Xiaomi phone says all the action – how to turn off voice assistant forever

Your Xiaomi smartphone suddenly started to voice every touch of the screen, push buttons and even scroll pages? It's not a breakdown, it's an activated voice function. Most often, the problem occurs after accidentally pressing a keyboard combination, updating the system or connecting the headset. 90% of the time, the TalkBack service (for the visually impaired) or MIUI Voice Assistant is to blame - both are built into MIUI firmware and can be turned on without your knowledge.

Voice prompts on Xiaomi are not only annoying, but also significantly reduce battery life, as the microphone and speakers are constantly activated. Fortunately, you can turn them off in 2-3 minutes - even if the screen does not respond to touch due to activated mode for the visually impaired. In this article, we will analyze all possible causes and solutions, from standard settings to hidden commands for experienced users.

Why Xiaomi Phone Has Started to Voice All Actions

Voice on Xiaomi is turned on for three main reasons: the first and most common is the accidental activation of TalkBack (a special feature service from Google). It is enough to press the power button three times quickly or press both volume buttons for 3 seconds, and the smartphone goes into mode for people with disabilities, while the screen can stop responding to normal touches: now you need to touch the screen twice to select an item, and to scroll you need to swipe with two fingers.

The second reason is the MIUI update, which automatically turns on the MIUI Voice Assistant (a built-in Xiaomi assistant), which is less intrusive than TalkBack, but also voices notifications, incoming calls and some system actions. The third possibility is virus software that mimics voice prompts to collect data, in which case disabling through settings will not help: you will need to check for malware.

• 🔄 Accidental activation: Clutching volume buttons or triple power pressing (commonly available on Redmi Note) 10/11/12 and POCO X3/X4).
• 📱 Update MIUI: After installing a new version of the firmware can be turned on MIUI Voice Assistant (especially on Xiaomi) 12/13/14).
• 🦠 Malware: Some applications from third-party sources mimic voice prompts to access the microphone.
• 🎧 Connecting the headset: some models (Redmi) A1/A2) Automatically voice actions when connecting headphones.

If the voice appeared after a phone drop or moisture, the problem can be hardware — for example, the closure of the microphone contacts or the speaker, in which case disconnecting through the settings will not help: you will need a diagnosis in the service center.

How to turn off TalkBack (mode for visually impaired)

TalkBack is the most intrusive voice assistant on Xiaomi, and it not only voices the action, it completely changes the logic of how you control your phone, and you have to turn it off.

1. Unlock the screen (if not, use a fingerprint or PIN-code).
2. Swipe two fingers from top to bottom across the screen to open the notification bar.
3. Find a TalkBack icon (usually with an eye or person) and touch it twice with one finger.
4. In the window that opens, tap Turn off twice.

If the screen does not respond to touch, try an alternative method:

1. Press both volume buttons for 3-5 seconds.
2. After vibration, release – a request to disable TalkBack should appear.
3. Confirm the action with a double touch on OK.

Hold both volume buttons for 3 seconds|Double-touch on TalkBack notification|Confirm the shutdown with a double tap|Reboot the phone (if desired)-->

On Xiaomi 13T and Redmi Note 12 Pro+, the volume button combination may not work – instead, use the voice command “OK Google, turn off TalkBack.”

⚠️ Warning: If after TalkBack is turned off, the screen still doesn't respond to normal touches, restart the phone. To do this, press the power and volume button up for 10 seconds.

Disable MIUI Voice Assistant (built-in assistant)

MIUI Voice Assistant is a less aggressive but equally annoying assistant, which voices notifications, incoming calls and some system events to turn it off:

1. Open Settings → Special features → Voice assistant MIUI.
2. Translate the MIUI Voice Assistant slider to the off position.
3. Uncheck the boxes to voice notifications and voice system sounds.

On some models (POCO F4/F5, Redmi K50/K60) the path to settings may differ:

Settings → Additional → Special features → Voice → Disable all options

If the menu does not have MIUI Voice Assistant, it is disabled by default, in which case, check the Google Assistant settings (see next section).

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If you have voice prompts left after disabling MIUI Voice Assistant, check the Google Assistant settings – it can duplicate functions.

Deactivation of Google Assistant and other voice services

Even if you disabled TalkBack and MIUI Voice Assistant, the phone can continue to voice actions from behind Google Assistant or third-party apps to completely remove voice prompts:

1. Open the Google app (the icon with the letter G).
2. Go to More. → Settings → Voice search.
3. Turn off options: OK Google (voice activation) Voice results Voice personalization

To completely disable Google Assistant:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Go to Google and select Disable (Do Not Delete!).
3. Confirm the action and restart the phone.

If voice prompts only appear in certain apps (like YouTube or Google Maps), check their settings:

• 🎵 YouTube: Settings → Reproduction → Voice of action.
• 🗺️ Google Maps: Settings → Navigation → Voice prompts.
• 📱 Social Media: Turn off the “Voice Notifications” option in the notification settings.

⚠️ Attention: Disabling Google Assistant may affect some features, such as voice dialing in Google Maps or smart search. If you need these features, just turn off voice acting, but leave the assistant active.

Resetting special features settings (if nothing helps)

If the voice prompts did not disappear after disabling all of these services, the problem may lie in the failure of the special features settings.

1. Open the settings → About the phone → version of MIUI.
2. Click on the MIUI version several times until the message “You became a developer” appears.
3. Back to Settings → Additionally. → For developers.
4. Find the Reset option and confirm the action.

After resetting, all settings for TalkBack, MIUI Voice Assistant and other special services will return to factory settings, which will not affect your personal data (photos, contacts, messages), but may disable other features, such as font augmentation or color filters.

If the reset didn’t help, try Safe Mode:

1. Press the power button before the off menu appears.
2. Press and hold the "Switch off" item - a suggestion will appear to go to safe mode.
3. Confirm and wait for the reboot.

Only system applications are running in Safe Mode, and if the voice prompts are gone, the problem is in one of the installed apps, uninstall the newly installed programs, or perform a full reset.

How to prevent accidental inclusion of voice prompts

To prevent TalkBack or MIUI Voice Assistant from turning on accidentally, do a few simple things:

1. Turn off keyboard combinations: Go to Settings → Special Options → TalkBack → Settings → Keyboard combinations. Turn off the options Triple Power Press and Volume Button Press.
2. Set a password for special features: C Settings → Security → Block applications, add Special Options. Now, you'll need to input these settings to change. PIN-code.
3. Update MIUI: Newer firmware versions (MIUI 14+) add TalkBack protection against accidental turn on. Check for updates in Settings → About Phone → System Update.

If you have children or elderly relatives who may accidentally activate voice prompts, create a separate restricted user profile:

1. Open the settings → System → Users.
2. Add a new user and turn off Special Features for him.

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The most common reason for TalkBack to accidentally turn on is when you press volume buttons in your pocket or bag. Use a case with random press protection.

What to do if the phone is getting stuck in TalkBack mode and does not respond to commands

If TalkBack is activated and the screen is no longer responsive to touch (or you can’t find the right settings due to the changed management logic), use one of these methods:

• 🔊 Voice command: "OK, Google, turn off TalkBack." Works if Google Assistant is on.
• 🔄 Restart to Safe Mode: Press the Power button + Volume up for 10 seconds. Release after vibration, the phone will restart. Immediately after activation, press and hold the volume button down until "Safe Mode" appears".
• 📱 Connecting the mouse to OTG: Connect. USB-mouse-adapter OTG. With the mouse cursor, open the settings → Special features. Turn off TalkBack with a simple click.
• 🔧 Reset via Recovery (extreme): Turn off your phone. Press the power button + Volume up to enter Recovery. select Wipe & Reset → Reset Settings (Reset settings).

On Xiaomi 13 Ultra and Redmi K60 Pro models, an unlocked bootloader is required to disable TalkBack via Recovery. Without this, the reset will not affect special features.

⚠️ Warning: Recovery will delete all data from your phone, including photos and apps. Pre-extract the memory card and sync important data with Mi Cloud.

FAQ: Frequent questions about voice tips on Xiaomi