How to transfer data from phone to phone Xiaomi Poco: all ways

Transferring data from the old Xiaomi Poco to the new Android smartphone is a challenge that every user faces when changing devices. Even if both phones are from the same manufacturer, the process can be difficult: contacts are lost somewhere, application settings are “flying” somewhere, and photos and videos are transmitted in low resolution. In this article, we will analyze all the current ways of migration, from standard MIUI tools to little-known life hacks that will save you hours of time.

Poco smartphones (including Poco X3/X4/X5/F3/F4/F5) are hybrid-based: they are powered by MIUI for Poco, which combines Xiaomi’s signature chips with gamer optimizations. This means that some standard portability methods (such as Mi Mover) may not work smoothly or require additional customization. We tested each method on real devices and identified a single method that is guaranteed to preserve the history of SMS and Wi-Fi network settings – see this in the Local Backup section.

1. Official method: Mi Mover (for Xiaomi/Poco phones)

Mi Mover is Xiaomi’s proprietary tool for migrating data between devices on MIUI, pre-installed on all Poco smartphones and supports the transfer of contacts, messages, photos, videos, applications (including their data), and even some system settings.

• 📱 It only works between devices. Xiaomi/Redmi/Poco (It will not be able to move to pure Android).
• ⚡ Requires a stable Wi-Fi connection (when the communication is interrupted).
• 🔋 Charge both phones by at least 50% – transferring large amounts of data drains the battery.
• 🚫 Does not tolerate Wi-Fi passwords, call history and some application data (for example, saves in games).

How to use:

1. On your old phone, open Settings → About Phone → Backup and Reset → Data Transfer (Mi Mover).
2. On the new phone, select I am a new user → Transfer from another device.
3. On the old phone, click "Send" and on the new one, "Get."
4. Scan it. QR-code from a new phone old (or connect via Hotspot if you have a new phone) QR misspelled).
5. Select data to transfer and wait until it is completed (can take up to 30 minutes for 64GB of data).

Charging both phones >50%|Shut down. VPN both-device|Connect to a single Wi-Fi network|Close background applications (especially messengers)|Check the space available on the new phone (should be 1.5 times the amount of data transferred)-->

⚠️ Note: If the new phone already has a Mi Account, be sure to log out of it to Settings before transferring. → Xiaomi account → Otherwise, the Mi Mover may freeze during the connection phase.

2. Local backup (saves SMS and Wi-Fi settings)

This method is the only way to transfer SMS history and passwords from Wi-Fi networks without rooting permissions, and works by creating a full backup on an old phone and restoring it to a new one, and is suitable for all Poco models, including the Poco F3 GT and Poco X5 Pro.

Advantages:

• 📤 Stores all system settings (language, wallpaper, sound circuits).
• 🔑 Transfers Wi-Fi passwords and call history.
• 📱 It works even if the new phone isn’t from Xiaomi (but requires manual repair).

Instructions:

1. On your old phone, go to Settings → About Phone → Backup and Reset → Local Backup.
2. Click "Backup" and select the data (we recommend to mark all points).
3. Once you have created a copy, connect your phone to your PC and copy the backup/AllBackup/ file (it has the.mbk extension) to the memory of your new phone.
4. On the new phone, in the same menu, select "Restore" and specify the copied file.

💡

If the backup weighs more than 4GB, break it down with an archiver (such as ZArchiver). Xiaomi limits the file size to 4.5GB.

3. Transfer through Google Account (universal method)

Sync with Google Account is the most versatile way that works on any Android device, including the Poco M4 Pro and Poco C40.It is suitable for transferring contacts, calendars, Google Keep notes and parts of these applications (for example, Chrome bookmarks).

• 📸 Photos and videos are synced only through Google Photos (with possible compression up to 16 MP in free tariff).
• 📱 Applications are restored, but their data (for example, progress in games) is not.
• 🔄 The process can take several hours with a large amount of data.

How to set up:

1. On your old phone, open Settings → Accounts → Google → Account Sync.
2. Enable sync for all the categories you need (contacts, calendar, Chrome, etc.).
3. For photos: open Google Photos, go to Settings → Backup and Sync, and select quality ("Original" or "High").
4. On the new phone, log in to the same Google account and wait for the sync to complete.

Mi Mover|Local backup |Google Account |OTG/PC Cable |Another way-->

⚠️ Note: If you use Google Photos in High Quality mode, photos over 16 MP will be compressed to this resolution. To transfer the originals, select Original Quality (but it takes place in Google Drive).

4. Transmission via OTG cable or via computer

If you don't have access to Wi-Fi or data is too big (like a 4K video collection), the most reliable way is to transmit directly over the cable.

• 🔌 Cable OTG (If the new phone supports USB Host).
• 💻 Computer with USB-ports (if any) OTG no).
• 📁 File Manager (e.g. Mi File Manager or Solid Explorer).

Instructions via computer:

1. Connect your old phone to your PC in File Transfer mode (select this option in the notification curtain).
2. Copy the folders you need (DCIM for photos, Downloads for downloads, etc.) to your computer.
3. Connect the new phone and transfer the data to the appropriate folders.

For direct transmission over OTG:

1. Connect the OTG cable to your new phone and your old phone to it.
2. On your new phone, open the file manager and select "USB-device".
3. Copy files from your old phone to your new one.

5. Wireless transmission through third-party applications

If standard methods don't work (like custom firmware), you can use third-party applications. We tested the 3 most reliable ones:

How to use Send Anywhere (we recommend):

1. Install the app on both phones from Google Play.
2. On the old phone, select files and click "Send".
3. Select the Direct Transfer Method (without the cloud).
4. On the new phone, click "Get" and scan. QR-code or enter a 6-digit code.

💡

Applications like Send Anywhere transmit data directly over Wi-Fi Direct, which is 5-10 times faster than over the cloud, but for larger files (>1 GB), cable is better, because wireless transmission can be interrupted.

Transfer of data by type (for experienced users)

If you only need to migrate certain types of data (like WhatsApp or just music), you can use specialized tools, which take longer, but give you full control over the process.

How to move:

• 📞 Contacts: Export to.vcf file via Contacts → Settings → Exports/imports.
• 💬 WhatsApp: Make a backup copy in Settings → chat → Backup copy, then transfer the file msgstore.db.crypt14 folder /sdcard/WhatsApp/Databases/.
• 🎵 Music: Copy the folder /Music/ Manually or use Poweramp to export playlists.
• 🎮 Games: Use Helium (requires root) or cloud-based game services (e.g. Google Play Games) to save).

What matters to WhatsApp is:

1. On an old phone, back up manually (not auto-reserve!).
2. Copy /sdcard/WhatsApp/ folder to your new phone.
3. Install WhatsApp on your new phone and restore it from a local copy.

⚠️ Note: If you port WhatsApp with Poco X3 Poco F5, and you have chat encryption enabled, first disable it in Settings → chat → Encryption, otherwise the backup won't recover!

7. Transfer to a new phone with unlocked bootloader (for enthusiasts)

If you use custom firmware (e.g. Pixel Experience or LineageOS), standard methods may not work.

• 🔓 TWRP + Nandroid Backup: Full section backup /data Recovery on a new phone.
• 📦 Titanium Backup: Transfer applications with data (requires root).
• 🔄 ADB Pull/Push: Copying files through the command line.

Example of a team to copy all photos through ADB:

adb pull /sdcard/DCIM/ C:\Poco_Backup\Photos


adb push C:\Poco_Backup\Photos /sdcard/DCIM/

This method will require:

• Unlocked boot loader (fastboot oem unlock).
• Installed Recovery (TWRP or OrangeFox)
• Knowledge of the main ADB and Fastboot teams.

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If you're transferring data from Poco F1 to Poco F6 and your old phone has custom firmware, go back to stock MIUI first via the Mi Flash Tool.

FAQ: Frequent questions about data portability to Xiaomi Poco