Changing a smartphone is often perceived as a stressful process, especially when it comes to moving gigabytes of photos, important contacts and app settings. Samsung device owners who choose to move to the Xiaomi ecosystem often face the unobvious nuances of how MIUI or HyperOS shells work. Fortunately, a bundle of Android and Google services makes this process as smooth as possible, using cloud synchronization as the main bridge between devices.
Using a Google account is the most reliable way to migrate, as it is not dependent on specific branded utilities that can conflict when you connect directly with a cable.This method ensures that your contacts, calendars, notes and even passwords from Chrome will be in a new place immediately after authorization.
In this article, we will take a closer look at each step of preparation and synchronization, focusing on the points where users often make mistakes, learn how to force upload data to the server and how to properly configure a new Xiaomi phone so that it “sees” all your old data.
Preparing Samsung devices for synchronization
The first step is to carefully check the settings on your current Samsung smartphone.Don’t rely on automatic default settings, as they often offer to save traffic and sync only basic data.You need to manually make sure that all important partitions are tagged for transfer to the cloud.
Go to the settings menu and find Accounts and Archiving (or just Users and Accounts in older versions of One UI) and it shows all the connected services. Select your primary Google account. Inside you will see a list of services: Contacts, Kalenkar, Keep Notes, Drive, and others. Make sure the switches opposite the desired items are active.
Special attention should be paid to photos and videos, as they take up the most space and often do not sync through the standard system contact mechanism.
- 📸 Open the Google Photos app and click on the profile avatar in the corner, then select “Photo Service Settings».
- ☁️ Activate Autoboot and Sync and select High Quality to save space or Original to keep the full detail.
- 📶 Make sure that the settings are limited to “Wi-Fi only” so as not to waste mobile traffic of the operator.
⚠️ Note: If you have Data Savings enabled in your Android settings, syncing large amounts of photos may be suspended. temporarily disable this feature or connect to a stable Wi-Fi network before starting the process.
Once all the switches have been activated, go back to the Google account management menu and click on Sync or Sync Now. Wait until the last sync status is updated to the current time, ensuring that the server has received the current version of your data.
Setting up a Google account on the new Xiaomi
When you first turn on a new Xiaomi smartphone, the system will prompt you to choose a language and connect to Wi-Fi. At the welcome stage, you will be prompted to log in to an existing account or create a new one. This is where the magic of portability occurs: when you enter data from your Google account, the phone will automatically tighten contacts, calendar events and the list of installed apps.
A MIUI shell or a new HyperOS may insistently suggest you create or sign in to a Mi Account. While it’s useful for finding a device and working with the Xiaomi cloud, logging in to a Google profile is critical to transferring data from Samsung. Don’t skip this step and create a new account if you already have an old one associated with the previous phone.
If you have already set up your phone as new and missed the initial setup step, don’t worry. You can add an account manually through the settings menu. Go to Settings → Accounts and Sync (the path may vary slightly depending on the software version). Click Add Account and select the Google logo.
During the login process, Google's security system may request login confirmation, check notifications on other devices, or enter the code that came via SMS. Once logged in, the system will ask what data to sync, and leave all switches active, especially Contacts and Calendar.
☑️ Check synchronization on Xiaomi
Transfer of photos and multimedia
Photos and video are the largest part of data, and it requires special attention. Unlike contacts that weigh kilobytes, media files take up gigabytes. The Google Photos sync mechanism we set up on Samsung starts working on the new Xiaomi as soon as you install the app and log in.
You don't have to manually transfer files over a computer or cable. Just open the Google Photos app on a new device. If you've used High Quality mode, your images will appear in the tape almost instantly. If you've chosen storage in Original, the process can take longer depending on the speed of the Internet.
It’s important to understand the difference between a local gallery and a cloud. Xiaomi has the default Gallery app, which only shows what’s stored in the phone’s memory. To see all old photos from Samsung, you either have to wait for them to download from the cloud or use the Google Photos app as the main gallery.
How much space does Google give you for free?
For users who need to keep the original quality and folder structure (e.g. screenshots separately, camera photos separately), it is recommended to use the “Free space” function on an old phone only after a full check on a new one. DCIM/Camera via file manager if some images are not displayed in the cloud.
Migration of applications and their data
One of the key features of Android is the ability to restore the list of installed applications. When you log into the Google Play Store on the new Xiaomi, the system offers to restore the applications used on the previous device.
But here lies an important nuance: only the app’s “shortcut” is restored, but not always its internal content; banking apps, messengers and social networks will require separate authorization; and to transfer the history of correspondence to WhatsApp or Telegram, you need to use their built-in backup functions to Google Drive.
In the case of WhatsApp, the process is as follows: on Samsung, go to Settings → Chats → Backup and click “Create a Backup.” On Xiaomi, when you first start WhatsApp, you will prompt you to restore data from the cloud. Make sure you use the same phone number and the same Google account.
| Type of data | Transfer method | nuance |
|---|---|---|
| Contacts | Synchronization of Google | Instantly, it requires the Internet. |
| Photo/Video | Google Photo | Depends on Wi-Fi speed and tariff |
| Annexes | Google Play Store | Requires re-entry into accounts |
| Passwords. | Google Autocomplete | You need to turn it on in the security settings. |
Some Samsung system applications, such as S Health (now Samsung Health) or Bixby, have no analogues or full versions on Xiaomi. For health, you can try installing the app through third-party sources, but data synchronization can be disrupted. It is better to export health data in CSV or PDF format in advance if this information is critical to you.
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Before uninstalling Samsung apps, make sure you remember passwords from important services.Samsung password managers may not sync directly with Google Password Manager without additional export.
Synchronization solution and errors
Despite the smoothness of Google’s mechanisms, there may be technical failures in the process of migrating from Samsung to Xiaomi, often when users are faced with a situation where contacts do not appear, or synchronization is “hangs” during the boot phase, this may be due to a conflict of Android versions or the features of the power saving MIUI.
If contacts don’t show up, open the Contacts app on Xiaomi, go to the display settings and make sure that the checkmark is opposite your Google account, not just Phone or SIM. Sometimes the system by default hides cloud contacts to speed up work.
Another common problem is aggressive energy saving: Xiaomi can kill Google’s sync process as a battery-consuming background task, so to avoid this, find the battery in the settings, select Google Play Services and Sync, and set Unlimited mode.
⚠️ Note: When transferring two-factor authentication (2FA) Be careful.If you use Google Authenticator, make sure to back up your code or move your accounts through QR-code before you reset your old phone, or you may lose access to your accounts.
It’s also worth checking the date and time. If a new device is running an incorrect time zone or time, security certificates will prevent you from connecting to Google servers. Set up automatic network time synchronization in the Settings menu → Additional → Date and Time.
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The main reason for the sync problems on Xiaomi is the aggressive MIUI power saving settings that block the background work of Google services. Always check the permissions for Google Play Services.
Alternative methods and final recommendations
If the cloud method through a Google account for some reason is not suitable (for example, slow Internet or crowded cloud), you can use a wired connection. When you initially set up Xiaomi will offer to copy data from another device. By connecting Samsung with a USB-C cable to USB-C (or via an OTG adapter), you can transfer data directly.
However, the method through Google account remains the most “clean” as it rids the new phone of junk files and cache that could have accumulated on the old Samsung over the years of use.
After a successful transfer, take your time to reset your old phone to factory settings. Use the new Xiaomi for a couple of days, check if all the numbers are in place, if the apps are working. Only when you make sure that you're fully functional can you format your Samsung device.
Remember that moving to a new ecosystem takes time to get used to. HyperOS’s shell offers many customization tools that were missing from One UI. Explore widgets and control center capabilities to make smartphone use even more comfortable.