How to Change the Default Video Player to Xiaomi: A Complete Guide to TV and Mi Box

Are you tired of the built-in video player on your Xiaomi TV or Mi Box that stutters when playing files from a flash drive? Or want to use VLC or MX Player instead of the standard Mi Video app? The problem is that the system stubbornly opens video through the built-in player, ignoring your preferences. In this article, we will discuss all the working ways to change the player by default, from obvious settings to hidden “chips” of MIUI TV.

It’s important to understand that Xiaomi doesn’t have a one-stop solution, it depends on the device model (television or console), the firmware version, and even the file type (local or streaming), you can just click on the settings and dig deeper, like ADB or third-party launchers, and we tested all the options on current devices (2023-2026) and weed out outdated tips that no longer work.

If you're willing to spend 10 to 15 minutes setting up to forget about the playback problems forever, let's get started. And if you want a quick answer, flip through to the FAQ at the end of the article.

Why Xiaomi is persistently using its player and how to get around it

The built-in Mi Video (or Gallery on some models) is rigidly integrated into the MIUI TV shell. It is not just an app, but a system component that:

• 🔹 Automatically opens video from USB- drives and network folders (DLNA, Samba).
• 🔹 Blocks the selection of alternative players for some formats (e.g., high-bitrate.mkv).
• 🔹 Intercepts Android intent messages even if you have installed a different default player in the settings.

The manufacturer motivates this by “optimizing performance”, but in practice users are faced with:

• 🎭 Lagami when playing files with resolution above 1080p.
• 🔊 No support for DTS or Dolby Atmos (sound goes through stereo).
• 📂 Incorrect file sorting on a flash drive (e.g. ignores folders).

The good news is that you can get around these limitations. The bad one is that there is no one-size-fits-all solution. One method will work on the Mi Box S (2nd Gen), another method will work on the Xiaomi TV A2 43, and older models (like the 2018 Mi TV 4A) may require manual editing of system files. Next, we'll go through all the current methods, starting with the simplest ones.

Method 1: Set up the default player via the Android TV menu

This is the most obvious and safe method, but it doesn't work on all devices.

• 📺 Xiaomi TV on Google TV (models of 2022 and newer, for example Xiaomi TV A2 or Xiaomi TV Q2).
• 🎮 Mi Box 4K (2023) and Mi Box S 2nd Gen (with firmware at least MIUI TV 3.0).

Instructions:

1. Open Settings (cog in the upper right corner of the main screen).
2. Go to the Appendix section → All Appendices.
3. Find it in the Mi Video (or Gallery) list and select it.
4. Click Open by Default → Clear the default settings.
5. Return to the main menu and open any video from the flash drive or from the file manager.
6. In the window that appears, select the player you want (such as VLC or MX Player) and mark Always.

If you don't have the default Open option, your model uses a customized MIUI TV shell where this option is locked, in which case you go to Method 2.

⚠️ Warning: On some firmwares, after cleaning the default settings, the system will still open the video via Mi Video.This is because the shell MIUI TV ignores the Android system settings. In this case, only manually assigning the player to each file (long press on the file → Open with help) will help.

Method 2: Using a file manager with application binding

If the standard method didn’t work, try to get around the restrictions through a third-party file manager.

• 📁 FX File Explorer (there is a built-in Open with Us feature).
• 📁 Solid Explorer (supports application binding to extensions)
• 📁 X-Plore (works even on older versions of MIUI TV).

The following is a step-by-step guide for FX File Explorer:

1. Install FX File Explorer from Google Play.
2. Open the manager and go to the video folder (e.g. /storage/usb1 for flash drive).
3. Select the file (long press) → Open with help.
4. In the list, select the desired player and mark Always.
5. Repeat for all formats (.mp4,.mkv,.avi, etc.).

The advantage of this method is that binding works even if the system settings are ignored, and the disadvantage is that you have to manually assign a player for each new extension.

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If the video is not played through an alternative player, check for codec support. For example, the MX Player requires additional packages for AC3 and DTS (installed automatically when you first play).

Method 3: Reset the launcher settings (for Mi Box and older TVs)

On devices with MIUI TVs up to version 2.5 (such as the Mi Box S 1st Gen or Xiaomi Mi TV 4A 2018-2019), a launcher reset can return player selection, a method that works because the system temporarily forgets Mi Video bindings after reset.

Instructions:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → All applications.
2. Find the MIUI Launcher (or MIUI TV Launcher).
3. Click Warehouse → Clear the data and Clear the cache.
4. Restart the device (Settings → About TV → Reboot).
5. After rebooting the first time you open the video, select the player you want and mark Always.

Importantly, this only works once, and after the next firmware update or reset, the Mi Video binding can be restored.

⚠️ Warning: On some models (Xiaomi Mi TV 4S and older), the launcher reset causes the widgets on the home screen to disappear. You have to reconfigure them. If you use custom wallpaper or layout, take screenshots before resetting.

Method 4: ADB- Commands for Forced Player Change (for Advanced)

If none of the previous methods worked, the ADB commands are still “heavy artillery” – a method that works for all Android TV devices, but requires a PC connection and basic knowledge of working with the console.

What you need:

• 💻 Computer with Windows/macOS/Linux.
• 🔌 Cable USB (for Mi Box) or Wi-Fi connection (for Xiaomi TV).
• 🛠️ Utility. ADB (You can download from the official Android website).

Instructions:

1. Enable USB Debugging on your device: Settings → About TV → Software Version → Click 7 times on Settings build number → Additional → For developers → Debugging by USB (enable)
2. Connect the device to the PC and execute in the terminal: adb devices (you should see your device).
3. Find out the default name of the current player packet: adb shell dumpsys package | grep "com.xiaomi.mitv" (usually com.xiaomi.mitv.video or com.miui.videoplayer).
4. Reset the default settings for this package: adb shell pm clear com.xiaomi.mitv.video
5. Link the desired player (for example, VLC) to the video files: adb shell am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -d file:///storage/usb1/test.mp4 -t video/* (replace the path with the current one).

If after these commands the system still opens the video via Mi Video, try to force the player to default:

adb shell cmd package set-home-activity org.videolan.vlc

⚠️ Warning: Misuse of ADB can cause a system failure. Do not execute commands unless you are sure of their purpose. For example, pm uninstall --user 0 com.xiaomi.mitv.video removes the built-in player without the possibility of recovery without resetting.

Method 5: Install custom launcher (radical solution)

If you are willing to take drastic measures, installing an alternative launcher (such as an ATV Launcher or Wolf Launcher) will allow you to:

• 🎯 Completely disable the built-in Mi Video.
• 📱 Assign default players for any format.
• 🔄 Get rid of ads and unnecessary widgets MIUI TV.

Cons:

• ⚠️ Requires a standard launcher to be disabled (possible remote bugs).
• ⚠️ On some models (Xiaomi TV P1), the launcher is reset after the upgrade.

Instructions for ATV Launcher:

1. Install ATV Launcher from Google Play.
2. Open Settings → Applications → MIUI Launcher and click Disable.
3. Confirm the use of ATV Launcher as the primary.
4. In the launcher settings, find the Default Apps section and assign the player by default.

To return to the standard launcher, it is enough to turn the MIUI Launcher back on in the application settings.

Comparison of alternative players for Xiaomi TV

Not all players work equally well on Android TV. We tested popular variants on Xiaomi TV A2 55" and Mi Box S 2nd Gen with 4K HDR, Dolby Vision and DTS:X files.

For most users, VLC is the best choice – it’s free, supports all formats and has a user-friendly interface for Android TV. If you want maximum performance, try the MX Player, but be prepared for the inconvenience of managing.

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On devices with MIUI TV up to version 2.5, the built-in player can block alternative players even after resetting, in which case only installing a custom launcher or using ADB will help.

FAQ: Frequent questions about changing the player to Xiaomi