Personalizing a phone book is not just a matter of aesthetics, it's an important aspect of easy communication. When a caller's image appears on the lock screen, you instantly know who's trying to contact without even reading the name. For owners of Xiaomi and Redmi smartphones, this process has its own peculiarities related to the shell of MIUI or the new HyperOS. The standard contact interface here differs from "pure" Android, offering advanced editing capabilities.
In this article, we will go into detail about all the ways to install avatars, from simply downloading from a gallery to creating a snapshot directly in the application. You will learn how to edit existing records and why photos may not be saved when synchronized. The main advantage of Xiaomi is the ability to edit contacts in several accounts at once, if you choose the right display group. Let's start with the basic principles of the application.
The intuitive interface allows you to do a task in a few seconds, but there are nuances that not everyone knows about, such as how well a picture is displayed depends on the resolution of the original file and the compression settings. It is also important to understand the difference between local data storage and synchronization through Google Account or Mi Cloud, which affects whether you see a photo when you change device.
Preparation for the installation of avatars: requirements and formats
Before you start editing the phone book, you should make sure that your image meets the technical requirements of the system. While modern Xiaomi smartphones have powerful graphics processing processors, using excessively heavy files can slow down the contact interface. JPEG or PNG reasonable-sized.
The system automatically frames the uploaded photo into a circle, so it is important to consider the composition of the frame. The face or main object should be in the center, so that when trimming the angles, important information is not lost. If you plan to use a quality photo, make sure that it is stored in the device memory, not only in cloud storage with space saving mode.
⚠️ Note: Images with transparent background (format) PNG) You can see black or white backgrounds depending on the theme of your Redmi. For best results, use a photo with a monochromatic or blurred background.
For a comfortable experience, it is recommended to prepare a folder with avatars in the gallery in advance, which will save time if you decide to update the phone book as a whole, and also check if the Contacts and Gallery apps have the necessary permissions to access the device's memory. Without this, the system simply will not allow you to select the desired image from the list of files.
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Use square images or photos with a central location of the object – this minimizes losses when automatically framing into a round avatar.
Basic method: add a photo from the gallery
The most common and simple method is to download the finished image from your smartphone memory, which is suitable if you already have a suitable photo in the album. The algorithm is the same for most versions of the MIUI shell and is relevant for HyperOS. First, you need to open the standard Contacts app or go to the phone book through the call menu.
Find the right person in the list and click on their name to go to the card. If the record already exists, but without the photo, you will see a standard gray icon with the letter of the name or the silhouette of the person. At the top of the screen, where the photo is usually located, there may be a small edit button or a camera icon. In some versions of the firmware, you first need to click the "Change" button (often looks like a pencil) to activate the editing fields.
Once you activate the editing mode, click on the avatar area. The system will suggest the source choice: take a picture or choose from the gallery. Choose the second option. The file manager or gallery will open where you want to find the saved image. After selecting the photo, the system will suggest cropping it, moving the frame or zooming.
- 📱 Open the Contacts app and find the desired entry in the list.
- ✏️ Press the "Change" button (pencil) or immediately touch the avatar area.
- 🖼️ Select the option "Select from the gallery" and find the desired photo.
- ✅ Confirm the choice by framing and click "Save" or "Done".
If you have multiple accounts (for example, SIM-Map, Google and Mi Account, select the one used for sync, which ensures that the photo will not disappear after resetting or logging into the account from another device.
☑️ Pre-conservation checks
Creating a contact from scratch with a photo
Adding a new subscriber is a constant situation, in which you can create an avatar record immediately, bypassing the editing phase. The process of creating a new contact on Xiaomi has its own peculiarities depending on where you save the number. The MIUI shell allows you to flexibly manage data sources.
To start, open the contact app and click the "+" or "Create Contact" button. You'll see the fill-in form. At the top of the form, there's a photo box. Unlike some other systems, you can immediately click on the camera icon to take a picture, or the gallery icon to upload a file. This speeds up the process, because it doesn't require you to save the photo to the album beforehand.
Once you select or create an image, fill in the remaining fields: name, phone number, email address. Pay special attention to the "Save in" field. By default, the system can offer a save on the "Save in" field. SIM-a card that limits the functionality (on SIM-The card often cannot be saved or it will be of poor quality.
| Preservation site | Photo support | Synchronization | Contact limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Account | High quality | Automatic. | No restrictions. |
| Telephone (Localno) | High quality | Absent. | Depends on memory. |
| SIM-map | No or low. | No. | 250-500 pcs. |
| Mi Account | High quality | Automatic. | No restrictions. |
Fill in all the fields and click Save, you create a full subscriber card. If you choose to save on Google, the photo will automatically upload to the cloud and be available on tablets, watches or other smartphones where you log in, which is especially useful for those who change devices frequently.
Why is the photo not saved to SIM-map?
Using a camera for instant photography
The on-the-fly avatar feature is especially useful when the subscriber is near you, and you want to immediately add it to the phone book with the current photo. Redmi and Xiaomi have quick access to the camera directly from the contact interface, which eliminates the need to take the photo separately, search for it in the gallery and then upload it.
To take advantage of this feature, go to the mode of creating a new contact or editing an existing one. Tap the camera icon in the avatar area. The application will request permission to use the camera if it was not given earlier. Then the viewfinder will open. You can take a picture to the front or main camera by switching the corresponding button on the screen.
The system will offer multiple shooting modes, including a portrait mode with background blur, which is ideal for avatars. Once the photo is taken, you will see a framing screen. Here you can choose which part of the face to leave in the circle. Once confirmed, the image will be instantly applied to the contact. This method ensures that the photo is relevant and corresponds to the current appearance of the person.
⚠️ Note: When using a front camera in poor lighting, the photo can be noisy. For better quality, use the main camera, even if you have to deploy the phone.
It’s worth noting that when shooting through the contact app, some of the filters or Beautify settings that are available in a standard camera may not apply. If you want to maximize image processing, it’s best to take a photo first through the main camera app, edit it and then upload it to the contacts, as described in the previous sections.
Editing and removing existing avatars
Situations where you need to replace an old photo with a new one or remove an image altogether occur regularly. The editing process on Xiaomi makes it easy to make changes to existing records. It is important to understand that replacing a photo does not create a duplicate contact, but only updates the graphic information in the card.
To replace, open the contact card and click the Change button (usually the pencil icon at the bottom or top of the screen). Find the current avatar image. When you click on it, the system will suggest options: take a new picture or select from the gallery. When you select a new file, you will replace the old one. The old image will be deleted from the contact memory, but will remain in the gallery if it was downloaded from there.
If your goal is to delete the photo completely, leaving only text, the algorithm is slightly different. In editing mode, click on an avatar, select a source (for example, a gallery), but instead of selecting a new photo, find the delete button. Often it is represented by a basket or cross icon in the corner of the thumbnail. In some versions of MIUI, you just need to select an empty square or click "Delete Photo" in the context menu with a long press.
- 🔄 Open the contact and click "Change" to enter the edit mode.
- 🗑️ Click on the avatar and select the delete option (basket) or simply replace the file.
- 💾 Please click "Save" or the changes will not apply.
- 🔍 Check your contact list to make sure the photo is gone or updated.
After the photo is removed, the contact icon will return to its standard appearance with a letter of name on a colored background.The background color is usually generated automatically by the system based on the contact name and can change with each update of the list, unless manually fixed in some launchers.
Problems with displaying and synchronizing photos
Xiaomi and Redmi users often face a situation where a photo added to a phone doesn't show up when you call or disappears after you reboot. Most often this is due to sync settings or app cache. MIUI's shell has an aggressive energy saving system that can limit the background work of contacts.
The first thing to check is the source of the contact. SIM-You can go to the contact settings and select Import/Export to move the records to your phone or Google Account. In the contact menu (three dots or hamburger menu), select Contacts to Display and make sure that the “All Contacts” checkbox is ticked or the account you want is selected.
The second common cause is a crowded app cache. Go to Settings → Apps → All apps → Contacts. Click Clear cache. Don't confuse it with Clear data, as this can delete local settings, although the contacts themselves should be restored when synchronized. After clearing the cache, restart the device.
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If the photo is missing after the system update, check the permission settings for the Contacts app – it is possible that access to the storage was reset.
In rare cases, the problem is in the file format. If you uploaded a photo in HEIC (from iPhone) or WebP format, the system may not be able to process it correctly for the avatar. Convert the image to a standard JPG before download. Also make sure that the device has the latest security update, as Xiaomi regularly releases patches that fix graphics display bugs.