Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones often encounter intrusive content that appears immediately after unlocking the device or swiping right on the desktop.This so-called news feed (or widget feed) is full of promotional offers, news and app recommendations, which annoys many users who appreciate minimalism.
Fortunately, the MIUI shell and the new HyperOS provide flexible tools to personalize the interface, so you can completely disable the news aggregator, remove the screen lock with ads, and prevent the system from showing recommendations in folders, not only improving the visual experience, but also saving traffic and also slightly increasing autonomy.
In this guide, we will discuss all available methods for cleaning the interface from unnecessary information noise. We will look at desktop settings, screen blocker options and system restrictions for system applications, so you can customize your gadget exactly as convenient for you.
Remove the widget tape when swiping to the right
The most visible element is the tape that opens when you swipe from the left edge of the screen to the right, and by default, it displays widgets, news and shortcuts, and to get rid of that, you need to change the launcher settings.
Go to the desktop settings. To do this, press and hold your finger on an empty section of the screen or use a two-finger pinch to open the editing menu. In the upper right corner, click on the gear icon (Settings).
Find the item that's responsible for "Left panel", "Widget tape" or "Google Discover" (depending on the firmware version). Switch the slider to "Off" position. Now, when you swipe to the right, nothing happens.
In some versions of firmware, especially global ones, this element may be called Google Discover. If you can't find the switch in your desktop settings, try the following:
- 📱 Open the smartphone settings.
- 🔍 In the search for settings, enter the word "Discover».
- ⚙️ Go to the found item and turn off the tape display.
After these actions, the swipe to the right will become “empty”, which will significantly speed up navigation if you do not use the weather widgets or pedometer on the home screen.
Disabling advertising and news on the lock screen
Another source of irritation is Wallpaper Carousel (or Glance in newer versions), a service that changes wallpaper every time you lock your screen and shows news, articles and ads, often activated randomly when you first set up your phone.
To disable this feature, go to Settings → Lock screen. Find the Wallpaper Carousel (or Glance for Xiaomi) section. Click on it and select the "Switch off" option.
⚠️ Warning: Once you turn off the wallpaper carousel, you'll have one static image on the lock screen.If you like variety, install live wallpaper through a standard gallery or third-party app, but without intrusive news content.
It's also worth checking the theme settings, and sometimes the news line can be sewn into the theme itself, if the switches don't help:
- Go to the Topic app.
- Go to the profile (human icon).
- Choose My Themes and apply the standard Classic or Default theme.
This is guaranteed to remove any modified interface elements, including hidden news widgets added by the theme author.
Folder settings and banning advertising recommendations
Even if you take the tape and the carousel off, you can see ads in the app folders, and when you open the folder at the bottom, you often see a line called "Recommended Apps" with game and software icons, and that's also part of the news feed ecosystem.
To turn off, open any folder on your desktop. Click on the folder name (or the three dots/settings icon inside the folder, depending on the version of MIUI). In the menu that appears, find the Recommended Apps switch and deactivate it.
☑️ Checking the purity of the interface
If you have a HyperOS shell installed, the process may be slightly different, and in this system, settings are often grouped into categories.
Try to find the additional section in the desktop settings, there may be a separate item called "Get recommendations," make sure it's disabled, which will prevent banner ads from appearing not only in folders, but also in search on the system.
Deep Cleaning Through Application Management
Sometimes standard switches are not enough, because system components can force you to return settings, in which case the method of “freeze” or limiting the operation of the system news module will help.
You'll need to find the app that's responsible for the tape, which can be called Mi Video, Mi Music, Mi Browser, or just Services and Reviews (older versions), but the most effective way is to find a Quick Center or App Vault component.
Act carefully following the instructions:
- Open Settings → Applications → All applications.
- Click on three dots in the corner and select Show System Processes.
- Find an app with a title that contains News, Feed, or Global Search.
- Go inside and click Stop, then Disable (if available).
What to do if the “Disable” button is inactive?
It's important to understand that you can't completely remove system components without root rights, but stopping and cleaning up the data often resets the news feed to the factory feed, where it's off by default.
Comparison of Disconnection Methods in MIUI and HyperOS
MIUI and HyperOS interfaces have different menu structures, which can confuse the user when searching for the right switch. Below is a table to help you navigate where to look for settings in different versions of the firmware.
| Interface element | MIUI 12/13/14 | HyperOS (1.0+) | Global version |
|---|---|---|---|
| The ribbon on the left | Desktop settings → Tape of widgets | Settings → Desktop → Left panel | Settings → Desktop → Google Discover |
| Lock screen | Settings → Lock screen → Carousel | Settings → Wallpaper → Carousel wallpaper | Settings → Lock screen → Glance |
| Recommendations | Inside the folder → Title → River. applications | Settings → Additional → Recommendations | Settings → Google → Discover |
As you can see from the table, the logic remains similar, but item names can vary. In the HyperOS version, Xiaomi is aiming for greater unification, so some settings can be moved to general personalization sections.
If you've recently updated and can't find the old item, search by settings. Type in "widget" or "tape" and the system will show you the way to the desired switch.
Additional tips for optimizing the interface
After turning off news feeds, it is recommended to audit the widgets on the desktop, and users often forget to remove old weather or news widgets that continue to consume traffic in the background.
Press and hold the widget, then select Delete. Leave only the most necessary tools, such as a watch or a calendar, to make the interface cleaner and faster.
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Use the Clean widget only if you really need it. In modern versions of MIUI, the memory is cleared automatically, and the widget only creates visual noise on the screen.
Also, look for notifications from system applications. Go to Settings → Notifications → Application Notifications. Find Mi Browser, GetApps, and Security. Turn off all notifications except critical ones.
⚠️ Warning: Do not disable notifications from the Security app completely if you are not sure of your actions. Leave only alerts for viruses or critical system errors on, but remove promotional emails about optimization.
Compliance with these rules will allow you to turn your Xiaomi smartphone into a convenient tool without unnecessary visual noise.
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Completely disabling the news feed does not affect the operation of the main functions of the phone, but significantly increases the comfort of use and the speed of the interface response.