However, as great as the price-to-spec ratio is for the Redmi 5A, truth is that its 2GB RAM and 16GB internal storage won’t be enough in the long run. A few months down the line, you may notice that the phone has slowed down. Sad, isn’t it? It goes without saying that nothing is as annoying as a slow smartphone but, thankfully, there are ways to boost its performance. Here, we have outlined 7 tested ways to speed up your new Redmi 5A.
1. Use Lite Apps
Facebook, Snapchat or Instagram are usually the first apps that we install on our new smartphones. However, the truth is that these apps, especially Facebook, are resource-heavy and hog your phone’s internal memory. This way, not only do they drain battery juice and mobile data but they also make the phone sluggish. Solution? For starters, you can ditch these social media apps altogether. If you think that’s a lame solution (my bad), the answer is lite apps. While Facebook, Messenger or Skype have their official lite version, it isn’t the same for mobile apps such as Instagram or Snapchat. In such scenarios, installing an app like Hermit makes sense. It’s a safe and super-light alternative to original apps. In a nutshell, you replace a 100-MB app with just a 2-MB lite shell app.
2. Use the Memory Card for Pictures
Another cool trick would be to keep the internal memory free of photos. Apps use your phone’s internal memory for installation purposes, hence, more internal memory would obviously translate to having more apps on your phone without slowing the system down. Thankfully, the Redmi 5A offers a nifty option for you to switch the location of the photos taken using the camera app. All you have to do is go to the camera settings and toggle the Save to SD card switch to on.
3. Stay Away From Second Space & Dual Apps
As we said earlier, the Redmi 5A has a great price-to-spec ratio, which means that it’s loaded with all the features of MIUI 9 and Android Nougat. So, apps and features such as Second Space, Dual Apps, and themes are easily available. However, these features seem great only on paper. Built-in apps such as Second Space create a virtually isolated environment, which will hog more internal storage the more apps you add to it. Result? A slow phone. So, even it might seem tempting to have different accounts, it’s best to stay away from these apps in the Redmi 5A.
4. Visit the Deep Clean Feature
Deep Clean is a fairly useful feature in Xiaomi phones. A scaled-down version of Google’s Files Go, this cool feature monitors the system for duplicate images, dormant apps, and huge files. The best thing about this feature is that you can set up a weekly schedule. All you need to do is head over to the Security app and scroll down to Deep Clean and tap on Settings.
5. Install a Light Launcher
Needless to say, Google Play Store is not exactly a desolate wasteland when it comes to launchers. Given that some of them are productivity boosters, it’d only be natural for us to be tempted to get these Android launchers. As with any other app, there are heavy launchers and light launchers. While the 3D-effects and customization of GO Launcher or Lawnchair Launcher are incredible, it’d be best to stick to a lighter apps such as Nova Launcher or Apex Launcher. The latter two are known for their well-balanced power consumption, which would be more than sufficient.
6. Slow Down on Customization
Heavy customization also tends to slow a phone down. Whether it’s the home screen widgets, heavy themes or a slew of live or animated wallpapers, they tend to use background resources to work in a loop. So, if you notice that your Redmi 5A has slowed down, do put a break on the customization spree. In fact, we’d suggest you keep your home screen as clean and lean as possible.
7. Use the Boost Speed Feature
Another cool security feature is Boost Speed. This feature clears the app cache and kills running apps in the process. While killing apps is not recommended on a regular basis, you can do it occasionally before playing a graphics heavy game on the Redmi 5A.
Get the Most Out of Your Redmi 5A
This was how you can speed up Xiaomi’s Redmi 5A. A few tips may seem like a compromise but hey, remember that you will get a faster phone if you follow them. How many of these tips did you already know? Do let us know in comments.
