How to Enable Another Keyboard on Xiaomi: The Complete Guide

The modern smartphone user spends a significant part of the time behind the screen, and the quality of text input directly affects the speed and comfort. The standard MIUI shell or the new HyperOS from Xiaomi often comes with a pre-installed solution that may not suit experienced owners due to the lack of flexible settings or specific features. If you are wondering how to turn on another keyboard on the shaomi, then you are on the right path to personalization of the device.

The process of replacing the virtual input tool does not require root rights or deep technical knowledge, but it has its own nuances in the security system of Android. Unlike installing conventional applications, you need to manually allow the new component access to data entry, which is an important measure of protection against interception of passwords and personal information. Below we will discuss in detail all the stages of transition to an alternative solution.

Many users mistakenly believe that it is easy to download an app, but without the right activation in the system settings, it will not work. We will consider not only the standard path through the Google Play store, but also the methods of setting up for those who prefer to use Chinese versions of firmware or specific language packages.

Selecting the right application for text input

The first and most important step is to choose the tool that will replace the standard one. The market offers a variety of options, each with its own unique features and target audience. For example, Google’s Gboard is famous for its integration with search engine and excellent voice input, while SwiftKey is known for its advanced predictive typing algorithm and the ability to synchronize the exchange buffer between devices.

Russian-speaking users also benefit from Yandex and ABBYY products, which best understand the context and slang of our Internet segment, and when choosing to choose, you should pay attention to support for the themes, the availability of a convenient line with numbers and the ability to control the swipe cursor by space.

If you plan to use the device for gaming, look for gaming keyboards with macros or reduced size so that your fingers don’t overlap the view in shooters or MOBA. Office work is critical to support physical keyboards over Bluetooth and the ability to connect via USB-OTG, which is also worth checking before installing. The right choice will save you hundreds of hours in the future.

• 🚀 Gboard – the perfect balance between functionality, speed and minimalism of the interface.
• 🎨 SwiftKey is the best choice for those who love customization and need a powerful autocorrector.
• 🇷🇺 Yandex.Keyboard is an excellent solution for voice input and search for emoji in meaning in Russian.
• 🎮 Hacker's Keyboard - a specialized tool for programmers with a full PC layout.

⚠️ Note: Download text input apps only from official stores such as Google Play or GetApps. APK-Files may contain malicious code that can steal passwords from banking applications.

Download and install a third-party application

Once you have made your choice, you need to go directly to the installation. Open an app store on your Xiaomi, Redmi or POCO smartphone and type the name of the product in the search bar. The download process is no different from installing any other program: click the "Install" button and wait for the files to be copied to the device to be completed.

In some cases, especially on newer versions of the HyperOS shell, the system can alert you that the app is requesting access to sensitive data. This is a standard Android security procedure and should not be alarmed. You will need to read the permission list carefully, although most keyboards require network access (for updating dictionaries) and storage (for topics) for basic operation.

It is important to make sure that there is enough free space on the device’s drive, as modern keyboards can take up from 50 to 200 megabytes, and also require space for cache and downloadable language packs. If you use an old device with a small amount of memory, choose “light” versions of applications or turn off the download of unnecessary fonts and animations.

Once you've installed it successfully, don't rush to launch it right away. First, you need to "introduce" a new component, which we'll talk about in the next section. Just having a file on a disk doesn't mean the input system is ready to go.

Activation of the keyboard in system settings

This is the most critical stage, where many users face difficulties, as the paths in the menu can be hidden. To turn on another keyboard on shaomi, you need to go to the main menu of the device settings. Find a section that can be called "Additional settings" or simply "System", depending on the version of your MIUI firmware.

Within this section, look for Language and Input. This is where you focus on managing all typing methods. You need to select Keyboard Management or Current Keyboard. In the list that opens, you'll see the app installed, but the switch next to it will most likely be turned off.

Activate the switchboard in front of your new app name. The system will issue a warning about potential security risks, informing that a third-party keyboard may access the typed text, including passwords and credit card details. If you trust a developer (such as Google or Microsoft), feel free to click OK or Allow.

⚠️ Note: After activating a new keyboard, the standard keyboard does not disappear. You can return to it at any time if the new one seems uncomfortable or does not work correctly.

Now that you're allowed to access, you need to make the new application the default, so go back a step to the Language and Input menu and click on Current Keyboard. In the window that appears, select the name of the app you just activated.

Comparison of popular solutions for Android

To make it easier for you to make your choices or understand what you’re missing from your current solution, we’ve compiled a comparison table of key market leader characteristics that are especially important for users who type a lot or use specific features.

Note that the functionality can be updated by developers, so the relevance of the data is worth checking in the description of versions in the app store.

As you can see from the table, Xiaomi’s standard solution is often inferior to specialized products in terms of flexibility of settings and word prediction, but it benefits in battery consumption because it is deeply integrated into the system and does not require unnecessary background processes.

If multitasking is important to you, such as being able to copy text from one application and paste it into another via the keyboard clipboard, SwiftKey and Gboard provide advanced buffer management features, saving copy history.

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The choice of keyboard is a matter of personal preferences: someone is more important than design, and someone – the speed of printing and a smart autocorrector.

Language setting and layout

Once a new input tool is activated, it often turns out that it only typing in English or uses an uncomfortable layout, and to fix this, you need to go to the settings of the application itself, usually by clamping a comma or space, or through the gear icon on the keyboard panel.

In the Languages section, click Add Language and select the language you want, such as Russian. The system will prompt you to download the language package if it is not already loaded. Russian is often available in Yitsuken, Yitsuken (iOS), or even a phonetic layout for those who are used to typing in Latin in Russian.

Don't forget to set up auto-switching, which allows you to swipe the input language over a space, which makes it much faster to work in a multilingual environment, and you can also enable automatic language definition, although this function sometimes works incorrectly by switching to English in the middle of a Russian word.

For those who use specific characters or type with code, adding a separate string with numbers and symbols is useful, eliminating the need to constantly switch to the second row of characters, keeping complex combinations in mind.

• 🌐 Add all the necessary languages immediately so you don’t look for them when traveling abroad.
• ⌨️ Adjust the height of the keyboard in the settings for ease of hitting your fingers on the screens of large smartphones.
• 🔊 Turn on or off the tap sound and response vibration for tactile feedback.

⚠️ Note: When you enable Auto-Replacement, be careful with specific terms or proper names, the system may aggressively correct them to common words.

Solution and resetting of settings

Sometimes after installation, a new keyboard can work unstable: disappear when dialing SMS, You can either slow down or not show up in the input fields. First of all, try rebooting the device. This trivial action often solves problems with the hung input services on the Android system.

If the problem persists, check if the device is power-saving or Super-Energy Saving. Xiaomi's system is known for aggressive battery optimization, which can "kill" the background processes of the keyboard. Add the app to the exceptions or the "No Limits" list in the battery settings.

As a last resort, if the keyboard is not behaving properly, you can reset it to factory settings. To do this, go to Settings → Advanced Settings → Language and Input → Current Keyboard, select your application and find the item “Reset Settings” or “Clear Data” in the application management menu.

Settings → About Phone → MIUI Version (7 times tap) → Advanced settings → Access to data

Make sure the app has permission to access the network if you use cloud-based dictionary synchronization.Without the internet, some features like voice input or search are available. GIF-Animations may not be available.

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If the keyboard is missing and you can’t enter a password, try connecting a physical one. USB-keyboard OTG-cable or use Google Assistant voice input to open settings.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)