MIUI 12 has brought significant visual changes to the Xiaomi smartphone ecosystem, affecting not only animations but also system elements such as the control panel. Many users, accustomed to the classic look of curtains from earlier versions of Android or other shells, often look for ways to personalize this element to their taste preferences. Changing the appearance of the notification panel is one of the easiest ways to make the device interface unique without the need for root rights.
It should be noted that standard system tools can not completely replace the functionality of the curtain on a fundamentally different design, since it is a system component. However, there are several effective customization methods that allow you to change the color gamut, icons, fonts and location of controls. In this article, we will discuss in detail all available options for modifying the interface for owners of devices based on MIUI 12.
The process of changing the appearance requires care, because some methods affect system design themes. Installation of untested components can lead to visual bugs or unstable interface operation. So before starting any manipulations, it is important to understand what exactly you want to get and how deeply you are ready to implement the system settings.
Standard Customization Options in MIUI 12
Before you go to any third-party solution, you should look at the built-in shell tools. Xiaomi engineers have provided a basic level of personalization that is safe and does not require the installation of additional software. The changes are primarily about the color scheme, which automatically adapts to the wallpaper of the desktop, but can be customized manually.
To access the basic settings, you need to go to the Settings menu → The screen is always on and locking. You can change the style of the watch on the lock screen, which visually affects the perception of the top of the interface when you remove the lock. Although this does not change the curtain itself, it creates a general visual context for the notification panel.
MIUI 12 also has System Colors, which allows you to select from multiple colors or customize your palette yourself, and it affects volume sliders, curtain switches, and accent button colors, and changes take effect immediately after you apply the theme.
⚠️ Warning: Changing system fonts through standard settings may cause some characters to display incorrectly in the notification bar if the font does not support specific battery or network status icons.
It's important to understand that standard tools are limited to color and fonts, and if you want to reposition switches or add new widgets right into the quick settings area, you can't do it with built-in methods, and you'll need more advanced tools, which I'll talk about later.
Using the Themes app to change style
The most effective and safest way to dramatically change the appearance of the notification curtain is to use the official Themes store. Developers from around the world create complex designs that replace the graphics of system switches, the background of the control panel and application icons.
To find the right design, open the Themes app on your desktop. In the search bar, type in queries like “Control Center,” “iOS Style,” or “Minimal UI.” In the search results, look for a preview that usually shows what the Control Center and the notification bar will look like. After selecting a theme, click “Download” and then “Apply.”
When applying the theme, the system will suggest choosing which components to replace, make sure that the System, Control Panel and Lock Screen are marked. If you want to save your wallpaper, uncheck Wallpaper, but leave the system graphics active.
☑️ Checking before setting the topic
Some themes may not fully support Russification or have specific icons that may be unusual, in which case you can always go back to standard design by selecting a theme “Classic” or “No Theme” in the “Profile” section of the application theme.
Installation of third-party control centres
For users who don’t need to change their graphics and want to rework the curtain functionally, there are special applications from the Google Play Store, programs like Power Shade or Notification Center, create a new interface layer on top of the standard system that simulates the curtain of notifications in the style of iOS or other OS.
Once you install an application like this, you'll need to give it a number of permissions, usually access to "Above Other Applications" and "Access Notifications." Without these permissions, the program won't be able to intercept system events and display its own swipe bar. The setup process takes a few minutes and requires careful master tuning.
The main advantage of these solutions is complete independence from the version of MIUI. You can get functionality that is not even in MIUI 14 on your device with the twelfth version. However, it is worth remembering that third-party applications consume more battery life, as they constantly run in the background, waiting for the panel to call.
Settings → Applications → Application Management → [Application Name] → Permissions → On top of other appsThird-party control centers are highly dependent on optimizing the program itself, and cheap or poorly written applications can cause delays when opening the curtain or conflict with system gestures, so it is recommended to choose solutions with a lot of positive feedback and regular updates.
Risks of using third-party curtain launchers
Comparison of methods of customization of the interface
The choice of the method of changing the curtain depends on your goals: whether you just need a different picture or a fundamentally new functionality. Below is a table that will help you compare the main ways to modify the interface on Xiaomi MIUI 12 by key parameters.
| Method | Difficulty | Security | Depth of change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard topics | Low. | Tall. | Visual (colors, icons) |
| Third-party annexes | Medium | Medium | Functional and visual |
| Systemic modifications | Tall. | Low. | Complete (structural) |
| Developer mode | Low. | Tall. | Minimum (animation) |
As you can see from the table, standard themes are the safest option: they don't affect system stability and are easy to remove; third-party apps give more freedom, but require sacrifices in the form of autonomy; deep system changes are only suitable for advanced users.
If you choose between a visual update and a new feature, consider the need. Often, users just need to update the theme to get the desired sense of novelty without overloading the processor with unnecessary services.
Advanced customization through the developer mode
For those who want to fine-tune the behavior of the curtain, but are not ready to install third-party software, there is a hidden menu “For developers” where you can change the speed of animations opening and closing the panel, which visually changes the perception of the interface, making it more responsive or, conversely, smooth.
To activate this mode, go to Settings → About Phone and quickly click on “MIUI Version” seven times. Once you have a message about successful activation, a new “Additional” or “Extended Settings” section will appear in the settings menu, where the “Developers” item is located.
Inside the menu, find a section that's related to drawing or animation, and we're interested in window animation, transition animation, and animation duration, and reducing the values from 1x to 0.5x will make opening the curtains instantaneous. It doesn't change the design, but it does have a significant impact on (UX).
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Reducing the animation scale to 0.5x visually speeds up the interface, creating higher device performance without real CPU power gain.
Be careful when changing other settings in this menu, and accidentally disabling important system processes can cause notifications to work incorrectly or not to unlock the device, only changing the parameters that you fully understand.
Possible problems and solutions
Users may encounter various difficulties in customization, the most common problem being the theme “glue” after rebooting the device, which occurs if the theme was installed incorrectly or the theme app cache is damaged, and this is solved by reapplying a standard theme and then reinstalling the desired one.
Another common issue is font incompatibility. If after installing the theme, squares or incomprehensible characters are displayed in the curtain instead of icons, then the theme font does not support the encoding of MIUI system icons. In this case, in the theme settings (the Fonts section), you need to choose a standard system font, leaving the remaining graphic elements unchanged.
There may also be bugs that display notifications from specific applications, some third-party control centers can't read messenger status correctly, in which case the only solution is to return to the standard MIUI curtain or find an alternative application with better optimization.
⚠️ Warning: If after installing a theme or application, the device screen turned black or stopped responding to touch, try to perform a forced reboot by pressing the power button on the device. 10-15 seconds.
In rare cases, conflicting MIUI versions and theme can lead to a cyclic bootloop.To avoid data loss, always back up important data via Mi Cloud or locally to your computer before installing heavy thematic packs.
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System stability is always more important than visual effects; at the first sign of serious failures, go back to the factory design settings.