Modern communication has long ceased to be limited to simple calls, and users of Xiaomi smartphones actively use instant messengers for work and personal tasks. Creating a chat in the popular Viber application on a device with a MIUI or HyperOS shell is a basic skill that opens up access to group communication and mailings. The setup process may not seem obvious only at the first start due to the features of the interface and system limitations.
In this article, we will discuss in detail all the nuances of forming dialog boxes, setting access rights and optimizing the application on smartphones of the Chinese brand. You will learn how to avoid typical errors associated with aggressive energy saving of the system, and learn how to manage contacts effectively. Properly configured notifications and synchronization will allow you to always stay in touch, without missing important messages from colleagues or friends.
Many Redmi and POCO owners find the app unstable or hides some features unless you give it the necessary permissions. We'll look at not only standard conversation creation scenarios, but also less obvious opportunities, such as creating a community or channel. Understanding these mechanisms will help you structure communication and harness the full potential of your gadget.
Account preparation and basic settings of Viber
Before you start creating groups or channels, you need to make sure that your account is fully activated and configured correctly.Initial registration requires entering the phone number that will come to you. SMS-Confirmation code. On Xiaomi devices, it is important to SIM-The card was active and had access to the mobile Internet at the time of registration, as the application conducts verification through servers.
Once logged in, the system will offer to synchronize contacts from the phone book, which is a critical step, because without access to the contact list, you can not find people and add them to the chat. In modern versions of Android installed on Xiaomi, permissions are requested separately and must be confirmed manually.
⚠️ Note: If you deny access to contacts on the first run, the dialog list will remain empty. To fix this, go to Settings → Annexes → All applications → Viber → Permits and enable access to the phone book.
It’s also worth checking if the app is updated to the latest version through the Google Play store or GetApps. Older versions may not support the creation of new types of chats, such as Communities, or have security vulnerabilities.
- ✅ Check whether you have a stable Wi-Fi or mobile internet connection before registering.
- ✅ Make sure that the phone book contains contact numbers with the correct international code.
- ✅ Give the app permission to access the microphone, camera and memory for full operation.
- ✅ Enable two-factor authentication in your privacy settings to protect your account.
Once you've done these preparatory steps, your account is ready to be actively exploited, and you can now move directly to forming a space to communicate.
Creating a group chat for communication
Group chat is the most common format for communication, allowing you to combine up to 250 participants in a single conversation. To create it on the main screen of the application, you need to click the Chat button in the bottom menu, and then select the icon for creating a new message, which is usually located in the lower right corner of the screen.
The system will ask you to select members from a contact list, you can search for people by name or scroll through the list manually. Once you select at least one contact, the creation button will become active. At this point, it is important to understand the difference between a regular group and a community: a group is suitable for face-to-face communication, where everyone sees each other's numbers, and the community hides the members' numbers.
Next, you need to type in the group name and, if you want, set an avatar, the name will be visible to all participants and help identify the chat in the common list, and after confirming the actions, the group will be created, and all selected participants will receive a system notification of the invitation.
☑️ Creation of a team
The group administrator (creator) has extended rights: it can add new members, delete them, assign other administrators, and change the description, these tools allow you to effectively moderate the discussion and maintain order in the conversation.
- 👥 The maximum number of participants in the standard group is limited to 250 people.
- 🛡️ Only administrators can change the name and photo of the group by default.
- 📢 You can pin important messages so they are always visible in the chat header.
Differences between the Group and the Community
Many users confuse the two, but functionally they are designed for different purposes: a group focused on peer-to-peer communication, where each member sees the other's phone number and can text (unless prohibited by the administrator), an ideal format for family, friends or a small work team.
Community is a tool for public broadcasting or large groups, and the main feature of the community is that the phone numbers of members are hidden from each other, which provides a high level of privacy, and in communities you can create separate discussion threads, conduct surveys and broadcast content to thousands of subscribers.
On Xiaomi smartphones, the process of creating a community is similar to creating a group, but requires selecting the appropriate item in the menu.Communities allow you to appoint many administrators with different levels of access, which is convenient for managing large projects or fan clubs.
| Characteristics | Group | Community |
|---|---|---|
| Visibility of numbers | Seen by all. | Hidden. |
| Limit of participants | 250 | up to 1000+ |
| Structure | One shared chat room. | Basic chat + branches |
| Purpose | Public discussions |
Choosing the right format for communication directly affects the comfort of users, so if you plan to discuss personal issues, you should use a group, and for news channels or discussions in large groups, a community is preferable.
Channel and mailing arrangements
If you want to send information one-way, like company news or event announcements, it's best to create a channel. Unlike groups, only administrators can write messages in channels, and subscribers only read them and respond to emojis, which eliminates spam and allows you to maintain the structure of the information flow.
To create a channel in the action menu, you need to select the appropriate item, come up with a unique name and description. Viber channels have public links that users can join them without adding contacts. It is a powerful tool for marketing and promoting brands on the platform.
Xiaomi phone owners can use desktop widgets to quickly access their favorite channels, which allows them to track important updates without opening the app every time they click, and customize widgets with a long tap on the empty desktop space.
How do you make the channel public?
It's important to publish content regularly to keep the audience engaged, and the browsing and reaction statistics are available to channel creators and help them measure the effectiveness of communication.
- 📢 Channels allow you to send messages to an unlimited number of subscribers.
- 🔗 It can be generated. QR-codes for quick entry into the channel.
- 📊 Administrators see statistics of reading messages.
Set up notifications and energy saving on Xiaomi
Xiaomi smartphones are known for their aggressive MIUI Optimization energy saving system, which can force background processes including Viber to close, resulting in delays in receiving messages or a complete lack of notifications until you open the application manually.
First of all, you have to stop the system from killing the messenger process, so find the app icon on your desktop, press it, and select About. From the Battery or Energy Saving menu, set the No Limits mode, which is a critical step for stable operation.
Next, check the notification settings. Go to Settings → Notifications inside the app menu and make sure all switches are active. It is also helpful to pin the app to the list of running apps (via the recent apps menu) so that the system is prioritized.
⚠️ Note: After updating the firmware HyperOS or MIUI You can reset your energy saving settings, and you should manually check them if you notice a missing message.
You can also enable auto-run for Viber. Find the Security app (green shield), go to Permissions → Auto-Start, and activate the slider opposite the messenger, which ensures that the app will start immediately after the phone is turned on.
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For maximum reliability, also enable the option “Display on top of other applications” in Viber resolutions – this will help to correctly display incoming calls even when the screen is locked.
Compliance with these guidelines will allow you to receive messages instantly, no matter how long the app has been in the background.
Contact management and correspondence security
Viber’s communication security is ensured by end-to-end encryption, which means that encryption keys are stored only on the devices of the interlocutors, and even messenger servers cannot decrypt the contents of messages. On Xiaomi phones, this process works transparently for the user.
Additional protection can be provided PIN-This is called Privacy, and it's in the basic settings, and when you activate it, no one can read your emails just by taking an unlocked phone.
Contact management also includes the ability to block unwanted interlocutors, and if a stranger writes to you, you can not only block them, but also send a spam report, which will help improve security algorithms for all users.
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Enabling password protection and regularly checking active sessions in your account settings are basic security measures that every user should know.
Back up chats regularly in Google Drive to keep your correspondence history from being lost when you change your device or reset your settings. This is especially true on Xiaomi, as it often deletes data when you flash it.
- 🔒 Enable two-step verification in the Account section to protect against hacking.
- 🗑️ Periodically clean the app cache if it is running slowly.
- 📱 Check the list of active devices in the settings to exclude third-party access.
Solving Typical Problems When Creating Chats
Sometimes users have difficulties: the chat button is inactive, contacts are not displayed or messages are not sent, most often the problem is the lack of access to the network or the wrong date and time on the device, check if automatic timing is set in the system settings.
If you can't see contacts, make sure you've given permission to read the phone book. In some cases, re-synchronization helps: go to Viber's settings → Calls and Messages → Sync Contacts. It's also worth checking if the contacts are hidden in the phone book itself.
If you send messages ("delivery error"), try switching from Wi-Fi to mobile Internet or vice versa. Sometimes providers can block messenger ports, and changing the network solves the problem.
⚠️ Note: If an app crashes when you try to create a chat, try clearing its data through the Apps menu. Remember, this will delete your local correspondence history if you haven't made a backup.
In extreme cases, when nothing helps, it is recommended to completely remove the application and install it again from the official GetApps store or Play Market.