How to put a watch on the screen of the phone Xiaomi: all the ways and hidden settings

You want time to be visible, but you don’t know how to add a clock to your lock screen or Xiaomi desktop? This problem is familiar to many users of the brand’s smartphones — despite the abundance of settings in MIUI, the necessary options are often hidden in non-obvious menus. In this article, we will analyze all possible ways of displaying time, from standard widgets to hidden functions for advanced users.

It’s important to understand that the interface may differ depending on the firmware version (MIUI 12, 13 or 14) and the phone model (Redmi Note 12, POCO X5, Xiaomi 13T, etc.). We’ve taken these nuances into account and prepared universal instructions that work on 90% of devices. If your model behaves differently, check the version of MIUI in Settings → About Phone and compare with our screenshots.

We warn you beforehand that some methods require superuser rights (root) or installing third-party applications, but most solutions are available without additional manipulation – just follow the step-by-step instructions below.

1. Standard clock widget on the desktop

The easiest way is to add a time widget directly to the home screen, a method that works on all Xiaomi models without exception, including the budget Redmi and flagship Xiaomi 14.

To install the widget:

• 📱 Click on the empty space on the desktop (not on the icon!).
• 🔧 In the bottom menu, select “Widgets” (or “Widgets»).
• ⏰ Scroll through the list to the Watch section and select the appropriate style (analog, digital, weather, etc.).
• 🖱️ Drag the widget to the free screen space.

If the widget doesn’t appear or doesn’t look as expected, check:

• 🔄 Update the firmware to the latest version MIUI (Sometimes bugs are fixed in new builds).
• 📱 Reboot the phone - it resets the widget cache.
• 🛠️ Make sure there is free space on the screen (some widgets take up space) 2×2 or 4×2 cell).

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If the watch widget disappears after the reboot, try installing it on another desktop or disabling battery optimization for the Lawnchair app (if you use an alternative launcher).

2. Setting the clock on the lock screen

By default, the lock screen Xiaomi displays time, but it can be customized: change the size, style or add additional information (date, weather, notifications).

Open Settings → Lock screen and pay attention to the following options:

• 🕒 Watch style: choose between analog and digital watches (some models have animated options available).
• 📅 Date: Enable the date under time display.
• 🌤️ Weather: Add a weather widget next to the clock (geolocation enabled required).
• 🔒 Double line: displaying time and date in two lines (saves space).

On POCO and some Redmi, these settings may be in Settings → Display → Lock screen. If the options are less than described, your model does not support advanced customization.

On models with Always-on Display (AOD), the watch is displayed even when the screen is off, but this reduces battery life by 10-15%. To turn off AOD, go to Settings → Display → Always-on Display.

3. Using themes to change hours

If the standard settings don't work, you can install a custom theme from the official Xiaomi store, and many themes change not only the wallpaper and icons, but also the style of displaying the time.

How to Set Up a Theme With a New Watch:

1. Open the “Themes” app (icon with brush).
2. In the search box, type “clock” or “clock”.
3. Choose your favorite theme (pay attention to the rating and number of downloads).
4. Click "Apply" - the clock on the lock screen and desktop will change automatically.

Popular themes for watches:

• 🌌 AMOLED Clock: Dark Clock with Neon Elements (Ideal for the OLED-screen).
• ⏳ Retro Clock: a style of vintage watches with Roman numerals.
• 🌈 Colorful Digital: A bright digital watch with a gradient.
• ☀️ Minimal Weather Clock: Watches with Integrated Weather Widget.

⚠️ Note: Some themes may conflict with system fonts or launchers. If the clock is lost or is displayed clumsy after applying the theme, return the standard theme to Settings → Topics → Standard.

4. Third-party applications for extended hours

If MIUI's built-in capabilities aren't enough, you can install third-party apps from Google Play, which offer more customization options, including:

• 🎨 Changes in color, size and font of the watch.
• 🌍 Displaying time in different time zones.
• 🔔 Additional widgets (second watch, timer, alarm clock).
• 🖼️ Background images behind the clock.

Top.-3 watch apps on Xiaomi:

1. Clock Widget (from Droid27) - more than 100 styles, weather and calendar support.
2. Chronus is a watch with Google Fit integration and notifications.
3. Digital Clock Widget is a minimalist watch with transparency settings.

To install a widget from a third-party application:

1. Download and install the app from Google Play.
2. Long press on the desktop → «Widgets».
3. Find the widget of the installed app (usually at the end of the list).
4. Drag it to the screen and set it up according to the instructions.

Make sure the app is ≥4.0|Read the reviews on compatibility with MIUI|Review permissions (no SMS/calls should be available)|Back current screen settings-->

⚠️ Note: Some watch apps request permissions to access Overlay over other apps, this is needed to display the watch over games or videos, but may conflict with gestures. MIUI. If after installation, swipes stopped working - disable the overlay in Settings → Annexes → Special access → Overlay.

5. Hidden settings for advanced users

If you're ready for experiments, you can activate the hidden functions of the watch through ADB or the settings editor. These techniques require technical skills and can cause crashes!

Method 1: Change the system fonts of the clock

You can change the typeface of your watch to custom through ADB.

1. Connect your phone to your PC and enable USB Debugging in Settings → About Phone → MIUI version (click 7 times).
2. Install. ADB The command is: adb shell settings put system. font_scale 1.0 (This will reset the font scale if the watch is displayed too large).
3. To change the font, use the command: adb shell "pm grant com.example.fontapp" android.permission.WRITE_SECURE_SETTINGS" (Replace com.example.fontapp with your font application package).

Method 2: Editing MIUI files

On phones with root-rights, you can manually change the files of the system clock:

1. Install Root Explorer or MiXplorer (with superuser rights).
2. Move to the /system/media/theme/default/ and find the files clock_*.png.
3. Replace them with your images (save the originals!).
4. Reboot the phone.

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Changing system files without a backup can lead to a "bootloop" (cyclical reboot). Always back up before editing!

⚠️ Attention: These methods can disrupt work MIUI If the phone stopped loading after the changes, try resetting the settings via Recovery Mode (press Power). + Volume Up when switched on).

6. Resolve problems with display of the clock

Sometimes, Xiaomi’s watches are lost, displayed incorrectly, or not updated, and here are the most common problems and solutions:

If the clock is still not working:

• 🔄 Restart your phone (hold the power button for 10 seconds).
• 📱 Check for updates MIUI In Settings → The phone. → Updating the system.
• 🛠️ Reset the launcher settings: long press on the desktop → «Launcher settings» → «Drop it».

If the problem occurred after the MIUI update, try rolling back to the previous version via Recovery Mode.Search for rollback instructions on the XDA Developers forum for your model.

FAQ: Frequent questions about the watch on Xiaomi