Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones often face the need to transfer the phone book to a new device or secure their data before flashing. Synchronizing contacts with Google cloud storage is the most reliable way to store important information, which allows you not to worry about losing numbers even if you completely lose physical access to the device.
System system MIUI The company and its modern version of HyperOS have deeply integrated Google services, but standard export settings may differ from pure Android. SIM-Maps or local phone storage, which poses crash risks.Properly configured Google Contacts ensures instant call list recovery on any new gadget.
In this article, we will take a detailed look at all the steps of backup, auto sync setup and solving typical problems. You will learn how to avoid duplication of records and why locally storing contacts in the memory of a Xiaomi device without a backup is risky.
Preparation for data transfer and account verification
Before starting the procedure, you need to make sure that your Xiaomi device is logged in to the correct Google profile, which is a basic requirement for cloud services. If you just bought a phone or reset it to factory settings, log in using your login and password.
Open the Settings app and search for Accounts and Sync or Google. This shows all the associated accounts. Make sure that the correct email address is ticked or synced.
If you don't have an account, you need to add one. Click on Add Account and select the Google logo. Enter authorization details. Once you're signed in, the system will prompt you to select sync options.
- 📱 Make sure that Internet access (Wi-Fi or mobile data) is enabled).
- 🔒 Check that two-factor authorization is enabled for account security.
- 🔄 Make sure Google Play Services is working properly and does not drain your battery.
- 📂 Free up space in the cloud if the 15GB limit is almost exhausted.
⚠️ Note: If you use a Google Workspace corporate account, the administrator of the organization may limit your contact sync options.
It's important to understand that synchronization is a two-way process, and changes made on the phone will go to the cloud, and new contacts added through the Gmail web interface will appear in the phone book, and this creates a single data ecosystem.
Manual export of contacts through the Contacts app
Standard Application Contacts on the shell MIUI This allows you to quickly transfer existing records to your Google account, which is ideal if you already have a full phone book stored locally or on a mobile phone. SIM-map.
Run the Contacts app (green tube). In the upper right corner or in the menu (three dots/strips), find Contact Management or Import/Export Contacts. The interface may vary slightly depending on the firmware version.
Select Export to your account or Copy Contacts, and the system will prompt you to select a source (e.g., "Phone" or "Phone"SIM-map) and (your Google akka) Select all contacts or manually mark the ones you need.
☑️ Checklist for manual transfer
The copying process can take anywhere from a few seconds to a couple of minutes if there are thousands of records, while you do not turn off the screen or run heavy applications so as not to interrupt the system process of recording data.
- 📋 When copying with SIM-Cards may be shortened by long names or additional numbers.
- 📞 Duplicates can be combined automatically if the system recognizes the same numbers.
- 💾 Profile photos can also be copied if the format is SIM-This is a card that allows (rarely).
- ⏳ Do not interrupt the process, even if the phone seems to be getting stuck.
Once the operation is complete, check the results. Go to the contact display settings and select "Google Only." If the list is empty, the export has been successful and the old local records are no longer displayed.
Automatic synchronization in the system
In order to avoid manual porting in the future, you need to set up automatic synchronization, which ensures that any new number you add today will be in the cloud tomorrow.
Go to Settings → Accounts and Sync → Google. Select your primary inbox. You will see a list of services that can be synced: Mail, Drive, Calendar and, of course, Contacts.
Make sure the switch opposite the Contacts switch is activated (blue or green). If it is turned off, the data will not be updated in the background. Also check if general autosynchronization of the data is enabled in the top menu of this section.
⚠️ Note: In some versions MIUI With aggressive energy savings, the system can automatically turn off background sync to save charge.Add Google to optimization exceptions.
To do this, go to Settings → Apps → Settings (three dots) → Special features (or Battery and Performance). Find Google Play services and let them auto-start and run in the background. This is a critical step for stability.
The frequency of updates depends on the user's activity, and changes are usually made instantly when you have a network, and if you add a contact from a computer, it will appear on your phone seconds after the network icon appears.
What to do if the synchronization is suspended?
Working with contacts through the Google web interface
Managing a phone book is most convenient not only from your phone, but also through your computer. Google Contacts provides advanced tools for sorting, editing and recovering deleted records.
Open your browser on your PC and go to contacts.google.com. Log in under the same account that your Xiaomi uses. You'll see a full copy of your phone book.
You can massively edit information, add missing email addresses, addresses, birthdays and photos, and all changes will automatically affect the smartphone after the next synchronization.
| Function | Description | Where to find out. |
|---|---|---|
| Recovery | Changes to the last 30 days | Menu (cogs) → Cancel changes |
| Unification | Merging duplicates into one card | Left menu → Combining and correcting |
| Exports | Save to file.csv or.vcf | Left menu → Exports |
| Labels | Creating Groups (Family, Work, Friends) | Left menu → Labels |
The contact recovery feature is especially useful, because if you accidentally delete an important number or a virus damages your phone book, the web interface allows you to roll back the state of your database to any date in the past month, a powerful tool that is not available in the standard phone interface.
- 🖥️ Convenient to edit long lists of contacts from the keyboard.
- 📧 You can send mass mail to selected groups directly from the interface.
- 🔍 Search is faster and more accurate than on a mobile device.
- 📥 Ability to upload backup to your computer's hard drive.
Addressing Duplicate and Conflict Problems
A common problem with Xiaomi users is that they have double or triple entries about the same person, which happens when the phone pulls up contacts from the same person at the same time. SIM-Maps, local memory and multiple Google accounts.
To solve this problem, you do not need to delete the records manually. Use the built-in cleanup function. In the Contacts app, go to management and select Clear Duplicates (if available in your version) or use the web interface described above.
If duplicates are saved, check the display settings. In the contact app, click three dots and select Display Settings or Contacts to display. Leave a tick on your main Google account only. This will hide technical duplicates from other sources.
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Tip: Before combining duplicates, make sure you have a fresh backup.A mistaken merger can result in the loss of unique numbers recorded in different cards.
Synchronization conflicts can occur if you change a phone number on one system and it stays old on another. Google usually prioritizes the last modified field, but sometimes manual intervention is required. Just edit the card on the phone, and in a minute it will update in the cloud.
⚠️ Warning: Do not attempt to resolve the issue of duplicates by completely removing the Contacts app or its data through your Android settings.This may result in a complete loss of the local phone book cache until the next sync is done.
Regular contact hygiene is important for system performance: a database of several thousand photos can slow down dialing, remove old, irrelevant posts and spammers.
Use of Mi Cloud as an alternative or supplement
Xiaomi's own Mi Cloud ecosystem is also home to its own Mi Cloud service, which many people confuse with Google, but it's different systems. Mi Cloud also has a way of keeping contacts, and sometimes it's even more convenient for those who are deeply integrated into Xiaomi's ecosystem.
To enable sync through Mi Cloud, go to Settings → Mi Account → Cloud. Activate Contacts switch. Now your numbers will be copied to Xiaomi servers.
The advantage of this method is the ability to quickly restore contacts on a new Xiaomi phone simply by entering Mi ID, without having to climb into Google’s settings. However, for cross-platform (for example, switching to an iPhone or Samsung), Google Contacts remains the universal standard.
It is recommended to use a hybrid approach: the main synchronization is to keep Google, and Mi Cloud is used as an additional backup.
- ☁️ Mi Cloud gives 5GB for free, Google gives 15GB.
- 🔄 Mi Cloud synchronization works even when the Internet is turned off (via the Internet). SMS-In some regions, but better Wi-Fi.
- 📱 On iPhone, you can restore contacts from Mi Cloud through the Mi Cloud app for iOS.
- ⚙️ Synchronization settings are independent of each other.
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The most reliable way to keep the basic sync enabled in your Google account is to ensure compatibility with any devices and services in the future.
Remember, when selling a phone, you have to log out of all accounts. If you sell a phone with sync enabled, the new owner could theoretically access your data if there is no reset. Always do a full reset (Wipe data) before transferring the device.