Switching to a new smartphone, especially the popular Xiaomi Redmi Note 9, is often accompanied by a desire to quickly get started with the device without spending hours restoring old connections. SIM-The list of numbers in the phone book is left blank, because modern operating systems, including the shell, are not available. MIUI, default does not download data from the chip automatically to avoid duplicate records and synchronization conflicts.
The process of transferring information from the operator's card to the device's internal storage is a fundamental skill for any Android gadget owner. Unlike older push-button phones, where everything was stored exclusively on SIM plastic, modern smartphones require competent data management to keep it safe. If you just insert a card into the Redmi Note 9, the numbers will not go anywhere, but will not appear in the call interface without your direct intervention through system settings.
In this article, we will take a look at the nuances of the procedure, explore the potential risks of data loss, and learn how to organize the phone book properly, learn why storing numbers in the Google cloud is preferable to local storage, and how to avoid common errors that can lead to the disappearance of important contacts forever.
Preparation of SIM-card and compatibility check
Before you start importing software tools, you need to make sure that the storage medium is physically healthy. Older SIM cards with a long life can have damaged memory or use an outdated storage standard that modern smartphones can hardly read. If your card was cut from the Mini-SIM format to the size of Nano-SIM manually, there is a risk of damage to the contact platform, which will lead to read errors.
Owners of Xiaomi Redmi Note 9 should pay attention to the card tray: the device supports two Nano SIM cards, but does not have a slot for a microSD card. This means that all imported data will take place in the internal memory of the phone or in the cloud account. Before starting the procedure, it is recommended to remove the tray, gently wipe the SIM card contacts with soft dry cloth and insert it back before a characteristic click.
After the device is turned on, the system may request PIN-If you don't remember this code, it's best not to try and guess it many times, because after three failed attempts, the map will be locked and will require you to do so. PUK-Make sure the network is found and the signal status is displayed at the top status bar, and only after the network icons appear, you can move to the software part of the process.
⚠️ Warning: Never try to extract SIM-Interrupting the reading of the chip memory can lead to irreversible damage to the SIM file system, and it will be impossible to restore numbers even in the service center.
It is also worth checking whether the memory of the SIM card itself is full. The storage limit on older chips is often limited to 250 or 500 records. If there are more numbers, some of them may not have been saved earlier, and when you import, you will see only part of the list.
Navigation through MIUI interface for working with contacts
The MIUI shell installed on the Redmi Note 9 has its own unique menu logic, which may differ from pure Android. To find the necessary tools, the user needs to open the Contacts app, which usually has an orange icon with a human silhouette. In some firmware versions, this application can be combined with Phone, switching between tabs is done by swipe or tap on the corresponding icons at the bottom of the screen.
Inside the Contacts app, you need to find a control menu. Depending on the version of MIUI, it can be located at three points (horizontal ellipsis) in the upper right corner, or caused by long pressing on an empty area of the list. This is where key phone book management functions are hidden, including importing, exporting and cleaning duplicates. The interface can be a little overloaded with advertising recommendations if you haven't disabled them in the system settings.
- 📱 Open the Contacts app on the home screen or in the Tools folder».
- ⚙️ Click on the three dots in the top right corner of the screen to call the context menu.
- 📥 Select “Import Contacts” from the drop-down list.
- 💾 Please indicate as a source «SIM-card 1" or «SIM-Card 2, depending on which slot the card with numbers is installed in.
It is important to understand the difference between local storage and synchronization. When the system offers you to choose a place to save, Xiaomi will offer several options: phone memory, Google account or Mi Account. Choosing the right storage is critical to the further security of your data. Local storage is tied only to this particular device, whereas cloud services allow you to restore the contact book on any gadget after login is entered.
Step-by-step: import data from SIM to Redmi Note 9
The transfer process itself takes only a few seconds, but requires careful attention in the selection stage of the target storage. Once you have selected the source (your SIM card), the system will scan the chip. The list of records found will appear on the screen. If the list is empty, make sure that the map is installed correctly. If the numbers are displayed but look strange (for example, instead of names only numbers or a set of characters), this can indicate a problem with encoding or damage to the data on the map.
The next step is to ask the system to confirm the action, press the Import or OK button, at which point the physical copying of bytes of information from the SIM card chip into the internal memory of the Redmi Note 9 is done. The speed of the process depends on the number of records, but usually does not exceed 10-15 seconds, interruption of the process at this stage is highly undesirable.
☑️ Checklist before import
Once the operation is complete, the system will give you a notification of successful importation, and now your contacts should be visible in the general one. However, if you choose to save your phone memory instead of the cloud, when you reset or break your smartphone, this data will be lost, which is why experts recommend syncing with your Google account immediately after import.
⚠️ Note: When importing contacts with SIM-The cards often lose additional fields such as email addresses, subscriber photos and addresses. the SIM card is technically limited and only stores the name and phone number, so it should not be surprising that after transferring contacts look "impoverished».
Select storage: Google, Mi Account or phone memory
Deciding where to save imported numbers is strategically important. Phone memory is the least reliable option. In the event of a system failure, the need to flash the Redmi Note 9 or the device is stolen, you lose the entire phone book.Mi Account is convenient if you are deeply integrated into the Xiaomi ecosystem, but for most users, Google Contacts remains the best choice.
Using a Google account provides cross-platformity, and your contacts will be accessible from any device, such as a tablet, another Android smartphone, or even a computer in your browser, and Google has powerful algorithms to protect against duplicates and can automatically combine cards of the same people if they were written differently.
| Criteria | Phone memory | Mi Account | Google account |
|---|---|---|---|
| Security of data | Low. | Medium | Tall. |
| Access from other devices | No. | Only Xiaomi. | Any device |
| Recovery on discharge | Impossible. | Automatically. | Automatically. |
| Synchronization with social networks | Limited. | Limited. | Complete. |
To change the default location, go to the Contacts settings, select Settings, and find the Saving Account section. Set your primary Gmail address there, which ensures that all new numbers you add manually or import in the future will immediately go to the cloud.
💡
Check contacts.google.com regularly, where you can quickly find and remove duplicates that may have formed during import using the “Combine and Correct” function.
Removal of duplicates and sorting after importation
A common problem after data transfer is the appearance of duplicates, which happens if you previously saved some numbers to your phone and now added them from a SIM card. MIUI and Google services offer tools for automatically merging such records. In the Contacts app, find Contact Management and select Combine Duplicates.
The system will analyze the list and suggest combining cards with the same phone numbers, which allows you to clear the phone book of visual noise and make navigation easier, but you should be careful: if two different people accidentally have the same number (as happens with input errors in the past), the system can combine them incorrectly.
Also, after importing, it is worth checking the format of the numbers. Sometimes they can be imported from the SIM card without a country code (for example, starting with 8 instead of +7). For the correct operation of messengers like WhatsApp or Viber, as well as for international calls, it is recommended to bring all numbers to a single international format, this can be done through editing the contact or using third-party applications for batch processing.
Solutions to Synchronization Problems and Errors
Sometimes users are faced with a situation where the import has passed, but the contacts are not displayed. Most often the reason lies in the filtering of the display. In the Contacts app, click on three dots and select Display Settings or Contact Filter. Make sure that the checkbox is opposite to All Contacts or the selected account, not just Phone or SIM.
Another common problem is the Google sync error. If numbers don't appear on other devices after importing, check your sync settings. Go to Settings → Accounts and Sync → Google. Make sure the switch opposite Contacts is active. If the red exclamation point is on, try deleting your account and adding it again.
What if the contacts disappeared after the MIUI update?
If the system says "Storage is overcrowded" when trying to import, even though there is space in the phone, it could mean an overflow of the app's cache. → Annexes → All applications → Contacts → Memory and click Clear Cache. Please note: do not confuse with Clear Data, as this can remove local display settings, although the contacts in the cloud will remain intact.
💡
The main secret to stable phone book operation on Xiaomi is to always keep sync with Google on and never store important numbers exclusively on the phone. SIM-map.