Xiaomi Printer Stripes: Why It Happens and How to Fix It Yourself

Xiaomi printers — whether the Mi Laser Printer series lasers or the MiJia inkjet — have gained popularity because of the combination of affordable prices and high quality printing. But even the most reliable technique can fail, and one of the most common problems users face is the appearance of stripes on prints. Vertical, horizontal, intermittent or solid — defects manifest themselves in different ways, but always spoil the result.

In this article, we will not just list the possible causes, but analyze them with regard to the design features of Xiaomi printers, including models with a continuous toner system (CNF) and original cartridges. You will learn how to diagnose a problem by the nature of the stripes, what manipulations can be done yourself, and in which cases you can not do without a service center. We also touch on the nuances associated with the firmware of the printer and the compatibility of consumables, this is often overlooked even by experienced users.

Types of stripes on the seal and their meaning

Before you start repairing, it is important to determine which stripes appear on your prints, and their nature directly indicates the source of the problem:

• 🔴 Vertical stripes (parallel to the movement of paper) - most often associated with a photoreel or magnetic shaft in laser printers, less often - with pollution of the print head in the inkjet.
• 🔵 Horizontal bands (perpendicular to the movement of the paper) – signal problems with the laser unit, scanner mirror or transfer tape (in color printers).
• ⚫ Intermittent stripes or points – may indicate clogging of duz (jet printers) or damage to the magnetic shaft (laser).
• ⚪ Light stripes on a dark background are a typical sign of wear of a photodrum or insufficient toner pressing.

In printers Xiaomi Mi Laser Printer 1C/1S more often vertical stripes due to the design of the cartridge, where the photo drum and magnetic shaft are combined into a single unit. In inkjet models (for example, MiJia Photo Printer), horizontal stripes can appear due to drying ink in the duzes with rare use.

Problems with the cartridge: toner, photodrum, chip

In 80% of cases, the strips on the printers Xiaomi prints associated with the cartridge — whether it is the original Xiaomi Mi Toner Cartridge or compatible counterpart.

Low level or poor quality toner

If the toner in the cartridge is running out, the printer starts to "save" the powder, which leads to pale stripes or gaps. In Xiaomi laser printers, this is especially noticeable when printing graphics or halftones. The problem can also be covered as a toner: cheap analogues often contain large particles that are unevenly applied to the photo drum.

Wear of the photodrum

The photo drum (aka OPC drum) in Xiaomi cartridges is designed for 2-3 refills (or 12,000-15,000 pages for original cartridges) When worn, its surface loses sensitivity to the laser, which manifests itself as dark vertical stripes or a “dirty” background. You can check the condition of the drum by delivering a cartridge and inspecting a green (or blue) shaft for scratches, scuffs or toner residue.

Resetting of the cartridge chip

Xiaomi printers use chips to account for the cartridge resource. Once refueled or replaced, the chip can block the print by producing an error or printing with stripes. In some cases, software reset through an engineering menu or special utilities (for example, Mi Printer Tool). However, for models with firmware newer than 1.2.5_0109 You may need to reset (chip replacement).

⚠️ Note: Do not use toners from other manufacturers (for example, for refilling, HP Or Canon, which is chemically tainted by the Xiaomi printer's photo drum. XMT-XXXX packed.

3. Laser block and optics contamination

The laser unit and mirror system in Xiaomi Mi Laser printers are responsible for accurately applying the image to the photo drum. If dust, toner or fat hits the optics, the beam is scattered, resulting in blurred stripes or a repetitive pattern on the print.

The most common contaminated are:

• 🔍 Laser lens – collects dust during long-term operation.
• 🪞 Scanner mirror – can be stained with a toner when the cartridge is replaced carelessly.
• 📏 Transfer tape (for color models) - accumulates toner residues, which manifests as horizontal stripes.

You can do the optics cleaning yourself with a lilac-free napkin and isopropyl alcohol (at least 90%). Important: do not use cotton swabs - they can leave fibers. To access the laser unit in Mi Laser Printer 1C models, you need:

1. Turn off the printer and disconnect the power cable.
2. Remove the back cover (unscrewing 2 Torx T8 screws).
3. Gently wipe the lens and mirror, moving from the center to the edges.

Mechanical problems: rollers, pins, gears

If the strips appear irregularly or are accompanied by noise when printing, the problem may lie in the mechanical part of the printer.

Xiaomi Mi Laser Printer Pro printers often wear the thermal block's downcast, resulting in a weak pressing of the toner against the paper, manifesting as pale horizontal stripes across the entire width of the sheet, the solution is to replace the roller (Article XMP-R01 for the original spare part).

⚠️ Note: When disassembling a Xiaomi printer, do not apply force to plastic latches - in models from 2022 and later, they are made of fragile ABS plastic and can break. Use plastic blades to separate parts of the body.

5. Problems with firmware and drivers

Software failures are one of the most insidious causes of striped printing, as they are difficult to diagnose without tests. In Xiaomi printers, this can manifest after:

• 🖥️ Firmware updates (especially versions) 1.3.x For the Mi Laser Printer 1S).
• 🔄 Changes to the operating system on the PC (for example, from Windows 10 to Windows 11).
• 📱 Connections via the Mi Home mobile app (sometimes color settings are lost).

For diagnosis:

1. Print the test page directly from the printer (without a PC) by pressing and holding the Wi-Fi button for 5 seconds. If the bands remain, the problem is in the device, if they disappear, in the drivers.
2. Update the driver through the official Xiaomi website (Support → Printers section). For Mi Laser Printer models, use the driver version 4.1.6 or later.
3. Reset your printer settings to factory settings via the Settings menu → Reset → Reset.

If the bands appeared after the firmware update, try rolling back to the previous version.

1. Download the desired firmware version from the 4PDA forum (section "Xiaomi Printers").


2 Unpack the archive and rename the file to fw_update.bin.




3. Place it in the root of the USB- drive (FAT32).




4. Connect the flash drive to the printer and press the Cancel button for 10 seconds.

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Before rolling back the firmware, back up the printer settings via the web interface (enter the printer’s IP in the browser).

External factors: paper, humidity, electricity

Even a good Xiaomi printer can print with stripes due to external conditions.

• 📄 Poor paper quality – too porous or wet paper absorbs the toner unevenly. Use paper with a density of 80-120 g/m2 marked "For laser printers".
• 💧 High humidity causes the toner to stick together in the cartridge. Optimal humidity for the printer to work is 40-60%.
• ⚡ Unstable voltage - surges in the network can knock down the laser unit. Connect the printer through a network filter or UPS.

In MiJia inkjet printers, stripes can appear due to drying of ink when stored in an unheated room. The solution is to run duz cleaning through the printer menu (Settings → Service → Cleaning). If this does not help, use a special washing fluid (for example, InkTec Cleaning Solution).

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To test the quality of the paper, do a test: print a solid black square on a sheet. If the edges are blurred or there are gaps, the paper is not suitable for your printer.

7. when you can not do without a service center

Some malfunctions require professional intervention.

• 🔧 The strips are accompanied by mechanical noise (squeaking, knocking) - this may indicate wear of gears or bearings.
• 🔥 On the prints you can see burnt areas (dark spots) - a sign of a malfunction of the thermal unit.
• 🖨️ The printer does not react to a chip reset or makes an error. E02-000 (laser-block error).
• 💻 Stripes appear even after replacing all consumables and cleaning the optics.

The cost of repairs in official Xiaomi service centers (for 2026):

• Replacement of a photodrum - from 1,500 ₽.
• Repair of the laser unit - from 3 000 ₽.
• Cleaning thermoblock - from 1,200 ₽.

For warranty printers (usually 1 year from the date of purchase), repairs are free, but only when using original consumables. If you refilled the cartridge yourself, the warranty is removed.

FAQ: Frequent questions about stripes on Xiaomi print