How to transfer data from Samsung phone to Xiaomi Poco M3: all the ways 2026

Why Samsung and Xiaomi need a special approach

The transition from Samsung to the Xiaomi Poco M3 is not just a change of gadget, but a transition between two fundamentally different ecosystems. Unlike the transfer between devices of the same brand (for example, from the Galaxy S21 to the Galaxy S23), here you will face three key challenges:

First, different Android shells: One UI from Samsung and MIUI from Xiaomi use their own backup and recovery algorithms. Second, closed services: contacts and notes from Samsung are synchronized through Samsung Account, and Xiaomi through Mi Account, and direct exchange between them is impossible. Third, hardware limitations: Poco M3 may not support some file formats that the default Samsung camera creates (for example, HEIF instead of JPEG).

In this article, we’ll break down 5 portability workflows, from official tools to power user workarounds, and learn how to save 100% of data without loss of quality (including call history and SMS), even if you don’t have a computer or high-speed internet.

Method 1: Official Mi Mover app – fast but with limitations

Mi Mover is Xiaomi’s proprietary data migration tool, which is set by default on all of the brand’s devices, including the Poco M3.The app supports porting from most Android devices, including Samsung, but there are nuances:

• 📱 It only works when you first turn on Poco. M3 (after setting up the system)
• 🔌 Requires direct Wi-Fi connection between phones (without router)
• ⚠️ Does not transfer installed applications (only their data)
• 📁 Supports: contacts, SMS, Photos, videos, music, calendars

Step-by-step:

1. Turn on the Poco M3 and reach the “Data Transfer” stage in the master setup.
2. Download Mi Mover from Google Play on Samsung.
3. Run the app on both devices and select “I give” on Samsung and “I receive” on the Poco M3.
4. Scan it. QR-Poco screen M3 Samsung camera.
5. Select data types to transfer and confirm the start of the process.

⚠️ Note: If storage encryption is enabled on Samsung (Settings) → Security → Encryption), Mi Mover may not see some files!

Charge both phones at least 50% | Turn off VPN on both devices | Make sure there is enough free space on the Poco M3 | Check that Samsung has power-saving mode turned off-->

Method 2: Google Account – Universal but Incomplete

Syncing through Google Account is the most reliable method for transferring basic data, but it doesn't cover everything, and the main advantage is that the data is automatically updated on a new device if you add the same account, but there are critical limitations:

• 📇 Contacts: Completely transferred, including groups and tags
• 📅 Calendars: Events only, no reminders from Samsung Reminder
• 📎 Notes: Only if they are created in Google Keep (not Samsung Notes)
• 📷 Photos: only if they are uploaded to Google Photos in original quality
• ❌ Not tolerated: SMS, Call history, download files, Wi-Fi settings

How to set up synchronization:

1. On Samsung, go to Settings → Accounts and Archiving → Account Management.
2. Select your Google Account and enable sync for all categories.
3. Wait for the sync to complete (check in Settings → Google → Account Sync).
4. On Poco M3, add the same Google account when setting up or in Settings → Accounts.

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If you have a slow Internet connection, upload photos to Google Photos via Wi-Fi before syncing, and sync the rest of the data later via the mobile network.

To transfer SMS and call history, you will need a third-party application, such as SMS Backup & Restore:

1. Install the app on Samsung from Google Play.
2. Create a backup and save the file to Google Drive.
3. On Poco M3, install the same app, download the backup and recover the data (Restore).

Method 3: OTG + adapter for large volumes without Internet

If you don’t have a stable internet connection or need to move tens of gigabytes (e.g. video to a mobile phone) 4K), The best option is to connect directly through OTG-That's gonna take a cable:

• 🔌 Cable USB-C (Samsung) → USB-A + OTG-adapter USB-A → USB-C (Poco M3)
• 📱 File Manager (e.g. Mi File Manager or Solid Explorer)
• ⚡ Charging both phones at least 30 times%

Instructions:

1. Connect Samsung to Poco M3 through OTG-adapter. M3 notice "USB-plug-in".
2. Select File Transfer (MTP) mode on Samsung.
3. Open the file manager on Poco M3 and go to the section. USB-storage.
4. Copy the necessary folders: DCIM → Camera (photo / video), Downloads (downloads), Documents (documents) WhatsApp → Media (media from Vatsap)

⚠️ Note: Do not copy the entire Android folder – this can disrupt the work of system applications on Poco M3. Only transfer data from specific applications (e.g. Android) → data → com.whatsapp).

Method 4: Computer as a mediator – complete control

Using a PC or laptop gives you the maximum flexibility: you can selectively copy files, convert formats, and even edit data before transferring.

• 🖥️ We need to move the files to HEIF/HEVC (They're not supported by Poco. M3)
• 🔄 Requires the conversion of music from FLAC into MP3 save space
• 📂 You need to combine data from multiple devices

Step-by-step algorithm:

1. Connect Samsung to your PC via USB-cable and select File Transfer Mode.
2. Copy key folders: Internal Storage → DCIM Internal Storage → Pictures Internal Storage → WhatsApp → Media Internal Storage → Download
3. If necessary, convert files: 📸 HEIF → JPEG (Use CopyTrans. HEIC for Windows) 🎵 FLAC → MP3 (Audacity)

Poco M3

Applications like Mi Mover| Cloud services (Google Drive, Mi Cloud)|Direct connection (OTG, cable)|Through computer |Another way-->

Method 5: Cloud Storage – Slowly but Reliably

If you don't. OTG-You can use cloud services, cables or computers. → Poco M3:

• 🌥️ Google Drive: 15GB free, Android integration
• ☁️ Mi Cloud: 5GB free, optimized for Xiaomi
• 📦 Dropbox: 2GB free, but fast download
• 🔗 Telegram: unlimited for files up to 2 GB (via "Saved Messages")

Instructions for Google Drive:

1. On Samsung, install Google Drive and log in to your account.
2. Click + → Download and select files to transfer.
3. Wait for the download to complete (you can track it in notifications).
4. On Poco M3, open Google Drive, find uploaded files and download them.

⚠️ Note: When uploading photos to Google Photos in the "High Quality" mode, they are compressed to 16 MP. To save the original resolution, select the option "Original Quality" (considered to the storage limit).

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To speed up loading to the cloud, turn off background optimization on Samsung: Settings → Device Care → Battery → Application Optimization → Google Drive → Disable.

Frequent Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Even when following instructions, users often encounter problems. TOP-5 mistakes and their solutions:

1. Mi Mover doesn't see Samsung Problem: Phones don't connect via Wi-Fi Direct.Solution: 🔄 Reboot both devices. 📶 Turn on Flight Mode for 10 seconds, then turn off. 🔧 On Samsung, turn off Adaptive Wi-Fi in Settings → Connections → Wi-Fi → Additionally.

Photos moved, but not opened

Problem: Poco M3 does not support the HEIF format (.heic extension).

Solution: Convert files to JPEG via CopyTrans HEIC (see Method 4).

Contacts are duplicated

Problem: Synchronizing with Google and Samsung Account creates copies.

Solution: Before transferring, export contacts to.vcf:

Contacts → ⋮ → Contact management → Export

Then import this file to Poco M3.

FAQ: Answers to popular questions