Xiaomi's small watches on the desktop are annoying? you're not alone - MIUI 14/15 users often complain that the standard time widget is too miniaturized, especially on the larger Redmi Note 12 Pro+ or Xiaomi 14 Ultra displays. Fortunately, there are at least 5 ways to increase time display - from basic settings to hidden shell features.
In this article, you'll find step-by-step instructions for all current versions of MIUI, including solutions for rootless devices. We've tested methods on the Poco F5, Xiaomi 13T and Redmi K60, all of which work consistently. And if you're a customizer, at the end there's a bonus about hidden watch fonts that Xiaomi doesn't advertise.
1. Standard size change through widget settings
The easiest way is to use the built-in MIUI options. It is suitable for most models on MIUI 12-15, but has limitations: the maximum size can still seem small on 2K/4K screens.
How to do this:
- 📱 Click on the empty area of the desktop for a long time. → select Widgets
- 🕒 Find the Watch widget (usually in the Tools section) and drag it to the screen.
- 🔄 After placing, touch the widget. → A menu with size options will appear (Mall/Wednesday/Large.)
- 🎨 Some firmwares have additional styles (analog/digital) available – swipe left/right to select
An important nuance: on MIUI 14+, the Large Widget takes up 4×2 cells when choosing the size, but the time font increases by only 20–30%. If you need a really huge display (for example, to use your smartphone as an alarm clock on your nightstand), read on.
2. Use of alternative watch widgets
If the standard widget doesn't suit you, install a third-party solution.
| Annex | Features | Cons | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chronus | 100+ styles, font/color settings, weather widgets | Paid themes, sometimes lagging on MIUI | Google Play |
| Digital Clock Widget | Simplicity, support AMOLED-In the meantime, up to 500% | Advertising in the free version | Google Play |
| UCCW | Full customization (size, font, animation) | A complex interface for beginners | Google Play |
| KWGT Kustom Widget | Own designs or downloads from the community | It takes time to set up. | Google Play |
How to determine:
- Download the application from a table (e.g. Digital Clock Widget).
- Long click on the desktop → Widgets → find the widget of the installed application.
- Drag it onto the screen and adjust the size in the app menu (usually there's a Scale or Font Size slider).
⚠️ Attention: MIUI 15 Some widgets may not be displayed due to shell limitations, in which case, go to Settings before installing the widget. → Annexes → Application management → ⚙️ → Special access → Display on top of other applications and enable permission for the selected application.
3. Hidden scale setting system clock (without root)
MIUI has an undocumented parameter that allows you to increase your system clock by 150-200% without third-party applications, which works on most Android 11+ devices, but requires activation of the developer mode.
Instructions:
- Activate Developer Mode: Go to Settings → About Phone 7 times click on the MIUI Version (you will be notified "You are a developer!")
Settings → Additional → For Developers
Minimum width (dp)
Drawing
411
360
Reset the device.
Effect: The clock on the desktop and notification panel will get 20 to 40 percent larger, and the downside is that everything else (icons, fonts on the menu) will get bigger. To get back to the original scale, set 411 back.
What if the option "Minimum width" is not available?
4. Size resizing through ADB (advanced method)
For users willing to work with ADB, there is a way to fine-tune the size of the system clock, which doesn't require root, but requires basic command line knowledge.
Step-by-step:
- Install Platform Tools on your PC.
- Connect Xiaomi to USB and activate Debugging over USB in the developer settings.
- Open the command line in the adb folder and execute: adb shell settings put secure sysui_clock_size 2.0 Here. 2.0 — The scaling factor (can be specified from the 1.0 before 3.0).
- Reset the device.
⚠️ Attention: MIUI 15 after-use ADB-commands may be lost aligning the clock in the notification bar. To fix, do: adb shell settings put secure sysui_status_bar_clock_position 1 (where 1 — left-hand, 0 — centre-on).
Install Platform Tools|Enable debugging by USB|Connect phone to PC|Confirm connection by adb devices|Do backup settings-->
5. Customization through MIUI themes (little-known trick)
Xiaomi’s official Themes app allows you to change not only the wallpaper, but also the style of the system watch. Many users are unaware that some themes include enlarged time widgets.
How to find topics like this:
- Open the Themes app (brush icon on desktop).
- Go to the widget section. → The clock.
- In the search bar, enter: 🔍 Big Clock 🔍 Large Time 🔍 Huge Widget
Download your favorite topic and apply it.
Secret Lifehack: Some themes (such as Minimal OS or Dark Matter) contain hidden watches. After applying the theme, click on the time widget for a long time → an additional menu with alternative styles will appear.
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If after changing the theme, the clock disappeared from the desktop, go to Settings → Desktop → Desktop Widgets by default and turn on the display of time.
6 Manual editing of system files (root only)
For root-right users, there's a radical method, which is editing MIUI files that display the watch, and the risk is that if you make a mistake, you can break the system interface.
Instructions:
- Install Root Explorer or MT Manager.
- Go to /system/media/theme/default/ or (for newer versions): /vendor/overlay/
- Find the systemui.apk file or framework-miui-res.apk.
- Extract the file, open it in APK Editor and find rows with parameters: clock_size or status_bar_clock_size
- Change the values (for example, from 16.0 to 24.0) and save the file.
- Reset the device.
Alternative: Some firmware (e.g. xiaomi.eu) can use a Magisk module called MIUI Clock Mod that automates the process.
⚠️ Attention: Editing of systems APK-files can lead to bootloop ( looped download). TWRP Or OrangeFox. On devices with Dynamic Partition (e.g. Xiaomi) 12S Ultra) recovery may be complicated.
Comparison of methods: which one to choose?
| Method | Difficulty | Max, increase. | Root is required. | Risks. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard widget | ⭐ | +30% | ❌ | No. |
| Third-party widgets | ⭐⭐ | +300% | ❌ | Advertising in free versions |
| ADB-team | ⭐⭐⭐ | +200% | ❌ | Resetting when updating MIUI |
| Editing by APK | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | +400% | ✅ | Possible bootloop |
| MIUI themes | ⭐ | +50% | ❌ | Limited choice of styles |
For most users, the best option is to combine a standard widget at maximum size + a third-party app (like Digital Clock Widget).If you need extreme zoom (for example, to use a smartphone as a wall clock), consider the method with ADB or root editing.
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On devices with AMOLED-Watches that are too large can cause burn-in (pixel burnout) to avoid this, use dynamic widgets with changing time locations.