The Xiaomi Mi TV Stick is something like Android TV tucked away in a small HDMI dongle. A very simple way to turn on a “mute” TV on Smart TV, or to use Android TV on a TV with another system that is no longer supported, such as an older version of Tizen.
With a price of 34.99 dollars, the Xiaomi Mi TV Stick has Android TV with few changes, so many of the tips of Android TV or its brother the Mi Box TV are valid. Here we select 15 tips and tricks to get the most out of your Xiaomi Mi TV Stick.
Take a screenshot
Sooner or later you will have to take a screenshot on TV for some reason. The good news is that the Xiaomi Mi TV Stick lets you take screenshots with the easiest method: by tapping two remote control buttons at the same time.
You must press the power button and volume down. The manual is simple, although it takes some getting used to because sometimes it will turn off or the volume will drop if you have not correctly synchronized the beats. If all went well, a preview of the capture is displayed.
Send and receive files
After taking a screenshot, the image remains saved in internal memory of the Xiaomi Mi TV Stick, which has 8 GB in total, to be divided between the system, applications and personal data such as screenshots. If you want to take them with you, you have to send them from TV to mobile.
There are several ways to send and receive files from Xiaomi Mi TV Stick to a mobile, although the easiest may be to use Send files to TV. It is a very simple application that you have to install both on the Mi TV Stick and on your mobile. Then in one of them you choose To receive
Sort your favorite apps
The Android TV interface can be a bit overwhelming at first. At the top, for example, it shows a row of favorite apps, which may not interest you very much or you would rather have them ordered in another way.
If you select an application and do a long press, a context menu appears. You can choose there Remove from favorites, to delete an application, or Mover, to modify the order of the application in the favorites row.
Sort apps in the full list
You can also sort the apps in the equivalent of the app drawer, which is the full list of installed apps. After clicking on Applications, to the left of the favorites row, select an application and make a long press to open the context menu.
Among the options available, you will find Mover, except that this time you can move the application both from left to right and up and down. Of course, you have to go there one by one, so you will need a little patience.
Sort channels
The same goes for channels. It is quite possible that at some point your Xiaomi Mi TV Stick home screen will be full of things, and the truth is that the device does not have excessive power. If you want something lighter it never hurts remove channels you are not interested in.
The way to do it is quite simple. Select one of the channels and scroll left until the button is displayed. Mover. With it you can change the order of the channel up or down, but also if you move more to the left you will see the button –
Easily uninstall apps
On Android TV, you have several ways to uninstall apps. You can do this from the Apps section of settings, from Google Play or, perhaps the easiest way, from the full list of applications.
First, open the full list of apps. Then select the app you want to uninstall and long press the button on the controller. In the menu that opens, choose Uninstall.
Keep your apps up to date
In the Xiaomi Mi TV Stick, as in the mobile, it is important that you keep the applications up to date even from time to time. This ensures that they will correct any errors and that the latest features will be active. In addition, while the applications are being updated the stick is a bit slow, so it is better that you do it manually to have more control over it.
The apps will update themselves automatically, but you can do it manually by opening Google Play and scrolling to your profile picture in the top bar. Pull down the menu and enter Manage apps and games, then enter Upgrades.
Don’t forget about security updates
When the Xiaomi Mi TV Stick has a system update, you will know it because it keeps showing on the home screen. Again, it is important that you take the time to install these security updates, which can fix catastrophic errors such as WebView.
You don’t need to install them as they arrive, especially since you press the button until the TV is operational again several minutes will pass. It is a better idea to leave the update when we are done watching TV.
Set screen saver
If you leave playback stopped on the Xiaomi Mi TV Stick for a long time, the screen saver will be activated. By default it skips every 15 minutes of inactivity, although you are free to change the configuration by entering the section Device Preferences – Screen Saver.
From here you can choose screen saver which one you prefer, how long it takes to wake up and how long it will take for the device to fall asleep after being inactive for a long time. In addition, it is possible to start the screen saver directly, without having to wait.
Manually adjust resolution
By default, the Xiaomi Mi TV Stick automatically configures the resolution according to the TV you have connected it to, although you can change it from the settings. You can do this by entering the parameters, in the section Screen– Screen resolution.
From here you can set resolution and Hz (Note that the Xiaomi Mi TV Stick supports Full HD at maximum), as well as color depth and color space, although the default settings are recommended in the vast majority of cases.
Close force applications
As on mobile, if an application becomes rebellious on the Xiaomi Mi TV Stick, it is possible that you have to force it to close. This is especially common when an app is not performing well and no matter how much you quit and reopen it, it will appear as it was.
Forcing an app to close is very similar to how it’s done on mobile. Enter the settings and choose the Applications section. Find the app you want to force close, press the button and choose Force stop in the menu that appears.
Use it like Chromecast
El Xiaomi Mi TV key doubles features like Chromecast, so you can stream content from any app that supports Chromecast streaming, which is a lot today. This will help you to stream content to TV both from your mobile phone and from PC, for example using the built-in function of Google Chrome.
Bluetooth controller or keyboard
The Xiaomi Mi TV Stick has only two connectors: one is the HDMI to connect to the TV and the other is a MicroUSB to connect the power. Although it does not have a USB port for connecting peripherals, you can connect accessories via bluetooth.
To do this, go to the settings and enter the section Controls and Accessories. Then press Add an accessory and it will start to search for visible bluetooth devices nearby. You can use it to connect controllers, keyboards, keyboard and mouse combos, etc.
Access recovery mode
A tip for more advanced users or those who have encountered a serious error with their Xiaomi Mi TV Stick. Yes, the Xiaomi Mi TV Stick has the recovery mode, the special menu with troubleshooting menus.
To enter Xiaomi Mi TV Stick recovery mode, you need to turn it off completely and press OK button and back button at the same time while you plug it back in. If all went well, you will see the menu after a few seconds, with options to wipe the cache or data partition, which will restore it as it was just purchased. In other words, you will lose all your data.
Use your mobile as a remote control
The remote control of the Xiaomi Mi TV Stick barely has a few buttons, so writing text to connect or similar situations becomes quite tedious. Fortunately, there is an easy way to use the mobile as a remote control, with the official Android TV Remote app.
You just need to install the application on your mobile and pair the remote control with the Xiaomi Mi TV Stick, by entering a code which appears printed on the screen. From this moment, you can use your mobile to move around the menus or write more easily.
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