Changing a smartphone is always stressful, especially when you need to transfer years of accumulated digital life to a new device. Owners of the Huawei and Honor ecosystem often face difficulties when switching to devices from other brands, such as Xiaomi, due to the lack of Google services on older models or firmware features, but modern tools allow you to make this process as painless and fast as possible.
Switching from Honor to Xiaomi (which runs on the MIUI or HyperOS shell) requires understanding several synchronization methods. You can use a built-in app from Xiaomi, cloud storage or manual copying via your computer. Each method has its advantages depending on the amount of information you transfer and the speed of your Internet connection.
In this article, we’ll take a closer look at the migration so you can start using the new gadget immediately after unpacking without losing important contacts, photos, and app settings. Both devices’ readiness to work is a key success factor.
Preparing devices for data migration
Before any manipulations begin, you need to conduct basic training of both smartphones: make sure that the battery on the Honor device is charged at least 60%, and on the new Xiaomi – 80%. The process of transferring a large amount of data can be energy intensive, and a sudden shutdown will interrupt the operation.
Check for free space on the receiving device. If you move from a 64GB model to a 128GB model, there will be no problems, but if the volumes are close, you should delete unnecessary files in advance or transfer them to your computer. It is also recommended to update the operating system on both gadgets to the latest available version through the Settings menu → About Phone → System Update.
Be sure to connect both phones to the same Wi-Fi network.This is critical for data speed, especially if you plan to use wireless synchronization methods. Mobile Internet is best avoided, as traffic can be depleted very quickly.
⚠️ Note: If your Honor has apps that require Google services (GMS), Make sure they work correctly before transferring, as these services are built-in by default on new Xiaomi, but may require a separate account login.
An important step is to clean up the cache of junk apps on your old phone, which will not only speed up the process, but also save you from transferring temporary files that will only take up space on the new device.
Using the Mi Mover app for full portability
The most effective and official way to migrate is to use the Mi Mover app, which is designed specifically to enable users to easily switch from other manufacturers’ Android devices to Xiaomi and Redmi smartphones, and automatically detects data types and optimizes the copying process.
To get started, install the Mi Mover on both devices. On the new Xiaomi, it is often pre-installed in the Tools folder. On Honor, it can be downloaded from the app store or through a browser. Once you start, select the device role: on Honor, click "I am the sender" and on Xiaomi, "I am the receiver."
☑️ Check before launching the Mi Mover
Then the devices will create a Wi-Fi hotspot. You'll need to scan it. QR-code that will appear on the screen of the receiving smartphone, the sender's camera. After establishing the connection, select the categories of data to transfer: contacts, messages, call history, photos, videos, music and documents.
The process can take anywhere from 10 minutes to several hours depending on the amount of data. Don't switch to other applications or turn off device screens during the transfer. Upon completion, you will receive a detailed report on how many files have been successfully copied.
⚠️ Note: When you transfer through Mi Mover, some system settings and passwords from Wi-Fi networks may not be copied for Android security reasons, they will have to be re-entered.
We're going to have to focus on app portability. Mi Mover is trying to copy. APK-software files, but banking applications and messengers with additional security may require re-authorization.
Transferring contacts and calendars through Google Account
Calendar contacts and events are the most important data that cannot be lost. The most reliable way to save and transfer them is through sync through a Google account, a method that works regardless of the smartphone brand, whether it is Honor, Xiaomi or Samsung.
On your old Honor phone, go to Settings → Accounts → Google. Make sure the Contacts and Calendar switch is activated, and click Sync. Wait until the process is over and all the data is uploaded to Google's cloud.
On the new Xiaomi, when you first turn on or in settings, add the same Google account. The system will automatically pull up all saved numbers and events. If this does not happen, go to the Contacts app, open the settings menu and select Import/Export Contacts → Import from Google account.
This method also makes it easy to manage contacts through the contacts.google.com web interface, where you can delete duplicates or combine entries.Sync through Google ensures that your contacts stay with you even if your phone breaks or is lost.
For users who prefer the Xiaomi ecosystem, there is an alternative, the Mi Account account. You can export contacts to a.vcx file on Honor and then import that file through the Mi cloud on a new device, but the method with Google is simpler and faster.
Migration of photos and videos to the cloud
Media files take up the most space, and porting them often raises the most questions. Aside from using cable or Mi Mover, cloud storage is a great solution. Google Photos is the standard Android solution that automatically backs up pictures.
Install or update the Google Photos app on Honor. Enable the “Outload and Sync” feature in the app settings. Select the “Saving Space” quality for unlimited storage or “Original Quality” if you have space in the Google One tariff.
Once you have finished downloading on your old device, just log in to the same Google Photos account on Xiaomi.All your albums, videos and photos will appear in the gallery automatically.This frees up the memory of the new phone as the originals stay in the cloud.
If you prefer local storage, use Mi Cloud. Install the Mi Cloud app on Honor (via APK, as it may not be available in the Play Market for devices without Xiaomi services), log in and upload photos. On Xiaomi, they will appear automatically through the system gallery.
For large video volumes (4K, long recordings), the cloud can be inconvenient because of the loading time, in which case it is better to use the computer as an intermediary: copy the DCIM folder from Honor to the PC, and then transfer to Xiaomi. This will ensure maximum speed and preserve the original quality without compression.
Transferring WhatsApp and Viber messages
Messengers store their correspondence locally or in their clouds, and simply transferring them with files is often not enough. WhatsApp on Android has a regular backup mechanism on Google Drive, which is ideal for migrating between different brands.
On Honor, open WhatsApp, go to Settings → Chats → Chat Backup. Click on Backup and wait until you complete. Make sure you use the same Google account that will be on your new phone.
When WhatsApp first launches on Xiaomi, the app will find a backup in the cloud and prompt you to restore your message history. Importantly, the phone number must be the same, otherwise you can't restore it. The process is similar to Viber, which also uses Google Drive for backups.
To transfer without Google Drive (for example, if there is no Internet), you can use a local backup. Find the WhatsApp/Databases folder in the Honor file manager, copy the msgstore.db.crypt14 file (the number may differ) to the new phone in the same directory before installing the application.
Some specific privacy settings and fixed chats may be reset, but the history of the correspondence and media files (if included in the backup) will be retained completely, which is critical for preserving business correspondence.
Comparison of methods and possible problems
Each port method has its pros and cons. To make it easier for you to choose the right option, we have prepared a comparative table of the main ways to migrate data from Honor to Xiaomi.
| Method | Speed. | We need the Internet. | What's transferable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mi Mover | Tall. | No (local Wi-Fi) | Everything (contacts, photos, apps, settings) |
| Google Account | Medium | Yes. | Contacts, calendar, photo (via Photo) |
| Computer (USB) | Depends on the cable. | No. | Files, photos, videos (manual) |
| Bluetooth | Very low. | No. | Only small files and contacts |
A common problem is the incompatibility of Android versions. If the Honor is running a very old Android 8 and Xiaomi is running a new Android 14, some apps may not install automatically, in which case you will have to download them again from the Play Market.
Another problem is password transfer. Browsers may not sync saved passwords if you are not logged in to your account (Chrome, Yandex).
Sometimes users find that alarm clocks are not portable, which is a system limitation of Android, alarms, reminders and some alarm settings will have to be reconfigured on the new device manually.
Completion of setup and data verification
When you complete the transfer, take your time to delete data from your old phone. Do a thorough review of the new device. Check for all contacts, open the gallery and make sure the photos are displayed correctly.
Test the major applications: banking clients, social networks, instant messengers. Go to them, check if the correspondence history and authorization are preserved. Bank applications may require re-confirmation of identity through SMS or biometrics.
Note the notifications. On Xiaomi, the aggressive MIUI/HyperOS energy saving system can kill the background processes of new applications. Go to the battery settings and allow auto-start for important messengers to keep messages from missing.
Only when you make sure everything is running smoothly can you begin the final cleanup of the old Honor, ensuring that you don’t lose anything important in the process of moving to the new ecosystem.