Among the large number of apps that Xiaomi includes in MIUI, there is one that you probably haven’t seen: Google News (or Google News). By default, it is inactive in countries where this service cannot be used, like Europe. What do you want to use it for? The process to make Google News visible is simple.
All Android offers different ways to access the hottest news. Discover is one of the most common, this set of news that Google offers on a good part of the mobiles with just scroll left, on desktops. While not the only news section you have, Google News is an app that lets you manage all current sources in detail. And Xiaomi includes it as standard in its devices.
Xiaomi includes Google News in MIUI, although it is disabled
Xiaomi mobiles distributed in countries such as Europe offer the usual Google applications as well as their services. The Play Store of course also includes apps like Duo, Messages and the phone. MIUI offers Discover the news on new phones. And a hidden gem in the system ROM: Google News.
Since Google withdrew the information service from Europe following the entry into force of the intellectual property law in 2014, Xiaomi deactivates the application on its Spanish mobiles so that users cannot access the service. The most logical thing would be to remove Google News from the preinstalled apps, but it stays in MIUI like another app. Of course, disabled.
To use Google News, you probably don’t need to install the APK if you have a Xiaomi mobile with MIUI: the application must be in the system. The way to activate it is as follows:
- Go to the phone settings and find the “Applications” section.
- Go to “Manage applications”.
- Click on the top three menu items and select “Show all apps“.
- Type “news” into the search engine and MIUI should locate the app we’re looking for, Google News.
- You will see that it is deactivated: enter the settings of Google News and click on the bottom icon, on the “Activate” icon.
- Google News will appear among your apps and you can use it like the rest of the apps. Of course, MIUI will turn it off again if you don’t change the region of the phone.
- Enabling it when you use it isn’t too complicated, but you can prevent MIUI from disabling Google News: go back to the phone’s settings, scroll to “Additional settings”, enter “Region” and choose a territory other than Europe. Andorra generally works. Or Mexico, for example.
Activation of a region other than the original does not involve excessive inconvenience beyond the appearance or disappearance of certain applications (MIUI includes preinstalled apps which are displayed depending on the region). For updates, it is best that you return to Europe before downloading them.
