How to make sure the screen does not turn off on Xiaomi: the complete guide

Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones often face the need to keep the display active for a long time.This can be required when reading long documents, using the device as a navigator, monitoring surveillance cameras, or even creating a digital clock on the table. The standard MIUI and HyperOS settings are set to save battery power by default, so the screen goes out after 30 or 60 seconds of inactivity, which can be extremely inconvenient.

The solution to this problem is not always obvious, as developers hide some options in deep menus or offer to use third-party solutions. In this article, we will examine all the available ways to make the display burn constantly, from standard system settings to specialized applications.

It’s worth noting that the constant glow of the matrix, especially OLED, can cause pixel burnout and accelerated battery wear. However, if you need to temporarily or permanently keep the screen on, there are several proven methods for implementing this feature on Xiaomi devices.

Basic setup of a sleep timer in the system

The easiest and most obvious way to change the time before the screen is turned off is in the basic settings of the system. This method does not require installing additional software and works consistently on all versions of the shell. You need to go to the Settings menu, then select the Screen and brightness section (or just the Screen in the new versions), There you will find the Sleep item, which regulates the inactivity timer.

The standard set of values is usually limited to 15 seconds, 30 seconds, 1 minute, 2 minutes, 5 minutes and 10 minutes. Unfortunately, the "Never" or "Infinite" options in the standard MIUI settings menu are often absent to prevent the device from accidentally discharging. If 10 minutes is enough, this may be enough for you to read or view recipes.

However, if you don't have a standard 10 minutes, there's a hidden way to expand the list, which is to activate advanced settings through an engineering menu or special codes, but the safer way is to use developer mode, and enabling this option opens up additional power saving options that can affect display behavior.

It's important to understand that increasing the sleep timer directly affects the autonomy of the device, so if you set the maximum value, the phone will consume energy even in your pocket if the proximity sensor does not work correctly, so you should use this method consciously.

Developer mode: banning the transition to sleep mode

For those who want to keep the screen on the go, there's a special feature in the developer menu that's designed to test apps, but it's perfect for our purposes. To get into this menu, you have to click on the build number in the About Phone section several times, and when you get the "You're a developer" message, you'll have a new item in the main settings.

In the Advanced Settings (or Additional) menu, select Developer For. Scroll down to the Hardware Acceleration or Monitoring block. There you will find the Do Not Turn Off (or Stay Awaken) switch. When activated, the display will burn as long as the device is connected to the charger.

This is ideal for a smartphone as a stationary monitor or watch, but there's a caveat: it only works when the charging cable is connected, and it's a protective measure to prevent the battery from running to zero, which is critical for lithium polymer batteries.

• 🔋 Charging is mandatory: The screen will go out as soon as you turn off the power cable.
• ⚙️ Customization: Activated only through the developer menu hidden by default.
• 📉 Battery impact: Minimizes the display on/off cycles, prolonging its life, but heats the device.
• 🔄 Reset: When restarting your phone, the setting is usually saved, but it’s best to check its status.

⚠️ Attention: When activated, the device may become very hot, especially if heavy applications are running simultaneously.

Use the Always On Display mode

Owners of Xiaomi smartphones with OLED-matrixes have a unique opportunity to use the Always On Display (AOD) function. Unlike the usual standby mode, when the screen is completely black, AOD keeps only individual pixels active, displaying time, date and notifications. This is not quite the same as the “always on screen” in the full sense, but solves the problem of visual accessibility of information.

You can configure this function in the Settings menu → The screen is always on and locking. Here you can choose the style of the watch, add your text or even an image. The main advantage of AOD is its minimal power consumption. The screen technically does not burn all the time in the full sense, but only updates certain zones, which is safe for the matrix.

However, if your goal is to show video, maps or article text, AOD is not suitable. It is designed solely for background display. New versions of HyperOS have the ability to more flexible set the AOD schedule, for example, turning on only at night or 10 seconds after picking up the phone.

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Use dark wallpaper for Always On Display to reduce the load on the matrix and save battery power.

Third-party screen management applications

If there's not enough built-in tools, Google Play Store apps come to the rescue, allowing you to flexibly customize your screen behavior by creating profiles for different situations, and one of the most popular solutions is Keep Screen On or something like Caffeine, which creates a temporary lock-out.

The way these programs work is simple: they emulate touching a screen or using system APIs to reset a sleep timer, and you can set the function to start on a schedule, when you run certain apps (like YouTube or a navigator), or when you command it from the notification curtain, which is much more convenient than getting into the settings every time.

Some applications require special permissions, such as accessing surfaces on top of other applications, to ensure that the control widget is always available. Be careful when choosing software: avoid applications with excessive permissions that can collect your data.

• 📲 Convenience: Managing one tap from the notification curtain.
• 🎯 Selectivity: You can only customize work for specific applications.
• 🛡️ Security: Does not require superuser rights (Root).
• 🔋 Control: Automatically shutting down function when locking phone.

⚠️ Warning: When installing third-party screen control apps, carefully check the list of permissions requested. If a simple timer requests access to contacts or a microphone, refuse to install.

Features of operation in navigation mode

Navigation applications such as Yandex.Navigator, Google Maps or 2GIS often have their own screen settings, and you can find the option “Always screen on” or “Don’t turn off screen while navigating” on their menu.

When you activate this option inside the app, the system sleep timer is ignored while the navigator is open, which is the most correct approach, since it does not affect the operation of other programs. If you use specific software for telemetry or monitoring, check its settings - many professional applications have a built-in mechanism for preventing sleep.

Drivers can also benefit from Smart View, or the screen projection on the car's head unit, in which case the phone screen can go out and the image can be broadcast to the car's display, saving charge and preventing burnout.

Sensor problems and matrix burnout

The current AMOLED and Super AMOLED arrays used in Xiaomi flagships are subject to burnout, a process in which organic LEDs lose brightness unevenly, leaving “ghost” images of static interface elements on the screen.

To minimize the risks, it is recommended to reduce the brightness to 50-60% if the lighting conditions allow it, and avoid static images: if the screen should be constantly on, it is better to run a slideshow or video with changing content.

Another problem is that the proximity sensor is falsely triggered, and if you use a magnetic-clasp case or a thick edge, the screen can go out on its own, thinking that the phone is in the ear, and in such cases, calibrating the sensor through an engineering menu (code # #6484##) or temporarily disabling the "Mode in the pocket" function in the lock settings helps.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

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The best way to keep the screen on is to use the developer mode when charging or specialized applications for battery life.