How to remove Yandex Zen from Xiaomi phone: step-by-step instructions

Owners of smartphones Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO Often faced with the intrusive presence of Yandex services in the shell MIUI. The Zen recommendation tape that appears in Mi Browser, on the desktop, or in the form of a widget is particularly annoying, and it's not just a coincidence, but the result of a partnership agreement between Chinese manufacturers and the Chinese manufacturer of the technology. IT-You can remove this interface element, but the methods will vary depending on where it is located.

Users often confuse the app, widget and embedded news feed in an attempt to remove them in standard ways. In reality, Yandex Zen can be integrated into MIUI system components, which requires a deeper approach to configuration. Some methods involve debugging over USB, others only a careful study of browser settings. It is important to understand that completely removing the system component may require superuser rights, but in most cases, competent configuration is enough.

In this article, we will look at all possible ways to get rid of intrusive news feeds. We will discuss how to turn off Zen in the browser, how to remove the widget from the desktop and what to do if the tape is built into the system application "News". Follow the instructions carefully so that you do not disrupt the Xiaomi system.

Removing the Zen widget from the desktop

The most common case is that the news feed appears directly on the home screen of a smartphone, often after a system update or Google Play service update is installed, and to remove this element, you don't have to delete the app itself, you just need to change the desktop configuration.

Press and hold your finger on the blank space of the screen to go into editing mode. Swipe to the right or select the option "Add widgets" (or "Vidgets" in the menu). Find an item in the list related to Yandex or news. In some versions of MIUI, it may be called "Yandex.Tape" or simply "News".

If the widget is already installed on the screen, just press it and drag it to the top of the screen where it will show the "Delete" or the basket icon. This action will not remove the app from the phone, but remove its visual display. If you want to get rid of the news source completely, go to Settings → Apps → All applications.

Find Yandex (or Yandex.Browser if the tape is coming from it) on the list, click on it and select the Remove button. If the button is inactive (gray), then it is a system component, and it will not be possible to remove it in the standard way, in which case only disabling will help.

⚠️ Note: When removing the widget from your desktop, make sure you do not delete the Google or System Tools folder if they are nearby.

After cleaning the desktop, it is recommended to restart the device, which will help Xiaomi system recalculate the indexation of widgets and finally remove the traces of the presence of the deleted element from the interface cache.

Disabling the news feed in the Mi Browser browser

Xiaomi’s built-in browser is often the main source of annoyance, as its default homepage features a Zen tape, which is designed to increase ad impressions, but is perceived by users as garbage. Fortunately, it’s pretty easy to turn off this feature through the browser’s settings.

Launch Mi Browser and click on three menu bars (usually at the bottom of the screen). Select Settings. You will need to find the section that controls the appearance of the start page, which can be called Home Page, Home Settings, or News Feed.

Inside this menu, find the News Feed or Recommendations switch. Turn it to "Off." The browser interface will instantly change, and the Zen feed will disappear, giving way to a blank search or a blank page. If there is no switch, try clearing the browser data.

To do this, go to Phone Settings → Apps → All Apps → Mi Browser. Select “Clean” and then “Clean All.” This will return the browser to factory settings, but may require re-authorization in your accounts.

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If the standard disabling in your browser settings doesn’t help, try installing another start page, such as Google or a blank page, in the Home Page section of your Mi Browser settings.

It's also worth checking your browser's permissions, sometimes requesting geolocation access to "personalize news," disable browser location access in the privacy system settings, which will make it impossible for Zen to show local news, which often renders the feed useless.

Configure the system folder "News" in MIUI

In the MIUI shell, there is a separate system application, often referred to simply as “News”, which is responsible for desktop widgets and integration of news aggregators, in global firmware versions it can be Google Discover, and in the CIS versions it can be Yandex.Zen.

To manage this component, look for the Tools or System folder on your desktop, and you can have a News icon inside it (often looking like a color circle or partner logo) and click on it to open the source settings.

In the window that opens, click on three dots or a gear settings. Here you will see a list of available news providers. If you have a choice between Google and Yandex, choose Google or No. If only Yandex is selected, try switching the region or language of the system.

If the News app doesn't allow you to change the source, you can try to force it to turn it off. Go to Settings → Apps → All apps, find News (the icon can be gray or color) and click Disable. The system will warn that this may affect the operation of widgets - agree.

Using ADB to remove system components

For advanced users who want to completely remove Yandex Zen, even if it is built into the system, there is a method using ADB (Android Debug Bridge), which is safer than obtaining Root rights, and allows you to delete system packets without modifying the system partition.

First, you need to activate the developer mode. Go to Settings. → About the phone and press 7 times on the item "Version" MIUI". After the message “You became a developer” appears, go back to the main settings menu.

Now find the menu "Advanced settings" (or "Additional") → "For developers. Turn on the "Debugging by" switch. USB". Also turn on the option "USB-debugging (security settings)" if available, otherwise the computer will not be able to send delete commands.

adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.yandex.news

This command will remove the Yandex news packet for the current user. If you want to delete the Yandex browser, the command will look different: adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.yandex.browser. Be careful when entering packet names, an error can lead to unstable system operation.

⚠️ Attention: Use of teams ADB Removing critical system packets (e.g. SystemUI or Settings) can lead to a device building or endless reboot. Only delete packets that are 100-sure%.

Once you have completed the command, you can restart the phone. The changes will take effect immediately. If you want to return the remote application, you will have to do a full reset, since there is no standard "restore" button for packets deleted through ADB.

Disabling notifications and background activity

If you don't want to or can't delete an app, you can just strangle it. Yandex Zen and its associated services often work in the background, consuming battery power and transmitting data. Turning off background activity will make the app useless, but leave it on the phone.

Go to Settings → Applications → All apps. Find Yandex (or Zen) app. Click on Battery or Energy. Select No Limits mode (to allow work) or Conversely, Limit Background Activity if your goal is to save resources.

Next, go to Notifications, where you can completely disable all notifications from the app, uncheck "Allow Notifications," which will save you from pop-up news even if the app itself is running.

• 📱 Open the settings of the Yandex application.
• 🔋 Select the Battery section and limit background activity.
• 🔕 Completely prohibit sending notifications.
• 🚫 Turn off auto-start in the "Permissions" section".

Also worth checking for auto-start. In the app management menu, find the "Out-Start" option and turn it off, which will prevent the service from starting immediately after the phone is turned on, which will significantly speed up the boot of Xiaomi's system.

Frequent questions and problems with removal

When cleaning your phone from intrusive services, users often face similar problems, and here are the answers to the most popular questions that will help avoid errors and return the system to working order in case of a failure.

One of the common problems is returning the widget after the system update. MIUI can reset the launcher settings when you update and return the default widgets. In this case, you will have to repeat the deletion or deactivation procedure. To minimize the risks, turn off automatic updates of system applications in Mi GetApps.

Another issue is data security, and many fear that removing system components will disrupt other applications, removing a news packet (com.yandex.news) is safe for calls, texting, and the Internet, but removing packets prefixed with com.miui can be dangerous.

Remember that removing system components completely requires caution: Always check the name of the packet before entering a command into the terminal. If you are unsure of your actions, it is better to limit background activity and notifications than risk the stability of the smartphone.