Changing a smartphone is always stressful, not so much the loss of a familiar gadget as the risk of losing the data accumulated over the years. Owners of the Xiaomi ecosystem are in a favorable position, as the company has developed powerful tools for migration, allowing you to clone an old phone to a new one in a matter of minutes. The process has become so automated that it requires minimal user intervention, but knowing the nuances will help avoid common mistakes.
In this article, we will take a look at all the ways you can transfer information, from Mi Mover, to cloud services and manual copying, and how to keep folder structure, Wi-Fi passwords, and even desktop icons, all of which are important to properly prepare both devices for the procedure so that data transfers can be done without failures or loss of file quality.
Preparing devices for data migration
Before starting any operation to clone information, you need to conduct basic training of both smartphones. Make sure that the old device (Source) and the new (Target) battery is at least 50-60%, as active file transfer over Wi-Fi Direct can quickly consume energy.
A critical step is to update the system software on both devices to the latest available version. MIUI and HyperOS developers are constantly optimizing transmission protocols, and using older versions of firmware can lead to connection errors or incorrect display of contacts. Check the updates in the Settings menu → About the phone → MIUI version.
⚠️ Note: If you plan to migrate data from your iPhone to Xiaomi, make sure that your Apple device has disabled two-factor authentication for some services or has a password for iCloud, as iOS has stricter file system access restrictions.
Don’t forget to check for free space. The amount of data on the receiving device should be more than the amount of information you can carry. If you move from a 64GB model to a 128GB model, there won’t be any problems, but switching from 256GB to 128GB will require media pre-cleaning or selective transfer.
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Before starting the transfer, restart both smartphones, which will clear the cache of network modules and ensure a stable Wi-Fi Direct connection during the procedure.
Using the Mi Mover application for wireless transfer
The most efficient and quickest way to migrate is to use the built-in Mi Mover app, which creates a direct Wi-Fi connection between devices without consuming mobile internet traffic and providing high speeds for transferring large amounts of data, such as videos and photos in the original resolution.
To start the process on the new Xiaomi smartphone, you need to open the application through the settings menu or find it in the Tools folder. Select the role “I’m a recipient”. On the old device, whether it is another Android or iPhone, Mi Mover also runs (on Android it is often built-in, on iOS it is downloaded from the App Store), and the role “I’m a sender” is selected.
- 📱 It'll appear on the new phone. QR-code that needs to be scanned by the camera of the old pairing device.
- 📂 After connecting, select data categories to copy: images, contacts, messages, applications and system settings.
- 🚀 Click the “Send” button and wait for the process to be completed without turning off the smartphone screens.
The utility allows you to flexibly adjust port options. You can eliminate certain folders or file types if you do not want to clutter a new phone with old garbage. Mi Mover also can automatically install applications whose installation packages (.apk) have been moved, saving time on manual download from the store.
☑️ Checklist before Mi Mover launch
It is important to note that when you migrate applications, their data (logins, game progress, cache) is not always copied, depending on the security policy of the particular application and the Android version. Banking applications and instant messengers like WhatsApp or Telegram often require a separate authorization and recovery procedure from backup.
Synchronization through the cloud service Xiaomi Cloud
An alternative to direct connectivity is using Xiaomi Cloud cloud storage.This method is ideal if you don't have physical access to both phones at the same time or if you want to set up a new phone from scratch just by logging in to your account.
To activate the function, log in to Settings → Mi Account on your old device. In Cloud, select the backup data types: contacts, notes, voice recorder, messages and schedule. Once sync is enabled, the data will automatically be uploaded to the manufacturer's servers.
| Type of data | Free storage limit | Recovery speed | Commentary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contacts/Notes | 5GB (total) | Instantly. | Synchronized in the background |
| Photos and videos | 5GB (total) | Depends on the Internet. | Requires the inclusion of the Gallery in the cloud |
| Annexes | Not counted. | Medium | Only the list and APK are saved. |
| System settings | Not counted. | Fast. | Restores wallpaper and calls |
On the new smartphone, you just need to log into the same Mi Account, and the system will offer to restore data from the last backup, which is especially convenient for restoring contacts and system settings, such as alarms and passwords from Wi-Fi networks, which are stored in encrypted form.
⚠️ Note: The region of your Mi Account must match. If you created an account in the “Russia” region and the new phone initially set up with “China”, your data will not appear in the cloud until the region changes in the settings.
What to do if the cloud is full?
Transferring data with Google Account
Google’s ecosystem provides another robust migration channel that is especially relevant when switching from any Android smartphone: The bulk of user data — contacts, calendar events, Keep notes and passwords — is stored here, regardless of the phone’s brand.
To take advantage of this method, on the old device in the Settings menu → Google → Backup, you need to initiate the creation of a fresh copy. Make sure that the Google One Data Backup switch is active. This saves application lists, call history and SMS (on new versions of Android).
When you first turn on the new Xiaomi, during the initial setup, the system will prompt you to restore data. Select the option “Cloud Copy” and specify your Google account. The smartphone will download a list of previously installed applications and begin automatically downloading them from Google Play.
- 📧 Contacts and mail will be automatically reached immediately after entering the password.
- 📸 Photos and videos will be restored via Google Photos app if sync was enabled.
- 🔑 Passwords saved in Google Password Manager will be available for autocomplete in Chrome apps and browser.
However, it is worth remembering that Google does not transfer files from internal memory (documents, downloads, music) unless they are in specific application folders. To fully transfer the library, this method must be combined with manual copying or using Mi Mover.
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Google Account is ideal for restoring contacts and app lists, but Mi Mover is better for full system cloning (including files and launcher settings).
Manual copying of files through a computer
For users who are used to controlling every byte of information or have a very large amount of data, the best solution is the classic method of copying through a PC, which allows you to structure files, clean up debris before transferring and create a physical backup of important documents.
Connect your old phone to your computer through USB-cable and select file transfer mode (MTP). Copy the folders. DCIM (photo and video), MIUI (Screenshots and voice recorder, Download and Documents to your computer's hard drive. Then plug in the new Xiaomi and move the data to the appropriate directories.
Structure of folders for manual copying:
/DCIM/Camera - Photo and video
/MIUI/gallery/cloud/secret - Hidden Albums
/Android/data - Application data (requires access rights to new Android)
/Music, /Movies - Media filesWhen you manually copy, pay special attention to hidden files and folders that start with a dot, which can store configurations of some applications, and also remember the Bluetooth folder if you have previously accepted files in this way.
The main advantage of the method is that it is independent of Internet speed and the limitations of cloud storage, and you can transfer hundreds of gigabytes of video archives in the time that it takes only physical copying to disk, without the risk of interruption of the connection.
Features of the transfer of messages and messengers
The migration of correspondence deserves special attention. Standard SMS and MMS are usually carried without problems through Mi Mover or Google tools. However, popular messengers such as WhatsApp, Viber and Telegram have their own backup mechanisms that need to be activated separately.
WhatsApp needs to go to Settings → Chats → Backup Chats and create a copy in Google Drive on your old phone. When you install the app on a new phone and type in the same number, the system will prompt you to restore your correspondence history from the cloud. It is important to use the same Google account.
⚠️ Note: When you migrate WhatsApp between different operating systems (e.g., iOS to Android Xiaomi), a standard Google Drive backup will not work. Use the Data Portability feature inside WhatsApp itself when you first start on a new Android device, following the instructions on the screen.
Telegram works differently: it stores the entire history of correspondence on its servers. You just need to install the application and enter the phone number - all chats, channels and media files (except those marked as "Secret chats") will download automatically. Secret chats are tied to a specific device and are not transferable.