How to permanently disable unlocking the smartphone Xiaomi in the watch: Mi Band, Amazfit, Watch

Unlocking Xiaomi’s screen through a smartwatch or fitness bracelet is a convenient feature that saves time, but over time it can start to malfunction: the smartphone unlocks spontaneously in your pocket, reacts to accidental touches of the bracelet or completely stops recognizing the device, even worse when the feature interferes with security — for example, when the phone unlocks in public transport or at work, risking opening personal data.

In this article, you’ll find three proven ways to turn off screen unlock through the clock on any Xiaomi, Redmi or POCO smartphone — from standard MIUI settings to hidden developer settings. The instructions are relevant for all smartwatches and bracelets of the brand: Mi Band 3/4/5/6/7, Amazfit Bip, Xiaomi Watch and others.

Why can unlocking after hours be dangerous?

At first glance, automatic unlocking via Mi Band or Xiaomi Watch seems harmless, but there are a few hidden risks that few people think about:

• 🔓 Random activation: The bracelet can unlock the phone in your bag or pocket if it touches the screen (especially for models with Always-on Display).
• 🕵️ Security Vulnerability: If you lose your watch, anyone who finds it can unlock your smartphone without having to use it. PIN-code.
• 🔋 Increased battery consumption: Continuous scanning of Bluetooth connection with watch increases power consumption by 5-15%.
• 🚫 Conflict with other features: for example, unlocking through the clock can interfere with the work of Smart Lock or Face Unlock.

Also, users often encounter a bug when a smartphone stops recognizing a fingerprint after activating the unlock through the bracelet, which is due to a conflict in the MIUI authentication system. If you notice that the fingerprint sensor has become worse, the first thing you do is turn off the sync with the clock.

⚠️ Note: If you are using the Mi Band 7 Pro or Xiaomi Watch 2 Pro, after disabling unlock after hours, you may need to reconnect the device in the Zepp Life app (formerly Mi Fit.

Method 1: Disconnect via standard MIUI settings

The easiest method is to use the built-in system settings, which is suitable for most Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO models based on MIUI 12-14, the main advantage of this method is that it does not require resetting or unsetting the clock.

Instructions:

1. Open the settings on your smartphone.
2. Go to the Lock screen and password section (on some firmware - Security).
3. Select Unlock through your device or Smart Unlock.
4. Find a connected watch (such as Mi Smart Band 6) and turn off the slider next to it.
5. Confirm the action by entering the current PIN-code, pattern lock or fingerprint.

If Device Unlock is not on the menu, the feature is disabled at the firmware level, in which case try updating MIUI to the latest version or using Method 2.

Make sure the watch is connected to the phone.|Remember the current one. PIN-lock-in|Check the charge level of the watch (minimum 20%)|Open the settings. MIUI, Not the Zepp Life app.-->

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If after turning off unlock after hours, the smartphone becomes slower to respond to the fingerprint, reboot it.

Method 2: Separate the clock in the Zepp Life app (Mi Fit)

If the standard method didn't work, the problem could be in the watch management app itself, which used to be called Mi Fit, but is now renamed Zepp Life. Importantly, disabling unlocking through this app won't remove the watch from the device list, but will block its access to the unlock feature.

Step-by-step:

• 📱 Open the Zepp Life app on your smartphone.
• 🔄 Go to the Profile tab (the person icon in the lower right corner).
• 🖥️ Select a connected watch (e.g., Amazfit) GTR 3).
• ⚙️ Click on the gear icon (Device settings).
• 🔒 Find the Unlocking Phone section and turn off the switch.
• 🔄 Return to the main menu and sync the data with the clock (button in the upper right corner).

After these actions, unlocking through the clock will be deactivated, but all other functions (notifications, pedometer, pulsemeter) will remain functional. If the unlock item is missing, then your watch model does not support this function or it is disabled at the firmware level.

⚠️ Note: On some versions MIUI 13, when you turn off unlocking, Zepp Life may be able to send a notification saying, "Device unblocked." It's a standard system alert, not an error.

Mi Band 3/4/5|Mi Band 6/7|Amazfit Bip/GTR/GTS|Xiaomi Watch/Watch S1|Others-->

Method 3: Reset the clock settings (if nothing helps)

If the first two methods fail, you'll have to resort to a radical solution: reset the watch settings, which will remove all the data from the wristband, including the binding to the Xiaomi account, but it will guarantee that you turn off unlocking the screen, which is suitable for all models except the Xiaomi Watch S1 Pro (it requires a separate algorithm).

How to reset your settings:

After discharge:

1. Connect the watch again through Zepp Life.
2. When setting up, skip the step with unlocking the screen (usually it appears in 3-4 stages).
3. If the system again offers to activate the function, refuse and disable the automatic update of the firmware of the clock in the application settings.

Why can the unlocking process turn on by itself?

Many users experience a situation where the unlock function is activated spontaneously after updating the firmware or restarting the phone.

• 🔄 Automatic update MIUI: New firmware versions sometimes reset security settings.
• 📲 Sync with the Xiaomi cloud: if you are logged in to an account on another device, the settings can be moved.
• ⚙️ Miui.analytics: This system process sometimes restores factory parameters.
• 🔋 Battery Optimization: If the system kills Zepp Life's background processes, the watch can reconnect with default settings.

To prevent spontaneous inclusion:

1. Turn off automatic MIUI update in Settings → About Phone → System Update.
2. Add the Zepp Life app to the battery optimization exceptions:
3. Turn off synchronizing security settings in your Xiaomi account:

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If unlocking after hours is enabled after each MIUI update, back up your settings in Settings → Additional → Backup and Reset before installing the new firmware → After the update, restore the settings except for the Security section.

What if the unlocking clock does not turn off?

In rare cases, the function can freeze in an active state even after all the manipulations, usually due to damage to system files or conflict with custom firmware.

Option 1: Cleaning up the cache of Xiaomi services

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Find and open Xiaomi Services (com.xiaomi.xmsf).
3. Press Warehouse. → Clear the cache.
4. Repeat for Zepp Life and Security (com.miui.securitycenter) applications.
5. Reboot your smartphone.

Option 2: Resetting security settings

This method removes all the stored fingerprints, PIN-Smart Lock codes and data, but guaranteed to reset unlock settings after hours:

1. Open the Settings. → The phone.
2. Press 5-7 times on the MIUI version to activate the developer mode.
3. Return to the main settings menu and select Additional → For developers.
4. Find Reset Security Settings and confirm the action.

Option 3: Manually remove unlock keys (for advanced)

If you're confident in your actions, you can manually delete the files responsible for unlocking after hours.

1. Connect your smartphone to your PC and activate Debugging via USB.
2. Use ADB to remove the keys:
3. Reset the device.

⚠️ Warning: Manual deletion of system files can cause unstable fingerprint sensor or other unlocking methods. Use this method only if the first two options did not work and you are ready for the possible consequences.

Alternative ways to unlock without a watch

If you turned off unlock after hours, but want to keep your smartphone easy to access, consider alternative methods:

• 👤 Face Unlock: works even in a mask (on models with an IR camera, for example, Xiaomi 13 Pro).
• 🔑 Smart Lock: Unlocking by trusted devices (such as home Wi-Fi) or location.
• 📍 Geolocation unlock: the phone remains unlocked in the specified areas (home, work).
• 🎵 Voice unlocking: available on smartphones with MIUI 14 and later (requires settings in Google Assistant).

To set up a Smart Lock:

1. Go to Settings → Lock screen and password → Smart Lock.
2. Enter the current one. PIN-code.
3. Choose Trusted Devices or Trusted Places.
4. Add the necessary settings (for example, home Wi-Fi network).

To activate Face Unlock:

1. Open Settings → Lock screen and password → Add facial recognition.
2. Follow the instructions on the screen (good lighting is required).
3. Set up Advanced Facial Recognition for dark work (not available on all models).

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If you use Face Unlock, add an alternative unlock method (PIN or fingerprint) in case the camera gets contaminated or you are in a dark room.

FAQ: Frequent questions about unlocking through Xiaomi watches