Changing the operating system is always stressful, especially when it comes to migrating personal data. iPhone owners who choose to move to the Xiaomi ecosystem are often faced with the dilemma of how to take their memories from Apple’s “closed garden” and move them to open Android. Fortunately, the era when it required a personal computer and complex manipulation of drivers is long gone.
Today, there are effective tools that allow you to transfer media files directly using only Wi-Fi or cloud services, which can take from a few minutes to a couple of hours, which depends on the size of your gallery and the method you choose. It is important to understand that the quality of the images should not suffer during the transfer, and the metadata (date and location of the shooting) should be preserved.
In this article, we will take a look at all the current ways to migrate photos, we will look at both the manufacturer’s regular utilities and third-party solutions that ensure the safety of your data. Data portability is the first step to comfortable use of a new device, and you need to do it correctly.
Preparation of devices before the migration
Before you start the copying process, you need to properly prepare both smartphones. Ignoring the preparatory stage often leads to a connection break or errors when transferring large amounts of data. Make sure that both devices are Wi-Fi enabled, as transferring files over the mobile network can be unstable and expensive.
On the iPhone, you need to check the available space in iCloud if you plan to use cloud methods, or just free up some space for system processes. On the Xiaomi side (MIUI shell or HyperOS), you should make sure that there is enough space in the memory to receive all photos and videos.
- 🔋 Charge both smartphones to a minimum of 60-70%, So they don't turn off at a critical moment.
- 📶 Connect both devices to the same Wi-Fi network (preferably 5GHz for high speeds).
- 📲 Remove old unnecessary files to free up the system’s buffer memory.
- 🔒 Unlock the screens of both phones and allow geolocation access if apps require it to work.
⚠️ Warning: Don’t run energy-saving mode on both devices at the same time, it can limit the background activity of applications, which will cause the connection to break during long-duration transmission.
It's also worth turning off. VPN-services, if they're active, because they can redirect traffic across other countries, which will disrupt the local connection between phones.
Using the Mi Mover application for direct transmission
The most effective and native way for Xiaomi users is the Mi Mover utility, which is designed specifically for migrating data from various platforms, including iOS. Its main advantage is that it creates a direct Wi-Fi connection between devices without downloading an Internet channel or requiring authorization from third-party accounts.
The process starts with installing the app on an iPhone from the App Store, which is already built into the system on Xiaomi and is in the Tools folder or available through settings, and when you start it on the new phone, you need to select the status of "I am the recipient" and on the old iPhone, you need to select the status of "I am the sender".
Scanning. QR-The code displayed on the Xiaomi screen will instantly link the devices, then the system will suggest selecting the types of data to transfer. Here it is important to be careful: Mi Mover allows you to select only photos and videos, ignoring system settings, which is ideal for our task.
☑️ Check before launching the Mi Mover
The speed of transmission depends on the quality of the antennas and the distance. If the process is in place, try bringing the phones closer together or restarting the application. Once completed, you will find all the images in the standard MIUI gallery.
Transfer through Google Photos and Cloud Services
If the direct method doesn’t work for some reason, cloud technology comes to the rescue. Google Photos is perhaps the most reliable way to synchronize media between different OSes. Since Google services are pre-installed on Xiaomi, you just have to configure your iPhone correctly.
Install Google Photos on your iPhone and log in to your Google account. In the app settings, you need to activate Autoboot and Sync. It is important to select the download quality: Save space will allow you to upload more photos without losing visible quality, and Original will save full files, but will quickly exhaust the quota of 15 GB.
Once all the photos are uploaded to the cloud (Sync status complete), pick up Xiaomi. Open Google Photos under the same account, and your entire gallery will be available instantly. To physically transfer files to your phone's memory, you can use the "Free Space" feature on your iPhone, and then open the desired albums on Xiaomi for caching.
- ☁️ Advantages of the method: automatic backup in the future.
- 📱 Access to photos from any device, including a computer.
- 🗑️ The ability to delete photos from the iPhone, freeing up space, but saving them in the cloud.
- 🔄 Synchronization occurs in the background without requiring constant monitoring.
What to do if the photos are not uploaded?
Synchronization through Yandex.Disk and other clouds
For users who are actively using the Yandex ecosystem, this method will be the most convenient. Yandex.Disk provides generous storage and works perfectly with both iOS and Android.
Install the app on your iPhone, log in to your account and turn on the camera for automatic unloading. Yandex.Disk is that it often offers unlimited storage for photos from mobile devices (if you have a Plus subscription), which makes it a great option for owners of large galleries.
On Xiaomi, you just need to install an app, and all the photos will appear in the Gallery section inside the disk. For offline access, you can select albums and click "Save to Memory Device." This method is good because it does not require a PC and works even when the network is interrupted, restarting the download.
There are other alternatives, such as Dropbox or OneDrive, but they may have limits on the amount of free storage available, and the choice of a particular cloud depends on your personal preferences and subscriptions available.
Transfer via Send Anywhere and third-party utilities
When the regular funds fail, the universal tools come into the arena. Send Anywhere has proven to be one of the best tools for transferring files between different platforms. It requires no registration and works on the principle of P2P (peer-to-peer).
The mechanism is simple: you choose a photo on your iPhone, the application generates a six-digit key or QR-Type this key into Xiaomi, and the transfer starts. The speed is often faster than Bluetooth, and comparable to local Wi-Fi.
Other popular versions include Xender or SHAREit. However, be careful: many free versions of such applications are oversaturated with advertising. Send Anywhere is more loyal in this regard, although it has a limit on the file size in the free version (usually up to 2 GB, which is enough for batch transfer).
| Annex | I need an account. | Speed. | Advertising |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mi Mover | No. | Tall. | Absent. |
| Google Photo | Yes (Google) | Medium (depending on the network) | Absent. |
| Send Anywhere | No. | Tall. | Eat (moderately) |
| Yandex.Disk. | Yes (Yandex ID) | Medium | Absent. |
Third-party utilities are justified if you need to selectively reslip the photo or if the basic methods fail, and the main thing is to remember to remove these applications after use, so as not to clog the system.
Solving problems with HEIC formats and compatibility
One of the main technical issues when switching from iPhone to Android is the HEIC image format. Apple uses this format to save space, but many older or simple Android viewers may not open such files, displaying a black screen or error.
When using Mi Mover or Google Photos, conversions are often automatic, but if you use direct file copying via Explorer or Bluetooth, you may encounter incompatibility, in which case images may not appear in the gallery.
⚠️ Note: If you see files after transfer but can't open them, check the extension..heic files require you to install an additional codec or convert to.jpg.
To avoid future problems, you can change the camera settings on the iPhone itself before transferring. Go to Settings → Camera → Formats and select Most Compatible. After that, all new photos will be shot in a universal JPEG format that can be read on any device without exception.
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If you already have thousands of photos on HEIC, use the online converters or the Teams app on your iPhone for batch conversion before sending.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Will the date and location of the film be retained after the transfer?
Can the transfer process be interrupted and continued later?
Do I need to delete photos from the iPhone after transfer?
Why is the transmission slow?
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The fastest and most reliable way to do big data is to use the Mi Mover app over a direct Wi-Fi connection, as it doesn’t depend on your home internet speed.