Smartphone owners Xiaomi i Redmi often face a situation where the system interface suddenly turns completely black and the text turns white. This can be either intentionally enabled dark themeor accidental activation of special features or energy saving modes. Understanding the reason for the appearance of a black background is critical for quickly returning to the usual light design.
In modern skins MIUI and the new HyperOS visualization settings are scattered across different menus, which sometimes confuses even experienced users. A black background may appear in the settings menu, in the application list, or even on the desktop. In this article we will analyze in detail all possible causes and methods for eliminating them, from simple switches to hidden engineering settings.
Disabling the global dark theme in the settings
The most common reason for a black interface is the activation of the system dark theme. The developers Xiaomi implemented this feature to reduce eye strain and save battery power on AMOLED screens. To return the light style, you need to go to the personalization menu.
Go to the section Settings and find the item Screen or Wallpaper and personalization. Depending on the firmware version, the path may differ slightly. If you have HyperOSinstalled, look for the switch at the very top of the settings menu or in the section System colors.
Inside the theme menu you will see two main options: Light and Dark. Selecting a light theme will automatically change the black background to white or light gray in all system applications. You can also set a schedule here so that the phone automatically changes the theme at certain times of the day.
If the theme switcher is grayed out, check to see if you have installed a third-party launcher or a theme from the GetThemes store, which may block system settings.
Sometimes after disabling the dark theme, the black background remains in some third-party applications. This is due to the fact that the software developers strictly set the dark style. In this case, only updating the application or waiting for a patch from the developer will help.
Eliminating color inversion and special features
If the screen turned black and the colors of the images changed to the opposite (negative), most likely, the function was activated by accidental pressing Color inversion. This option is intended for visually impaired users, but is often turned on by mistake when quickly unlocking the phone.
To disable this feature, go to Settings → Advanced settings → Special. capabilities. Here you need to find the tab Vision. In the list of options, find the item Color inversion and move the switch to the inactive position.
- 👁️ Color inversion changes all screen colors to the opposite, making the white background black.
- 🖐️ High contrast text adds a black outline to the letters, which can visually darken interface.
- 🌑 Removing animations In some versions, MIUI can make transitions between menus sharp and dark.
Please note that in some models Redmi Note there is a fast A combination of volume buttons that can include loop mode or invert. Check your accessibility settings for assigned hotkeys.
⚠️ Attention: The Invert Colors feature affects the display of photos and videos. If you take screenshots in this mode, they will also be saved in inverted colors.
Why does inversion turn on by itself?
A common reason is accidentally triple pressing the power button or volume button combination, if fast is assigned in the accessibility settings call.
Power saving and ultimate mode settings
Aggressive energy saving algorithms in the shell MIUI can force a dark background to save display resource. This is especially noticeable when activating the mode Ultimate energy saving, which turns the smartphone into a device with minimal functionality and a black interface.
Check the current battery status. If Economy Mode is enabled, the interface may become darker than usual. Go to Settings → Battery and disable all active saving modes. It is also worth checking the screen settings.
In the section Screen find the item Reading mode. Although it usually makes the screen appear yellowish, in some scenarios it works in combination with a dark theme to create a deep black background effect. Disable it if it is active.
| Operating mode | Influence on background | Where to disable |
|---|---|---|
| Normal | Standard white/color | Not required |
| Energy saving | Darkening background, gray tones | Settings → Battery |
| Ultimate mode | Full black background, 6 applications | Settings → Battery → Ultimate |
| Reading mode | Yellow or black and white filter | Settings → Display → Reading mode |
If the phone overheats, the system can automatically reduce brightness and darken interface elements to protect components. Allow the device to cool and the colors should return.
The ultimate power saving mode completely changes the launcher to a simplified black interface. Exiting the mode returns to the normal view.
Problems with the AMOLED screen and Always On Display
Owners of smartphones with matrices AMOLED (for example, series Redmi Note Pro or Xiaomi 13/14) can observe black background as a feature of the technology True Black. In this mode, black pixels are completely disabled, which creates the effect of infinite depth, but may be perceived as a bug.
Check your screensaver and always-on display settings (Always On Display). Sometimes the image “burns in” or the settings go wrong, leaving a black silhouette on the screen. Disable AOD in the menu Wallpaper and personalization → Always on. screen.
There is also a problem with adaptive brightness. The light sensor may incorrectly determine the conditions, believing that you are in complete darkness, and turn the brightness to a minimum, making the background visually black.
- 💡 Disable Auto-brightness and set the level manually to 50-70% to check the real state of the screen.
- 🎨 In the settings Color scheme select the "Vivid" or "Standard" option, avoiding modes with high contrast.
- 🔄 Rebooting the device often clears temporary display driver errors.
⚠️ Attention: If black spots on the screen do not disappear after a reboot and have clear boundaries, this may be a sign of a physical malfunction of the matrix (dead pixels or burn-in).
☑️ Diagnostics screen
Resetting the theme and launcher settings
Sometimes the black background is the result of a conflict between the system launcher MIUI and the installed third-party theme. The theme store Xiaomi allows you to deeply customize the system, but low-quality mods can break the display of colors.
Go to the application Themes. Go to your profile (person icon) → Themes. Apply the standard theme Classic or Default. This action will reset all visual modifications to the factory state.
If the problem persists, the launcher data may be corrupted. Go to Settings → Applications → All applications. Find System launcher (or MIUI Home) in the list. Click Clear → Clear cache. Do not select "Clear all" if you do not want to reset the arrangement of icons on the desktop.
For advanced users, it is possible to reset the interface settings through the engineering menu, but this requires caution. For an ordinary user, changing the theme and clearing the cache is enough.
What to do if the standard theme is not used?
Try to delete the latest installed themes from the phone's memory through the file manager in the MIUI/Theme folder, then reboot.
Hardware faults and service mode
If software methods did not help remove the black background, the problem may lie in the hardware. The display cable may have come off after being dropped, or the screen power controller may have failed. In this case, the black background may be accompanied by flickering or stripes.
You can perform self-diagnosis using the hidden engineer menu. Enter the code ##6484##into your phone. The menu CITwill open. Select test Display or Color. The screen will be sequentially painted in different colors.
##6484##If during the test on a black background you see colored spots, dead pixels, or the screen remains completely black even when a white signal is supplied, this is a warranty case. Contact an authorized service center.
⚠️ Attention: Do not try to disassemble the smartphone yourself if it is under warranty. Breaking the seals will result in loss of warranty service.
It is also worth checking whether the mode Developer with active graphics debugging settings is enabled. Go to For developers and find items related to color space emulation or disabling hardware overlays. Reset the developer settings if they have been changed.
Before visiting the service, be sure to make a backup copy of your data, as information may be deleted when replacing the screen or flashing the firmware.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Why did the background turn black after updating Android?
Firmware updates often reset theme settings to default values, which can be dark in new versions of MIUI. The update can also activate the “Adaptive Theme”, which adapts to the wallpaper. Check the theme settings after the update.
Is it possible to remove the black background only in the settings, leaving the dark mode in other places?
Unfortunately, the system dark theme setting in MIUI is applied globally to all menus that support it. Partial disabling is possible only through third-party themes that force a light style for specific applications, but this is an unstable solution.
A black screen appeared after the phone fell, what should I do?
If the phone turns on (there is sound, vibration), but the screen is black, most likely the display cable or the matrix itself is damaged. Try connecting your phone to your computer or TV using a USB-C to HDMI adapter. If there is an image, the problem is in the smartphone screen.
How to disable the black bar at the top (bangs) in the settings?
This is not a black background, but a cutout for the camera. It cannot be removed programmatically, since it is a physical part of the screen. However, in the settings Advanced settings → Camera cutout you can select the "Hide cutout" mode, which will paint the area around the camera black, visually hiding it, but this will not remove the black background of the interface itself.
Will resetting to factory settings?
Yes, a full reset (Wipe Data) is guaranteed to remove any software black background caused by settings, themes or system errors. However, this will delete all your data, so be sure to make a backup before the procedure.