How to turn off flash when incoming call on Xiaomi

Many Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphone users experience a phone screen that suddenly flashes bright lights during an incoming call, a feature known as flash notifications that developers have conceived as a useful tool to attract attention in noisy places or for people with hearing impairments. However, in everyday life, especially at night or during meetings, sudden illuminations can be a serious irritant.

Also, using an LED flash or screen to signal significantly affects the battery life of the device, and the battery drains faster because the system uses up a charge to generate light pulses every time someone tries to reach you, and turning off this option is the first step you should take to optimize energy consumption and save nerves.

In this guide, we will take a detailed look at all the available ways to deactivate light notifications in the MIUI shells and the new HyperOS. You will learn where to look for the right switches in standard settings, how to manage system applications and what to do if the function is stuck and does not want to shut down in the usual way.

Why you need a flash when calling and why it is worth turning it off

The flashing flashlight or screen function when an incoming call is part of Android's accessibility system, and its primary purpose is to visually duplicate the sound signal, which is extremely useful if the phone is in a bag, on vibration, or if the user is in a room with high background noise, where the call can simply not be heard.

However, despite the good intentions of Xiaomi engineers, the implementation of this feature is often criticized. the LED flash located next to the camera can be too bright, creating a strobe effect. The screen, which lights up to full brightness, is able to blind in the dark and wake the sleeping person next to you, even if the sound of the call is quiet.

There's a technical aspect to the discomfort. LED-If you have no hearing problems and the phone is usually in your pocket or on the table where you notice vibration, turning off this feature is a sensible step.

⚠️ Note: Some models of the budget segment do not have a separate LED notification indicator, and the role of the “flash” is performed by the main screen or camera flash, which makes it even more priority to save the matrix resource.

It’s also worth noting that in recent firmware versions, notification algorithms change, and what worked in MIUI 11 may behave differently in MIUI 14 or HyperOS, so it’s important to understand what type of flash is activated on your device, as the methods of turning them off may vary.

Disabling flash through MIUI and HyperOS system settings

The easiest and most correct way to remove the light indication is to take advantage of the built-in operating system capabilities. In Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones, this setting is often hidden in the special features menu, rather than in the standard call section, which often confuses users.

First, you need to open the main settings menu for your device. The interface may vary slightly depending on the version of the shell, but the logic remains the same. You need to find the section responsible for additional system functions, usually called Special Features or Accessibility.

Within this section, you should look for a subsection related to auditory perception, and in different translations and versions of MIUI, it can be called "Hearing," "Audiovisualization," or "Notifications," and this is where all the switches associated with duplication of sound by light or vibration are concentrated.

Find a item called "Flash at Notifications" or "Flash screen." Make sure the slider opposite it is put in an inactive position (grey). If the switch is active, the system will continue to light the flashlight every time it enters.

⚠️ Warning: If the flash continues to work after the switch is turned off in the menu, try restarting the device. Sometimes system services require restarting to apply new configuration settings.

In the HyperOS shell, the path can be slightly changed by developers to unify the interface. Check also the Settings → Screen and Brightness → Additional settings, as in the new OS, some visual design functions have been moved there.

Setup of the application “Phone” and call cards

Sometimes the problem isn’t with the general system settings, but with the specific app responsible for making calls. Xiaomi smartphones use its own shell on top of standard Android, which has its own theme and effects settings for incoming calls.

Open the standard Phone app (green handset). Click on the three dots in the upper right corner or the menu button to open the drop-down list. Select Settings. In the menu that opens, look for the Incoming Calls or Calling.

There may be an option called "Effects on a Call" or "Incoming Call Animation." Some design themes, especially those downloaded from the MIUI Themes store, may force flash or bright screen animations to incorporate, ignoring system bans. Try changing the theme to a standard or classic one to see if the problem goes away.

• 📱 Open the Phone app and go to the settings menu through three points.
• 🎨 Find the “Call Theme” or “Design” section and select the standard style.
• 🔇 Check to see if Pocket or Answer in Pocket mode is activated, which can use the proximity sensor and flash to determine the position of the phone.
• 🔄 Reset the phone app settings through the app menu if the problem persists.

It’s also worth checking the settings of a particular contact. In rare cases, users assign customized ringtones or visuals to their favorite numbers, and these settings can take precedence over generic ones.

Managing notifications in messenger applications

Users often confuse flash on a regular phone call and flashing when receiving a message in messengers such as WhatsApp, Telegram or Viber. These apps have their own system-independent visual notification settings that can conflict with Xiaomi’s global settings.

To turn off the flash for a particular messenger, you need to go to the settings of the application itself. For example, on WhatsApp you need to go to Settings → Notifications → Light indicator. Here you can choose “No” or disable the use of the flash completely. Similar points are present in Telegram (in the section “Notifications and sounds”) and Viber.

It's important to understand the difference between a system flash and an in-app flash. System setup controls how the phone behaves when it's incoming. GSM-call, and the settings of messengers regulate the response to Internet messages and VoIP calls.

If you want to completely rid yourself of lighting effects, it is recommended to go through the settings of all commonly used communication applications. This will take a few minutes, but is guaranteed to eliminate unexpected flashes at the wrong time.

⚠️ Note: In some versions of Android and MIUI Light Indicud settings in applications can be hidden if the system is forced to turn off the general function LED-First, check the system settings.

Remember that app updates can reset your personalized settings, and checking these settings periodically after updating your messengers will help you avoid unpleasant surprises.

Use of Do Not Disturb Mode and Profiles

If you need to temporarily turn off all light and sound effects, such as during a movie or an important meeting, the best way to use the mode is to use Do Not Disturb. On Xiaomi smartphones, this mode has flexible settings to completely block the flash.

You can activate the mode through the notification curtain (swipe from top to bottom) or through the settings Sound and vibration → Do not disturb. In the settings of this mode, you can adjust the schedule (for example, automatically turn on at night) and determine which notifications will be blocked. When you activate this mode, the flash on calls usually does not work, even if it is on the system.

There are also automation scenarios in MIUI, where you can set up your phone so that when you run certain apps (like YouTube or games) or connect to a Wi-Fi network at home, the phone automatically goes quiet without flashing.

• 🌙 Use Do Not Disturb mode to completely turn off light indications at a given time.
• ⏰ Set up automatic activation of quiet mode on a schedule (for example, from 23:00 to 07:00).
• 🏠 Use geolocation to activate your Home or Work profile where you don’t need a flash.
• 📵 Turn on In-plane mode if you need to completely disable communications and any notifications.

This method is the most flexible, as it allows you not to turn off the function forever, but only to suspend its operation at the right moments, preserving the functionality for other situations.

Table: Comparison of flash-off methods

For ease of perception, we have systematized the main ways to disable light indications depending on the type of device and software version, which will help you to navigate faster if the standard path does not lead to the desired result.

As you can see from the table, the most universal way is to go to the special features section, but if the problem only manifests itself in certain applications, it is more appropriate to customize them individually.

Owners of older models, such as the Redmi Note 8 or Mi 9, should pay special attention to the first method, since they are physically LED indicator is often combined with sensors, and software control is the only way to control.

Solving the problem: if the flash does not turn off

There are times when all the switches are set correctly, the themes are reset, but the flash continues to blink treacherously, in which case it can be a software failure, application conflict or damage to the system configuration files.

The first step should always be to reboot the device. This trivial action often helps clear the temporal cache of the system services responsible for handling interrupts from the model. If the reboot didn't work, try Safe Mode. To do this, press the off button, and then hold your finger on the "Off" item on the screen for a long time until the suggestion to go to Safe Mode appears.

If the flash doesn't work in safe mode, it's a third-party app that's causing the problem. Think about the apps you've installed or updated recently. Often the culprits are memory cleaners, flashlights, calendars, or weather widgets that access the memory. LED-module.

In extreme cases, if nothing works, you can reset all settings to factory. This action will delete all your data, so be sure to back up your contacts and photos before the procedure. Reset will return the phone to the "out of the box" state, guaranteed to kill any software errors.

⚠️ Warning: Before resetting your settings, make sure you have access to your Mi and Google account, as after resetting, the phone will require you to enter passwords to confirm ownership (anti-theft protection).

Even if the flash continues to burn after a full reset and without installing third-party applications, there is a high probability of hardware failure, it can be a short circuit in the LED power supply chain or a malfunction of the motherboard, in which case only an access to an authorized service center will help.

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Tip: If the flash flash flashes in a chaotic order without calls, check the Dictator or Camera app - sometimes they can "hang" and hold access to the device. LED-Close them completely through the menu of running tasks.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

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Main conclusion: In 95% of cases, the problem is solved by switching one slider in the section "Special features» → «Rumor: If that doesn't work, look for a conflicting third-party app.