How to make a dark theme on Xiaomi phone: a step-by-step guide

Modern. OLED-The screens that power Xiaomi’s flagship and mid-range models save battery power when using black, but eye comfort remains the main reason for the popularity of night mode, especially when using a smartphone in low light. Turning on the black interface reduces the burden on vision and minimizes the risk of circadian rhythm disturbances.

In the MIUI shell and the new HyperOS, developers have provided flexible personalization tools, so that the user can not just invert colors, but also adjust the automatic switching of modes on a schedule or response to the light sensor, which makes using the device at night as convenient as possible without the need for manual brightness adjustments.

This article will help you understand how to activate a dark theme on various models of the brand’s smartphones, including Redmi and POCO. We will look at standard methods, work with the themes and solve possible problems with displaying elements in third-party applications.

Standard way of activation through settings

The simplest and most reliable method of enabling night mode is built into the system menu, it does not require any additional software installation and works consistently on all current versions of firmware. First, unlock the device and find the Settings app on your desktop.

In the menu that opens, you need to scroll down to the Screen section. In some versions of the shell, this item may be called Display or be entered in the Special Features subsection, but in current builds of MIUI 14 and HyperOS, it is located in the screen settings block.

When you activate the switch, you'll see the white background change to a deep gray or black color, and the system will automatically apply the changes to all system applications that support this function. If you want a finer setup, click on the text next to the switch, not the slider itself.

• 🌑 Basic inclusion: simple transfer of the slider to an active state.
• ⏰ Scheduled: setting up automatic switching on from sunset to dawn or at a predetermined time.
• 📱 Individual applications: the ability to force on or off mode for specific programs.
• 🔆 Brightness Adaptation: Reducing the brightness of interface elements for maximum comfort.

⚠️ Note: Some older versions of apps may not display content in dark mode correctly, inverting the colors of photos or making text unreadable.

Set up automation and schedules

Manually switching day and night can be inconvenient, as it’s easy to forget to change settings in time. Xiaomi’s system offers smart algorithms that take this task on themselves. From the dark theme settings menu, select the option to turn on on schedule.

There are two main scenarios available here: One is sunset to sunrise; a smartphone uses geolocation to determine the time of sunrise and sunset in your area; the other is time, where you set the hours of nighttime start and end, for example, from 22:00 to 07:00.

You also need to pay attention to the brightness adaptation function, which, when the dark mode is on, can further reduce the brightness of the interface below the minimum standard value, which is especially useful for people with high eye sensitivity.

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To maximize battery power savings on AMOLED-In the screens, use pure black wallpaper combined with a dark theme, and the black pixels on these arrays are completely turned off without consuming energy.

Use of themes from MIUI Themes store

If standard black sounds boring to you, the theme store offers thousands of design options. Themes' deep integration allows you to change not only colors, but also icons, fonts and sounds. To access the directory, open the Themes app on your desktop.

In the search box, type in "Dark," "Black," or "Night." You'll see a lot of design options. Before you install, look at the preview: some themes only change icons, others completely redraw system menus, lock screen and notification curtain.

Once you have selected your favorite design, click Download and then Apply. The system will warn you that the current theme will be replaced. Confirm the action and the interface will change instantly. If the new design does not like, it can be easily removed through the user profile.

Solving problems with display in applications

It often happens that the system interface has gone black and the favorite apps have gone white, because software developers have to separate the dark theme from their programs, but MIUI has a enforcement tool.

Go to Settings -> Screen -> Dark Mode. Find a list of Individual Apps. This shows all installed programs. You can manually add an app to the exception list or force it to turn on dark mode even if the developer didn't intend it.

You have to consider that forced inclusion can lead to artifacts, for example, black text on a black background will become invisible, and if you notice such problems, it is better to remove the application from the list of forced and wait for an update from the developer.

• 📱 Instagram: Often requires a separate activation in the settings of the app itself.
• 💬 Telegram and WhatsApp usually pick up the system theme automatically.
• 📸 Camera: The shooting interface can stay light for better visibility of details.
• 🌐 Browsers: Chrome and Yandex have their own night mode settings.

⚠️ Attention: Forcing a dark theme to be applied to banking applications can cause errors in the display of keyboard or input fields.

Features of the dark theme in HyperOS

With the release of the HyperOS shell, which gradually replaces MIUI on new devices, the night mode algorithms have been improved. The new system uses smarter background blur and gradients, making transitions between windows smoother. The visual style has become more airy and minimalistic.

HyperOS has a dark-mode Adaptive Color feature that analyzes desktop wallpaper and suggests appropriate shades for widgets and controls, creating a harmonious visual experience even when the main background is black.

The logic of widgets has also changed, with the new shell becoming translucent at night, letting some of the light from the wallpaper, which distinguishes HyperOS from its predecessor, where widgets were often just painted over in solid gray.

Effects on autonomy and eye health

Using a dark theme on smartphones with AMOLED and OLED arrays is not just aesthetics, but also a real energy saving: In these screens, each pixel is individually illuminated, and black means that the pixel is off and does not consume electricity.

Studies show that when brightness 50% Using a dark theme can increase the smartphone’s time to 30-40%. At maximum brightness, the savings are less noticeable, but still present. IPS-screens that are used in budget models, backlight works constantly, so there will be no charge savings, but eye comfort will remain.

In terms of health, reducing the amount of blue light and overall brightness in the evening helps the body produce melatonin, which contributes to faster sleep and quality rest, and regular use of nighttime regimens is recommended by ophthalmologists to prevent digital overvoltage.

⚠️ Warning: Don't rely on a software dark theme to protect your vision (30-40 (cm) and take breaks every time 20 minutes of active work.

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Dark subject on AMOLED-Xiaomi reduces power consumption by up to 40% and significantly reduces the load on the optic nerve at night.