Many users of smartphones Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO They're faced with a situation where the interface of the system suddenly turns black and the text turns white, and this is due to the activation of a dark theme, which is designed to reduce the load on the eyes at night and save battery power. OLED-However, not everyone is comfortable working in this mode all the time, especially in bright daylight, when contrast can be excessive.
MIUI and its newer version of HyperOS offer flexible design settings, but sometimes standard switches don’t work as expected or the theme is automatically turned on on on schedule. In this article, we’ll look at all possible ways to force back light mode, including hidden engineering menus and settings for individual applications.
If your screen suddenly turns black, don't panic, it's not a matrix breakdown. Just do a few simple actions in the settings menu to restore the usual white background. Below are proven methods for current versions of firmware that will help you quickly deactivate the night mode.
Standard shutdown through screen settings
The most obvious and safe way to return the light interface is to use the standard settings menu. In most cases, the system switches to dark mode due to an activated schedule or accidentally touching a point in the notification curtain. First, you need to go to the main parameters of the device by finding the Settings → Screen section.
Inside this menu, you'll find Dark Mode, and if the slider is blue, it means it's active. Click on it to turn it off. But often users forget that they have automatic time-on, so it's important to check not only the main switch, but also the additional settings inside the same menu.
If you look at the schedule tab, if you have time or sunset to dawn, the system will ignore your manual attempts to turn off the theme by activating it again at a given moment, and to get rid of the black background completely, you need to move the schedule to No.
⚠️ Note: On some versions MIUI The dark theme switch may not be in the Screen section, but in the Wallpaper and Personalization menu. If you don't find the right item in the main settings, be sure to check the personalization section.
Also worth mentioning is the adaptive dark theme feature that appeared in Android 12 and above, which forcefully darkens elements in apps that don’t officially support night mode, and disabling this option may require the use of special tools, which will be discussed below.
Managing theme through the notification curtain
Often the cause of sudden blackening of the screen is the accidental tapping of the widget in the quick access panel. Xiaomi allows you to bring the dark theme switch to the main screen of the curtain, which is convenient but fraught with errors when removing the phone from your pocket. Check the top of the screen, pulling the curtain down to the end.
Find an icon for a dark theme (usually a crescent or an "A" on a dark background). If it's illuminated, click on it once to deactivate. In some HyperOS builds, this switch may be hidden in the second page of the control panel. To open it, swipe right on an open curtain.
If you can't find this switch, it may have been removed from the Quick Access Panel.You can add it back or, conversely, remove it to avoid accidental switching on in the future.To edit the panel, click on a pencil or the Edit button in the corner of the curtain and drag the desired elements.
- 🌙 Pull the notification curtain down twice for full menu disclosure.
- 🔍 Find the dark theme icon among active switches.
- ❌ Click on the icon to turn grey (inactive).
- ⚙️ If necessary, edit a set of widgets, removing unnecessary.
Changes are instant and do not require rebooting the device, and if the topic returns after the shutdown, it means that somewhere actively schedule or third-party application interferes with the system.
☑️ Checking the display settings
Set up exceptions for individual applications
Sometimes users don't want to remove dark topics everywhere, but only in specific programs where the black background looks incorrect or interferes with reading. Android's MIUI-based system allows exceptions to be created, which means that the general interface can remain dark, and selected applications will open in light mode, and vice versa.
To set exceptions, go to Settings → Screen → Dark Mode. At the bottom of the screen, you'll see the App Settings button or a list of installed programs. Here you can manually select which apps will ignore the system theme.
If you want to turn off a dark theme completely, but the system imposes it in separate places, check this list. Make sure the programs you need are not marked as "Use a dark theme" forcefully. Resetting settings for specific applications often solves the "half black" interface problem.
⚠️ Note: Some apps, such as WhatsApp or Telegram, have their own internal theme settings. Even if you turn off dark mode on the system, it can remain active inside the messenger.
With newer versions of the HyperOS shell, exception logic has been improved, and it now better determines which interface elements to repaint. However, if you use older versions of MIUI (e.g., 11 or 12), the exceptions feature may not work smoothly, requiring you to completely disable the theme in global settings.
Use of Engineering Menu and ADB (for Advanced)
In the rare cases where standard methods don't work or the system interface freezes in dark mode, you can use deeper customization methods, one of which is the use of ADB (Android Debug Bridge) commands, which requires connecting the smartphone to the computer and having the appropriate software.
First, activate the developer mode. To do this, go to Settings → About Phone and quickly click on the build number seven times. Then, in advanced settings, turn on Debugging over USB. Connect the phone to your PC and type the following command in the terminal:
adb shell cmd overlay enable --android androidThis command drops the dark theme overlays to the system level, and you can also try a command to force the light theme to be turned on if the system switch is locked:
adb shell settings put secure ui_night_mode 1A value of 1 means a light theme, 2 a dark theme, and 0 an automatic choice. Using ADB gives you complete control over settings hidden from the average user, but requires caution.
Is it safe to use ADB?
Compatibility table for MIUI and HyperOS versions
The settings may vary depending on the version of the operating system installed on your device. Below is a table to help you navigate where to look for switches in different versions of Xiaomi shells.
| Shell version | The path to settings | Features |
|---|---|---|
| MIUI 11-12 | Settings → Screen → Dark Theme | Basic management, possible schedule bugs |
| MIUI 13-14 | Settings → Screen → Dark Mode | Added settings for individual applications |
| HyperOS 1.0 | Settings → Personalization → Colors | Integration with the palette of materials, smart switching |
| Global ROM | Settings → Display | Standard Android Way, Minimum Customization |
| CN ROM (China) | Settings → Special Opportunities | Aggressive blackout, complex menus |
As you can see from the table, the newest HyperOS has changed a little bit: color settings and themes are often combined into the Personalization section. If you've recently updated and can't find an old switch, look for it there. Chinese firmware versions (CN ROM) often have more complex and confusing menus than global ones.
Owners of Chinese versions of smartphones with installed global firmware (through flashing) should be especially careful.Region-lock or the remnants of Chinese services may conflict with the theme settings, causing its spontaneous inclusion.
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If you upgraded to HyperOS and the settings “went away”, use the search by settings: enter the word “Theme” in the search bar at the top of the settings menu, and the system will open the desired section.
The impact of third-party themes and launchers
Keep in mind that the interface can be influenced by the themes installed from the MIUI Themes store. Some third-party themes have a hard-coded dark style that ignores system settings. If you recently installed a new theme, try changing it to a standard Classic or Default.
Third-party launchers (e.g. Nova Launcher, Microsoft Launcher) can also cause problems, and they have their own theme settings and can override system preferences. Go to the setup of the launcher and look for the “Design” or “Look & Feel” section to see if dark mode is enabled.
In some cases, cleaning the cache of the Themes app helps. To do this, go to Settings → Apps → All Apps → Themes → Memory → Clear the cache. This will not delete your downloaded themes, but will reset temporary files that may have caused a display conflict.
- 🎨 Open the “Themes” app and go to profile.
- 🔄 Select the standard theme "Classic" or "Untitled».
- 🧹 Clear the cache of the “Themes” app in your phone settings.
- 📱 Check the settings of the third-party launcher if it is used.
Third-party themes are a great way to customize Xiaomi, but they are often the source of display problems. If you can’t turn off a dark theme in any of the above ways, changing the theme to a stock theme 99% of the time solves the problem.
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Third-party themes from the MIUI store take precedence over system settings, and resetting the theme to a standard one is the quickest way to fix display errors.