Modern smartphone users are constantly exchanging visual information, such as correspondence, payment checks, interesting articles or bugs in apps. Owners of Xiaomi and Redmi devices often face the need to quickly save the contents of the display, but standard methods may not be obvious to beginners. The MIUI ecosystem and the new HyperOS provide many tools for creating screenshots that go far beyond a simple combination of buttons.
Understanding all the ways you can do this will save you time and work with your device as efficiently as possible. On Xiaomi devices, the screenshot is saved to the Gallery folder in Screenshots, not the main film. This is an important aspect of the file system that helps you structure your media library. In this article, we will discuss not only basic combinations, but also advanced features such as long screenshots and process automation.
Basic ways to create a screenshot
The most common and versatile method familiar to Android users also works on Redmi smartphones, requiring two physical buttons to be pressed simultaneously: Volume Down and Power. Pressing should be short-term but clear; if you hold the buttons too long, you can activate the off menu or voice assistant.
This works even when the touch screen is temporarily unresponsive or otherwise engaged, but on larger devices, it can be physically difficult to reach both buttons with one hand, and in these situations, the software solutions of the MIUI shell come to the rescue.
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Use the app sidebar for quick access to screenshot features without being distracted from the current task.
After successfully capturing the image, a thumbnail plaque will appear at the top of the screen, and she suggests editing, sharing, or scrolling down the page to create a long screenshot, and ignoring this plaque will automatically save the file in a couple of seconds.
Gesture management in MIUI and HyperOS
Xiaomi has introduced a handy gesture system that allows you to take screenshots with three fingers, which is especially relevant for devices with large diagonals, where it is inconvenient to reach physical buttons. To activate the option, go to Settings → Additional settings → Screenshot and turn on the option “Three fingers”.
Once activated, it's easy to swipe three fingers down the screen at any given time, and the system instantly recognizes the gesture and creates a snapshot. It's important to note that the touchscreen sensitivity should be normal; if there's a thick protective glass or a low-quality film on the screen, the gesture may not work the first time.
⚠️ Note: A three-finger gesture may conflict with the features of some drawing or reading apps that use similar controls. If a particular program has stopped creating screenshots, check your gesture settings.
There is also an alternative gesture available in some firmware versions: tapping your knuckle on the screen. However, this method is less stable and requires calibration, so most users prefer standard three-finger conduction. For maximum comfort, it is recommended to turn off gestures in game mode so that random movements do not interrupt the process.
Use of the control menu and notification curtain
If physical buttons are busy or damaged and gestures are not working, you can use the software interface. In the notification curtain, which is called by the top-down swipe, often there is a separate screenshot switch. If it is not on the first screen, press the edit button (usually a pencil or three dots) and drag the icon to the active panel.
The second software method is called through the multitasking menu: press the Menu button (square or three bars, depending on the type of navigation), and in the list of running applications, find the scissors icon, clicking on it will create a snapshot of the active window without having to fold programs.
These methods are ideal for situations where the smartphone screen is broken and the sensor reacts with delays. Programming calls often work more stiffly than trying to catch the moment of simultaneous pressing of physical keys. In addition, you can call the “Long screenshot” function through the menu if it is not activated in the standard preview.
- 📱 Notification curtain: the fastest software access to the function.
- 📱 Task menu: convenient for creating screenshots of specific applications.
- 📱 Sidebar: allows you to take pictures in a floating window.
Voice control and Google Assistant
Modern Redmi smartphones are equipped with powerful voice assistants that can execute system commands. If your hands are busy, just say the phrase "OK, Google, take a screenshot" or "Take a screenshot." Google Assistant will instantly execute the command and save the image.
This feature requires that the phone be unlocked and active (screen is on) and voice recognition works even in hands-free mode if it is configured in the assistant settings, which is especially useful for people with disabilities or in situations where the device is mounted in a car or holder.
Why doesn't the assistant understand the team?
Voice commands require a stable Internet connection, because the request is often processed on the company's servers. In poor network coverage, the command may be delayed or not executed at all, in which case it is better to resort to local management methods.
How to Take a Long Screenshot on Redmi
The Long Screenshot (or Scrolling) feature allows you to capture the entire page of a site, the messaging app or the entire document, not just the visible part of the screen. After you take a normal screenshot (in any of the ways described above), a thumbnail appears in the corner, and you need to click the button with the arrows down or the words "Scroll".
The device will automatically scroll down, taking a series of images and gluing them into a single long image, which will stop when you touch the screen or reach the end of the page, an indispensable tool for saving articles, receipts and correspondence.
| Activation method | Conditions of work | Limitations |
|---|---|---|
| Button in preview | Right after the photo. | Only scrolling content |
| Three-finger gesture | After the | Requires the option enabled in the settings |
| Task menu | Through the menu of running applications | Doesn't work in some games |
It's important to understand that a long screenshot can't be taken on a static screen where there's no scrolling (like the home screen with icons or settings). The algorithm needs to see the movement of the content to continue to capture. If the scrolling stops ahead of time, you can try to start the process again.
Setting the format and quality of images
By default, MIUI saves screenshots in PNG format, which provides high quality and maintains transparency, but takes up more space. In some scenarios, for example, when sending via messengers with a limit on the file size, it is more appropriate to use the JPG format.
You can change the format of the save in special developer menus or through third-party apps to create screenshots if standard system settings do not allow this directly, but for most users, the PNG format is the optimal balance between text quality and file size.
⚠️ Note: When converting screenshots into JPG You may experience loss of clarity in fine text and the appearance of compression artifacts. PNG.
And you also have to pay attention to the resolution of the images you create, and it depends on the resolution of your Redmi screen. AMOLED matrices and high resolution (2K, 1.5K) The screenshots will weigh significantly more than budget HD-screen.
☑️ Checking the screenshot settings
The solution: why the screenshot doesn't work
Sometimes users are faced with a situation where none of the methods work, most often the problem lies in a specific application that blocks the creation of screenshots for security reasons, this is typical of banking applications, incognito modes in browsers and some streaming services.
In these cases, instead of an image, you'll see a black screen or a ban notification, which is not a malfunction of the phone, but data protection, and you can't get around this ban with standard means, but you can use Screen Recording, which in some versions of the firmware is able to capture sound and image where screenshots are prohibited.
If the screenshots don't work anywhere, try restarting your device. Often, the screenshot system process can hang in the background. Also check for system updates in the Settings → About Phone menu, as newer versions of HyperOS fix these bugs regularly.
- 🔒 Protection DRM: Content protected by copyright.
- 🔒 Banking Security: Preventing Card Data Leakage.
- 🔒 System failure: requires rebooting or resetting settings.
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If the screenshot is not taken in a particular application, it is often an intentional restriction of security, not a breakdown of the smartphone.
Where to look and how to edit saved files
All images that are created are automatically sent to the Gallery system app, where they are sorted by date and placed in a separate Screenshots album. In the file manager, the path to them is usually Internal Storage → DCIM → Screenshots or Internal Storage → Pictures → Screenshots.
Xiaomi's built-in editor allows you to quickly crop an image, add text, blur sensitive data or draw arrows. These tools are available immediately after a snapshot is created via a pop-up menu.
To organize order, it is recommended to periodically delete old screenshots, as they can take up gigabytes of memory. Use the Cleanup function in the Security app to find duplicates and large files that can be deleted without losing important data.