Changing your old smartphone to a new Xiaomi is always accompanied by a desire to start using the device as quickly as possible without wasting time manually entering phone numbers. Many users still store their phone books directly on the phone. SIM-It's a common, but not always convenient, format in the cloud age, and it's the process of transferring that data to internal memory or to a Google account on shell devices. MIUI HyperOS has its own nuances that are important to consider for the correct display of names.
In this article, we will take a look at the algorithm that allows you to safely and quickly transfer all records, learn how to avoid duplicates, fix Cyrillic encoding problems, and why storing numbers in the Google cloud is preferable to storing them on SIM card plastic. Follow the instructions to keep your phone book on hand regardless of changing your device.
It is worth noting that the menu interface may vary slightly depending on the operating system version and regional firmware. However, the basic logic of the Contacts app remains the same for all models, whether it is a budget Redmi or a flagship Xiaomi. Before starting the procedure, make sure that the SIM card is installed in the slot that you plan to use to import data.
Preparation for data transfer and SIM card verification
Before starting the import process, you must make sure the physical health of the information carrier. SIM-The card must be properly installed in the tray of the device. If you just inserted the card into a new smartphone, the system may take a few seconds to read the data and display the network icon in the status bar. PIN-if such protection has been established previously.
It is important to understand the difference between data storage. SIM usually only stores the phone number and contact name, whereas internal memory or account can store email, address, photo and additional numbers. When transferred from plastic, these additional fields can be lost if they were not synchronized before. So importing from SIM is often the last step of migrating from a button phone or a very old smartphone.
⚠️ Note: Before any manipulation of the phone book, it is recommended to back up the current data if the phone already has important numbers in its memory, which will avoid accidental loss of information in the event of a software failure.
Check how much free space is available on the SIM card and in the phone’s memory. Although text data takes up the minimum space, a crowded device memory can cause errors in system applications. Make sure your Google account is active and sync is enabled if you plan to save contacts to the cloud.
📊 Where do you usually keep your contacts?
Nana SIM-map
In the memory of the phone
Google account
Written in a notebook
The most reliable and proven method is to use the built-in Android functionality adapted by Xiaomi engineers. To start, open the standard Contacts app, which has a green icon with a human silhouette. In the lower right corner or in the upper menu (depending on the MIUI version), find the menu button marked with three dots or stripes.
After opening the menu, select "Import / Export contacts" and the system will offer several options, among which we are interested in the option "Import from the Internet". SIM-Click on it, and the phone automatically scans the contents of the SIM card installed, and if you have a dual SIM card device, the system will tell you to choose which card to read the data from.
Then you can select individual records or click "Select All" to transfer the entire phone book at once. After choosing, click "Import" or "Copy" and ask whether you want to save the data in memory, to a Google account or, not recommended, back to SIM (for example, to a second one).
Wait for the process to be completed. It usually takes a few seconds, but if you have hundreds of records, the time can increase. When you're done, you'll see a successful import notification. Now your contacts are available in the main memory of the device and can be synced to the cloud.
Import through system settings of the device
Sometimes direct control through the Contacts app may not be available or work properly due to cache errors, in which case you can use deep system settings, go to the Settings menu and scroll through the list to the System Applications section or find the Contacts item in the general application list.
Inside the contact management menu, find the Import and Export section, and the logic here is similar to the one described above: select the source (SIM-This method is good because it works even in safe mode of the system, when third-party launchers or interface modifications can be disabled.
If you use older versions of MIUI firmware, the path may look different: Settings → Advanced Settings → Backup and Reset → Import / Export contacts. In newer versions of HyperOS, the menu structure has become more logical, but searching for the words “import” in the top line of settings always leads to the desired result.
What happens if the import button is inactive?
If the import option is gray or not pressed, check if the synchronization process is running in the background. SIM-Try to extract the map, wipe the contacts, and paste them again. If you don't, use third-party software. System settings also allow you to manage application access rights. Make sure that the Contacts app is allowed to read the data from the map. SIM-This permission is usually requested at the first start, but after system updates, the rights can be reset. → Annexes → All applications → Contacts → Access rights: Addressing encoding and duplicate problems One of the most common problems in data transfer is encoding violation, where question marks or Krakozyabr are displayed instead of Russian letters. This is due to differences in text encoding standards between different carriers and Android versions. To fix this, it is often enough to simply rename the contact by adding any character and then deleting it - the system will overwrite the entry in the new encoding. Users often encounter duplicates when the same number is written multiple times with different names or recording formats (e.g., the same number is recorded multiple times, +7 and 8). Shell MIUI It has a built-in tool to combine these records, so go to your contacts' settings and select "Combine Repetitive Contacts." It will prompt you to automatically find and merge duplicates. Problem Reasons Solution Instead of Names Question Signs Wrong Encoding SIM Recoding via PC or manual renaming Contacts Not saved Overflowed SIM memory Clear SIM or change the location of saving on Google No numbers Hidden contacts with SIM In the contact menu select "Display" → Duplicate records Synchronize different sources Use the function "Combine duplicates" For mass correction of names, you can use the export contacts to a.vcf file, edit them on your computer and import back. However, this requires a certain technical literacy service to use Google contact data synchronization. This application is preinstalled on all Xiaomi smartphones and allows you not only to store numbers, but also to manage them through a web interface from a computer. SIM-card to your phone, turn on sync. Go to Settings for that. → Accounts and synchronization → Google and make sure that the slider opposite the Contacts item is activated, and once synced, all your numbers will automatically upload to the cloud, ensuring that you don't lose important information when you lose or break your phone. ⚠️ Note: When you enable sync, make sure you select the right Google account. If there are multiple accounts on your device, contacts may be uploaded to the wrong email, making it difficult to restore them to the new device. The advantage of using Google Contacts is the ability to restore deleted numbers. The service stores a history of changes for 30 days.If you accidentally delete an important contact or ruin a phone book when importing, you can "wind back" in the web version of the service and restore the status of the list to the desired date. VCF The.vcf (vCard) format is a universal standard for exchanging contact information. SIM-To do this, select "Export to storage device" or "Save to file" from the import/export menu. The created file can be transferred via Bluetooth, messengers or email. It is very easy to import such a file back: It is enough to open it by any file manager or send it to the messenger and click on the attachment. Android system automatically prompts you to add the contacts contained in the file to the phone book. This is the perfect way to transfer data between phones of different brands..vcf files take up negligible space, so they can be stored for years as an archive, and it is recommended to do this backup before any major changes to the system, resetting or flashing Xiaomi devices. Store a copy on a cloud drive or flash drive. 💡Regular creation of backup copies in the format VCF — This is the only way to ensure that numbers are safe when your smartphone is completely broken when your sync with the cloud has been disabled, and when you're working with files, you need to pay attention to the source of the numbers. Do not open contact files received from unknown senders, as malicious code can theoretically be introduced into the structure of vCard, although in practice such cases are extremely rare and require vulnerabilities in the Android security system. Frequently asked questions (FAQ) Why are contact names displayed as question marks after importation. SIM-The card may use old encoding that modern Android misinterprets. Try renaming one contact by saving it and then deleting it. If it doesn't help, use your computer to read it. SIM-cards through the card reader and converting the file into UTF-8. Can I import contacts directly to WhatsApp or Viber? No, messengers do not have direct access to import from the Internet. SIM-First, you have to import numbers into your Android phone book using the standard methods described above. Once the numbers appear in your phone's contact list, the messengers automatically "see" them and link them to your user accounts. SIM-The map and what to do if there are more? Standard. SIM-The card can hold 250 to 500 records (depending on operator and type of card). If there are more contacts, some of them may not be displayed or imported. In this case, import the available part, then delete the old records from the card. SIM, Free up space for the next batch, or immediately copy everything to the phone's memory if the system allows you to select "All" before copying. SIM-- the card after importing to the phone? - No, during the import (copy) operation, the original data on the phone SIM-They don't disappear. If you want to make room on the SIM card, you'll have to manually delete the contacts through the control menu. SIM-card after successful importation.