sidebar on Xiaomi TV (Mi TV, Redmi Smart TV)

Xiaomi TVs on the left typically display a patchwall with content recommendations, weather or quick settings, and can be removed in two ways: through interface settings or reset personalization. Let's consider both.

The first method works on most Android TV models (e.g. Mi TV Q1/Q2, Redmi Smart TV X).

Settings → Accounts and Security → Personalization → Content Recommendations

Turn off the Home Screen Recommendations slider here, and then the left panel will disappear, but there will be app icons left, and if you want to remove them, read the next section.

Turn off the TV from the socket for 1 minute (cache reset)

Update the firmware to the latest version

Make sure you are logged in to your Mi Account (otherwise, your settings will not be saved)

Take a screenshot of the current settings (in case of rollbacks)-->

The second method is resetting personalization, which is suitable if the first method did not work or the panel appeared after the update.

Settings → Applications → Application Management → PatchWall → Storage → Clear Data

⚠️ Warning: Once PatchWall's data is cleaned, all your content preferences, browsing history, and recommendations will be reset.

If the panel still appears, check if a third-party launcher application (such as ATV Launcher) is installed.

1. Go to Settings → Applications.
2. Find the launcher in the list and click Remove Updates.
3. Return to the standard PatchWall launcher.

2. Disable the side screen on Xiaomi smartphones (MIUI 12/13/14)

On Xiaomi smartphones, the left panel can appear in three versions:

• 📱 Weather/Calendar Widget – Standard Element MIUI.
• 🎮 Game Turbo – a panel for gamers with monitoring FPS.
• 🔒 Second Space – Second desktop (appears when swipe to the left).

To remove the weather widget, make a long tap on the home screen → Home screen settings → Widgets. Find the Weather widget or Calendar and drag it to the basket. If the widget doesn't get deleted, upgrade MIUI to the latest version - there was a bug in the old firmware with "stick" widgets.

To turn off Game Turbo:

Settings → Special features → Game Turbo → Disable

If the Game Turbo panel continues to appear in games, try:

• 🔄 Reboot the phone.
• 🗑️ Clear the Game Turbo app cache in the settings.
• 📥 Install an alternative launcher (e.g. Nova Launcher).

Weather widget on the main screen

Game Turbo in Games

Second Space (second desktop)

Advertising in the sidebar

Another problem.-->

Second Space is more complicated, it’s a separate desktop that can only be disabled through:

Settings → Second Space → Disable Second Space

⚠️ Note: When Second Space is disabled, all data from it (photos, apps, settings) will be deleted without recovery. → Additionally. → Backup.

3. Hidden Settings: How to Remove the Panel through ADB (For Advanced)

If standard methods don't work, you can use the ADB debugging bridge, which is suitable for smartphones and TVs, but requires a connection to a computer, and the advantage is that you can turn off the system panels that can't be removed through the interface.

First, turn on the Developer Mode:

1. On your smartphone: Settings → About Phone → MIUI version (click 7 times).
2. On TV: Settings → About device → Android TV version (click 5 times).

Then go back to Settings → Additional → For developers and activate Debugging over USB.

Now connect the device to the PC and execute the commands:

adb shell pm hide com.miui.weather2 # Disables the weather widget


adb shell pm hide com.xiaomi.gameturbo # Disables Game Turbo




adb shell pm hide com.miui.secondspace # Shuts down Second Space

Once you've done the commands, restart the device. The panel should disappear. If you want to return it back, use the same command, but with unhide instead of hide.

⚠️ Attention: Some teams ADB On Xiaomi TVs with firmware below Android 9, disabling PatchWall through ADB This leads to a reboot cycle. Before you experiment, back up.

4.Why does the panel reappear after the update?

Many users complain that the sidebar returns after a MIUI update or TV firmware.

• 🔄 Resetting: Some updates reset interface personalization.
• 📦 New widgets: in the latest versions MIUI New system panels are added (e.g. Mi Video or GetApps).
• 🤖 Xiaomi: the company deliberately returns content recommendations for monetization.

To prevent the panel from returning:

1. After updating, immediately go to Settings → Personalization and turn off recommendations.
2. Use alternative launchers (like the Leanback Launcher for TV or the Nova Launcher for smartphones).
3. Turn off automatic updates MIUI In Settings → The phone. → Updating the system → ⚙️ → Auto-update.

💡

If the app icons on TV are missing after the update, reset the launcher: go to Settings → Apps → PatchWall → Clear the cache. Apps will return without losing data.

On Xiaomi TVs with Google TV (e.g. Mi TV Q2 2023), the panel may appear from Google Discover services.

Settings → Home screen → Recommendations → Disable “Google Guidelines”

5. Alternative solutions: launchers and modifications

If none of these things worked, consider installing a third-party launcher, a radical solution that will completely replace the standard interface.

For Xiaomi TVs, you can:

For Xiaomi smartphones, the best options are:

• 🌟 Nova Launcher – Supports gestures, app hiding, dark theme.
• 🔧 Lawnchair – open source, minimalist design.
• 🎨 Hyperion Launcher – maximum customization of icons and animations.

Before installing the launcher on the TV:

1. Include Unknown Sources in Settings → Security.
2. Download. APK-launcher file on the flash drive and connect it to TV.
3. Install it through File Manager or Send Files to TV.
4. In Settings → Applications → Launcher by default, select a new launcher.

💡

Installing a third-party launcher on a Xiaomi TV does not void the warranty, as it does not require root rights, but some system features (such as voice search) may not work properly.

6. Frequent mistakes and how to avoid them

When you try to disable the sidebar, users often encounter typical problems, and here are the most common ones and solutions:

Error 1: PatchWall has been disabled on TV.

Solution: Install any alternative launcher (see previous section) or return PatchWall via Settings Reset:

Settings → Accounts and Security → Resetting settings → Resetting launcher settings

Error 2: On the smartphone after the update MIUI 14 appeared a new panel with advertising.

Solution: This is a GetApps or Mi Video widget. Turn it off via:

Settings → Applications → Application Management → GetApps → Disable

Error 3: ADB doesn’t see a Xiaomi TV when connected via USB.

Solution: Xiaomi TVs don't support ADB over USB - only over Wi-Fi. Connect like this:

1. Enable Wi-Fi debugging in the developer settings.
2. Start the command on PC: adb connect [IP-TV address]:5555
3. IP-address TV You can find out in Settings → Network → Network status.

Error 4: After PatchWall was cleaned, the TV started to slow down.

Solution: This is a temporary effect because of the cache rearrangement, give the device 10-15 minutes to optimize, or do:

Settings → Storage → Clean Memory → Clean

FAQ: Answers to popular questions