How to Put a Watch on Xiaomi Phone: The Complete Guide

The modern smartphone has long since ceased to be just a means of communication, becoming a personal information center, which we check hundreds of times a day. For many users of Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO devices, it is critical that time is always in front of your eyes, even when the display is locked or in sleep mode. The standard settings of the MIUI and HyperOS interface offer many ways to personalize, but not all of them are obvious at first glance. In this article, we will examine all available methods for displaying time, from simple widgets to advanced system functions.

A properly configured home screen or lock screen is not only aesthetically pleasing, it's functional. You can see not only the current time, but also the date, day of the week, phases of the moon, or even the weather without unlocking the device. Customization of the interface allows you to tailor the gadget to your individual needs, making interaction with it more convenient. We'll look at both standard tools and third-party solutions for maximum control over the appearance of your smartphone.

Customization of widgets on the main screen

The most common and easy way to add a dial to your desktop is to use standard system widgets. MIUI and HyperOS interfaces have a rich library of built-in elements that are easily activated. You first need to go to the main screen and make a long press on the free area or use a specific pinch with your fingers to reduce the scale. The bottom menu will appear the button "Widgets", clicking on which will open the catalog of available items.

In the menu that opens, you'll find the Watch category, which offers a variety of options, from classic analog arrows to large digital indicators. Some widgets only show time, others are combined with a calendar or weather. The style depends on your wallpaper and preferences: dark widgets look better on a light background, and light ones on a dark one. After choosing the right design, just drag it to the right place on your desktop.

• ⏰ Classic digital watch with large font for quick reading.
• 📅 Combined widget displaying time, date and day of the week.
• 🌡️ Informative block with time and current temperature outside the window.
• 🎨 Animated dials that change color depending on the time of day.

It is important to consider that the size of the widget affects the amount of space available for application icons. If you prefer minimalism, choose a compact option. If the screen serves as an information bar, you can occupy half of the display with a large block. Xiaomi also allows you to change the color of the numbers in some standard widgets through the settings of the element itself, which adds another level of personalization.

⚠️ Attention: When installing a large number of heavy widgets with live animation, there may be increased battery consumption, especially on screens such as the AMOLED, where each pixel burns individually.

Once installed, the widget can be moved, resized (if designed) or removed. To edit the parameters of a particular widget, you often just click on it and hold it, and then select "Widget Settings" where you can change the time zone, time format (12 or 24 hours) and font style.

Always On Display for Lock screens

Owners of smartphones with matrixes AMOLED and OLED The unique ability to use the technology Always on Display (AOD). This feature allows you to display the time, date and notifications on the screen off, while consuming a minimum amount of power. LCD-screens where the lighting is evenly lit, in AMOLED Only the pixels that are needed are illuminated, making it safe for the battery to activate. AOD, Go to Settings. → Lock screen.

In the lock screen settings menu, find “Always on display” or “Constantly on screen.” Here you can choose from one of the preset styles: minimalist numbers, smartphone silhouette, animated characters or even your own images. The flexibility of settings allows you to adjust the function’s time: it can be active always, on a schedule, or only turn on when you lift the phone.

You should pay special attention to setting your schedule, and it makes sense to set the active period from the moment you wake up to bedtime so that the screen doesn't glow in a dark room at night, and there's also Smart Mode, which uses an accelerometer to turn on the backlight only when you pick up your phone or look at it.

• 🌙 Scheduled mode allows you to set the exact time of on and off.
• 🤲 «Smart mode activates the screen only when interacting with the device.
• 🖼️ Possibility to set your own photo as a background for the watch.
• 🔔 Display icons of missed calls and messages along with time.

It is worth noting that on some Redmi and POCO models this feature may be limited or absent from stock firmware. In such cases, users often turn to third-party applications, although the system implementation from Xiaomi is usually optimized better and consumes less charge. If you do not see this option, check for system updates.

Using the theme of design for changing hours

The Themes app is a central element of the MIUI and HyperOS ecosystem that allows for a dramatic change in the look and feel of the interface. Third-party downloading is the fastest way to get a unique lock screen clock that cannot be recreated by standard means. Thousands of creators create designs that mimic luxury brands, retro stylistics or futuristic interfaces.

To find the right design, open the Themes app and search. Enter Lock screen or Watch to filter the results. When you view the topic, look at the lock screen preview: this is where the most interesting clockwork is located, and once the theme is set, the clock on the locked screen will change automatically.

If you notice that the phone starts to run out faster after changing the theme, try a simpler design, and some themes may not work properly on screens with a camera cutout or hole, overlapping important elements.

💡

Always check previews and reviews before installing a paid theme. Often free versions have the same functionality, but without watermarks.

Third-party applications for advanced widgets

If Xiaomi’s standard functionality isn’t enough, Google Play offers a lot of specialized apps. KWGT Kustom Widget Maker, which allows you to create widgets of any complexity from scratch, but for beginners, there are simpler alternatives such as «HD Widgets" or "Overdrop" offering ready-made sets of stylish watches.

Installing a third-party widget requires additional steps than the standard ones, and after downloading the app, you'll need to add a widget to your desktop, select the app you installed from the list, and then customize the design inside it, which can seem complicated, but it's worth it.

• 📲 KWGT: Professional tool for creating widgets of any complexity.
• 🎨 Overdrop: a collection of beautiful weather and time widgets in the style of Material Design.
• ⚡ Transparent Clock: widgets with a translucent background, merging with wallpaper.
• 🌊 Flowx: Animated widgets with weather and time in real time.

⚠️ Warning: Third-party widgets require permanent permits to work in the background. In the battery settings of the phone, be sure to remove the background activity restriction for the selected application, otherwise the widget may stop updating.

Using third-party solutions gives you complete creative freedom. You can customize the font, color, size, add logos, change the transparency of the background, and even tie the time mapping to geolocation. For users who value unique style, this is the only way to get exactly what you need.

Setting the time and date format in the system

Often users are looking for a way to change the clock on the screen, not referring to the design, but the format of the display. 24-The time frame is very simple, but many are used to 12-clock-signature AM/PM. You can change this in system settings, which will affect all widgets and system clocks at the same time. → Additional settings → Date and time.

In this menu, you'll find a 24-hour switch, and if you turn it off, you'll switch the system to a 12-hour cycle, and you can change the order of the date (day-month-year or month-day-year) and choose automatic time synchronization over the network. Automatic synchronization is critical to the proper operation of notifications and security certificates.

Also in this section you can configure automatic time overflow when switching to summer/winter time (if it is relevant for your region) and choose the time zone manually if you are roaming, but want to leave the time of the home region.

Solution: the widget does not appear or goes out

Sometimes users have a problem when the set clock disappears after a reboot or stops showing the current time, most often due to aggressive energy savings built into the MIUI shell. The system can “kill” the widget process, considering it an unnecessary user of resources. To fix this, you need to find the application responsible for the widget (or the Wallpaper and Carousel system process) and prevent it from cleaning.

Go to Settings → Battery and Performance (or simply “Battery”). Find the right application or system service in the list. Select “Charge Saving” and set “No Limits” to allow the widget to run stably in the background.

Another reason could be a launcher malfunction: If the widgets are gone completely, try clearing the Themes app cache or restarting the device, and in rare cases, resetting the lock screen settings to factory settings helps.

If no methods help, there may be a problem with the specific version of the firmware, in which case you should wait for the system update or temporarily use a third-party screen locker application that will take over the time display function.