How to know exactly when the Xiaomi Redmi phone was purchased: official and alternative methods

Have you bought a used Xiaomi Redmi and want to check if the seller is hiding the real age of the device? Or just forgot when you bought your smartphone and the warranty is about to run out? The date of purchase of the phone is a critical parameter that affects warranty service, resale value and even battery health. Fortunately, Xiaomi has several ways to find out this information, both through official sources and through indirect data.

In this article, we'll look at 5 working methods, including IMEI verification, Mi Account data, box labeling, and even hidden system files. Some will give you an exact date with a month and a year, others an approximate release period. Importantly, since 2023, Xiaomi has stopped putting a production date on the battery sticker, so the old battery photo instructions are no longer relevant. But there are more reliable alternatives.

1. Check the date of purchase through the official website of Xiaomi by IMEI

The most reliable way is to use IMEI-The phone number on Xiaomi's official service, which works for all Redmi models, POCO Mis purchased in official stores (including partners such as Svyaznoy or M. Video) may differ from the real date by 1-3 days due to logistics, but this is the closest to the truth option.

How to find IMEI:

• 📱 Dial on the phone keyboard *#06# - a window with two numbers will appear (if the smartphone supports two numbers). SIM-map).
• 📦 Look at the sticker under the battery (if the case is removable) or on the box in the barcode section.
• 🖥️ In settings: About the phone → All parameters. → Status SIM-map.

Instructions for verification:

1. Go to the official Xiaomi Verification page (works for global versions). For Chinese models, use this link.
2. Enter the IMEI (15 digits) in the field and confirm the captcha.
3. The system will show the activation date and the country of sale, which is the approximate date of purchase.

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If the site gives an error "IMEI not found", try to enter a second IMEI (for dual-sim models) or check if you enter a number from the POCO box on the Xiaomi site - these sub-brands have different bases.

⚠️ Note: Xiaomi’s official service may not show data if the phone is purchased from unofficial stores (for example, on AliExpress from resellers) or brought from abroad by the “gray” way.

2. date in the Mi Account (if the phone is tied)

If you or a previous owner have linked your phone to a Mi Account, your account can store a history of devices with activation dates, which works even for phones that you bought unofficially, but requires access to an account.

How to check:

• 📲 Open the Mi Account app on your phone or go to account.xiaomi.com.
• 🔍 In the Devices section, find your Redmi model.
• 📅 Click on the device and the date of the first link to the account will be displayed. This usually coincides with the date of purchase. ±2-3 days.

If the phone was reset to factory settings, the history in the account is saved, but the new anchor will create a new record. In this case, look for the earliest reference to the model. For example, for the Redmi Note 11, there may be two records: one from the date of purchase, the other from the date of reset.

3. Marking on the box: where to look for the date of production

The original Xiaomi Redmi box has several places where the production date can be encrypted, which is important: it is not the date of purchase, but the date of release of the batch, but usually the difference is 1-3 months (logistics and storage time in stock).

Where to look:

• 📦 Barcode with serial number: the first 4 letter-letter SN often codes for a year or a week (for example, for example, 2235 = 35-I'm a week. 2022 year-end).
• 🏭 Factory address sticker: look for a type string MFD DATE: 2023.05 (month and year of production).
• 📄 Warranty card: Official dealers (e.g., Messenger) may have a seal with the date of sale on the back.

⚠️ Warning: Forged boxes (especially AliExpress resellers) may be labeled with fake tags. Check the data against other methods. MFD: 2023.01, and the phone was purchased in December 2023, it is a clear sign of counterfeiting or repackaging.

System Files: Hidden Information About First Incorporation

In the depths of the MIUI firmware, you can find logs where you can find the date of the first launch of the system, and this method requires access to a root file manager or use ADB, but it gives you an accurate result.

Instructions for advanced users:

1. Install a root file manager on your phone (such as Amaze File Manager).
2. Go to /data/system/users/0.
3. Find the file. settings_global.xml Open it with a text editor.
4. Look for the line. device_provisioned_time — Translate it to a normal date using a time converter.

Alternative method through ADB (without root):

adb shell dumpsys package com.android.providers.settings


Look for the line "first_install_time"

This is the time of first setting up the phone after the reset, and if there's no reset, it'll match the date of purchase.

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5. Alternative methods: checks, warranty, battery

If none of these methods worked, try indirect methods, which are less accurate but can give approximate information.

Ways:

• 🧾 Checks and e-receipts: check the mail (letters from the store), SMS from a bank or an archive of checks in applications such as Sberbank Online or Tinkoff.
• 🔋 Battery production date: on some models (Redmi) 9A, Redmi 8) has a date sticker in the format under the battery YYYY-MM-DD. But since 2023, Xiaomi has stopped pointing this out.
• 📋 Warranty card: official dealers (for example, Eldorado) may store information about the sale by the number of the ticket in the database.
• 🌍 Geekbench and other benchmarks: on the Geekbench website you can find tests of your model by serial number - sometimes the test date close to the purchase is indicated.

For phones purchased on AliExpress or other sites, check your order history in your personal account. Even if the seller has deleted the item, information about the date of purchase and track number may remain in the archive.

Official Xiaomi Store|Svyaznoy/M.Video/Eldorado|AliExpress|Avito/Yula (b/u)|Another option-->

Frequent Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Many users make the same mistakes when checking their purchase date, leading to incorrect conclusions.

• ❌ The manufacturing date and the purchase date are confusing, for example, the phone was released in January 2023 but bought in May 2023 - a 4-month difference is critical for warranty.
• ❌ Use it. IMEI It's from a box, not a phone. POCO Redmi sometimes doesn’t match up with the real data of the device.
• ❌ Trust the data from the "Settings" → It's about the phone. It's the firmware assembly date, not the purchase date.
• ❌ If you've been reflashing your phone, the first turn on date in your system files will be zero.

To avoid mistakes:

1. Check the data with at least two methods (e.g. IMEI + box).
2. If the dates diverge greatly (more than 3 months), the phone could be in stock or repackaged.
3. For warranty repairs, focus on the date in the check or on the Xiaomi website - other methods may not be accepted by service centers.

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If the difference between the date of production (by box) and the date of activation (by IMEI) is more than 6 months, this is a reason to doubt the authenticity of the phone or its storage conditions.

FAQ: Answers to Frequent Questions