If you are interested in recording calls with your Xiaomi mobile, you may be lucky, because it is one of the few manufacturers that makes it easy for us to do so. Xiaomi includes an easy-to-use call recorder, although not available on all models, unfortunately.
We already know that recording calls from Android 9 is complicated, because Google disabled the option, and we have to resort to various tricks depending on the phone we have. However, Xiaomi’s MIUI layer applies some interesting changes in this regard.
The key difference is whether our mobile brings the Google Phone application (used in Android by default) or the so-called MIUI dialer (Xiaomi’s own). In the first case recording calls will be very simple, in the second it is complicated.
Unfortunately, more and more Xiaomi mobiles use Google’s own phone, messages and contacts apps in their western version. This is also the case of the Xiaomi Mi A1 / A2 / A3, which use Android One, without the MIUI customization layer.
How to take a screenshot on Xiaomi
Do I have MIUI dialer or Google Phone?
The first step is to be clear about which phone app (“dialer” in English) our Xiaomi includes , as that determines the possibilities when recording voice calls.
Unfortunately, you cannot unlock the call recording by installing MIUI dialer, it is much more difficult. It requires root Android, a complex process, which invalidates the warranty and can damage the mobile, so it is not a viable option for the vast majority of users.
This is what the two applications look like:
Identifying the app visually is difficult, perhaps the fastest and safest procedure is to enter the Play Store and check if Google Phone is installed . It can be done from this route:
Play Store -> Side menu -> My apps and games -> Installed -> Google phone
If Google Phone appears, there is no doubt. If it does not appear, the mobile uses MIUI dialer , since Xiaomi’s own app is not shown in the Play Store list.
Record a one-time call (MIUI dialer)
If we only want to record a specific call , not store all our telephone conversations, the process is very simple. We do not even have to activate it before we start talking, it is possible to register the call at any time.
These are the steps from Xiaomi phones:
- When we are on a call, the screen will show a “Record” icon shaped like a cassette tape, which we must press to start recording. The icon is enabled the moment the other person answers the call:
- The symbol will turn blue and a timer will indicate the recording time it takes:
- It is possible to click on the icon again and the recording will stop , this allows us to record as many fragments as we want, although it may be more convenient to save everything and then cut the parts of the audio that interest us with an external app.
- The call will be stored in the Recorder app that all Xiaomi phones bring, upon entering we will click on the icon with three horizontal lines that appears on the right:
- In addition to the voice notes that we have been able to make, we will have a “Recorded calls” section , where we have to access:
- By clicking on the “Play” icon (arrow pointing to the right) the audio will begin to play:
In this way, if we think it is worth saving a conversation, it will be possible to start recording on the fly.
Record all calls automatically (MIUI dialer)
Xiaomi phones with MIUI dialer give us the option to record all conversations automatically, generating files of a fairly small size , so we will not fill the memory of the mobile in a short time.
This is how you can activate this option:
- We open the Phone app and click on “Call settings” (the gear-shaped icon) in the upper right corner:
- We access the “Call recording” section :
- Activate “Auto record calls” , “Call record notification” setting is optional:
- By default the conversations of all the numbers will be stored , if we want it is possible to choose “Selected number” and indicate specific contacts, including or not the cases in which they call us from a hidden or private number .
- As in the previous example, all sound files are stored in the Recorder app included in Xiaomi smartphones.
What if I have a Google Phone?
Unfortunately, if our mobile does not have MIUI dialer, we suffer the same restrictions as any Android , and installing it will not allow recording calls, unless we carry out the complex and risky process of root the terminal.
Therefore, we recommend downloading apps like ACR or CallApp , which use various tricks to store the other person’s voice, although the quality is not always good.
We know that in the future Google Phone will allow recording calls in countries where it is legal, but the functionality is being activated slowly, and for now its arrival in Spain and Latin America has no specific date.
The underlying problem is that call recording has a very different legal situation in each country , and in some cases they are even affected by local regulations. This to Xiaomi, a Chinese company, does not seem to worry too much.
Instead, Google is based in the state of California (USA), where recording calls is illegal. Currently in Spain it is legal to record conversations, even without notifying the other party, so this limitation of Android is a nuisance to us.
Of course, recording in Spain is allowed, but subsequent dissemination can be a crime. Calls are sometimes accepted in legal proceedings (especially labor) as valid evidence, but in the rest of the uses it is best to inform us well.
In conclusion, recording calls on a Xiaomi can be easy or difficult depending on the mobile software , although it is even more complicated to record voice calls on WhatsApp , since the messaging application puts many limitations.
