How to transfer the gallery to the new Xiaomi phone: all working ways

Why Transferring Photos to Xiaomi Needs a Special Approach

The move to Xiaomi’s new smartphone is always exciting, especially when it comes to keeping personal photos and videos safe. Unlike the iPhone, where Apple’s ecosystem offers a unified Quick Start tool, Android devices (including Redmi, Poco and the Mi series) require a more flexible approach. The main problem is the fragmentation of methods: what works for Samsung may not work for Xiaomi due to the features of the MIUI firmware.

For example, the standard Google Photos feature seems universal, but in practice, users face resolution limitations (compression of originals) or long synchronization with a large amount of data. USB-C/Type-C Often delayed due to incompatibility of protocols MTP older versions of Windows. In this article, we'll discuss 5 Proven ways to transfer a gallery to Xiaomi, including little-known chips MIUI 14/15, which speeds up the process in 2–3 once.

Method 1: Transfer over Mi Cloud – fast, but nuanced

Xiaomi’s Mi Cloud cloud storage is the most logical option for owners of devices of this brand. It is integrated into the firmware and offers 5 GB of free space (up to 100 GB for 99).₽/However, there are pitfalls: Mi Cloud servers are located in China, so the download speed depends on your ISP, for example, Rostelecom and MTS ping to Chinese servers on average 200-300 ms, which slows down the synchronization of large files.

To move the gallery through the Mi Cloud:

• 📱 On your old phone: Open Settings → Xiaomi account → Mi Cloud → Gallery and enable synchronization. Wait until the download is complete (may take hours at 10)+ GB).
• 🔄 On the new Xiaomi: Sign in to the same Mi Account, go to Mi Cloud → Gallery and click Sync. Photos will appear in the Mi folder. Cloud/Photos.
• ⚡ Acceleration: If photos don’t load, check if Traffic Saving Mode is enabled in Settings → Connections → Use data. Turn it off for speed.

⚠️ Note: Mi Cloud does not save folder structure – all photos are merged into one gallery by date. If you are interested in organization (for example, folders "Vacation 2023", "Documents"), use alternative methods.

Method 2: Google Photos – Universal, but not perfect

Google Photos is a popular backup tool, but it has limitations that Xiaomi users often forget. Since June 1, 2021, Google has abolished free storage of photos in original quality: now all downloads over 15 GB (the total limit of Google account) are compressed to 16 MP for photos and 1080p for videos. This is critical if you have a Xiaomi 13 Ultra camera with a resolution of 50+ MP.

Instructions for transfer:

1. Set Google Photos on your old phone and log in to your Google account.
2. In the application settings, select Backup → High Quality (free) or Original Quality (15 GB credit).
3. Wait for the download to complete (the Photos menu → Library → Devices shows progress).
4. On the new Xiaomi, install Google Photos, log in to the same account and wait for sync.

⚠️ Note: If you use Xiaomi with firmware MIUI Global, in Settings → Annexes → Application management can be disabled auto-run Google Photos. Turn it on, otherwise sync will be interrupted.

Check the free space in your Google account | Turn off battery saving mode for Google Photo| Connect to Wi-Fi (no use of mobile data) | Make sure both phones share the same version of the app-->

Method 3: Direct cable transfer – reliable, but not always easy

Using a USB-C/Type-C cable or an OTG adapter seems like the most reliable method, but in practice Xiaomi users face two problems:

1. MTP Error: On Windows 10/11, your phone may not be identified as a drive due to outdated Media Transfer Protocol drivers.
2. MIUI Limitations: Some models (e.g. Redmi Note 12 Pro+) have Personal Data Protection enabled by default, blocking folder access through Explorer.

Step-by-step:

1. Connect your old phone to your PC via cable. In the notification curtain, select File Transfer (MTP) mode.
2. On your PC, open this computer -- the phone should appear as a removable drive. If not, install the Mi PC Suite drivers from the official website.
3. Copy the DCIM folder (and Pictures, if any) onto your PC hard drive.
4. Connect the new Xiaomi, move the files to the same DCIM folder.

To resolve the MTP error:

• 🔧 On Windows: Open Device Manager, find your phone in Portable Devices, update your driver manually by selecting MTP USB Device.
• 📱 On Xiaomi: Go to Settings → Additionally. → For developers and enable debugging by USB (If the option is hidden, tap 7 times on the version MIUI phone).

Method 4: Wi-Fi Direct – no cables or clouds

If you don't have cable or slow Internet, you can transfer photos directly over Wi-Fi Direct or over a local network, which is faster than cloud services (speeds up to 10-15 MB / s), but requires pre-configuration, the main advantage is that there is no compression of files and no limits on volume.

Implementation options:

• 📶 Wi-Fi Direct: On an old phone: Settings → Connections → Wi-Fi Direct. On the new Xiaomi: turn on Wi-Fi Direct in the same menu and connect to the old device. Use any file manager (such as Mi File Manager) to transfer the folder DCIM.
• 🌐 Local. FTP-Server: Install an application on an old phone FX File Explorer or Solid Explorer. Launch FTP-server in the application settings (specify the port) 2221 On the new Xiaomi, connect to the view address. ftp://192.168.x.x:2221 Mi File Manager via Mi File Manager.

⚠️ Warning: When transferring over Wi-Fi Direct, turn off mobile data on both phones - otherwise the connection will be unstable. Also make sure that the new Xiaomi has enough free space: c Settings → Warehouse check section Available.

💡

If the transfer is interrupted, break the gallery into parts of 2-3 GB. To do this, create several folders on the old phone (for example, “Photo 2020”, “Photo 2021”) and transfer them alternately.

Method 5: MicroSD Memory Card: An Old But Effective Method

If your Xiaomi supports memory cards (like the Redmi Note 12 Pro or Poco X5 Pro), microSD porting may be the easiest solution, and the main advantage is that it doesn’t depend on the Internet or PC.

• 🔄 The speed of reading/writing the card must be at least 10 (UHS-I), copying out+ GB will take hours.
• 📁 The folder structure is saved, but files with a hidden attribute (for example, thumbnails.thumb) may not be transferred.
• 🔒 On some Xiaomi models, the card is formatted as internal memory, which makes it difficult to extract it.