How to sync old and new Xiaomi phone

Moving to a new smartphone is always an exciting process, often accompanied by concerns about the safety of personal information. Xiaomi ecosystem owners are in a better position thanks to built-in tools to avoid manually installing dozens of applications and copying files. Proper synchronization of old and new devices takes 15 to 40 minutes depending on the amount of data accumulated.

The main difficulty lies not so much in the transfer process itself, but in the proper preparation of both gadgets: you need to consider the version of the operating system, the availability of free space and the stability of the Wi-Fi connection. Ignoring basic requirements can lead to errors or a significant increase in latency.

In this article, we will discuss in detail the regular migration methods, the features of the Mi Cloud and the nuances of transferring specific data, such as call history and messaging settings. You will learn how to make the process as fast and safe as possible for your digital life.

Preparing devices for data migration

Before the active phase of the transfer, you need to perform a number of preparatory manipulations that are often ignored by users. First of all, make sure that both smartphones are charged at least 60-70%, as the process actively consumes the energy of the radio modules. It is also recommended to restart both devices to clear the cache of system services and ensure stable operation of background processes.

Verification of the operating system is critical. Although the data porting application is backward compatible, work between devices on similar versions of MIUI or HyperOS is much faster and smooth. If an old phone has a very ancient version of Android installed, you may need to update it to the current state first.

⚠️ Note: Do not start the transfer process if one of the devices is connected to a guest Wi-Fi network with a speed limit or a session timeout, as this will cause the connection to break at the most inopportune time.

Free up space on your new smartphone. Even if you bought a memory-saving device, the system and pre-installed apps already take up a significant amount of space, delete unnecessary files or temporarily move them to your computer so that the data is received without interruption.

Using the Mi Mover app for local porting

The most efficient and quickest way to synchronize is to use the proprietary utility Mi Mover. It is preinstalled on all modern smartphones of the brand and allows you to transfer data directly over Wi-Fi channel without consuming Internet traffic. Transfer speeds can reach 20-40 MB / s, which is much faster than cloud methods.

To start the process on your new phone, open the app and select "I'm the recipient" status. QR-On the old gadget, run the same program, select "I'm the sender," and scan the code with the camera. The devices will create a local access point and establish a secure connection.

Once connected, you'll be asked to select data categories to copy, the system will automatically filter compatible files, and you can select contacts, messages, call history, apps, images, videos, music, and even system settings.

• 📱 Annexes: transmitted by themselves APK-files and, in most cases, their data, but banking applications will require re-authorization.
• 📸 Media files: Photos and videos are copied in original quality without compression, saving the metadata of the shooting.
• ⚙️ Settings: portable alarm clock settings, blacklist, Wi-Fi passwords and the location of icons on the desktop.

It's important to keep the device screens on, and if the transmission is interrupted by 99%, don't panic - modern versions of the protocol can restart the boot from the stop, rather than start over.

Sync with Mi Cloud and Xiaomi account

Cloud sync is a great addition to local porting, or the main method if the old phone is no longer available.Mi Cloud allows you to store contacts, notes, voice recordings and a gallery in secure storage, and when you log in to your account on a new device, this data will be automatically pulled up.

To activate the function, go to Settings → Xiaomi Account → Mi Cloud. You need to activate switches for the desired data categories. Please note that free storage is limited to 5 GB, so a full backup of the gallery may require an extension of the tariff.

The thing about this method is that it's intelligently combining data, and if you've kept a contact on an old phone and you've made a similar one on a new phone, it's going to suggest that you combine the records without having to duplicate the phone book, which is especially true with frequent switching.

Using the cloud ensures that even if a physical medium is lost or broken, information remains accessible, and just enter a login and password on any device with Internet access to recover critical data.

Transfer of WhatsApp and messengers

Messengers store their correspondence history and media files in local databases that are not always correctly transferred by standard means. WhatsApp and Telegram have their own nuances. Telegram stores the entire history on servers, so it is enough to simply log in to access all the chats.

With WhatsApp, things are more complicated. The Mi Mover app can port WhatsApp's database, but to ensure safety, it's better to use the built-in backup feature. On an old phone, go to WhatsApp Settings → Chats → Backup and create an archive in Google Drive or locally.

When you first start WhatsApp on a new device, the app will automatically detect a backup and prompt you to restore your message history.Make sure you use the same phone number and Google account as you did on your previous device.

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For WhatsApp Business, use a separate Google account for backup so you don’t confuse business correspondence with personal correspondence when you restore to a new device.

Contact and multimedia work

Contacts are the most important part of a user's digital profile, and the mistake is to store numbers only in memory. SIM-The current standard is sync with a Google or Xiaomi account, and you can check this by opening the Contacts app and making sure that all sources are selected in the display settings, and saving by default goes to the cloud.

Multimedia files (photos and videos) are the largest, and when using Mi Mover, they are copied in the original resolution. If you use Google Photos, make sure that the old device has been fully uploaded to the cloud in Original mode, not Save Space, so you don't lose the quality of the images.

For music and documents, it’s best to use a file manager: connect both phones to your PC or use the Wi-Fi Sharing feature in standard MIUI Explorer to manually flip heavy folders if automatic porting misses them.

⚠️ Note: Hidden albums in the Gallery and files in the protected folder are not automatically transferred by standard means for security reasons – they must be transferred separately after unlocking.

Solving synchronization problems and errors

Despite the fact that things are fine, there are some crashes, and a common problem is that the devices can't see each other in the Mi Mover, in which case, make sure that both phones are Bluetooth and Geolocation enabled, and these are the modules used for the initial handshake and for finding devices within radius.

If a transfer is hanging on a particular file, it may be corrupted or has a name with forbidden characters. Try to exclude the gallery from the sample and transfer it in a separate package. Also helps to clean the cache of the Settings application → Apps → All applications → Mi Mover → Clear.

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The stability of Wi-Fi Direct is a key success factor; avoid using public networks and MAC-filtered routers during transfer.

If you have login errors on your Xiaomi account on a new device, check the date and time. Unsynchronizing system time for even a few minutes can lead to a security certificate error and inability to log in.

FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions