Owners of Xiaomi’s flagship and mid-range smartphones often face a mystery: Which display provider is used in their device? Electronics manufacturers including Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO often change component suppliers depending on availability and cost, installing screens from different vendors such as Samsung Display, BOE or Tianma in the same model.
This leads to the fact that two identical smartphones can have differences in color reproduction, brightness level and, especially for sensitive eyes, in the frequency of flashing backlights. OLED-Low PWM matrix or more gentle technology.
Fortunately, the Android operating system stores this information in deep system logs. To access this data, we will have to use the engineering menu or command line. In this article, we will discuss in detail all the available ways to obtain technical information about your gadget’s display.
Why it is important to know the manufacturer of the display
Many users don’t care who made the screen until they encounter quality issues, because even within a single model range, Xiaomi can use three or four different types of panels. For example, the popular Redmi Note series often features matrices from TCL and BOE, which can vary significantly in black saturation.
One of the main reasons for checking is PWM (pulse-latitudinal modulation) problems. Some arrays, especially AMOLED, can flicker at low brightness, which causes eye fatigue. Knowing the manufacturer, you can find feedback about your version of the screen and see if you should turn on the vision protection mode or replace the device.
Samsung’s screens are traditionally considered benchmarks for color reproduction and viewing angles, and if you have one on your device, it can be a powerful argument for higher resale prices in the secondary market.
⚠️ Warning: Do not try to disassemble your smartphone to search for markings on the display plume if you do not have experience.This will lead to loss of warranty and possible damage to water protection.
The easiest and safest way to get information about components is to use the built-in CIT (Customer Integration Test) menu, which is for factory diagnostics, but is also available to ordinary users. It does not require superuser rights to log in, making it universal for all Xiaomi models.
To run a diagnosis, open the standard Phone app and type a special code. Depending on the firmware version (MIUI or HyperOS) and region, the code may vary slightly, but the main one is ##6484#. Once the last digit is dialed, the menu will open automatically. If the code does not work, try #4636##, although it is more commonly used for network information.
In the test list that opens, you need to find the item associated with the display, usually called Display, Color Test or Screen. However, just running a color test, you won't see the manufacturer. You need to click on the menu button (three dots or a physical button) and select Version or Hardware Info, which is often where the line with the name of the panel vendor is hidden.
CIT can look ascetic and be compressed. Look for acronyms like S6E3FC3 (Samsung) or codes starting with rm69299. If there is no explicit vendor name on the CIT menu, move on to more advanced ADB methods.
Using ADB for accurate diagnosis
If the engineering menu did not give a clear answer, debugging will come to the rescue. USB. The method using Android Debug Bridge (ADB) It is the most reliable, because it allows you to "ask" the system directly what driver is used to control the screen. ADB.
First, activate the developer mode on your smartphone. Go to Settings → About Phone and quickly press 7-10 times on the MIUI Version (or OS Version). After you see the "You became a developer" sign, go to Advanced Settings → For Developers and turn on the USB Debugging Toggle.
Connect your smartphone to your computer with a cable. Open the command line on your PC in the ADB folder and type a command to check the list of connected devices:
adb devices
You'll see a debugging permission request on your phone screen -- make sure you check the "Always Allow" box and click "OK." Now you can request the display information. Type the following command that will display the screen properties:
adb shell dumpsys SurfaceFlinger --display-id=0
In the resulting array of text, look for the lines model or name, and it will indicate the exact matrix identifier. samsung_s6e3fc3 or boe_nt36525. This is the information that is not possible to hide software without soldering the chip.
What if the ADB can’t see the phone?
Make sure the original cable is installed, not just the charging one. USB-port, preferably USB 2.0. Also check if the driver is installed ADB Interface in Windows Device Manager. Sometimes it helps to restart the adb service through the command adb kill-server and adb start-server. Decryption of codes and markings of matrixes After getting a long string of characters from the logs, the user is often lost in guesswork. Manufacturers use specific prefixes that allow them to accurately identify the source of a component, and knowing these codes turns a set of characters into comprehensible information: 📱 Samsung: Codes often start with s6e, s6d They're called samsungs, and they're considered the standard of contrast. 📱 BOE: The labeling usually contains boe, nt (New Technology) or rm. Frequently found in the budget and middle segments. 📱 Tianma: identified by the prefix tm or ili (ILITEK). They may have a cooler color reproduction. 📱 E-ink: In electronic ink devices (e.g. Xiaomi InkPalm), epd or eink will be indicated. Sometimes you will find a controller mentioned in the logs, for example, Novatek or Goodix. It is important not to confuse the manufacturer of the touchscreen controller and the manufacturer of the matrix. However, often matrix vendors use specific brand controllers, which is also an indirect sign: The difference between different vendors' displays can be noticeable to the naked eye, especially when comparing side-by-side. The main differences lie in the production technologies and materials used. Manufacturer Typical Features Frequency of occurrence Features Samsung Display High brightness, deep black Flagships, top segment Best calibration out of the box BOE Good color reproduction, medium PWM Medium and budget class Often used in Redmi TCL (CSOT) High Hertz, brightness Gaming models, subbrands Diamond Pixels Tianma Technology Basic parameters, economy class Budget models May require manual tuning It is worth noting that in recent years Chinese manufacturers such as BOE and CSOT, Xiaomi's new flagships (series 13, 14, Ultra) often use top panels. BOE, The brightness and frequency of PWM exceed many of Samsung's previous solutions. DC Dimming or flicker protection, which is a function that depends on the capabilities of the matrix controller. On some panels, enabling this mode leads to color distortion, which is a hardware feature of a particular vendor.PWM check and color quality Once you know the manufacturer, it makes sense to check how the screen behaves in real conditions. There are specialized tests to do this, and the easiest way is to run a white video at minimum brightness and point the camera of another high-frequency smartphone at the screen. If you see strong horizontal bands running across the screen, it's indicative of low-frequency PWM. OLED-It's normal for screens to be at minimum brightness, but the flickering amplitude varies from one matrix to another. The older generation Samsung matrix often sinned against this, while the newer ones did. BOE Can use hybrid brightness control. 📊 How important is the screen manufacturer to you when buying?Samsung - only their Chinese brands - normal - AMOLEDI don't care if it works, you can use online services to check for color rendering and broken pixels, or download the Test Screen app from Google Play, and run the screen through all the colors: red, green, blue, white and black. On a black background, “lights” or unevenness of the backlight (the effect of “clouds”) are especially visible, which is often found in the background of the light. IPS-The impact of firmware on the display Do not forget that the software plays a role. Xiaomi often changes the algorithms of the display in updates MIUI Sometimes, after the update, users notice that the screen has become "yellower" or, conversely, "blue", this is due to a change in color profiles, which are calibrated to a specific batch of matrixes. If you have refashioned your device from the global version to the Chinese version (or vice versa), the system may not correctly apply color reproduction profiles, in which case it helps to reset the screen settings to factory or use color calibration applications that require root rights. ⚠️ Attention: Installing third-party display drivers or modifying the system files that control the screen can lead to a device building or image artifacts. Be careful. There is also the concept of an "engineered pattern" of a matrix. Sometimes, in the early stages of sales, screens with modified parameters are introduced to devices, which later change to standard ones. This is a rare but possible scenario that explains the differences in user reviews that have been purchased in the first weeks of sales. Frequently asked questions (FAQ) Can you software-basedly replace the matrix driver with another? No, it's not possible. A driver is a low-level software that interacts directly with the screen controller. Installing a driver from another model or vendor will cause the screen to simply stop working or produce an unreadable image. Does the matrix manufacturer affect the autonomy of the smartphone? Yes, but indirectly. Different production technologies (e.g. LTPS vs. Oxide or different generations of AMOLED) have different efficiency. More modern matrixes consume less energy at the same brightness that can add 10-15 minutes of screen life. Is it true that Xiaomi's "lottery" with screens? It is partly true that Xiaomi buys for the production of several components, and buys from the mid-segment segment. In flagship models (Mi series, Xiaomi Number series), quality control is stricter, and the probability of getting a frankly bad matrix is lower, but the differences between Samsung and BOE can still be. How do you know the type of matrix (IPS or AMOLED) without programs? Include a pure black image for maximum brightness in a dark room. If the screen glows gray or visible backlight at the edges is IPS. If the screen visually merges with the frame and looks off, it is AMOLED or OLED. Should you change the screen in the service to "original" if the official matrix is not known in the service, if it is a low-quality, even a copy of the official one, it is used in the first handy, it is used in the semenororororiginal, it is used in the same handy, or Xiaomi, which is used in the original?