Owners of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 8T smartphone often face the desire to personalize the device, and changing the virtual keyboard is one of the easiest ways to make the interface unique. The default standard text input tool may seem too simple or conversely overloaded with features you don’t need. The Android operating system, which runs the MIUI shell, provides a flexible input management system that allows you to easily replace the standard keyboard with any other from the app store.
The replacement process does not require root rights or deep technical knowledge, but it is important to understand the difference between installing a new application and activating it as the main one. Just downloading a program from Google Play is not enough - Android security will require you to explicitly authorize the new input method, and this is done to protect user data, since the keyboard has access to everything you type, including passwords and bank details.
In this guide, we’ll go through all the steps from choosing the right app to fine-tuning gestures and vocabulary. You’ll learn how to avoid typical switching errors and what features to include first to improve print speed. Whether you want to bring back a classic keyboard or try something futuristic with voice input, this guide will help you customize the Redmi Note 8T for yourself.
Selecting the optimal application for text input
The mobile app market offers dozens of keyboard options, each claiming to be the best. Xiaomi users need to choose a solution that works harmoniously with the MIUI shell and does not conflict with system processes. Google’s Gboard has been the market leader for many years, offering a great predictive system, built-in translator and support for many languages. However, there are powerful alternatives, such as SwiftKey, famous for its word prediction algorithm, or Typewise with a non-standard layout.
When choosing, consider the functionality you lose or gain. Some lightweight keyboards may not have swipe-typing, which is a critical disadvantage for many. Others, on the contrary, are overloaded with themes and GIF-animation, which can slightly slow down the device on budget processors, although the Redmi Note 8T With its Snapdragon 665, it should handle most of them without any problems.
It is also important to consider theme and design support, as visuals play a big role in customizing the interface, and many users prefer to tailor the keyboard design to fit the wallpaper or theme of the system. Below is a table comparing popular solutions available in the Play Market.
| Annex | Size of APK | Support for topics | Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gboard | ~100MB | Tall. | Voice input, translator |
| SwiftKey | ~80MB | Very high. | Best prediction, cloud buffer |
| Typewise | ~50MB | Medium | Hexagonal layout, autocorrection |
| Fleksy | ~40MB | Tall. | Gesture management, minimalism |
Installation and initial activation of the new keyboard
Once you have made your choice and downloaded the app from the official Google Play Store, you need to activate it correctly. Android will not allow you to use the new input method immediately after installation without your confirmation. This is an important security step that should not be missed. Open your Redmi Note 8T settings and find the section responsible for additional system settings.
The path to the menu may vary slightly depending on the version of MIUI, but most often it is located at: Settings → Additional settings → Language and input. In some versions of the firmware, this item may be simply called "Language and input" in the main settings menu, and here you will see a list of all available keyboards, including the one just installed.
☑️ Keyboard activation algorithm
Click on the name of the new keyboard in the list to go to its detailed settings. In the window that opens, the system will warn you that a third-party application can access all the text you type. This is the standard warning for any non-system keyboards. You need to press the OK or Allow button to activate the tool.
⚠️ Attention: If the keyboard does not appear when typing after switching on the switch, try restarting the smartphone. MIUI Resetting the input services is required to apply the changes correctly.
Setting up a new keyboard as the main default
Activating in the list of permitted methods is only half the battle, so that the system offers you a new keyboard every time you touch the text box, you need to select it as the main one. In the same menu, Language and input, find an item called "Current Keyboard" or "Default Keyboard".
Clicking on this item will open a list of all active input methods. Choose the name of your new application. From now on, any type of text in messages, browsers or notes will use the selected interface. If you have multiple keyboards installed, you can switch between them on the fly without going into the settings.
How to quickly switch between keyboards?
It is important to set up the language bar inside the keyboard app itself. Go to its settings (usually through the gear icon on the keyboard itself or through the app on the smartphone menu) and add the necessary languages. Autocorrection and predictive set will only work effectively after you type a little in the new language, allowing the algorithms to learn your style.
Fine configuration of the interface and functionality
Modern keyboards offer huge customization capabilities that go far beyond just choosing a color. You can change the height of a number of buttons, add a separate string for numbers or emojis, and customize the tactile response. For the Xiaomi Redmi Note 8T, which has a quality vibrator, adjusting the strength and duration of the vibration when pressed can significantly improve the experience of printing.
Note the clipboard settings. Many advanced keyboards, like SwiftKey or Gboard, allow you to save the history of copied text. This is a very convenient feature, but it requires attention to privacy. You can set up the buffer cleanup after a certain period of time or disable saving it for bank applications.
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Use the Floating Keyboard if you have thumbs or type frequently with one hand, and you can compress the keyboard and move it to any part of the screen for easy access.
Don't forget to customize the theme. Most apps let you upload your own images from the gallery and use them as a keyboard background. You can also adjust the transparency of buttons, character fonts, and even the sound of pressing. Competently adjusting visual settings helps reduce eye fatigue during long-term typing.
Solving problems with display and work
Sometimes, after installing a new keyboard, users face problems: it may not appear in certain applications, work with a delay or spontaneously switch to a standard one. Most often, this is due to aggressive battery optimization in MIUI, which "kills" background processes. To avoid this, find the keyboard application in the list of installed programs, go to Battery and select No Limits mode.
Another common problem is the conflict with system navigation. If you use gesture control instead of three buttons at the bottom of the screen, the bottom panel of the new keyboard can block the navigation area. In the keyboard settings, there is often an option "Compatibility Mode" or the ability to change indentations. Also try to update the application through the Play Market, as developers often release patches for compatibility with specific versions of Android.
⚠️ Warning: If the keyboard has stopped responding to the presses completely, do not rush to delete it. → Annexes → All applications, find the problem keyboard and click "Clear Data." This will reset the application settings to factory, often solving the problem without reinstalling.
In rare cases, you may need to reset your input settings completely, and you can find the "Reset keyboard settings" option in the Language and Input menu (the name may vary), which will bring all input settings back to their original state, which is useful if you've experimented with a lot of settings and got confused with them.
Removing unnecessary keyboards and cleaning the system
If you've tested multiple options and settled on one, it's better to remove the extra apps, they take up space in memory and can consume resources in the background, even if not used, and they're deleted in the standard way: through the app menu or by long-term clicking on the desktop icon (if any).
However, before you delete an old keyboard, make sure you have at least one alter input method activated.The Android system won't let you remove the last active keyboard, as this will block the ability to type text on the device.If you delete the standard Xiaomi keyboard, first activate and configure a new one.
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Regularly cleaning the keyboard cache helps keep the predictive set running fast and prevents the accumulation of temporary files that can slow down the system.
After deleting the application, it is recommended to check the list of allowed input methods again.The remote keyboard should disappear from the list.If it is left hanging as a "phantom device", a simple smartphone reboot usually corrects this visual glitch.The clarity of the input method list is important for quick switching and no confusion in the future.