Transfer data from Xiaomi to Samsung Galaxy A12: 5 Proven Methods

Switching from Xiaomi to Samsung Galaxy A12 — It's not just about brand change, it's about having to migrate all the important data -- contacts, photos, messages, even app settings -- and many users are afraid of losing information or spending hours manually copying files. In fact, the process can be automated using both built-in Samsung Smart Switch tools and universal solutions like Google Account or cloud storage.

In this article, we will discuss all the current ways of data transfer, including unique nuances for the Galaxy model. A12 (2021 release, which has limitations on Android and compatibility with some services, you will learn how to avoid common errors (for example, loss of quality photos during transfer) and what settings to check before migrating.

1.Preparation for the transfer: what to do on Xiaomi before you start

Before you start transferring data, make sure your Xiaomi is ready for the process.Missing this stage can lead to loss of some files or malfunctioning of applications on the new device.

First, check the space available on both phones. on the Galaxy. A12 must be no less 10-15% free memory from the amount of data being transferred, for example, if you are transferring 30 GB photos, on the smartphone should remain at least 4-5 GB of free space. Otherwise, the Smart Switch can interrupt the process or skip some files.

• 🔋 Charge both phones to at least 50% (optimum 80%) and transfer data over cable or Wi-Fi drains the battery faster than usual.
• 📶 Connect to a stable Wi-Fi network. If you use mobile Internet, disable traffic restriction in Xiaomi settings (Settings) → SIM-maps and mobile networks → Transfer of data).
• 🔒 Make sure that Xiaomi doesn’t lock the screen by fingerprint or face.Some portability methods (e.g., via Smart Switch) require unlocking the phone every time. 5-10 minute.
• 📁 Back up your important data to your computer or the cloud, even if you use a reliable method, the Galaxy. A12 You may not support some Xiaomi file formats (such as topics or notes) MIUI).

Pay special attention to applications. Not all Xiaomi programs can be migrated directly to Samsung. Mi Fit or Xiaomi Cloud, for example, are unparalleled in the Samsung ecosystem. Export data from such applications to universal formats (for example,.csv for training or.zip for backups).

⚠️ Note: If your Xiaomi has App Protection enabled (in security settings), disable it before porting.It can block Smart Switch access to application files, so that some data (for example, saving in games) will not be copied.

2. Method 1: Smart Switch – the official solution from Samsung

Samsung Smart Switch is a proprietary data migration tool that supports porting from most Android devices, including Xiaomi. A12 There are two versions of the app available: mobile (installed on both phones) and desktop (for PCs), and we recommend using the mobile version, which is simpler and faster.

Download Smart Switch to both devices:

• On Xiaomi: from Google Play.
• On the Galaxy. A12: App preinstalled (find it in the Samsung folder or search it for the app).

Follow the instructions:

1. Open Smart Switch on Galaxy A12 and select Get the data → Android.
2. On Xiaomi, launch the app and select Send Data.
3. Connect the phones with a cable. USB-C — USB-C (Or use an adapter if Xiaomi has a microUSB connector. Alternatively, you can connect over Wi-Fi, but it will take longer.
4. On Xiaomi, allow access to files and confirm the transfer.
5. Select data types to transfer: contacts, messages, photos, videos, audio, calendars, etc. For Galaxy A12 Not all options are available, such as notes. MIUI not be able to carry.
6. Wait until the process is complete. Time depends on the amount of data: 10 GB photos will be transferred to ~20-30 cable-way.

Is the cable directly connected (without hubs)?|Is there a Galaxy? A12 enough room?|Is access to files allowed on Xiaomi?|Power saving mode is turned off on both phones?-->

If the Smart Switch doesn’t see Xiaomi, try the following:

• 🔄 Reboot both phones.
• 🔌 Use the original cable from Samsung (some cheap cables don't support data transmission).
• 📱 Turn on Xiaomi mode Debugging by USB (Settings → The phone. → Version. MIUI — Press 7 times, then return to Settings → Additionally. → For developers).

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If you're porting music, check the file formats. - Galaxy A12 supportive.m4a (Apple Lossless) and some rare codecs. Convert them to.mp3 or.aac in advance.

Method 3: Transfer through Google Account (for contacts, calendars and mail)

If you only need to transfer contacts, calendars, Google Keep notes or email, the easiest way is to sync through Google Account.This method requires no additional applications and works even if you don’t have a cable.

Instructions for Xiaomi:

1. Open Settings → Accounts → Google.
2. Choose your account (or add a new one if you don’t have one).
3. Activate synchronization for Contacts, Calendar, Gmail and other necessary services.
4. Click Sync Now and wait until it is completed.

On the Galaxy. A12:

1. When you first turn on your phone, log in to the same Google Account.
2. If the phone is already configured, go to Settings → Accounts and archiving → Manage your accounts and add your Google account.
3. Enable sync for the same services as Xiaomi.

Please note: this method does not carry SMS, call log or files (photos, videos, music) for them use other methods from this article.

⚠️ Note: If your contacts are saved in your Mi Account (not Google) on Xiaomi, you should export them first. → Settings → Imports/Exports → Export to.vcf, then import this file to Google Contacts.

4. Method 3: Porting photos and videos via Google Photos

Photos and videos usually take up the most space, and they require special attention. Google Photos is one of the most reliable solutions, especially if you have a large number of media files. The main advantage is that files do not lose quality (if you use the original resolution) and are automatically organized by date.

How to transfer photos and videos:

1. On Xiaomi, install Google Photos if you don’t have one.
2. Open the app and log in to your Google account.
3. Go to Settings. → Backup and sync and enable the feature.Select Original quality (if you have enough space in Google Drive) or High quality (free but compressed to 16 MP for photos).
4. Wait until the download is complete. Time depends on the Internet speed: 10 GB of photos can be downloaded from 1 to 5 hours.
5. On the Galaxy. A12 Install Google Photos, log in to the same account and wait for sync.

If you have a lot of video files (more than 50 GB), consider the following nuances:

• 🎥 Video in resolution 4K and above may not synchronize in high quality - they will be compressed to 1080p.
• 📁 Google Photos doesn't save albums MIUI To avoid losing the organization, export the albums manually: open the album in the Xiaomi Gallery, click More → Exports and save as ZIP-archive.
• 🔄 If the photos don’t appear on the Galaxy A12, Check your sync settings: Google Photos → Profile → Photo settings → Backup and synchronization.

5. Method 4: Use of cable OTG and external storage

If you don’t have a stable internet connection or prefer physical data portability, you can use a cable. OTG and flash drive (or external) SSD). This method is suitable for large data volumes (50 GB).+) Ensure the preservation of the original quality of files.

You'll need:

• 🔌 Cable OTG (s USB-C or microUSB on the side of Xiaomi and USB-A flash-drive).
• 💾 Flash drive or external hard drive (formatted into a FAT32 exFAT).
• 📱 File Manager (e.g. Mi File Manager on Xiaomi or Files by Google).

Step-by-step:

1. Connect the flash drive to Xiaomi via OTG-Allow access to the drive if you request it.
2. Open the file manager and copy the files you need (photos, videos, music) to a flash drive. We recommend creating folders by category (for example, Photos, Videos, Music).
3. Securely remove the flash drive (Settings) → Warehouse → Extract).
4. Connect the flash drive to the Galaxy A12 (through OTG Or directly if you have an adapter).
5. Copy files into internal memory or SD-map (if installed).

Advantages of this method:

• ⚡ Maximum speed - transfer 100 GB will take ~1-2 hourly 5+ wifi).
• 🔒 Security – data is not transmitted via the Internet.
• 📂 Keeping folder structure – unlike cloud services that can mix files.

⚠️ Attention: Galaxy A12 It supports external drives up to 1TB, but flash drives over 32GB require exFAT formatting. NTFS, The phone won't be able to read it.

Smart Switch|Google Account|Cable OTG flash drive|Cloud services (Google Drive, Yandex.Disk)|Another way.-->

6. Method 5: Transfer over cloud services (Google Drive, Yandex.Disk, Mail.ru Cloud)

Cloud storage is convenient if you want to have access to files not only on Galaxy A12, However, this method has limitations: download/download speed depends on the Internet, and free space is usually limited (15 GB on Google Drive, 10 GB on Yandex.Disk).

Comparison of popular services for transfer:

How to move data through the cloud:

1. On Xiaomi, install the application of the selected service (for example, Google Drive).
2. Upload files to the cloud. To speed up the process: Use 5GHz Wi-Fi (if the router supports); Upload files at night when the Internet is less busy; Archive folders with photos in.zip (for example, through the Internet). RAR Android).

Galaxy A12

If you use Google Drive, pay attention to the following nuances:

• 📁 Google Photos folder in Google Drive is not synced with Google Photos – these are different services!
• 🔗 Links to files in Google Drive are limited to a limited time (if you share them with yourself).
• 📥 When downloading large files (>2GB on Galaxy A12 In this case, use a browser (not an application) and download files one by one.

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Cloud services are not suitable for porting applications and their data (for example, saving in games), use Smart Switch or specialized tools like Helium (requires root rights).

7.Transfer applications and their data: what works and what doesn’t

Transfer of the applications themselves (APK-The problem with Xiaomi on Samsung is not trivial:

• 📱 Google Play apps will automatically install on Galaxy A12 when logging in to an account, but application data (such as game progress) will not be transferred.
• 🔒 Some applications (such as banking) are tied to the device and will require re-authorization.
• 🛠️ Xiaomi system apps (Mi Home, Mi Fit) won’t work on Samsung without manual setup.

What can be transferred:

• 🎮 Game saves – if the game supports sync via Google Play Games or your own account (e.g. Genshin Impact, Clash of Clans).
• 📖 Notes and documents – if saved to Google Drive, Evernote or OneNote.
• 📅 Settings for some apps – for example, WhatsApp can be moved over a backup to Google Drive (but only if the same account was linked to Xiaomi).

How to transfer application data:

1. For WhatsApp: On Xiaomi: Settings → chat → Backup (save to Google Drive). on Galaxy A12: Install WhatsApp, log in to the same account and restore chats.
2. For Telegram: On Xiaomi: Settings → Data and memory → Export chat data. Send the exported file to yourself on Telegram and download it to Galaxy A12.

game

• Check if the game supports cross-platform sync (e.g., via Google Play Games or Facebook).
• If not, use Helium (requires root) or Titanium Backup (power users only).

⚠️ Note: Some applications (such as Mi Fit) block work on the Internet.-Xiaomi To transfer training data, export it to.csv through Profile → Settings → Export data, then import into the Samsung analogue – Samsung Health.

8. Frequent mistakes and how to avoid them

Even when following instructions, users often encounter problems, and here are the most common mistakes and solutions:

• 🚫 Smart Switch doesn't see Xiaomi: Check the cable - it should support data transfer (not all charging cables fit). USB Xiaomi.Reboot both phones.
• 📵 Photos in Google Photos are loaded in low quality: In Google Photos settings, select Original Quality (requires a paid rate if the space in Google Drive is over). Check if compression is included in Xiaomi Camera Settings (Camera Settings) → Photo quality).
• 🔄 Contacts duplicated after transfer: On the Galaxy A12 Open your contacts. → Settings → Contact management → Merge contacts. Remove duplicates manually or use Contacts Optimizer app.
• 📥 Apps are not restored from Google Account: Check if App Sync is enabled in Settings → Accounts. → Google → Account Sync: Update Google Play Store and Google Play Services.

If you transfer data to Galaxy A12 With an outdated Xiaomi model (e.g. Redmi) 4X or Mi A1), Additional problems may arise:

• 📵 Smart Switch may not support older versions of Android (below 8.0). OTG-cable.
• 🔋 On older Xiaomi, you may not have enough memory to create a backup.Empty space or transfer data in parts.

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If after the transfer to Galaxy A12 Some photos are missing, check the folder. DCIM/.thumbnails Sometimes the thumbnails are kept separate from the originals.

FAQ: Answers to Frequent Questions

⚠️ Don’t store.csv with passwords on your phone – delete it after importing it!