The transition from Honor to Xiaomi is not only about changing the ecosystem, but also about moving important data, which is where contacts come in first. Some people lose their photos, some people lose their accounts, and sometimes they get duplicated or displayed in characters. In this article, we'll look at 5 proven ways to transfer, including syncing through Google, sharing over Bluetooth, and using the same tools. SIM-maps, export to.vcf and specialized applications.
The difference between Honor (based on Huawei Mobile Services) and Xiaomi (based on MIUI) is that if you used a Huawei ID account on an old device, it will be useless on a new one. So the key is to choose a method that is not tied to the manufacturer. We will also focus on common errors, such as why contacts may not show up after the transfer or how to avoid data loss when resetting.
1. Transfer contacts through a Google account (the most reliable way)
Google sync is a universal method that works independently of the phone model, and its main advantage is that contacts are automatically updated on all devices where you are logged in to the same account, but there is a caveat: if you did not use a Google account to store contacts on Honor, you will have to export them first.
Here's the step-by-step instruction:
- 📱 On Honor, open the Contacts app, tip three dots (⋮) in the upper right corner and select Contact Management → Imports/Exports → Exports to Google.
- 🔄 If there is no option, go to Settings. → Accounts. → Google, select your profile and activate your contacts sync.
- 📲 On Xiaomi, log in to the same Google account when you first turn on. If your phone is already set up, add your account to Settings → Accounts and synchronization → Add an account.
- ✅ Wait until sync is complete (it can take up to 10 minutes). Check contacts in the Contacts app on Xiaomi.
⚠️ Note: If your contacts are stored in your phone’s memory (not on Google or on Honor) SIM), They need to be exported to a.vcf file and then imported to Google!
Add a Google account to Honor (if not added)
Enable contact synchronization in account settings
Check the Internet connection (Wi-Fi or mobile data)
Make sure there is enough room for new contacts on Xiaomi
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If your contacts don’t show up on Xiaomi, check out:
- Is sync enabled in the settings of the Google account on the new phone?
- Are there any conflicts with other accounts (e.g. Mi Accounts)?
- Has the Contacts app been updated to the latest version?
Bluetooth Contact Transfer: Quickly but with Restrictions
Bluetooth is a classic way of communicating between phones that doesn’t require internet, but it has downsides: it can take a long time (if contacts are over 500) and users’ photos are often not portable, but it works even on older Honor and Xiaomi models.
How to transfer contacts via Bluetooth:
- 🔵 On both phones, enable Bluetooth in the Quick Settings Panel or through Settings → Connections → Bluetooth.
- 📱 On Honor, open Contacts, click ⋮ → Imports/Exports → Send contacts → Bluetooth.
- 📲 Select contacts (anything is possible) and confirm the shipment. On Xiaomi, accept the incoming file.
- 📄 After transfer to Xiaomi, a notification will open – click on it and import contacts into the phone memory or SIM-map.
⚠️ Note: When transmitted via Bluetooth, Cyrillic names can be displayed by cracossies if the file encoding is not UTF-8. To avoid this, export contacts to.vcf before sending and check the file on PC.
Through a Google account
Bluetooth.
Through SIM-map
With third-party applications
Another method
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If Bluetooth does not find the device:
- Make sure both phones are visible to everyone (in Bluetooth settings, enable the Visibility option).
- Reboot both devices – this resets the Bluetooth cache.
- Try to bring the phones closer together (maximum 10 meters).
3. Export contacts to VCF file and transfer to Xiaomi
The.vcf (vCard) format is the standard for storing contacts that all modern smartphones support, and its advantage is that the file can be edited on a PC, reserved or sent by mail. The disadvantage is handmade: you need to export data from Honor first, and then import it to Xiaomi.
Step-by-step:
- Export to Honor: Open Contacts → ⋮ → Contact management → Imports/Exports → Export to file. Select the storage location (internal memory or SD-The file will be called contacts.vcf or similar.
Xiaomi
- Connect Honor to your PC and copy the file to Xiaomi memory (or send it to the mail/messenger).
- On Xiaomi, open the file through Files or Contacts → ⋮ → Imports/Exports → File-based import.
How to open VCF-PC-file?
If there is an error in importation:
- 🔍 Check if the file is corrupted (open it on PC).
- 📱 Make sure Xiaomi has enough memory for new contacts.
- 🔄 Try renaming the file to contacts_backup.vcf (sometimes).
4.SIM-card contact transfer: an old but working method
way SIM-This card is suitable if you have few contacts (up to 250) and no Internet access:
- 🚫 No photos, emails or additional fields are sent.
- 📏 Limit the number of characters in a name (maximum 20–30 characters).
- ⚠️ Risk of data loss during retrieval SIM-map.
How to transfer contacts:
- On Honor: Open Contacts → ⋮ → Imports/Exports → Exports to SIM-Select your contacts (or all) and confirm.
Xiaomi
- Put it in. SIM-Map and open contact → ⋮ → Imports/Exports → Import with SIM-map.
- Choose where to save contacts (in memory of your phone or Google account).
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Before exporting to SIM-Old cards (until 2015) only support 100-200 contacts. If there is not enough space, break up exports or use another method.
| Transfer method | Speed. | Whether photos are retained | Limitations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google account | ⚡ Quickly (1-5 minutes) | ✅ Yes. | We need the Internet. |
| Bluetooth | 🐢 Slowly (10-30 min) | ❌ No. | Limitation on quantity |
| VCF-file | ⏳ Average (5-10 min) | ✅ Yes. | Handmade |
| SIM-map | 🐢 Slowly. | ❌ No. | Limitation of 250 contacts |
5. Use of third-party applications: when standard methods do not work
If none of the above methods work (for example, contacts are stored in the Huawei Cloud and are not exported), specialized applications will come to the rescue.
- 📱 Copy My Data (from Media Mushroom) – transfers contacts, calendars and photos over Wi-Fi.
- 🔄 CLONEit – Cloning data between Android devices without clouds.
- 📧 My Contacts Backup – Exports contacts to file and sends them by email.
Example of transfer via CLONEit:
- Install the app on both phones from Google Play.
- On Honor, select Send, on Xiaomi, Receive.
- Connect to a single Wi-Fi network or create an access point.
- Select Contacts and confirm the transfer.
⚠️ Note: When using third-party applications, never give them access to SMS, Calls or payment details - this can lead to personal information being leaked. check reviews and rankings on Google Play before installing!
If the app does not see the contacts:
- Check if they are stored in your phone’s memory (not in Huawei Cloud).
- Update the app to the latest version.
- Reboot both devices.
Typical problems in the transfer of contacts and their solutions
Even if you follow the instructions correctly, users are faced with errors.
- 🔍 Contacts are not displayed on Xiaomi: Check if sync is enabled in Settings → Accounts. → Make sure your contacts are not hidden (in Contacts) → Settings → Display contacts select all accounts).
- 📛 Duplicate Contacts: Use the built-in merge function in Contacts → ⋮ → Contact management → Install Duplicate Contacts for automatic cleaning.
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If the contacts after transfer are displayed incorrectly (no names, with errors), the file encoding is likely a problem. Always check.vcf before importing to Xiaomi!