How to keep a long name in your Xiaomi phone contacts without trimming

Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and Poco smartphones often face an annoying problem when transferring contacts: long names and surnames are cropped or not saved completely. This is especially true for those who are used to using detailed descriptions in the name field, for example, specifying a job title, company or additional identifiers next to a subscriber name. The standard interface of the MIUI and HyperOS shells has its own characteristics of working with a database that can conflict with user expectations.

The main reason is that there are different character limits for different types of storage. SIM-You're limited by the old telecommunications standards, which don't support long lines, but when you save it to a Google account or internal storage, there's little or no restriction. Understanding where information is physically written is key to solving the problem.

In this article, we will explore the technical details of how your address book works, how to circumvent restrictions, and how to correctly display full names. You will learn how to configure synchronization and what naming formats your version of the operating system supports, so you will no longer worry about important contact details being lost while saving.

Reasons for limiting the length of names in the phone book

Technical limitations are often not dictated by the smartphone itself, but by the carrier you chose by default to save. SIM-The cards use a file system developed decades ago, where the name field is strictly limited. 14-16 symbol GSM. Trying to write a longer string leads to either automatic cropping or a saving error.

Unlike SIM cards, internal device memory and cloud services use SQLite databases or cloud APIs that allow hundreds of characters to be stored in a single field. However, the MIUI Contacts app can default to SIM unless otherwise prioritized, creating the illusion that the phone β€œcan’t” keep long names.

⚠️ Note: If you keep contact and the name is cropped after the 15th character, check the "Save in" field. SIM-Map, not Google account or phone.

Also, consider the features of encoding: using emojis or special characters in a name can take up more bytes of memory than ordinary letters, which is faster to exhaust the limit even on modern media.

Choosing the Right Place to Store Contacts

To ensure that the long name is kept without loss, you need to change the target storage, which is done directly in Xiaomi smartphones when you create a new record or edit an existing one. The right storage location not only allows you to complete the length of the line, but also allows you to add extended fields such as aliases and organization.

The most reliable option is a Google account.It provides cross-platform synchronization and has no visible limit on the length of the username.The phone's internal memory (often labeled "Phone" or model name) also allows you to store long lines, but the data will only be available on that particular device.

  • πŸ“± Google Account: Ideal for Long Names, Syncs and Backups.
  • πŸ“ž Phone Memory: Supports long lines, but no automatic sync with the cloud.
  • πŸ’Ύ SIM-map: Strict limit to 14-16 Symbols, not recommended for modern smartphones.

When selecting a Google account, the system allows you to use the β€œOrganization” and β€œOffice” fields, which helps structure information without overloading the name field, which is especially useful for business contacts, where it is important to see not only the name, but also the context of communication.

πŸ“Š Where do you usually keep your contacts?
Nana SIM-map
In the memory of the phone
Google account
In the third-party developer app

Step-by-step: Keeping your full name

The process of creating a long name contact requires careful consideration when choosing a target directory. Follow the algorithm to avoid automatic data cropping by the system. First open the standard Contacts app or go to the telephony section and click the plus-plus to create a new record.

In the menu that opens, look at the top of the screen where the current storage is displayed. Click on your account name or the arrow down to expand the list of options available. Select your Google account or Phone. Only then enter your first and last name.

β˜‘οΈ The algorithm for preserving a long name

Done: 0 / 4

If you are editing an existing contact saved on SIM-If you have a card, the system may not allow you to change the name field to a longer one, in which case you need to create a copy of the contact in the phone's memory and delete the old record.

Setting up the display and sorting of names

Even if the name is saved in full, it may not appear correctly in the call list or log because of sorting settings. The MIUI shell has flexible display settings that allow you to control the order of names (by name or by name) and output format.

To access the settings, go to the Contacts menu, click three dots in the corner and select Settings. Here you are interested in the Contact Display section. Make sure you select the display of all contacts, not just those with a phone number, as this may hide some records.

Also check the format of names. If you have many people with the same names in your contacts, the system may try to shorten the display by adding only the first letters. Changing the format of sorting to "Family, Name" often helps to visually offload the list and make long names more readable.

Hidden Contact List Settings
Some versions of MIUI have hidden code to reset display settings. Type ##4636##, go to Phone Information and find the contact settings reset option. Be careful, this can bring the view back to factory.

Synchronization and importation from other sources

Often, the problem with cropping names occurs when importing contacts from old phones or.vcf files. SIM-map, all long names will be ruthlessly stripped down. Always import data straight into your Google account.

The process of import is as follows: go to "Contacts" β†’ "Settings" β†’ "Import/Export contacts. Select the source (e.g. "Device Memory" or "SIM-map) and specify destination as your Google account. the system automatically processes the data and saves the full versions of the names.

Source of contactMax. The length of the nameSynchronizationRecommendation
SIM-map14-16 charactersNo.Don't use
Phone memoryUp to 500 charactersNo (locally)For temporary storage
Google AccountNo restrictions.Automatic.Main option
Mi Account.High limitThrough the Xiaomi CloudGoogle's Alternative

After importing, be sure to check for a few random contacts with long names. If the data is saved correctly, you can safely remove duplicates from the data. SIM-cards so as not to get confused in the future.

Solving problems with encoding and special symbols

Sometimes the name is saved in full, but instead of letters, you have squares or question marks, which is a problem of encoding. Old phones or incorrectly formed vCard files can use encoding that modern Android interprets incorrectly.

To solve the problem, try re-encoding the contacts file on your computer before importing using a text editor that supports UTF-8.

⚠️ Note: Avoid using control symbols or HTML-tags in the name field when you copy from websites. This can disrupt the structure of the contact database.

If the problem is massive, it makes sense to use Google Contacts via your browser on your PC. The web interface often does a better job of correcting encoding errors and allows you to manually edit "broken" records before syncing with your smartphone.

πŸ’‘

Use the "Alias" field in Google Contacts for alternate names, which allows you to find a person by name or shortened name without changing the main entry.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Why is the name cut off when the contact is complete?
This may be due to font size or design theme, try changing the theme to a standard one or reducing the font size in the screen settings, and check if the "Simplified Interface" mode for older people is on.
Can the limit of symbols be increased for SIM-map?
No, limit in 14-16 The symbols are the physical limitation of the chip. SIM-maps and standards GSM. It is technically impossible to increase it, it is necessary to change the location of the contact storage.
What if Google Contacts also cuts off your name?
In rare cases, it can be a bug of a specific update to an app, try clearing the cache of Contacts and Google Play Services. If it doesn't work, type a name into the web version of Google Contacts, the limits are higher.
How to transfer contacts from iPhone to Xiaomi without losing long names?
Use the official "Mi Mover" app or sync your iPhone to your Google account, and then log in to that account on Xiaomi. Direct Bluetooth porting can use the limited vCard format.

πŸ’‘

The secret of long names is to give up SIM-Maps in favor of Google or Xiaomi Cloud accounts.