How to make a double watch on Xiaomi: setting up time zones

The modern rhythm of life often forces us to keep in touch with people in other time zones. Xiaomi smartphone owners working with international companies or having relatives abroad often wonder how to implement the double clock function on the lock screen or in the system interface. The standard MIUI shell and the new HyperOS offer flexible tools for personalization, but the setting of the display of two time zones may not be obvious to the beginner.

In this article, we will take a look at all the ways to implement this feature, from system time zone settings to installing specialized widgets. You will learn not only to display time, but also to manage it by switching between local time and time of your business partner. Deep interface configuration will allow you to always stay up to date without making complex mathematical calculations in your mind.

Before we make any changes, it’s worth noting that the methods may vary slightly depending on the operating system version. However, the logic remains the same for most devices of the brand. The key is to activate the Second Time Zone function in the system time settings, without which widgets will not be able to correctly display the second time zone. Let’s look at the process in detail.

Basic time setting and second belt activation

The first step to displaying two time zones is to properly configure the system time. Many users mistakenly believe that it is enough to install a widget, but without activating the corresponding function in the engine of the system, the result will be zero. You need to go to the settings menu to allow the system to take into account the time displacement.

Open the Settings app and find the Settings section (or just Settings in the newer versions of HyperOS). Follow the Date and Time path. There's a switch that often goes unnoticed. Find the Dual Clocks option and activate it.

Once this feature is enabled, the system will prompt you to select the city or country you want to track additionally, which will synchronize the system kernel with the astronomical time of the region you select, and your smartphone is now technically ready to display two time streams simultaneously.

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If you travel frequently, enable automatic time synchronization over the network so that the second time zone is always relevant, even when changing locations.

It's important to understand that activation of the second belt affects not only widgets, but also alarm clocks and calendars. The system starts to take into account two time streams, which can be useful for scheduling calls. Make sure you choose the right city, as some regions are switching to daylight saving time and others are not.

Setting up the “Clock” widget on the desktop

Once the system part is set up, you need to display information on the screen. The standard set of widgets in the Xiaomi shell is quite rich, but requires the correct positioning. It is the Watch widget (Classic or Digital) that is most often used to display double time.

Make a long tap on an empty desktop area. In the bottom menu, select Widgets. In the list that opens, look for the Watch category. Here you'll see a few design options: analog, digital, minimalist. You want those that support Dual Clock.

• 🕰️ Classical clocks: display time in large numbers and often have the signature of a second city from below.
• 🌍 Global Clock: Shows a world map or multiple dials at the same time, suitable for those who follow three or more zones.
• 📅 Date watch: Combined widget showing time, date and sometimes weather supporting second belt.

Select your favorite style and drag it to your desktop. If you did everything right in the previous section, the widget will automatically pick up the settings of the second time zone. The screen will show the name of the city and time. If only one time is displayed, check if the second belt is on again in the system settings.

Some widgets allow you to resize. Pull over the edge of the widget to zoom in. In the extended format, additional information often appears, such as the date or day of the week in the second time zone. This is especially convenient for the large screens of the Redmi Note series or Xiaomi Mi Mix smartphones.

Use of the “Clock” app for detailed control

The built-in Clock app on Xiaomi smartphones is a powerful tool that goes far beyond just displaying time, allowing you to create full-fledged time control panels for different cities around the world, ideal for those who need to constantly monitor time in 3-5 different places in the world.

Launch the Watch app and go to the World Time tab (usually the second tab on the left or right, the globe icon). Here you can add unlimited cities. Click on the plus, type in the city name and add it. Now in the app you always have a list of all the time zones you need.

But to keep this information in front of you, you can take it to your desktop as a city widget, and unlike the standard watch widget, this one shows you the list of cities you've added vertically, which is less aesthetic, but much more functional for business purposes.

⚠️ Note: When adding a large number of cities to the World Time list, the widget can occupy a significant portion of the screen, overlapping application icons. It is recommended to use medium-sized widgets or place them on a separate desktop.

Inside the app, you can also have a basic time zone switching feature, so if you're on a business trip, you can temporarily make your city time your first time, keeping your home time as secondary, so you don't get confused about your schedule.

Customization through themes and third-party widgets

The standard MIUI is good, but sometimes you want to be unique. Themes offers thousands of custom designs that radically change the look of the watch. Many designers create themes where double watches are the centerpiece of the interface, made in the style of cyberpunk, retro or minimalism.

Open the Themes app and search for queries like “Dual Clock,” “World Time,” or “Clock.” When you view the theme preview, look at screenshots of the lock screen and desktop. If you like the design, set the theme. Often, these themes require all the components (icons, system, lock), but you can only use the right elements.

For advanced users, there are third-party apps from Google Play, such as World Clock Widget or Overdrop. They provide even more customization options: transparency, fonts, animations. However, it is worth remembering that third-party widgets can consume more battery power, as they use their own update mechanisms.

When installing third-party widgets, the system can request permission to access geolocation or background work, which is necessary so that the widget can independently count the time when you change your location, without these permissions, the widget will show static time.

Setting up the lock screen for double time

The lock screen is the first thing you see when you wake up your smartphone. The double clock display is the most logical one here, because it allows you to instantly assess the situation over time without unlocking the device. At Xiaomi, the lock screen settings are closely related to the theme of the design, but also have their own settings.

Go to Settings → Lock screen. Here you can choose the style of the watch. Some styles (for example, "Vertical" or "Classic") automatically support the second time zone if it is included in the system. Other styles may ignore this feature for the sake of aesthetics.

If standard styles don't suit you, use the Online Covers or Lock Screen Widgets feature. Newer versions of HyperOS allow you to add widgets directly to a locked screen. Add the Watch widget and adjust it to display it, which gives you flexibility not available in older versions of Android.

Note that on screens with Always On Display (AOD), double watches may not be displayed to save energy. In the AOD settings (Settings → Wallpaper and Personalization → Always On screen), you can choose a style that shows the time, but most often only one (local).

Solving and resetting time settings

Sometimes users are faced with a situation where the second time zone is displayed incorrectly or disappears after a reboot. This can be due to a cache error or a conflict of third-party applications.

Try temporarily disabling automatic time synchronization over the network, setting the time manually, and then turning on sync again. This action shakes up system time services. Also helps to clean up the data of the Watch application: go to Settings → Apps → All apps → find the Watch → Clear the data.

⚠️ Caution: Cleaning the Clock data will remove all alarm clocks and timers you have set. Be sure to write down important reminders before performing this procedure.

If the problem persists, check if you have Do Not Disturb or energy saving modes that can block widget upgrades.In battery super-saving mode, the background update of the second belt time can be suspended by the system to conserve charge.

In rare cases, the bug may be in the firmware itself, so if you're using a custom build or an early version of HyperOS, the bug may be known, and then you'll have to wait for the system to update or roll back to a stable version.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

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Setup a double watch on Xiaomi is a combination of system activation of the function in the Date and Time menu and the right choice of widget that supports this mode.