Owners of modern Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones often face a situation where the familiar interface looks unusually stretched or hides important controls, due to the company’s aggressive policy of introducing full-screen gestures and scaling applications under elongated displays. Users who are used to classic navigation buttons or standard aspect ratio may experience discomfort when typing or playing.
Disabling full-screen functions or returning to the traditional system is a solvable task, but requires understanding the logic of the MIUI shell or the new HyperOS. Depending on your device model and operating system version, the paths to settings may vary slightly, but the general principle remains the same. We will analyze all available methods, from simple switches in the menu to hidden engineering options.
It's important to understand that completely disabling some features can lead to black bars on the sides of the screen in older applications. This is normal behavior of the system when working with content that is not optimized for modern proportions. Our goal is to find a balance between aesthetics, functionality and the usability of the gadget.
Navigation Control: Gestures vs. Buttons
The most notable feature of full-screen is the absence of physical or on-screen Home, Back and Menu buttons, and the system offers you to swipe your smartphone around the edges of the display, and if you're familiar with the classic method, it can be easily returned through the system settings, which will change not only the look of the bottom of the screen, but also the logic of interaction with the interface.
To switch, you need to go to Settings → Desktop. Here you will find System Navigation. The default option is often Full-screen mode, which hides the buttons. You will need to select the buttons option. After this action, three familiar keys will appear at the bottom of the screen, and the back swipes will stop working, giving way to pressing.
⚠️ Note: When you switch to navigation buttons, the bottom of the screen in apps may be partially closed by the control panel, especially on devices with small diagonals.
In addition, the Hide prompts setting is available in the same menu. If you activate this feature, text reminders about swipes will disappear, which will make the interface cleaner even if you use gestures. For users who want to leave gestures but change their direction (for example, to make the Back button on the right, like in iOS), there is a separate option “Order of buttons”.
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Returning to button navigation is the most effective way to visually “disable” full-screen mode for most users accustomed to the old school Android management.
Scaling of applications (Full-screen applications)
Many users of full-screen mode mean a situation where the application is stretched to the full screen, cutting the interface or hiding virtual buttons. In the shell of MIUI there is a special mechanism for forced scaling, which allows you to run old games and programs that are not adapted to the extended screens, in window mode with black fields or in full stretch.
To manage this setting, open Settings → Additional Features → Full-screen applications. Here you will see a list of all installed programs. If there is a tick next to the application, it runs in stretched mode. By removing the mark, you force the system to run the program in a standard aspect ratio, which often solves problems with non-clickable interface angles.
It is worth noting that for some system applications and popular social networks, this setting can be blocked or hidden by shell developers. In such cases, the system itself determines the optimal display mode. However, for most third-party utilities, especially games and older versions of banking applications, manual adjustment is the only way out.
Why don't some games have a touchscreen on the edges?
Disabling Fluid Animations and Interface Effects
Often, the desire to make the screen easier is not so much about navigation as it is about visual congestion. Full-screen effects, such as folder enlargement when opened or wallpaper parallax effects, can be annoying. While you can't completely turn off all animations with a single button, you can significantly reduce their number and duration by making the interface more "dry" and responsive.
To fine-tune, activate the developer mode. Go to Settings → About Phone and quickly click 7 times on MIUI Version (or OS Version). Once the "You're a developer" notification appears, go back to the main settings menu, select "Additional" → "For Developers." Find the section related to animation and reduce the windows, transitions and duration of the animator to 0.5x or turn them off completely.
Also in the main settings in the Desktop section → More (or "More") can be turned off with "Increase when opened" to remove folder zoom, making opening apps instantaneous and unnecessary visual noise. AMOLED-screens are also useful to disable the “Infinite Scrolling Scrolling Screen” if such an option is present to remove excess dynamics.
| Parameter | Location. | Shutdown effect |
|---|---|---|
| Window animation | For developers | Instantly open applications without delay |
| Increase when opening | The Desktop → More | Folders open without zoom effect |
| Wallpaper carousel | Screen locking | The background image stops changing |
| The parallax effect | Wallpaper and personalization | Wallpaper stops moving when the phone is tilted |
One-Hand Mode and a Floating Window
Another feature that might be perceived as an unwanted full-screen mode is the one-handed control mode, which reduces the usable screen area by shifting the content into a corner, sometimes users activate it randomly with a triple touch or swipe, and then they can't figure out how to get it back, and this includes the "Smooth Window" mode, which turns the application into a floating rectangle.
To exit the mode with one hand, just click on the folded screen icon or swipe from the edge, depending on the settings. To completely disable the function, go to Settings → Additional Functions → One-handed Mode and deactivate the switch. This will prevent accidental activation when you carelessly handle the device.
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If the screen is stuck in reduced mode and the buttons are not responding, try making a gesture to shake the device or triple tap the free area if these features have not been disabled before.
FreeForm is a powerful MIUI multitasking feature. If the app opens in a small window and you want to deploy it to the full screen, click on the top edge of the window and select the square icon or stretch the angle. To prevent applications from running in this default mode, check the settings in the Windows or Multitasking section.
Hidden settings via engineering menu and ADB
For advanced users who don’t have the standard tools, there are deeper interface modifications, and with USB debugging and ADB (Android Debug Bridge) tools, you can force the screen density (DPI) to change or hide the system panels, which allows you to emulate the behavior of older Android smartphones or, conversely, stretch the interface in a non-standard way.
To use this method, you'll need a computer and an installed Android platform toolkit. Connect your phone, turn on Debugging by USB» in the developer menu and execute the command to change the density:
adb shell wm density 400The 400 value can be replaced with another (the standard is usually 411-440 dpi). Reducing the value will make the interface elements larger and can visually "compress" the content, removing the feeling of overstretching. However, changing the density of the DPI can lead to incorrect display of fonts in some applications, so use this method with caution and remember the default value for returns.
☑️ Preparation for ADB-team
There is also an engineering menu called by code ##6484## (CIT) that, while designed for diagnostics, can be accessed through some firmware versions of the display, where you can check the real boundaries of the workspace and touchscreen calibration, which is useful for problems with non-working corners of the screen.
Solving problems with games and Game Turbo
The Game Turbo mode (formerly Game Center) is also noteworthy, and when games are launched, it often forces full-screen mode, hides notifications, and blocks navigation buttons to immerse itself in the process. If you need to see notifications or use standard control buttons while playing, the Game Turbo settings will have to be changed.
Run the Security app (green shield), scroll down to Game Turbo or Game Mode. In the settings (cogs), find the "Additional settings" or "Management" section, where you can disable button locks, disable bangs (camera cutout) and turn off full-screen automatic launch for specific games.
⚠️ Warning: Disabling Game Turbo Optimizations may result in lower performance in heavy gaming or pop-up notifications interrupting gameplay.
Also, the game’s settings (within the menu) often include “Screen Mode” or “Speciality ratio.” If Xiaomi’s system settings don’t help, try finding that setting in the app’s graphical settings and switching it from “Full” or “Stretch” to “Original” or “16:9.”