Personalization of a smartphone is the first step that every user takes after unpacking a new device. Standard images offered by the manufacturer quickly become boring and cease to please the eye. That is why many Xiaomi smartphone owners are eager to adjust the automatic background change so that their favorite pictures change each other in a given rhythm. The slideshow feature allows you to turn a static lock screen or desktop into a dynamic gallery that displays the most vivid moments of your life.
There are several ways to do this, using the built-in MIUI or HyperOS shell functionality, as well as third-party solutions. Depending on the operating system version and device model, the algorithm of actions may vary slightly, but the general principle remains the same. You only need to prepare high-quality images in advance and choose the appropriate method of activating the function.
Image Preparation and File Requirements
Before you start setting up automatic image change, you need to prepare the source material correctly, and the quality of the final result depends on the resolution and format of your photos, and if you load low-quality images into the carousel, they will look blurry and pixelated, especially on high-resolution screens like AMOLED or Super AMOLED.
The best solution is to use photos in vertical orientation, as they fill the screen of the smartphone completely. Horizontal pictures will either have to be cropped or put up with black fields around the edges, which looks unaesthetic. It is recommended to select the best shots and save them in a separate folder, so as not to get confused during the setup process.
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Use photos with an aspect ratio of 9:16 or 19.5:9 to fill the screen perfectly without trimming important details.
There are a number of technical requirements that must be met by files for the correct operation of system widgets and functions:
* 📸 Permission: Minimum 1080×2340 pixels for modern models.
* 💾 Format: It is preferable to use JPG or PNG for better compatibility.
* 📂 Location: Photos should be in the device’s local memory, not in the cloud.
* 🔋 Optimization: Make sure that the images do not have watermarks or unnecessary inscriptions.
Use of the standard theme "Carousel wallpaper"
The most popular and integrated way is to use Xiaomi’s proprietary feature, but it’s important to understand that the classic Wallpaper Carousel is designed to download content from the Internet, and it requires a number of specific actions to make it work with your personal photos that are often overlooked.
First, you need to activate the function in the system settings. To do this, go to Settings → Lock the screen and find the option “Wallpaper Carousel”. Once you turn on, the system will prompt you to select the source of the images. By default, there are thematic collections, but we need access to the local gallery.
⚠️ Note: In some regions and firmware versions MIUI The access to local photos on a standard carousel may be limited, and if you don't see this option, try changing the region in your phone settings to India or Indonesia».
The process of adding your photos is as follows:
* 🖼️ Open the “Themes” app and go to profile.
* ⚙️ Click on the gear settings and select "Carousel wallpaper».
* ➕ Tap the buttons “My subscriptions” or “Add images».
* ✅ Select the right photos from the gallery and confirm the action.
☑️ Customization of the carousel
It is important to note that the standard carousel works mainly on the lock screen. For a desktop, this method may not work without using third-party widgets. In addition, the function can consume additional battery power, as the system has to constantly process new images.
Setting up a slideshow through the Photos widget
If your goal is to create a live carousel directly on your desktop, the built-in widgets will be the best solution. Unlike the lock screen, here the user has more freedom in choosing the content displayed. The Photos or Gallery widget allows you to stream photos from selected albums in real time.
To implement this method, find a free space on your desktop. Press and hold your finger on an empty area until the edit menu appears. At the bottom of the screen, select "Vidgets." In the list that opens, find the Gallery or Photo app.
There are several types of widgets that can be used for this purpose:
* 🖼️ Slider: Shows one photo that changes at a given interval.
* 🎞️ Collage: Displays multiple photos simultaneously as a grid.
* 🔄 Random Photo: Changes the image every time the screen is turned on.
Once you add a widget to the screen, the system will tell you to select an album, and that folder will be used to take images for rotation, and you can create a separate album called Wallpaper and upload your favorite images, and once you add a new photo to this album, it will automatically appear on the desktop carousel.
Problems with updating the widget
Creating a carousel through Google Photos
For users who prefer the Google ecosystem, the Google Photos app is a great option, especially if your photos are synced to the cloud and you want to access them even after resetting your phone, and the app has a powerful Best Photos algorithm that eliminates manual sorting.
To set up the carousel, you'll need a Google widget called Photos, and it has a few design options, and the most interesting is a widget that shows a random photo every time you turn on the screen or at certain intervals, which creates a live frame effect for photos.
The adjustment takes place in several stages:
1. Add the Photos widget to your desktop.
2. In the widget settings, select the Favorites album or create a new album in the Google Photos app.
3. Set the image swap interval (if such option is available in your widget version).
⚠️ Note: Google Photos Widget requires a constant Internet connection to work correctly if the original photos are stored only in the cloud.
The advantage of this method is that it's cross-platform, and you can control the album for the carousel from any device, whether it's a computer, tablet or other smartphone, and just add a photo to the album in the cloud, and in a few minutes it will appear on your Xiaomi screen.
Use of third-party apps for slideshows
When standard functionality is not enough, specialized applications from the Google Play Market come to the rescue, offering advanced customization options: complex transitions, music, schedule management, and even reaction to events (for example, changing a photo when you receive a notification).
One of the most popular solutions is the Mutual or Daywise app, although their functionality can vary, and it is also worth paying attention to launcher apps that have built-in wallpaper management modules that allow you to create playlists from images and configure triggers to change them.
| Application name | Type of carousel | Support for video | Resource consumption |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| Standard Gallery | Static/Slide | No | Low |
| Google Photo | Dynamic | No | Average |
| Video Live Wallpaper | Video/Gif | Yes | High |
| Wallpaper Engine | Interactive | Yes | Very High |
When installing third-party software, carefully review the permissions requested. The wallpaper app doesn't need access to your contacts or microphone.
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Third-party applications offer maximum flexibility, but can conflict with MIUI’s energy-saving algorithms, so they need to be added to battery exceptions.
Optimizing work and eliminating problems
Even a properly configured carousel can run unstable due to the aggressive optimization of the Android system, which is characteristic of Xiaomi shells.The system can "kill" the process of updating the wallpaper to save energy, which leads to an image hanging on one frame.
To avoid this, you need to set up autostart and work in the background. Go to Settings → Apps → All apps. Find the app that is responsible for changing the wallpaper (Gallery, Google Photos or third-party launcher). Go to Battery and select No Restrictions mode.
Also, follow the following steps for stability:
* 🔒 Allow auto-run for the selected application.
* 🧹 Add the application to the list of exceptions to the memory cleaner (Lock apps).
* 📶 Make sure the app has permission to access the storage.
* 🔄 Clean the gallery cache regularly if the carousel starts to brake.
⚠️ Warning: If you use Dark Theme, some widgets may invert the colors of photos, making them unnatural. Check the display in both modes.