How to transfer your phone to another Xiaomi phone: the full guide

Buying a new smartphone always brings mixed feelings: the joy of owning a fresh gadget and a slight panic at the need to transfer all the accumulated data. Owners of the Xiaomi ecosystem are in a favorable position, as the company has developed powerful built-in tools for migration. The process of transitioning to a new device has become as automated as possible, which avoids manual installation of applications and entering passwords from Wi-Fi networks again.

There are several proven methods of cloning information, each of which is suitable for specific use cases: you can use the proprietary Mi Mover utility for fast wireless transmission, take advantage of the capabilities of the Google Drive cloud service, or use local backup. The choice of the specific method depends on the amount of data, the state of the old device and the version of the operating system.

In this article, we will take a detailed look at the algorithms for each method so that you can choose the best option, and careful preparation and follow the instructions ensure that no important contact or photo is lost when you change your device.

Preparing for data migration: checking devices

Before starting the active phase of the transfer, you need to make sure that both smartphones are ready to work. Battery charge on both devices should be at least 60%, as the process can take a considerable time and require a lot of energy. If one of the devices runs out at a critical moment, the transfer of files will be interrupted, which can damage the archives.

It is also important to check for free space on the new Xiaomi.The amount of memory available should exceed the size of the data you plan to transfer from the old phone.

⚠️ Warning: Make sure both devices have Wi-Fi enabled, even if you don't plan to use the internet. Local data transfer often uses direct Wi-Fi connection between gadgets for maximum speed.

Be sure to check the operating system version on both devices. While Mi Mover is compatible with most versions of Android and MIUI, upgrading to the latest available firmware minimizes the risk of software conflicts. Older versions of the OS may not properly handle new backup formats or file structure.

Method 1: Use the Mi Mover application

The most efficient and quickest way to transfer is to use the Mi Mover branded tool.This application is pre-installed on all Xiaomi smartphones with a MIUI shell, but it can also be downloaded from the Google Play store to devices from other manufacturers such as Samsung or Huawei. The main advantage of the method is the ability to transfer not only media, but also system settings, call history and even the location of icons on the desktop.

To start the process, open the application on both devices. On the new smartphone, select Receiver and on the old one, Sender. QR-code or connect to the access point you created. Once you have established the connection, you will see a list of data categories available for transfer.

Select the necessary items: contacts, messages, gallery, applications and system settings. It is important to note that passwords from Wi-Fi and application accounts are only transferable between devices based on MIUI. If you go from "pure" Android, some specific settings may not be copied.

The data transfer speeds over Mi Mover are significantly higher than those over Bluetooth or cloud services, because it uses a direct link, and large video files and heavy games are transferred in minutes without compression of quality.

Method 2: Sync through Google Account

An alternative and universal method is sync via Google account, ideal if you are changing your phone to another manufacturer’s model or if direct connection between devices is not possible, with the focus on cloud storage, which stores contacts, calendar, notes and installed app lists.

On the old device, you need to go to the settings and find the Accounts and Sync section. Make sure your Google account is added and all switches (contacts, calendar, drive) are activated. Click the Sync button to make sure the latest changes are sent to Google servers.

• 📱 Contacts: automatically saved in the cloud and appear on a new phone immediately after login.
• 📸 Photos and Videos: Require a separate setup in the Google Photos app to download in full quality.
• 📝 Notes: If you used Google Keep, they will also pull up automatically.

When you first set up a new Xiaomi, the system will prompt you to restore data from a Google backup, so you can select a restore point by date, which is convenient because it does not require the old phone to be physically present at hand when you set up a new one.

But it has a limit on free storage, with a standard limit of 15GB, which may not be enough to fully clone a system with heavy files, and you’ll have to selectively choose what to upload to the cloud.

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Use the Clean Device feature in Google Photos after successful sync to free up space in the memory of your old phone before selling or transferring it.

Method 3: Local MIUI backup

The third method is aimed at advanced users who want to create a complete cast of the system without using the Internet. The built-in Local Backup in the MIUI shell allows you to create an archive with all the data, including Wi-Fi passwords, alarm clocks and interface settings.

You can find this function by the Settings path. → The phone. → Backup and recovery. Here you create a backup for internal memory or SD-The file that you get is big, so it's convenient to transfer it to your computer through the computer. USB-cable, and then copy to the same directory on the new smartphone.

Once you have transferred the file to your new device, you need to go back to the recovery menu and select the archive you created. The system will offer to unpack the data and apply the settings. This method is especially useful when switching between Xiaomi phones with different versions of Android, where cloud synchronization can behave unsteady.

It is worth considering that the recovery from local copy takes longer than working with Mi Mover, as the process of unpacking many small files is also important that the versions of MIUI on the old and new device are not too different, to avoid configurations.

Hand-over of multimedia and files

Sometimes automated systems can ignore certain folders or file formats, and in such cases manual copying through a file manager or connection to a computer comes to the rescue, and this is true for documents downloaded from messengers or music lying in non-standard directories.

Connect your old phone to your PC in file transfer mode (MTP). Copy the contents of the Download, Documents and Music folders. Then plug in the new Xiaomi and paste the files into the appropriate sections. Don't forget to also check the Android/media folder where modern apps store their data.

For photos and videos that don't make it to Google, you can use a USB-USB cable (if you have an adapter) or a card reader. Direct copying ensures that file metadata, such as the shooting date and geolocation, is kept unchanged.

⚠️ Warning: When manually copying system folders, be careful. Don't carry folders with system application names or cache, this can cause errors in the operation of the new phone.

Solving problems in transfer

There may be unforeseen difficulties in migrating, such as the Mi Mover app may not see the second device, in which case try to turn off the mobile Internet on both phones, leaving only Wi-Fi, and rebooting the wireless module also helps.

If some apps’ icons are missing after being restored from a copy of Google, check if they have been removed from the Play Market store by a developer. Xiaomi’s security systems can block app installation from unknown sources if you migrate APK-Manual files will be required, so installation confirmation will be required.

Passwords are often unsynchronized, and many services will require re-authorization for security reasons, and remember passwords from the main email boxes and social networks in advance so you don't get stuck in the login phase.

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The most reliable result is a combination of methods: use Mi Mover for the system and applications, and Google Photos for the protection of images.