Xiaomi Mi A2 known issues, and how to solve them

Affordable devices are indeed getting competitive. After Xiaomi Mi A1 had a lot of success, a successor was expected. And that successor comes in another Android One handset called, you guessed, Mi A2. Overall, this device is one of the best in the market in its range, as it offers plenty of goods for a budget price. However, there are some minor isolated Xiaomi Mi A2 issues and we made sure to bring them out and provide solutions.

This is a great handset but if you’re stuck with a problem, the list below should help you address it. The explanation for the more complex troubleshooting steps can be found at the bottom of this article.

Table of contents:

• Touchscreen latency issue
• Battery consumption issue
• Bluetooth bug issue
• Wi-Fi issues
• Slow RAM
• Signal reception issue
• Videos reproduction issue
• Lags and freezes
• Random Reboots
• Yellowish screen tint
• GPS issues
• Overheating issue
• Black Screen in some apps
• Adaptive brightness issue
• The device doesn’t receive OTA updates

1: Touchscreen latency issue

Let’s start with the screen. This seems to apply to multiple recently-introduced Xiaomi handsets. Namely, users experienced problems with a ghost touch, unresponsive multitouch, or touchscreen latency. These are a mixed bag, as sometimes the problem occurs due to hardware, while other times the software is doing a bad job.

Since the problem commonly appears while gaming (mostly in PUBG), we can safely assume that there are some tweaks you can try out and resolve the problem.

Here’s what you need to do:

• Reboot your device.
• Remove the tempered glass.
• Run the device in safe mode.
• Update the device.
• Reset the device to factory settings.

2: Battery consumption issue

This is one of the rare downsides of the Mi A2. The battery capacity is barely enough to feed the large LCD and the Snapdragon 660. This, of course, substantially affects the Screen-On-Time on this device. However, this 3000 mAh is not as bad as one would assume. But, the heavy depletion during the idle mode is certainly unusual.

For that reason, we have a few tips for you which should help you extend the battery life on the Mi A2:

• Open Developer options and disable Mobile Data always on.
• Prevent some secondary apps from working in the background.
• Disable Wi-Fi and Bluetooth overnight.
• Reset the device to factory settings.
• Use Greenify or any other third-party application to limit the background processes.

3: Bluetooth bug issue

Because the Mi A2 comes without the 3.5-inch headphone jack, you’ll either need to use an adapter or Bluetooth headphones. And the latter option seems to be a difficulty for some users, as the Bluetooth won’t work as specified. Supposedly, the Bluetooth either disconnects frequently or users are unable to connect in the first place.

We have a few ways you can tackle this, and make sure to check them out below:

• Remove pairing and establish it again. Navigate to Settings >Bluetooth and delete all paired devices. Pair the handset with the device again and try again.
• Reset Network settings. Open Settings > System > Reset Network Settings.
• Disable Automatic pairing. Pair individually with a device when you want to use it.
• Boot into safe mode and try connecting via Bluetooth.
• Update the system.
• Reset your phone to factory settings.

4: Wi-Fi issues

Wi-Fi on this device is not exactly the fastest. In addition, it has a short reach so the connection tends to slow down gradually the further you’re from the router. Additionally, users had a hard time connecting to a 5 GHz wireless band. Besides those, the connection is unstable, and disconnecting is a common thing for some users.

There’s only so much one can do regarding the aforementioned problems, but we can try and improve the Wireless connection a bit. Here’s what you can try:

• Delete all networks and try reconnecting.
• Disable Always On for Mobile Data in Developer options.
• Restart your router.
• Reset App preferences.
• Reset Network settings. Open Settings > System > Reset Network Settings
• Wipe the cache partition.
• Reset the device to factory settings.

5: Slow RAM

If you look it up, there are more than enough signs that the RAM on the Mi A2 is rather slow. That’s, seemingly, not the case for all users but some who had run the benchmark tests with Antutu had quite underwhelming results.

This might be a temporary bug and it should be addressed in one of the future updates. In addition, make sure to disable everything in the background before you run the RAM benchmark test.

6: Signal reception issue

As some reports state, the cellular signal reception was nice until the September security update. Then it dropped down considerably and this can affect the call quality. This also can lead to major HSDPA or 4G spikes or disconnections.

Here’s what you need to do to fix this problem:

• Reboot your device.
• Check the SIM card placement. Make sure the SIM card is active.
• Reset Network settings.
• Delete Access Points in Settings > Network & Internet > Mobile network. The default carrier Acess Point should appear so assign it and look for changes.

7: Videos reproduction issue

The problem with video reproduction when streaming videos or playing from local storage seems to be the thing. The videos come out grainy or pixelated and that’s also the case after the September security update.

To address this, we suggest taking some of these steps:

• Clear the cache from the app (e.g. YouTube, Twitch, etc.).
• Disable Adaptive brightness.
• Wipe the cache partition.
• Update the device.
• Reset the device to factory settings.

8: Lags and freezes

This handset offers one of the best CPUs in the rank, with the Snapdragon 660 being a display of power and consistency. However, that’s not always the case and we have software to blame for that. Or overheating.

Either way, the reported issues mostly occur during gaming sessions, and we all know that some modern games can be demanding. However, lags in the user interface and the resource-easy apps shouldn’t be a thing, and that’s where we suggest some tweaks.

Here’s what you can do to speed up the Mi A2 and reduce lags and stutters:

• Clear the cache from the app which freezes the most.
• Disable apps from working in the background. Greenify should serve the purpose.
• Update your device for a possible update fix.
• Reset app preferences.
• Wipe the cache partition.
• Reset your device to factory settings.

9: Random Reboots

When we collect the data and write these kinds of ample issue roundups, we tend to avoid the custom ROM issues. Flashing ROMs on their own is already a journeymen’s action and the issues which might occur are probably well-known to all advanced users. So, random reboots occur mostly when the stock Android ROM is replaced by the custom ROM.

So, if you’ve done something similar, we suggest reflashing the stock ROM and sticking with it for some time. This device is more than interesting for the developer’s community and we’re sure that soon we’ll have stable versions of all fan-favorite custom ROMs. Including the MIUI port for Mi A2.

10: Yellowish screen tint

The thing with LCD screens is that they don’t have the same warmth. Some are bluish while others tend to be yellowish. And that’s the thing, check it up. Two devices with the same product number might have a different LCD and thus the disparity between the LCD temperature.

In Xiaomi’s case, there are two different LCDs with code names Tianma and Illitek (their respective manufacturers). Tianma is cooler while Ilitek is warmer. You can check which is placed on your device by dialing  “##6484##“.

With that in mind, you can also check whether your Nightlight is turned on and disable it. It might be the reason for the yellow tint we’re referring to.

11: GPS issues

The GPS issues are rare on the Mi A2. And judged on the results of many reviewers and user reports, the GPS is quite precise on this AndroidOne handset. However, sometimes it stops working for an unknown reason and that’s observable when using Google Maps, Waze, or similar apps which are dependent on GPS to determine your location.

On the other hand, the problem might be general and not specific to Mi A2. To resolve it, follow these steps:

• Test GPS with the GPS Test app.
• Make sure that the High accuracy is set in Location settings.
• Clear apps cache.
• Reinstall the app.
• Reboot the device.
• Wipe the cache partition.
• Reset the device to factory values.

12: Overheating issue

Overheating is another general problem, a problem that is common for all devices with powerful chipsets. In addition, Mi A2 utilizes Quick Charge 3.0 which will charge your battery fast but will heat the device a bit. And, that’s why using your handset while charging isn’t the best idea.

Also, we suggest removing the casing if you enjoy intensive gaming, as this will also work towards the higher working temperature.

13: Black Screen in some apps

Some users also experienced black screens in certain third-party apps. While one group had black boxes pop up randomly on the screen, for others the whole screen went black (e.g. official Twitter app). There seems to be a bug at hand and seemingly, the September update fixed this.

However, if the problem persists and it tackles only one app you can single out, follow these steps to try and resolve this:

• Reinstall the app.
• Allow the required app permissions.
• Restart your device.

14: Adaptive brightness issue

The Adaptive Brightness and the behavior of the ambient light sensor are touchy subjects when it comes to Xiaomi’s Android One handsets. These are scarce problems but some users had a hard time with the automatic adaptive brightness which is underperforming.

For that reason, we have a few suggestions for you which should help you improve it:

• Disable Adaptive brightness and restart your device. Re-enable it again.
• Clean the front-facing top bezel where the sensor resides.
• Disable Adaptive brightness and use a third-party app.

15: The device doesn’t receive OTA updates

And, finally, the last place is reserved for the alleged inability to get the OTA updates on Mi A2. Some users said that they haven’t got the August or September updates via the Over-the-Air update protocol.

If that’s the case for you, try out some of these steps:

• Check for updates manually.
• Restart your device.
• Wait for some time. Your device might be assigned to another region and thus the delay in the OTA distribution.

That’s a wrap. If you know of any additional problems or have questions regarding the ones we posted, feel free to tell us in the comments section below. We look forward to hearing from you. Thanks for reading.