Have you just come back from vacation, taken hundreds of cool photos on your Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 or POCO X5, and now you want to save them to your computer? Or just need to make room in your smartphone memory by transferring all the pictures to your hard drive? Don't worry, it's easier than it seems! Even if you've never connected your phone to a PC before, our instructions will help you figure it out in 10 minutes.
In this article, we will look at all possible ways of transferring photos from the classical USB-You'll learn which method is the fastest, how to avoid common mistakes (for example, when a computer can't see a phone), and what to do if photos are not copied. We will also show you how to automate the process so that in the future you do not waste time on manual drag and drop files.
It doesn't matter, you have Windows. 10/11 Or macOS, the instructions are universal, and the main thing is to follow our advice and not miss important nuances (for example, why you can't just pull out). USB-We'll start with the most reliable way to do this!
1. Method. №1: Transfer of the photo through USB-cable (most reliable)
It’s a classic method that works on all Xiaomi models, from the budget Redmi to the flagship Xiaomi 14) USB-cable and 5 minutes.
Step-by-step:
- 🔌 Connect your phone to your computer using USB-Use the port of the cable. USB 3.0 (usually blue) for maximum transmission speed.
- 📱 On the phone screen will appear a notification "Charging through" USB". Tap it and select File Transfer (or File Manager on older versions). MIUI).
- 🖥️ The computer will open a conductor window with folders on the phone. If that doesn't happen, open "This Computer" ("My Computer" in Windows 7) and find the Xiaomi device in the list of connected drives.
- 📂 Go to the folder. DCIM → Camera — it stores all the photos taken on the main camera. If the pictures are saved in other folders (for example, from instant messengers), look for them in Pictures or Download.
- 📤 Select the desired photo (you can press Ctrl)+A to pick everything up and drag them to any folder on your computer, or copy them through the context menu (PCM). → Copy → Insert).
Transfer speed depends on the version USB And the number of files, 100 photo-format JPEG (down 3-5 MB each) copied by 1-2 Here you go. RAW-Xiaomi photos 13 Ultra (by) 50-80 MB) may be transmitted up to 10 minutes, it is better to use here USB 3.1 or wifi.
⚠️ Note: If your computer can’t see your phone, check it: 🔄 Reconnect the cable (sometimes changing the port helps) USB). 🔧 On the phone, go to Settings. → Additionally. → Developer mode → Configuration USB and select "File Transfer". 🔄 Install Mi drivers PC Suite (link to the official website of Xiaomi).
I have the original cable (not charging!)
Selected the "File Transfer" mode on the phone
Opened the DCIM/Camera folder on PC
Checking the free space on the computer disk
Not retrieved the cable until the copying is completed.-->
2. Method. №2 Wireless transmission via Mi Drop (without cables)
If you don't have one on hand USB-If you want to send a photo to a laptop without unnecessary wires, use the Mi Drop service. This is an application from Xiaomi that allows you to transfer files between devices over Wi-Fi.
How it works:
- 📲 Make sure that the Mi Drop app is installed on your phone and computer (you can download it from Google Play or from the official Xiaomi website).
- 🌐 Connect both devices to the same Wi-Fi network (or create an access point on your phone).
- 📁 Open Mi Drop on your phone, select a photo and click "Send." On your computer, confirm the file acceptance.
- ⚡ The speed of transmission depends on Wi-Fi: 5 GHz networks 1 GB photo is copied by 2-3 minute 2.4 GHz. 10 minute.
The advantage of this method is that there is no need for cables, and files are transmitted in their original quality. However, there are disadvantages: if the Wi-Fi signal is weak, the transmission can be interrupted. Mi Drop sometimes forgets folders for saving on the PC - check the settings before sending.
USB-cable|Mi Drop/Wi-Fi|Cloud services (Google Photos, Mi Cloud)|Another way.-->
3. Method. №3: Cloud services (Google Photos, Mi Cloud, Yandex.Disk)
If you need to not just upload photos to your computer, but have access to them from any device, use cloud storage. This is convenient, but requires the Internet and sometimes a paid subscription for a lot of data.
Comparison of popular services for Xiaomi:
| Service | Free volume | Max. Quality. | Loading speed | Features |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google Photo | 15GB (total with Gmail) | Original (paid) or "high" | Quick (depends on the internet) | Automatic sorting by date/place |
| Mi Cloud | 5GB | Original | Middle (servers in China) | Integration with MIUI, but little space |
| Yandex.Disk. | 10GB | Original | Quick for Russia | Convenient for users of Yandex.Mail |
How to upload photos via Google Photos:
- Install the Google Photos app on your phone.
- Enable autoboot: Settings → Backup and synchronization.
- Wait for the photo to be uploaded to the cloud (you can monitor the progress in notifications).
- On your computer, open photos.google.com, select a photo and click "Download".
⚠️ Note: If you choose the option “High quality” in Google Photos instead of “Original”, the photos will be compressed to 16 MP. For professional shots with Xiaomi 13 Pro this is unacceptable!
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Before uploading to the cloud, sort the photos by folders on the phone – so it will be easier to download them selectively to the PC.
4. Method. №4: Transmission over Bluetooth (slowly but without internet)
It's the slowest method, but it helps when you don't have a cable and your Wi-Fi is off, and it's good for sending 1-2 photos, but not for hundreds of pictures.
Instructions:
- 🔵 Turn on Bluetooth on your phone and computer.
- 📲 On the phone, select a photo, click "Share" → "Bluetooth and select your PC from the list of devices.
- 🖥️ On your computer, confirm the file acceptance (in Windows, files are saved to the Downloads folder").
The transmission speed over Bluetooth 5.0 is about 2 MB/s. So, one photo weighing 10 MB will be transmitted ~5 seconds. 100 photos will take almost 10 minutes - this is irrational. Use this method only as a last resort!
5. Method. №5: Use of a memory card (if you have one on your phone)
If your Xiaomi supports microSD cards (like the Redmi Note 11 or POCO M5), you can upload the photo to it and then paste the card into your computer through the card reader, which is convenient if you have a lot of photos and don’t want to waste time on the cable.
How to transfer a photo to a memory card:
- Open the Gallery on your phone, select the desired photos and click "Share" → "Save to the device".
- Select your microSD card as your save location (usually displayed as an "External Drive").
- Wait for the copy to be completed, remove the card from the phone and paste it into the computer card reader.
The advantage of the method is that it has a maximum speed (up to 90 MB / s on UHS-I cards) and no risk of data loss when communication breaks. However, not all Xiaomi models support memory cards - flagships like Xiaomi 13T do not have this slot.
Which Xiaomi models support microSD?
6.Typical errors and how to fix them
Even when you follow all the instructions, sometimes you have problems, and here are the most common ways to solve them:
- 🚫 The computer cannot see the phone through the USB: Try another cable or port. USB. Turn on Debugging. USB in the developer settings (Settings) → The phone. → Version. MIUI — Tap 7 times, then return to the additional → For developers. Install Mi drivers PC Suite from the official website.
- ⏳ Photos taken too long: Use USB 3.0 and the original cable. ZIP Directly on the phone (applications like this) RAR Or ZArchiver. Turn off the antivirus on your computer, it can scan every file.
- 🔒 Photos do not open on PC: Check file extensions – sometimes Xiaomi saves photos in.heic (needs a converter to your PC) JPG). Update the program to view (for example, FastStone Image Viewer supports all formats).
If neither of these methods worked, try restarting your phone and computer — sometimes it solves the connection problems — and check if the Windows Firewall or third-party antivirus is blocking data transfer.
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The most reliable way — USB-cable, the most versatile - cloud services, the fastest for large volumes - a memory card (if there is a slot).
7 How to Automate Photo Transfer in the Future
So you don't have to waste time on manual copying, set up automatic synchronization. Here are some options:
- ☁️ Google Photos with Autoboot: Enable "Backup and Sync" in the application settings. On your PC, install Google Drive for desktop - photos will automatically download to the selected folder.
- 🖥️ Mi PC Suite: Install the official Xiaomi program on your computer. Connect your phone to USB and set up automatic photo copying when connected.
- 🤖 Scheduled Tasks (for Advanced): Use Task Scheduler on Windows + script ADB Automatically copying photos on schedule.
For most users, the first option is Google Photos + automatic download on PC, which will save you from having to remember about manual transfer.