Many Xiaomi and Redmi smartphone users experience a situation where the system interface suddenly turns black, often due to the activation of a dark theme that is designed to reduce eye strain in low-light conditions. However, not everyone likes this look, and sometimes dark elements can hide important interface details or create visibility problems on low-quality screens.
With MIUI and the new HyperOS, color management is flexible enough, but sometimes settings can get confused or malfunction. You may notice that even after trying to switch, some applications remain black, because the adaptation of third-party applications works on the system's own algorithms.
In this article, we will go into detail all the ways to bring back the classic light interface. We will look at both standard methods through the settings menu and more advanced options for cases where the system behaves unpredictable, learn how to manage the turn-on schedule and understand why some elements may not be changeable.
Before we start to change, it is worth noting that the complete rejection of dark mode can have a positive impact on the autonomy of devices with a new model. AMOLED-It's not like you're using a screen if you use your smartphone in bright light, but during the day, black backgrounds often look unnatural and make text readable.
Basic disabling through the settings menu
The most obvious and reliable way to bring back a light interface is to use the regular menu of the system. In modern versions of the MIUI shell, the path to this feature is standardized, but may vary slightly depending on the version of Android.
Inside this section is a Dark Mode switch, and if it's active, it'll burn blue or orange, and if you press it, it'll instantly bring the white background back to all the system menus, but if you want to leave the dark theme for some apps, but remove it globally, you'll need a finer setup.
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Use a Settings Search by entering the word “Theme” to instantly find the right switch without manually searching the menu.
Note the Adapt Third Party Apps option, which even if you turn off the main theme, can force the interfaces of installed programs to black, and disabling this option often solves the problem when the system “behaves strangely” after an update.
- 🌑 Open the Settings. → Screen.
- 🌓 Find the Dark Mode switch and turn it off.
- 🎨 Click on the gear next to the switch for detailed settings.
- 📱 Turn off the option to Adapt Third Party Apps if necessary.
It is important to understand that some system applications, such as Explorer or Gallery, may have their own internal theme settings that are prioritized over system ones. If the background remains black after a global change, check the settings inside the problematic application itself.
Scheduling and automation management
Often users don't understand why the theme turns on itself at a certain time, and that's the work of the Schedule function, which allows you to set time intervals when the dark mode is activated automatically, such as at sunset or at a fixed time.
To remove this automation, you go to the theme settings and select No in the schedule section. If you have dusk to dawn, the phone will use geolocation data to determine the switching time, which is convenient for saving battery at night, but can be annoying during the day.
There is also a hidden setting associated with the energy saving mode: In some versions of MIUI, when power saving is enabled, the system forcibly activates a dark theme to reduce resource consumption by pixels. Check the battery settings if the theme turns on unexpectedly.
- ⏰ Go to Settings. → Screen. → Dark mode.
- 📅 Select the option No in the schedule block.
- 🔋 Check the energy saving settings for a forced theme.
- 🌍 Turn off geolocation for theme services if Sunset-Dawn mode is used».
If you use third-party launchers or themes from GetThemes, they may have their own cycles of changing wallpapers and color schemes, in which case the system settings may overlap with the theme engine.
Set up individual applications and adapt
One of the key features of Xiaomi’s shell is that it can selectively use a dark theme: You can leave the system light, but only make messengers or social networks black, and vice versa, remove the theme everywhere except for one app.
To manage this functionality, you need to go to the theme menu (through screen settings) and select Individual Apps. Here is a list of all installed programs. Those that are ticked or highlighted with color will follow the system rule or have a forced dark theme.
⚠️ Warning: Forced dark theme inclusion for applications that are not optimized by the developer can lead to incorrect display of text or buttons. If you see artifacts, remove the application from the list of adaptable.
With newer versions of HyperOS, the adapting algorithm has gotten smarter, but it can still be wrong. If you notice black plaques appearing (suddenly) in light mode in some app, check out this particular exception list.
☑️ Checking the adaptation of applications
It’s also worth mentioning that some apps have their own theme setting inside their menus. For example, Telegram or WhatsApp may ignore system settings if their internal menu selects Dark or Night. Always check the internal settings of popular messengers.
Resetting theme settings
There are situations where a software failure causes the theme slider to fail to respond to clicks or the interface to flash, in which case the effective solution is to reset the settings of the theme component, which will not delete your personal data, but will return the visual settings to the factory settings.
To do this, go to the Applications → All Apps. Find the Theme System App (Brush Icon) in the list. Log in to its menu and select Clear → All Data. After that, the phone can restart or simply redraw the interface.
This method is especially useful if you have installed third-party themes from the store that could make changes to the system configuration files.Reset will return the standard Classic or Default style.
| Action. | Where to find out. | The result |
|---|---|---|
| Resetting the topic | Settings → Topics → Profile | Return to standardization |
| Clearing the cache | Appendices → Topics → Memory | Deletion of temporary graphics files |
| Resetting all settings | Advanced settings → Recovery | Full return to factory parameters |
| Reboot. | Side button | Updating system processes |
Once you reset the theme, the system can suggest that you reselect the wallpaper and icon style. This is normal behavior. Make sure you don't immediately select the dark preset when you first set it up.
Using a reading mode
Sometimes users confuse a dark topic with a Read mode or a blue light filter, which can also change the color gamut of the screen, making it warmer or inverted, which is visually perceived as a “dark mode”.
Check the control panel (notification curtain). There may be an icon called Read Mode or Vision Protection active. Disabling these features will return standard color rendering. Unlike a dark theme, these modes affect the spectrum of the screen's radiation, rather than just inverting the colors of the interface.
What is the difference between Dark Theme and Reading Mode?
Also worth checking is the MIUI Improvement settings (or Additional Features). There can be activated Monochrome mode, which makes the entire screen black and white. This is often turned on randomly through a quick press of volume buttons, if the appropriate combination has been set.
- 👁️ Lower the notification curtain and check for active toggles.
- 📖 Find and turn off Reading Mode or Paper View.
- 🎨 Check the screen settings → Color scheme.
- 🔘 Make sure that Monochrome mode is not included in special features.
If the screen is all black and white, it's likely that the mode for people with visual impairments is activated. It can be found along the Settings path → Additional → Special. features → Visual.
Solving problems with color inversion
There's another feature that dramatically changes the look of the screen, which is Color Inversion, which, unlike the dark theme, changes colors to the opposite (white turns black, red turns blue, etc.), which is very strange and often frightens users who activated it accidentally.
To remove this effect, you need to go to Settings. → Additionally. → Special opportunities → Visual. You need to find the color inversion switch and turn it off. You also need to check the quick key settings to avoid accidental switching in the future.
⚠️ Warning: Don't confuse Color Inversion with Dark Theme. Inversion makes it impossible to view photos and videos normally, distorting all colors. If that's what you have, immediately disable the feature in special features.
A common cause of random activation is a combination of buttons. The special feature menu has a special feature shortcut (often a triple tap of the power button or a long clamping of the volume buttons).
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Random activation of color inversion or monochrome mode is the most common cause of "panic" users thinking that the screen is broken.
After turning off the inversion, the colors should return to normal instantly. If this does not happen, try rebooting the device by holding the power button for 10 seconds.