Owners of the Redmi K20 Pro line of smartphones, known globally as the Xiaomi Mi 9T and Mi 9T Pro, often face the need to quickly save an image from the screen. This can be an important document, a funny moment from correspondence or an instruction to pass on to a friend. Despite the fact that the MIUI interface seems intuitive, not all users are aware of hidden features or alternative methods of creating screenshots, except the standard ones.
The device is equipped with high-quality AMOLED-It's a non-cut display, which makes it a particularly enjoyable process to take screenshots, because the final image doesn't show the front camera, but the absence of a physical home button on the front panel dictates its own rules of control. In this article, we will discuss in detail all available ways to capture what is happening on the display of your gadget.
The Android system in the MIUI shell offers flexible tools for working with content. You can not just take a static picture, but immediately edit it with the necessary notes, or create a long screenshot that contains the entire page of the site or long correspondence in the messenger. Let's move from theory to practice and consider the specific actions.
Standard combination of hardware buttons
The fastest and most common method for most Android smartphone users is to use physical keys. On the Xiaomi Mi 9T, they are located on the right side of the body. You need to press the Power button and Volume Down simultaneously. Pressing should be short and clear, without long retention.
If you do it right, the screen will blink, the camera's characteristic shutter sound (if the sound is not turned off), and a thumbnail of the image will appear at the top of the display, a classic technique that works even if the touch layer is temporarily malfunction or the system is getting stuck, but the button response is preserved.
It is important to follow the correct timing of the press. If you hold your finger on the buttons for too long, instead of a screenshot, you can activate the off menu or the voice assistant Google Assistant. Short touch is the key to success. It is also worth noting that in some game modes or applications with full screen protection (for example, banking applications), this method can be blocked by security policies.
⚠️ Warning: Do not try to take a screenshot in bank applications or when entering card data. Android security will prevent the image from being saved and you will receive a black screen or restriction notice.
For those accustomed to a different button arrangement, there is the option of reassignment, but the basic Volume Down + Power bundle remains universal across the Xiaomi ecosystem.
Using a swipe with three fingers
One of the most convenient features of the MIUI shell is to take a screenshot with a gesture. You don't have to reach for buttons on the edge of the body, just swipe three fingers from top to bottom down the center of the screen. This method is especially relevant for the Xiaomi Mi 9T model with its large 6.39-inch display, when holding the phone with one hand is uncomfortable.
By default, this gesture may not be activated. To enable it, you need to go to the system settings. Find the "Additional" section, then select "Screenshot"; here you need to activate the switch opposite the "Three-finger swipe" label, and then the system will respond to finger movement instantly.
The advantage of this method is that it's fast and ergonomic, and you can take screenshots while you're reading the news, flip through the tape, or you can be in a game where the volume buttons can be controlled, and it works in almost all applications where image capture is not prohibited.
There is also an extended version of this gesture, where if you keep your fingers on and continue down after you take a screenshot, you'll start a long screenshot mode (more on this in the relevant section), a unique feature that saves time while saving a lot of information.
☑️ Tweaking the gesture with three fingers
Control panel and notification curtain
If physical buttons are unavailable or damaged for some reason, and gestures are not configured, a software interface comes to the rescue. In Xiaomi Mi 9T, there is a built-in feature to create a screenshot through the control center, and you need to swipe from top to bottom to open the notification curtain and find the corresponding icon.
The icon is usually signed as "Screenshot," and it looks like a picture of scissors or a camera. If you don't see it in the front row, click on the edit button (usually a pencil or setting icon in the corner of the curtain) and drag the screenshot shortcut into the active zone. It only takes a couple of seconds, but makes the tool available in one tap.
In addition, some versions of MIUI, with a long press on the Menu button (a square in the navigation bar if you use on-screen buttons instead of gestures), also have an optional action menu where you can choose to create a screenshot, a third, backup method that not all users know about.
Using software techniques is particularly convenient when the phone is lying on a desk or connected to an external display, and reaching for physical buttons on the edge is inconvenient.
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Add the Screenshot widget to your desktop for instant access. Click on the blank space on the screen, select "Widgets" and find the screenshot tool in the list of available items.
Voice control and Google Assistant
Modern smartphones, including the Xiaomi Mi 9T, have powerful voice assistants. You can take a screenshot just by saying a command. You need to activate Google Assistant with the phrase “Ok Google” or a long press of the “Home” button (if the on-screen buttons are set up), and then say “Take a screenshot” or “Photograph the screen.”
The assistant will instantly execute a command by saving the image in the gallery, which is ideal in situations where hands are busy, or when the phone is far away but connected to a headset or smart speaker, although a screenshot usually requires interaction with the device itself, and you can also control the clipboard after you create the picture.
It is worth considering that the voice assistant requires an active Internet connection, since the request processing often takes place on the company's servers. In conditions of poor network coverage, the command may not execute or be executed with a delay.
Voice control is not just a fashion homage, but a real accessibility feature that helps people with disabilities use their smartphones to their fullest. MIUI also has its own voice assistant, Xiao AI (in the Chinese version), which also supports similar commands, but for global versions, Google Assistant is the main one.
| Method | Speed. | Convenience | Dependence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buttons (Power + Vol-) | Tall. | Average. | No. |
| Gesture (3 fingers) | Very high. | High. | Setting up the PO |
| Notification curtain | Medium | High. | No. |
| Voice command | Low. | Specific | Internet |
How to take a long screenshot on Xiaomi 9T
The Long Screenshot (or Scrolling Screenshot) feature is one of the most useful tools in Xiaomi’s arsenal, allowing you to take a snapshot of an entire web page, long article or correspondence on WhatsApp or Telegram that doesn’t fit on a single screen.
To activate this mode, first create a regular screenshot in any convenient way (buttons or gestures), immediately after that, an icon will appear in the upper right corner of the thumbnail that resembles a scroll or an arrow down that says "Scroll."
The system will automatically start scrolling the contents of the screen down, taking a series of shots and gluing them into one long image, the process will stop when you touch the screen, reach the end of the page, or a maximum length limit (usually multiple screens) is fixed.
What to do if a long screenshot “floats”?
The resulting file is saved in the gallery as a normal image, but with a high resolution vertically. It can be sent to instant messengers, but it is worth remembering that some applications (for example, Instagram) can automatically compress such "sheets", worsening the readability of the text, in such cases it is better to cut the image into parts.
Where to look and how to edit ready-made screenshots
Once you have taken a screenshot, it automatically stores in the device's memory, and you can find it by opening the Gallery app and going to Screenshots. The path to the file in the file system usually looks like this: Internal memory → MIUI → Gallery → cloud → screenshots or simply DCIM → Screenshots, depending on the version of MIUI.
Once you've created a screenshot, if you click on the thumbnail, you'll see the built-in editor, and it allows you to do basic things like cut the edges, draw the arrows, add text, put a marker on sensitive data, or put stickers on it, and it eliminates the need to install third-party editing apps.
The editor also has a feature called Add Bezels, which places your screenshot in the beautiful frame of the Xiaomi Mi 9T smartphone itself, which looks spectacular when posted on social media, and you can change the resolution or compress the image before sending it if the original weighs too much.
⚠️ Note: When sending screenshots via messengers (for example, through the “Compressed Photo” function in Telegram), the image quality may decrease. If text clarity is important, send the file as a “File” or “Document” rather than an image.
Remember to clean the screenshot folder periodically, and over time, thousands of images accumulate there that can take up several gigabytes of usable space, and the built-in Cleanup tool in the Security app will help you find and delete duplicates or old files.
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Regularly cleaning the folder with screenshots frees up space and speeds up the gallery, as the system does not need to index thousands of unnecessary thumbnails.