How to turn off the second screen on Xiaomi: step-by-step instructions

Xiaomi smartphone owners often encounter confusing terminology in the MIUI shell or the new HyperOS, where the concepts of "second screen," "desktop" and "widgets" can intertwine, creating confusion. The user can see an additional news bar, duplicate images on the TV or just unnecessary icons that interfere with navigation. Depending on what you mean by "second screen," the solution will be radically different.

In this article, we will discuss all possible scenarios in detail: from turning off the Google widget tape on the left to completely disabling the wireless projector function, which duplicates the image of the smartphone to other devices. Proper interface configuration will not only return the familiar look to your gadget, but also significantly save battery power, as many background processes will cease to consume resources.

Before making any changes, you need to determine exactly which interface element is causing discomfort. Xiaomi's system settings allow you to flexibly manage the display of content, but some options are hidden deep in the menu. We'll look at both software methods through the standard menu, and more advanced methods through the engineering menu if standard options are not available.

Disabling Widget Ribbon and Google Discover

Most commonly, second screen is the left panel that appears when swiped to the right of the main desktop, a feature known as Google Discover or Assistant that displays news, weather and recommendations, and is built into the launcher by default, but is easy to turn off if you don't need it.

You need to go to the desktop settings. Click the empty space on the home screen or pinch the two fingers to open the editing menu. In the menu that appears, select Add widgets or just swipe to the right to the end where this tape is. In the upper right corner of the screen, a setting icon (cog) or three dots open the control menu often appears.

• 📱 Click on the settings icon in the top corner of the widget tape.
• 🔍 Find the Cards or Google Discover switch».
• 🚫 Translate the slider to the "Off" position».
• ✅ Return to the main screen and check the results.

If the standard method doesn't work, you may have a third-party launcher or theme that changes the system's behavior, in which case you can go to Settings → Desktop and find the "Widget Ribbon" item there, and disabling this feature instantly removes the extra bar, making navigation more linear and faster.

⚠️ Note: After the widget tape is turned off, swipe right will no longer open news.If you're used to checking the weather or currency rate quickly through this panel, you'll have to use separate widgets on the home screen.

Note that the switches may differ slightly between MIUI and HyperOS, and in some regions, this feature is called "Glance" or "Wallpaper with cards." If you didn't find the switch right away, search the phone's settings by entering the word "widget" or "tape."

Remove screen duplication (Wireless projector)

The second common scenario is when an image from your Xiaomi is broadcast to a TV, monitor or other smartphone, which happens if the Wireless Projector function (Cast) has been activated, in which case your phone is acting as a signal source, and the external display becomes a “second screen”.

To stop this process, just unlock the phone and lower the notification curtain from top to bottom. Among the quick buttons, find the icon Translation, Projection or Cast. Pressing this button should break the connection. If the buttons are not in quick access, go to Settings → Connection and Sharing → Broadcast.

You'll see a list of available devices in the stream menu, if the connection is active, it will indicate the name of the device to which the smartphone is connected. Click on "Stop" or "Stop." You can also interrupt the connection by simply turning off Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, because the Miracast technology used to transmit the image relies on these modules.

Sometimes the phone tries to find the devices to connect to, giving the illusion of a second screen working. To prevent the phone from automatically searching for displays, click three dots in the corner and select Settings, where you can turn off the option "On automatically."

• 📶 Turn off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth if you’re not using them right now.
• 📺 Make sure your TV is turned off Screen Mirroring.
• 🔄 Restart the router if the connection is suspended.
• 🛡️ Check the list of trusted devices in Bluetooth.

Configuring the second space (Second Space)

One of the unique features of MIUI shell is Second Space, which is not just duplicate screens, but create a completely isolated environment within a single device. You can have two different desktops, two sets of apps, and two different Google accounts switched by fingerprint or password.

If you accidentally activate this feature or want to get rid of it, you need to find the appropriate section in the settings. The path usually looks like this: Settings → Additional settings → Second space. Here you will see a switch that activates or deactivates this function.

When you turn off the second space, the system will give you a choice: save the data from the second space or delete it. Delete the data is an irreversible process, so if you store important photos or documents, first transfer them to the main space or to the cloud.

Once the second space is removed, your phone will return to standard mode with a single user profile, which will also free up a significant amount of internal memory that a copy of the system and applications used.

⚠️ Warning: Deleting the second space erases all data inside it.Make sure you don't lose access to important banking applications or correspondence if they were only installed in the second profile.

Split Screen (Split Screen)

Sometimes users confuse “second screen” with split screen mode, when two apps are open at the same time: one in the top half, the other in the bottom.This is a regular feature of Android multitasking, which on large screens of Xiaomi smartphones works very conveniently, but can be annoying if it is turned on accidentally.

To exit this mode, you just drag the dividing line completely up or down, closing one of the applications. If you want to prevent applications from opening in this mode, you can do this through the menu of recent applications. Click on the application icon in the list of running tasks and select the option “Do not use in split screen”.

With newer versions of HyperOS, window management has become even more flexible. You can freely change the size of floating windows, but sometimes the system itself suggests splitting the screen when you run certain applications. To remove this feature, go to Settings → Additional Settings → Split screen and turn off autostart or short paths.

• 🖱️ Drag the center lane to the end of the screen to close the mode.
• ⛔ Turn off gestures for split screen in settings.
• 📱 Use only one application in full screen mode.
• 🔄 Reset the special features settings if the mode is stuck.

If the split screen turns on on on its own without your involvement, this may indicate a touchscreen malfunction or software failure, in such cases, it is recommended to check for system updates or reset special features settings.

Third-party launchers and design themes

Often, a "second screen" appears after installing a new theme from the Mi Themes store or a third-party launcher (e.g. Nova Launcher, Lawnchair) Themes can add their own widgets, clocks, weather or additional desktops that are not removed by standard methods.

To return the standard look, go to Settings → Desktop → System (or Launcher Choice) and select the standard Xiaomi launcher. This will instantly remove all third-party design elements. If the problem is the theme, just apply the Classic or Standard theme from the theme store.

Some themes have built-in ads or widgets that mimic the second screen, and removing them is the only way to get rid of the intrusive elements. Go to the Topics app, go to profile and select My Topics, then apply the default one.

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Changing the launcher to a standard one is the fastest way to remove any non-standard interface elements added by themes or third-party applications.

Engineering menu and hidden display settings

For advanced users, it is possible to disable some display functions through the engineering menu, which may be necessary if the second screen is caused by hardware test mode or specific debugging settings. Be careful: changing unknown parameters can lead to unstable system operation.

To enter the engineering menu, dial ##6484## (CIT) on your phone, where you can check the display. If you see test images or colors, just exit this mode by pressing the back or Exit button. In normal operating mode, these tests should not be displayed.

And you can also use ADB (Android Debug Bridge) to turn off the system components that are responsible for unnecessary interfaces, and you can connect the phone to your computer and type in the command:

adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.miui.personalassistant

This command disables the personal assistant at the system level. Using ADB requires USB debugging and basic command line knowledge, and if you're not sure what you're doing, you'd better limit yourself to standard settings.

⚠️ Attention: Entering commands through ADB or changing the settings in the engineering menu can lead to loss of warranty or "bricking" of the device if used incorrectly.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)