Blurring miniatures on Xiaomi: 7 reasons and how to get clarity

You open a gallery on your Xiaomi, but instead of having clear previews, you see blurry thumbnails of photos and videos? That's a common problem that users of Redmi, POCO and Mi smartphones face, from budget models to flagships. Blurring can manifest itself in many ways, from mild fuzzy to full soap, where even silhouettes can't be made out in the sketch.

In most cases, the problem is not caused by the damage to the files themselves - the original photos and videos remain intact. MIUI. In this article, we will analyze all possible reasons for blurring thumbnails on Xiaomi, including hidden settings that the manufacturer does not advertise, and give step-by-step instructions for restoring clarity without losing data.

1.Why miniatures become blurry: the main reasons

Blurring sketches in the Xiaomi gallery is rarely an accident, more often it is the result of one of the system features or errors.

• 🔄 Gallery cache reset: When cleaning the cache of the com.miui.gallery app, thumbnails are generated again in low resolution.
• 📱 Energy savings: Ultra Battery Saver mode or manual background restriction for gallery reduces preview quality.
• 🗃️ Transfer of files to SD-map: MIUI not always correctly handles thumbnails from external drives.
• 🔧 Update MIUI: After major updates (for example, with MIUI 13 on MIUI 14) display settings are lost.
• 📸 Google Photos Optimization: If sync is enabled, the service can replace local thumbnails with its compressed versions.

The most insidious reason is automatic storage optimization. Xiaomi has a hidden option to Optimize thumbnails, which is activated by default on devices with less than 128 GB of memory. It forcibly reduces the preview resolution to 320×320 pixels, even if the originals are in 4K.

2. How to check if the original files are damaged

Before you fix thumbnails, make sure the problem isn't with the files themselves. Open any blurry photo in the gallery and:

1. Tap the sketch to open the full-size image.
2. Scale up with two fingers – if the details are clear, then only the preview is damaged.
3. Check the file properties: press ⋮ → Details: The resolution of the original must match what you filmed (e.g, 4032×3024 for 12 MP camera).

If the originals are intact but the thumbnails are blurred, move on to the following sections, and if the files themselves are damaged, the cause may lie in:

• 🛠️ Failure of the file system (especially after extraction) SD-cards without safe shutdown).
• 🔌 Interrupted transmission over Bluetooth or Wi-Fi Direct.
• 📲 An application error that saved files (such as Telegram or WhatsApp).

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To quickly check all files for damage, use the File Commander or FX File Explorer app with Checksum Checkout (CRC) function.

3. Correction of blurred thumbnails through gallery settings

In 80 percent of cases, the problem is solved without resetting or flashing.

1. Clear the gallery cache: Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management → Gallery → Storage → Clear the cache. After that, restart the phone – the thumbnails will regenerate automatically.
2. Turn off thumbnail optimization: In the same gallery, open Settings (⚙) → Additionally. → Optimize thumbnails and deactivate slider. This option is hidden on some firmware -- if you don't have one, skip the step.
3. Reset the gallery settings: From the app menu, select Settings → Reset. This will return the standard display settings without deleting files.

If the thumbnails are still blurred, try forced regeneration:

1. Remove the.thumbnails folder in the root directory of internal memory (use Root Explorer or MiXplorer with root rights).
2. Reboot the device. The system will create a new folder with sketches in original quality.

Open the gallery and wait for the full download of miniatures|Check the clarity of sketches in different folders|Make sure that the original files are not damaged|Reboot your phone if the changes don’t apply-->

4.Influence of MIUI and firmware on the quality of miniatures

Some versions MIUI They have bugs that make thumbnails appear in low resolution, regardless of the settings. MIUI 12.5 There was a preview processing error for files saved on SD-map, and in MIUI 14 - The problem with miniatures HEIC-picture.

If your firmware is outdated, upgrade it via Settings → About Phone → System Update. Global MIUI versions have monthly updates, China ROMs are less frequent. The alternative is manual firmware via the Mi Flash Tool, but that requires an unlocked bootloader.

5. Blurred thumbnails on SD-map: what to do

If the problem is only for microSD files, the MIUI's external drives are the problem, and the default system caches thumbnails from the memory card in compressed form to save resources.

1. Transfer files to internal memory: Temporarily copy the photo/video folders to the main storage, then return them. This will force the thumbnail cache to be updated.
2. Format. SD-map: MIUI It works better with exFAT than with exFAT. FAT32. Pre-copy the data on the PC! → Warehouse → SD-map → Format → Select exFAT
3. Turn off optimization for SD: In Mi File Explorer, click ⋮ → Settings → Additionally. → Optimize thumbnails SD-Cards and deactivate the option.

⚠️ Note: If the thumbnails are blurred after formatting the map, check it for errors via PC (use chkdsk). /f [Disk letter: in the Windows command line).

6. Alternative galleries: when the standard one fails

If Xiaomi’s staff gallery is persistently blurring thumbnails, try third-party apps.They often handle previews better and support additional formats:

• 📂 Google Photos: Automatically creates high-quality thumbnails, but requires synchronization with your account.
• 🖼️ Simple Gallery: Lightweight gallery with manual preview quality settings (there is a Thumbnail quality item in the settings).
• 🎨 A+ Gallery: Supporting HEIC, RAW and other formats without blur.
• 🔍 QuickPic: Allows you to disable thumbnail compression manually.

When the alternative gallery first starts, it will rearrange the thumbnail cache, which can take a few minutes.

1. Connect the phone to the charger.
2. Close all background applications.
3. In the settings of the new gallery, enable Quick Download of thumbnails (if any).

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The gallery side not only solves the problem of blurred thumbnails, but also often offers additional functions: EXIF editing, hidden folders, cloud synchronization.

Radical methods: resetting and flashing

If none of these methods work, there are extreme measures, and we warn you that they will lead to data loss (if you don’t backup)!

• 🔄 Resetting settings: Go to Settings → The phone. → Resetting settings → It'll get the phone back to factory status, but it'll delete all the files in the internal memory.
• 📥 Fastboot Firmware: Download the official firmware for your model from Xiaomi Firmware, then swipe through the Mi Flash Tool (requires an unlocked bootloader).
• 🛠️ Manual replacement of gallery files: For advanced users: replace APK-gallery-file (MiuiGallery.apk) to a version of a newer firmware through ADB.

⚠️ Note: After resetting or flashing the thumbnails will be regenerated, but if the problem was hardware acceleration graphics (for example, the failure of the Adreno driver on Snapdragon), it can return.

FAQ: Frequent questions about blurred thumbnails on Xiaomi