How to permanently disable TalkBack on Xiaomi: 5 ways (including emergency)

TalkBack is a useful feature for people with visual disabilities, but its accidental turn on can turn the use of Xiaomi smartphone into a real nightmare. The screen begins to sound every touch, gestures stop working in the usual way, and the MIUI interface becomes almost unmanageable. If you are faced with this problem, do not panic: you can turn off TalkBack in 1-2 minutes, even if the touch screen does not respond to the usual presses.

In this article, we will discuss 5 Proven ways to deactivate the function – from the standard path through settings to emergency methods for locked devices. POCO (including Xiaomi 13/14, Redmi Note 12/13, POCO F5/X5 You will also learn how to prevent TalkBack from accidentally turning on in the future and what to do if the feature activates itself after the update. MIUI.

What is TalkBack and why does it turn on itself?

TalkBack is a special feature service from Google, integrated into Android. It is designed for people with visual impairments: it voices all the actions on the screen, describes the elements of the interface and allows you to control the smartphone with special gestures.

Reasons for accidental inclusion:

• 🎯 Mistake pressing: button combination Volume up + Loudness down (holding 3 seconds) activates TalkBack on many Xiaomi models.
• 📱 Resetting: After resetting to factory settings, the function can turn on automatically.
• 🔄 Update MIUI: Some firmware versions have a bug with spontaneous activation of the service.
• 👶 Children or Pets: Accidental Clicks on the Special Opportunities Menu.

The problem is that once you activate TalkBack, the logic of the control changes: one tap highlights the element, and a double tap activates it, which confuses even experienced users, and fortunately, you can turn it off in a number of ways.

Method 1: Standard shutdown via settings (if the screen is responsive)

If the touch screen is working but is inconvenient to operate because of TalkBack, follow the following steps.Remember: All gestures in this mode require double-touch to activate.

1. Unlock the screen (double tap + password/fingerprint)

2. swipe two fingers down the screen to open the notification panel

3. Touch the gear icon (Settings) - once for highlighting, the second for opening

4. Scroll down to the Special Opportunities section (two fingers up/down)

5. Select "TalkBack" and move the slider to the "Off" position.»-->

If the MIUI menu is in English or another language, look for sections:

• 🌐 Accessibility → TalkBack (for international firmware)
• 🇨🇳 → TalkBack (for the Chinese version)

Once the function is disabled, it is deactivated immediately, but sometimes it is necessary to restart the device. If this method does not work (for example, due to a locked screen), move to the next method.

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To temporarily pause voice acting during setup, press and hold two fingers on the screen – this will turn off the speech until the next action.

Method 2: Disable via Quick Settings (if the panel is available)

On some Xiaomi models (e.g. Redmi Note 11/12, POCO X4 Pro), the TalkBack icon is displayed in the Quick Settings panel.

1. Swipe two fingers down from the top edge of the screen to open the notification bar.
2. Find the icon with the image of the eye in the square (this is the TalkBack icon).
3. Tap the icon once to highlight, then twice to turn off.
4. Confirm the action in the window that appears (again, double tap).

If the icon is not in the quick settings, you can add it there:

1. Open the notification bar and click on the pencil icon (edit).
2. Find it in TalkBack’s list and drag it to the active area.

Method 3: Disable via Google Voice Assistant (if the microphone is working)

If the touch screen is not responsive or too difficult to manage, you can use the voice assistant Google Assistant, which works on devices with pre-installed Google Play Services (most global firmware MIUI).

Instructions:

1. Activate the voice assistant with the “OK Google” command or by holding the Home button (if physical).
2. Say “Disable TalkBack” or “Switch off special features.”
3. Confirm the action with a voice when the assistant asks about it.

If Google Assistant is not enabled, try activating it through the physical buttons:

• 🔊 Hold the home button (if any) or food button 5-7 seconds.
• 🎤 In some models (POCO F3, Xiaomi 11T) It helps to triple press the power button.

⚠️ Note: If your device has Chinese firmware installed without Google Services, this will not work.

Method 4: Emergency shutdown via hardware buttons (if the screen is not working)

If the touch screen is completely locked or unresponsive to touch, you can use a hardware button combination, which works on most Xiaomi devices with physical volume buttons.

Sequence of action:

1. Hold the Volume Up + Volume Down buttons for 3-5 seconds at the same time.
2. Wait for the vibration or the beep to signal, which means that TalkBack is off.
3. If nothing has happened, try holding Volume Up + Power for 10 seconds (this will trigger a reboot, after which the function may reset).

On some models (Redmi 9A, POCO M3), the following combination helps:

1. Press and hold the Power button until the off menu appears.


2. Without releasing Power, press and hold Volume upwards for 5 seconds.




3.The device will restart with TalkBack disabled.

⚠️ Attention: On devices with MIUI 14+ The hardware combinations may not work because of changes in the firmware, and then only Method 5 (recovery reset) remains).

Method 5: Complete Recovery Reset (Extreme Case)

If none of the previous methods worked, you can still reset hard through Recovery mode, which will remove all data from the device, so only use this method as a last resort.

Instructions:

1. Turn off your smartphone (hold the power button for 10-15 seconds).
2. Press the combination of Loudness up + Power and hold until the Mi logo appears.
3. From the Recovery menu (manage volume buttons, select Power button) select Wipe Data → Wipe All Data.
4. Confirm the reset and wait for the reset.

After the reset, TalkBack will be disabled, but all data (photos, contacts, applications) will be deleted, and if the device was associated with a Mi Account, you will need to enter a username and password to unlock.

⚠️ Note: On devices with a bootloader, a reset via Recovery may result in a Mi Account authorization requirement. If you do not remember your account details, restore them in advance at account.xiaomi.com.

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Before resetting via Recovery, try connecting your smartphone to your PC and copy important data via MTP mode (if available).

How to prevent the accidental inclusion of TalkBack in the future?

To avoid re-activating TalkBack, follow a few simple steps:

• 🔒 Turn off the button combination: go to Settings → Special facilities → TalkBack → Settings → Keyboard combination and deactivate option.
• 👆 Configure gestures: in the same menu you can turn off activation by double pressing the power button.
• 🛡️ Set a password for settings: in Settings → System system → Additionally. → Settings protection turn on PIN-code for changing special features.
• 🧒 Use Child Mode: If children use the smartphone, activate Parental Control in Settings → Annexes → Parental control.

It is also recommended that:

• Check your settings regularly after MIUI updates – sometimes they are reset.
• Back up important data (via Settings → About Phone → Backup).
• Install an alternative launcher (like Nova Launcher) that makes it easier to manage if TalkBack does turn on.

FAQ: Frequent questions about TalkBack on Xiaomi