The MiUI 12 is less stable than the immediate predecessor; the MiUI 11 has received an upgrade from Xiaomi to MiUI 12.5 stable version as Officially announced by the Xiaomi founder Lei Jun at the company’s 11th anniversary on April 30th, 2021.
User Interface is no doubt the nucleus on which every other thing was done in a phone revolves. I have even had a friend say this to me, which I can’t argue, “I can never attempt using a device with an outdated user interface” if you understand the stress of navigation, accessing apps, etc., in a poorly built user interface. You, too, would concur with him as much as I do.
However, Xiaomi, a brand targeting to become the world’s number one phone maker and today is India’s king in phone manufacturing with over one hundred million users in India alone, has come out with an unarguably awesome UI-the MiUI 12.
I currently use MI 10 lite, which runs on MiUI 12, and I have practically confirmed that MiUI 12 has a well-polished User interface Xiaomi has ever built over the years. With the new update to MiUI 12.5, you can expect something much better than the MiUI 12. The MiUI 12 today runs most Xiaomi phones, such as the POCO and Redmi phones. Below are the features of the MiuI 12, which is undoubtedly better than the previous versions of the MiuI. In due course, I will review the most stable version of the MiuI 12, the MiuI 12.5, and its features to paper.
1. Retrofitted Privacy and Security
One of the cons of MiuI 11 is that it collects browser data while in incognito mode (incognito mode is a mode where browsers temporarily preserve browser data until closed).
In MiUI 12, Xiaomi has built a toggle within its browser to let its users opt-out of data collection. At the privacy section of my device running on MiUI 12, I noticed two tabs; the Stats tab, which gives an overview of all the apps, including contacts, storage, call history, and others that accessed key permissions that day. Let me also mention this remarkable observation. There is a button called the All App button that you can tap on to list all the auto-started apps in the background.
The second is the Manage tab. With the manage tab, you can receive an alert such that whenever an app accesses your location, takes a photo, or records audio, you will get a notification on the status bar. From this tab, you could get the complex behavior of the different apps on your device and see how many apps gained access to key permissions. Also, on security, Xiaomi has added on this latest MiUI a secure photo sharing with the ability to remove location and metadata from images.
Indeed the significant improvement on Xiaomi on privacy and security is evident on MiUI 12.
Coming to MiUI 12.5, there is even a more enormous improvement in privacy. Let’s focus on MiUI 12.5 privacy regarding browser, location (has fuzzy positioning), Clipboard protection, and File Storage.
Browser- the MiUI 12.5 has a preinstalled browser, which can stop downloads from suspected websites.
Location – MiUI 12.5 comes with fuzzy positioning with which you could conceal your location to be few meters away from your actual area for safety purposes.
Clipboard protection – this feature keeps every app’s login and lets users know which one is going overboard.
File storage- with Sandbox Mechanism MiUI 12.5 allows users to separate photos and data independently.
2. Improved accessibility of the control center
On MiUI 12, you can pull down the control center from any side of the home screen with an option for toggling Bluetooth, wifi, cellular data, etc. It is similar to how the control center of iOS works. In addition, a pull-down from the top of the screen now shows the notification shade, and as for incoming notification, you have the choice of using the default MiUI system or switch to the Google-prescribed method. And the exciting part here is that if you don’t find this particular feature appealing, you can switch to the old MiUI 11 layout from the setting.
3. MiUI 12 has fascinating wallpapers/ themes.
I have a confession to make here. I intentionally unlock my Mi 10 lite many times a day to look at the unlock animation from MiUI 12. Have you ever used the live Google’s wallpaper app? MiUI 12 wallpaper is similar but even more enjoyable. In MiUI 12, you would have the Earth and Mars images in the live background. When you go from the lock screen to the home screen or activate the screen, you would wish to look on and on at the animation, no doubt I confessed at the onset.
Also, there are thousands of themes for your lock screen.
4. MiUI 12 contains Mi share for file transfers.
Navigate to the settings>connection & share> mi share, and you would gain access to the mi share, but apart from this, you could also easily access the mi share button from the notification bar. Xiaomi built the Mi share with the collaboration of Oppo and Vivo. Users can share files with Realme, Oppo, Vivo phones, Xiaomi phones, and notebooks like the Mi notebook series and the Redmibooks. File sharing has been made easy without long protocol; once you find the eligible device, you select a file to share, depending on the file size, in a few minutes, you are through.
5. The features of the app drawer on MiUI 12
Many have often looked forward to the features of the app drawer in the Miui 12, which automatically sorts apps into different categories. You equally have an app suggestion at the top, the search bar at the bottom with setting up your custom categories. In addition, users can now adjust the background transparency. You have an animated battery usage chart showing your battery’s charge level and a storage section showing a cylinder with different colored discs. The cylinder fills up to tell the storage level.
6. Android ten navigation gesture
It seems Google wants uniformed gesture navigation across Android phone makers; that’s why if you have used any Android phone with the Android 10 version, you definitely will find it even enjoyable navigating through the MiUI 12. There is an improved navigation protocol using the swipe feature. You can navigate back and forth by swiping the right and left parts of the screen. You can switch apps by swiping the screen from the bottom of the screen. For example, to go to the home screen, you have to swipe up from the bottom of the screen. You also have a floating window that helps you scale and app fit in a portion of the screen.
Also, for devices with AMOLED display, MiUI 12 offers an Ambient display with the customization and unique variety no other phone offers!
7. A focus mode to help you avoid phone addiction
MiUI 12 has an animated usage chart that illustrates the amount of time you have spent on your phone, often daily or weekly. You could also turn on the focus mode, and once you do, you would only be able to make, receive calls or use the calculator.
8. Xiaomi Health for tracking health activities
With MiUI 12, you can measure the quality of your sleep and the time spent on it as well. This feature is done by recording your sound while you sleep (background sounds are also incorporated). You could track your cycling, running, skating, etc., with it as well. Users have the option of turning off this feature if there seems to be a felt need.
9. Xiaomi AI that can take your calls (feature peculiar to Chinese users)
MiUI 12 is getting the ability to use a special artificial intelligence in helping users make calls on their behalf and give you suggested responses during conversations. Though this feature is restricted to Chinese users only but isn’t that great?
10 . Improved file manager
The MiUI 12 file manager has a sort option to arrange files according to names, size, or date of creation.
Like the app drawer, the file manager also arranges files in categories of Music, videos, document, image, etc.
11. Improved note-taking app
Xiaomi made some adjustments to the Note app in the display. In addition, I noticed an improvement in the tasks option, and to that effect, you could now enable the task toolbox, which could create a small swipe toggle on your phone’s home screen for easy management—what a great idea for your to-do shopping list.
12. Easy to access phone information
To learn about your phone on MiUI 12, you need to go to settings; from there, you can see comprehensive information about your phone, including but not limited to: Storage space, MiUI ROM version you use, your phone model.
13. Weather app refined on MiUI 12
In MiUI 12, the weather application now contains natural and vital climatic elements, so you can access information about the climatic change: cloudy weather, rainfall, snow, sunny, etc., as at when you want.
14. Camera
Guess what? With MiUI 12, you can now customize the highlight color and adjust the camera mode as you wish. In addition, the macro and pro camera mode users can now adjust the camera color highlight and enjoy unique and clearer images.
15. Updates available
You may have been used to checking your updater from time to time for new updates, but with MiUI 12, a new interface has been incorporated that reminds you of new updates available, and with this, you wouldn’t bother often checking on your updater.
Features of MiUI 12.5 as relative to MiUI 12
With such features as the aforementioned of MiUi12 one would almost see no need for an update so soon, but this tour round, the features of the MiUI 12.5 stable version will tell better.
Privacy
Coming to MiUI 12.5 there is even a greater improvement in privacy than MiUI 12. Let us give attention to this as regards browser, location (has fuzzy positioning), Clipboard protection, and File Storage
Browser-
the MiUI 12.5 browser is built with the ability to stop downloads from suspicious websites.
Location –
MiUI 12.5 comes with fuzzy positioning with which you could conceal your location to be few meters away from your actual location for safety purposes.
Clipboard protection –
this feature keeps the login of every app and also lets users know which one is going overboard.
File storage-
with Sandbox Mechanism, MiUI 12.5 lets users separate photos and data independently.
Wallpapers
Recall that as mentioned above, MiUI 12 only has Earth and Mars wallpapers, but this had an upgrade coming to MiUI 12.5; the Earth wallpaper now has Snow mountain taken from Mount Siguniang, which is the highest mountain of the Qionglai mountains chain in Western China, Shipwreck Bay in Greece (Navagio Beach), and Blade’s Edge Mountain in Italy. In addition, these wallpapers now change to day and night in concordance with the time of the day it is in your location.
Update in notification sound
MiUI 12.5 comes with improved notification sounds of natural elements such as Sand, wood, and water with sounds of natural animals from these four major habitats: East African grassland, Australia, Arctic Circle, and the South American rainforest. There is also improved haptic feedback but to compatible devices anyway.
A unique feature- MiUI+
This particular feature allows you to use selected apps and perform other basic tasks such as copying text on the phone and pasting it on the desktop, viewing notifications on the desktop, and other things.
Among devices that can upgrade to MiUI 12.5 below are the ones that would have this feature 10 Ultra, Mi 10 Pro, Mi 10, Mi 9 Pro 5G, Mi 9, Redmi K30 Ultra, Redmi K20 Pro, and Redmi K30 Pro.
Note app
With MiUI 12.5 you can generate a chronology of notes with just a click. Besides that is a quick short window to jot down notes faster, also a new typesetting system with a dynamic grid to improve aesthetics.
Compared to MiUI 12, MiUI 12.5 uses light cone motion effect architecture. The MiUI 12.5 also has some installable apps like the Note app, weather, MI recorder, Mi calculator, and the scanner.
MiUI 12.5 download
Eligible devices will be sent a notification of the MiUI 12.5 download link. Users can also check for the update manually; to do this, you would need to go to your phone’s setting>Searching for system update> and “Check now” option. Once the update is available to your device, you’ll see the download or install button, tap on it to install.
MiUI 12 has a great interface to try out. I’ll now take you through some of the pros and likely cons of MiUI 12 relative to the MiUI 12.5 stable version, so you can make an informed decision.
Pros of MiUI 12 relative to MiUI 12.5
1.MiUI 12 has better Wallpaper/animation offers than the immediate predecessor, i.e., MiUI 11. But coming to MiUI 12.5 we see even far more improved wallpaper with world-recognized natural Mountains and many more as seen from its features
- Higher Privacy/ security can be noticed in MiUI 12 over MiUI 11, but this has even an upgrade, as can be seen in MiUI 12.5
3. In MiUi 12 we there is improved file-sharing options, a feature that is not lacking in the upgrade – the MiUi 12.5
- Easy to access the control center and improved navigation gestures
5. Has Xiaomi health for tracking some of your health-related activities
Cons of MiUI 12 relative to 12.5
Despite the improvements of MiUI 12 over its predecessors, including the MiUI 11, some users have often complained about the following.
- Devices are freezing during games. I have personally experienced this on my Mi 10 lite, which uses the MiUI 12, and I wonder why this should be so
- They are not closing notifications when restarting smartphones.
- Poor battery backup is experienced in MiUI 12, but instead of battery MiUI 12.5 experiences poor memory; after update in most phones, one would experience memory fill up, often the “other” section of the phone would consume a whopping 6G space leaving the phone with no space for other downloads.
- Problem with sound and display is often experiencing on MiUI 12 but not on MiUI 12.5
- I noticed Problems with the animation on the lock screen of MiUI 12, but no one has companies of this yet on the MiUI 12.5
- There is also a problem with the Control Center of MiUI 12 but affecting Xiaomi phones only; coming to MiUI 12.5 this problem spread to Redmi and Poco phones that run on the UI
- In MiUI 12.5 some users also complain about having issues with wifi, data
Phones that can receive the MiUI 12.5 stable version
Below are smartphones that would be able to run on the MiUI 12.5 stable version
1 Mi 11
2 Mi 10T pro
3 My 10T
4 Mi 10 pro
5 Mi 10 lite 5G
6 Mi note 10 pro
7 Mi note 10
8 Mi note 10 lite
9 Redmi Note 9T
10 Redmi Note 9 pro
11. Redmi Note 9S
12 Redmi note 9
13. Redmi Note 8 pro
In China here are the eligible devices for MiUI 12.5
Mi 10 ultra
2 Mi 10 Youth Edition
3 Redmi K30
4. Redmi k30 5G
5 Redmi K30 pro 5G
6 Redmi k30i 5G
7 Redmi k30s ultra
8 Redmi k30 ultra
9 Mi 9
10 Mi 9 SE
11. Mi CC9e
12. Mi CC9 pro
13. Redmi k20
14. Redmi k20 pro
15 Redmi 10X pro 5G
16 Redmi 10X 5G
17 Redmi Note 7 &
18 Redmi Note 7pro
