Xiaomi restricts its phones from installing Google Mobile Services
Till today Xiaomi phones sold in China don’t come pre-installed with Google Mobile Services (GMS). The reason is simple; Google is banned in China. But even at that, the company allows its users to side-load these apps. They do so by installing the Google play store from the company’s GetApps store. However, according to the latest report, Xiaomi phones have been restricted from installing Google Mobile Services.
“Google Mobile Services (GMS) is a collection of Google applications and APIs that help support functionality across devices. These apps work together seamlessly to ensure your device provides a great user experience right out of the box.”
Many users have been unable to install the GMS after updating to the latest iteration of MIUI – MIUI 12.5. At first, it was thought to be a bug, but that’s not the case. The company has confirmed the restriction, saying it’s due to compliances. Hence, all their phones that don’t come pre-installed with Google framework won’t download or side-load GMS. And while that isn’t surprising, as phones sold in China don’t support GMS, it’s a big blow for users who buy their phones from China.
The company has since removed the Google play services app from its official GetApps store. Before the recent development, you can install GMS from Xiaomi’s GetApps app. However, a quick stop at the popular app store shows the app has been removed. It means you can’t download the app from there again, but that’s for the Chinese ROM users.
For all Xiaomi users running the global ROM, the company hasn’t restricted Google Mobile Services. You would be able to install these Google apps on your device. However, we hope the restriction remains in China and not extended to Global users, given the recent US ban. That’s unlikely, though. The ban, as it stands now, won’t affect Xiaomi’s supply chain.
