How to turn off voice input on Xiaomi: step-by-step instructions

Modern Xiaomi and Redmi smartphones, which are based on MIUI or HyperOS shells, have many smart features for user convenience. One of these features is voice input, which allows you to control the device and type without touching the screen. However, not everyone likes when the phone reacts to random words or when the keyboard spontaneously turns on the microphone.

Often, gadget owners are faced with a situation where when typing a message accidentally activates Google Assistant or dictation function. This can be due to the high sensitivity of the microphone or the peculiarities of the keyboard settings. If you are annoyed by constant prompts or random activations, this feature should be deactivated through the system menus.

In this article, we will take a look at all the ways you can turn off voice input, and we will look at the settings of both the system assistant and the virtual Gboard keyboard, and you will learn to fully control when your smartphone listens to commands and when it works in silence.

Difference Between Google Assistant and Gboard Dictation

Before you start setting up, it’s important to understand the difference between the two main sources of voice input: The first is Google Assistant, which is the full-fledged voice assistant that controls the entire smartphone; the second is the built-in dictation feature in the Gboard keyboard, designed exclusively to translate speech into text in input fields.

Users often confuse these concepts by trying to disable one while the other is activated. Disabling Google Assistant does not turn off the microphone button on the keyboard, and vice versa. So, to completely abandon voice control, you will need to set up two different parts of the system.

If you want to stop talking to a smart person who suggests you open apps or find information, you need to work with your Google account settings. If you're only confused by the microphone icon when you print messages, you should look for settings inside the keyboard app, and sharing these features allows you to flexibly customize your device to your needs.

• 📱 Google Assistant: Deep system integration, called by the power button or the phrase "Ok Google".
• ⌨️ Gboard Dictation: Works only inside text input fields, converts speech into printed characters.
• ⚙️ System settings: Separate menus for managing each component are in different sections.

Disabling Google Assistant through Settings

The most common way to remove voice control is to deactivate the main service from Google, which does not require superuser rights or third-party software installation.

Go to Settings for your smartphone. Search for and select Google from the app list. Here you are interested in Settings for Google Apps, followed by the Search, Assistant, and Google Lens tab, and that's where you focus on managing all of the smart features of the searcher.

Then select Google Assistant and go to All Assistant Settings. Find General. Here you will see a switch that allows you to completely turn off the Assistant. Once it is turned off, the phone will no longer respond to voice commands and the call button.

⚠️ Attention: After disabling Google Assistant, you will lose the ability to use voice search and control your smart home via voice.

There's also an alternative way through the Assistant's own menu, so you can say "Ok Google," or hold the Assistant button for a long time to open the Assistant's interface. Click on the profile avatar in the corner of the screen, select Settings, and then Google Assistant. Here you can also find the activation switch.

Setting up the Gboard keyboard and turning off the microphone

If the primary assistant doesn't bother you but annoys you with the microphone button on the keyboard when typing, you need to do something different.The standard Gboard keyboard, which is installed on most Xiaomi smartphones by default, has its own voice input settings.

Open any application that requires text input to make the keyboard appear. Press and hold the comma icon or a special menu button (usually a four-square icon or gear) to open the Gboard settings. In the menu that opens, find the Voice section.

Inside this section, you'll see the voice input switch, turn it to "Off," and then the microphone icon will disappear from the keyboard toolbar, and the dictation function will no longer be available when you print messages in messengers or notes.

It's worth noting that some versions of MIUI may have slightly different paths. If you didn't find the settings with a long press, try going to Settings on your phone, select Additional -> Language and Input -> Keyboard Management -> Gboard. There should also be access to voice input settings.

• 🔍 Settings Search: Use the search bar inside the Gboard settings menu by typing in "voice".
• 🚫 Complete shutdown: Make sure the switch is grey, which means inactive.
• 🔄 Update: If no item, update the Gboard app through the Play Market Store.

Disable the “Ok Google” function and constant listening

A special feature that deserves special attention is the constant listening feature known as "Ok Google." Even if you don't call the assistant explicitly, the phone can constantly listen to the environment, waiting for this phrase, not only consumes battery power, but also raises questions about privacy.

To disable this feature, you need to go back to the Google Assistant settings. Find the Ok Google and Voice Match section. Turn off the Ok Google switch here. This will prevent the phone from activating on a voice command.

And there's Voice Match, which allows you to recognize a particular user's voice, so if you want to increase privacy, turn that off, and now the phone will ignore voice commands unless you press a physical button or select the appropriate item on the menu.

It's important to understand that turning off OK Google doesn't shut down the Assistant completely. You can all run it with a power button or through a menu, but it won't listen to you in the background.

Hidden settings and access rights in MIUI

The MIUI shell and Xiaomi’s new HyperOS have their own add-ons over standard Android. Sometimes system restrictions or app permissions can prevent functions from being properly disabled or cause them to spontaneously activate.

Check Settings -> Apps -> Permissions -> Microphone. This shows a list of all apps that have access to the microphone. Go to Google and Gboard. If you want to completely deny them access to the microphone (which will make voice input technically impossible), just turn off the access slider.

⚠️ Warning: Completely banning microphone access for Google system applications may cause other features to malfunction, such as voice search in Chrome or voice dialing".

Also in Xiaomi's settings, there's a special feature section, check if it's activated with any third-party voice control services or accessibility system services that can intercept control.

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Use the privacy indicator. In modern versions of Android and MIUI, a green dot lights up in the upper right corner of the screen when an app uses a microphone, which will help you track which process is activating voice input.

Solving problems with spontaneous activation

There are times when the user has completed all the settings, but voice input continues to turn on on on its own, most often due to a software failure or sticking of the program keys. The first step should always be a banal, but effective reboot of the device.

If the reboot didn't work, try resetting your keyboard settings. Go to Settings -> Apps -> Gboard -> Memory and press Clear all data. This will return the keyboard to factory status, and you'll have to reconfigure the language and theme, but configuration errors will be fixed.

In rare cases, the cause may be damage to the touchscreen or moisture, which causes the screen to register false presses in the area of the microphone button. If the problem only manifests itself in certain applications, try clearing the cache of this particular application.

• 🔄 Reboot: Completely switching off and turning on the smartphone.
• 🧹 Gboard reset: Clearing the keyboard application data.
• 🛡️ Safe Mode: Starting in Safe Mode will help eliminate the impact of third-party apps.

Check to see if you have third-party keyboards or screen recording apps that may have their own voice control modules, and conflict between multiple programs trying to use the microphone is a common cause of instability.

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If software methods don’t help, the problem may lie in the touchscreen hardware or the physical power button that is often used to call an assistant.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)