How to increase screen lock time on Xiaomi Redmi: from 15 seconds to “never”

Your Xiaomi Redmi screen goes out too quickly, interrupting reading, watching videos or working with the navigator? Standard MIUI settings limit the maximum autolock time to 30 seconds — but that’s not the limit. Depending on the model (Redmi Note 12, Redmi 10, POCO X5) and the firmware version, you can stretch the timeout to 5-10 minutes or even turn it off. We tell you how to do it without and with root rights, and what pitfalls await users.

In this article, you will find 5 proven methods, from basic settings to hidden MIUI functions and ADB commands. We tested them on MIUI 13-14 firmware (Android 12-14) and found nuances for different devices. For example, Redmi 9 with MIUI 12.5 runs a bypass through Developer Options, and POCO F5 will require ADB.

Spoiler: the most reliable way - a combination of screen settings + But if you need to completely disable the autolock without losing sensor functionality, read the section about the autolock. ADB — There is a single working trick hidden in the new versions. MIUI.

1. Standard MIUI settings: maximum 30 seconds

To start with, the obvious is the built-in MIUI options, which are suitable for all Redmi models, but has a very strict limitation: maximum lock time is 30 seconds, and yet many users don't know where to look for this option.

Go to: Settings → Display → Screen Lock → Screen Lock Timeout

The options are 15 seconds, 30 seconds, 1 minute (on some firmware), 2 minutes (rarely) and 10 minutes (only on older versions of MIUI to 11th).If you don't have a 10 minute option, don't worry - it disappeared after the Android 10+ security updates.

• ❌ Cons: limit of 30 seconds, on new firmwares the choice is even more scarce.

2. Developer Mode: Hidden Timeout Options

If the standard 30 seconds are short, but ADB and root rights are scary, turn on developer mode. It gives you access to additional timeout settings, including 5 and 10 minutes (on some firmware).

How to activate the developer mode:

1. Click 7 times on the MIUI version (you will be notified “You are a developer”).

Now look for the screen lock timeout option (sometimes hidden in the Screen or System section) and there may be additional options available: 1 minute, 2 minutes, 5 minutes, 10 minutes, or even 30 minutes (on POCO F3 with MIUI 13).

⚠️ Note: On the Redmi Note 11 and later, after selecting 10 minutes, automatic battery optimization can trigger, resetting a timeout of up to 30 seconds. To avoid this, turn off the Adaptive Battery function in the power settings.

3. ADB-Teams: Bypassing restrictions MIUI

If you need a lock time of more than 10 minutes or a full shutdown, you can't do without ADB. This method works on all versions of MIUI (including the 14th) and does not require root rights.

Step-by-step:

1. Download Platform Tools (the official tool from Google).
2. Connect Redmi to your PC via USB, enable Debugging via USB (Settings → Developer).
3. Open the command prompt (cmd) in the folder with Platform Tools and type:

adb shell settings put global screen_off_timeout 600000

Where 600,000 is time in milliseconds (600,000 ms = 10 minutes).

• 300,000 - 5 minutes
• 1200000 - 20 minutes
• 2147483647 - "never" (maximum value for int32)

Once you've completed the command, restart the phone. The new timeout will apply.

Install Platform Tools on PC|

Enable debugging over USB on Redmi|

Connect the phone with the original cable |

Check the connection with the command `adb devices`|

Make backup settings (in case of failure)-->

⚠️ Attention: Redmi with MIUI 14 after use ADB If the screen locks after 30 seconds despite the command, check for updates in Settings. → About the phone or reset the screen settings to the factory.

4. Set up "Keep Screen On" for individual applications

If you want to keep the screen from going out only in specific applications (such as Google Maps or YouTube), use Keep Screen On (some firmware uses Smart Screen On), which is available in all Redmis on MIUI 12+.

How to turn on:

1. Open Settings → Special features → Keep Screen On.
2. Select the applications for which you want to disable the lock.
3. Activate the slider Enable.

This method doesn’t eat up the battery as much as global timeout increases because it only works when the app is open. For example, on the Redmi Note 10 Pro, tests showed that Keep Screen On for Waze reduces the discharge by 3-5% per hour versus 8-12% when it’s constantly backlit.

5. Magisk modules: for advanced users

If you have root rights (installed by Magisk), you can use modules to fully control your screen lock.

Installation:

1. Download the module from the Magisk repository.
2. Install it through Magisk Manager.
3. Reboot the phone.
4. Set up a timeout in the module menu.

💡

Before installing modules, back up via TWRP! some modules conflict with MIUI 14 and can cause bootloop (load looping).

The advantage of this method is flexibility, for example, in GravityBox you can set separate timeouts for charging and discharging, and also attach the lock to the proximity sensor (so that the screen goes out when you lift it to the ear).

6. Battery optimization: how to reduce consumption with an increased timeout

Increasing the lock time inevitably leads to increased power consumption: on Redmi with AMOLED (for example, Redmi K50) constant backlighting consumes up to 15-20% of charge per hour, on IPS (Redmi 9A) – 8-12%.

• 🔋 Reduce the brightness to 30 to 40 percent, and even in the sun, that's enough if you turn on Adaptive Brightness.
• 🌙 Use dark themes on the AMOLED — Black pixels do not consume energy.
• ⚡ Turn off Always On Display (if enabled) – it duplicates backlighting.
• 📵 Activate Power Saving Mode in Battery Settings (Limit background activity).

Also check which apps are allowed to work in the background: Settings → Battery → Battery Optimization.

Turn off background activity for unnecessary programs – this will reduce the load on the processor and reduce consumption.

💡

Redmi with MIUI 14 has a hidden feature called Ultra Battery Saver that forcibly locks the screen after 30 seconds. To turn it off, go to Settings → Battery → Power Modes and select Balanced.

7. Frequent problems and solutions

Even after a successful timeout setting, users are confronted with bugs, and here are the most common ways to fix them:

• 🔄 Timeout resets after reboot → Repeat. ADB-command or install Screen Off Timeout module with autorun.
• 🚫 There is no option for 10 minutes in developer mode. → Update the firmware to the latest version MIUI or use ADB.
• 🔋 The battery goes down fast. → Turn off Adaptive Brightness and set a fixed value of 30-50%.
• 📱 The screen is not locked at all. → Check the proximity sensor (Settings) → The phone. → Diagnostics → Sensor test).

If after the ADB changes, the phone stopped blocking even manually, reset the Screen settings: Settings → System → Resetting → Reset the screen settings.

FAQ: Answers to popular questions