How to make the screen brighter on the phone Xiaomi Redmi Note 5: all the ways from standard to hidden

Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 is still popular due to its balanced performance and reliable build. However, many users face the problem of insufficient brightness of the screen — especially in sunny weather or when using the device on the street. In this article, we will discuss all possible ways to increase brightness, including standard MIUI settings, hidden features and solutions for cases when the screen suddenly dimmed for no apparent reason.

It's important to understand that a dim screen isn't always about settings -- sometimes it's a result of wear on the matrix, a plume damage, or software failures -- and we'll teach you how to distinguish hardware from software problems, and we'll also give you tips on how to calibrate colors if the image becomes uncomfortable with the eye after the brightness increases.

This article will be suitable for owners of Redmi Note 5 (codenamed whyred) on any version of MIUI - from the old MIUI 9 to the current MIUI 14. All instructions are tested on real devices, and tips on battery optimization will help to avoid quick discharge after changing the backlight settings.

1. Standard brightness setting through the notification curtain

The most obvious and quick way is to use a brightness slider in the notification panel, but many users don't know that there are hidden features that allow you to adjust the backlight more accurately.

To open the brightness panel:

• 📱 Swipe down from the top of the screen (with one finger for quick access or two for full curtain).
• 🔍 Find a slider with a sun icon (usually located at the top of the screen).
• ☀️ Move the slider to the right until it is full – this will turn on maximum brightness (about 450 nits for the Redmi Note 5).

If the slider is missing or does not respond to touch, check:

• 🔄 Do not disturb (it can block the change of some parameters).
• 🛠️ Have third-party themes installed that hide controls (return the standard theme to Settings) → Topics).
• 📱 Is not a child mode or a guest profile used (there are limited rights to change system parameters).

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If the brightness slider sticks when moving, clear the system cache in Settings → Applications → Application Management → Three dots (menu) → Clear the cache of all applications.

2. Automatic brightness control: pros and cons

The adaptive brightness feature in MIUI automatically adjusts the screen’s illumination to indoor lighting, which is convenient in theory, but in practice many Redmi Note 5 users complain that the screen becomes too dim even in good lighting.

To adjust or disable adaptive brightness:

1. Open the Settings → Display.
2. Slip on Brightness.
3. Turn off the brightness auto-set switch (if it is active).
4. Manually set the desired brightness level.

If you want to leave the auto-adjustment, but make the screen brighter on average, perform the calibration of the light sensor:

• 🌞 Go outside on a sunny day.
• 📱 Turn on the auto-regulating brightness.
• 🔄 Manually move the slider to the maximum value - the system will remember this as a "normal" state for bright lighting.

3. Hidden brightness settings in the engineering menu

For power users who want to make the most of the Redmi Note 5, there is an engineering menu available, where you can increase the brightness above standard limits, but this will affect the screen life and battery consumption.

Instructions for entering the engineering menu:

1. Open the Phone app.
2. Enter the combination: ##36446337## (or #3644633## for some versions of MIUI).
3. Select Hardware Testing → LCD Testing → Brightness.
4. Set the value of 255 for maximum brightness (standard limit is 200-220).

⚠️ Attention: Increase in brightness above factory values leads to:

• 🔋 Accelerated battery discharge (up to 15-20% per hour with active use).
• 🌡️ Overheating of the matrix, which can cause pixels to burn out over time.
• ⚡ Risk of a backlight driver failure (the screen may start to flicker or spontaneously dim).

Illumination sensor inspection and calibration

If the screen spontaneously dims or becomes too bright without your intervention, the problem may be in the light sensor. On the Redmi Note 5, it is located next to the front camera and eventually clogs with dust or fails.

How to check the operation of the sensor:

• 🕳️ Close the sensor with your finger - the screen should dim (if auto-adjustment is enabled).
• ☀️ Point a flashlight on the sensor - the brightness should increase.
• 🔍 If there is no reaction, the sensor is faulty or disabled in the settings.

For manual calibration:

1. Open the settings → Display → Brightness.
2. Activate the Auto-Automation of Brightness.
3. Click on the icon. ⚙️ (gears) next to the slider.
4. Select the Light Sensor Calibration and follow the instructions on the screen.

If the sensor is physically damaged, it can be turned off completely:

adb shell settings put system screen_brightness_mode 0

This command disables auto-adjustment via ADB (Platform Tools installation and USB debugging enabled in the developer settings is required).

5. Optimizing color rendering for better visibility

Sometimes the screen doesn't seem dim because of low brightness, but because of incorrect color temperature or contrast, and MIUI has tools to adjust these settings that can visually "lighten" the picture.

How to change the color profile:

1. Go to Settings → Display → Color mode.
2. Choose either Saturated or Standard (depending on your preferences).
3. Activate Automatic Contrast Correction (if available).

For fine-tuning, use Read Mode (it reduces blue light, but can make the screen visually brighter by increasing contrast):

• 📖 Enable Read Mode in the Notification Curtain or through Settings → Display.
• 🎨 Adjust the color temperature with a slider (optimally 60-70% for day use).
• ⏰ Set up an automatic turn-on schedule (for example, from 8:00 to 20:00).

6. Software failures: resetting settings and software updates

If all settings are fine, but the screen remains dim, the problem may be the software.

• 🐞 Firmware bugs (especially after updates) MIUI).
• 📱 Conflict of third-party applications (e.g., “battery savers»).
• 🔄 Failure in the work of the graphic driver.

How to fix it:

Remove newly installed applications|Clear the system cache in Settings → Memory.|Update. MIUI last-minute|Reset the display settings (Settings) → Display. → Reset)-->

If the problem has occurred after the update, try to roll back to the previous version of MIUI:

1. Download the necessary firmware from the official Xiaomi website.
2. Rename the file to update.zip and place it in the root of the phone’s memory.
3. Press Volume Up + Power to Enter Recovery.
4. Select Install update.zip and confirm the installation.

⚠️ Attention: Firmware rollback erases all data on the device. Pre-backup through Settings → The phone. → Backup. Do not use firmware from third-party sources - this can lead to blocking the bootloader!

7 Hardware problems: when without repairs can not do

If none of these things worked, it's probably a physical malfunction. Common hardware problems with Redmi Note 5:

• 💡 Failure of the backlight (the screen is visible only at an angle or in bright light).
• 🔌 Display plume damage (often after falls or disassembly of the phone).
• 🔋 Battery wear (at a discharge below 15%, the system automatically lowers the brightness).
• 📱 Matrix defect (appearance of yellowness, flickering, “broken” pixels).

How to diagnose:

• 🔦 Light a flashlight on the screen at an angle - if the image is barely visible, the problem is in the backlight.
• 🔄 Restart your phone in Safe Mode (clip the power). → Reboot in Safe Mode. If the brightness is normal, it's the software's fault.
• 🛠️ Connect your phone to charging – if the screen gets brighter, battery problem.

Cost of repairs in service centers:

⚠️ Warning: Don't buy cheap arrays on AliExpress or Avito - they often have the worst color reproduction and brightness. Original parts for the Redmi Note 5 are code-marked JDQ-WHRD-00 (lighting JDQ-WHRD-01 (matrix).

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If the screen fades after falling or getting moisture, immediately turn off the phone and contact the service. Further use may lead to a short circuit!

FAQ: Frequent questions about the brightness of the Redmi Note 5 screen