Accidental deletion of important videos is a stressful situation familiar to many owners of Xiaomi and Redmi smartphones. Often users catch up too late when new files are already written in the device’s memory, which makes it much more difficult to return them. However, it is too early to panic: the Android operating system and Xiaomi cloud services provide several levels of data protection.
Recovery of video files depends on how they were deleted and how long it has been since. If you just cleaned the gallery, the chances of returning content are close to one hundred percent. In more complex cases, when a complete cleanup or formatting has been done, specialized tools and deep analysis of the file system will be required.
In this article, we’ll look at all the current ways, from built-in MIUI features to using professional software on your computer, and it’s important to act quickly and consistently to avoid overwriting the memory sectors where your video is physically stored.
Checking the cart in the Gallery and Google Photos
The first and most obvious step, often ignored in a hurry, is to check the embedded clipboards. In the MIUI shell, like the standard Google Photos app, deleted files don't disappear instantly. They move to a special Recycle Bin folder, where they are stored for a certain period, usually 30 days.
To access deleted videos in the standard Xiaomi Gallery, you need to open the app, go to the Albums tab and scroll to the bottom. There you will find the item "Deleted." If you use Google's service, the algorithm is similar: open the app, click on Library and select Recycle Bin. Important: if the file was deleted more than a month ago, it is automatically erased irrevocably.
Recovery from the cart is done in one click, select the right videos and click the Restore button, and the files will return to their original albums, saving the shoot date and metadata.
- 📂 Open the Gallery or Google Photos app on your device.
- 🗑️ Go to the Albums section. → Remote (or Library) → Basket).
- ✅ Select the video and press the restore button.
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If you deleted a video from the Xiaomi Gallery Recycle Bin, it may still be in the Google Photos Recycle Bin if sync was enabled.
If you delete a lot of heavy video, old files can be automatically deleted from the buffer before 30 days have elapsed to free up space.
Use of the Mi Cloud cloud service
Mi Account holders have access to a powerful backup tool, Mi Cloud. If Gallery Sync was activated in your smartphone settings, your videos could have automatically uploaded to the company's servers before they were deleted, the most reliable way to do so without third-party software.
To check, go to your smartphone Settings, select the top item with your Mi Account name and click on Mi Cloud. Make sure the Gallery switch is active. If sync is working, you can recover data directly through the web interface on your computer by going to i.mi.com.
⚠️ Attention: Xiaomi's free cloud storage only provides 5GB of space. If your video archive is large, sync may have stopped due to lack of space.
The web version of the cloud allows you not only to view content, but also to upload it back to your device or computer, which is especially convenient if your phone's memory is full and you want to free up space first and then download the video selectively.
- ☁️ Visit i.mi.com via your browser on your PC or phone.
- 🔑 Sign in using your Mi Account (the same as on your phone).
- 🎞️ Select the Gallery section and find the deleted videos.
- ⬇️ Select files and click “Download” or “Restore».
The process of recovery through the cloud depends on the speed of the Internet connection. Large video files in 4K or 1080p resolution can be downloaded for a long time.
Recovery via Google Drive and other clouds
Many Android users default to the Google ecosystem. If your Xiaomi has Google Drive or OneDrive installed and configured, there is a high probability that copies of the video are saved there. These services often offer a feature called Autoupload and Sync for media files.
Check the Google Drive app or the web version of drive.google.com. Pay attention to the Google Photos folder or root directory if you manually uploaded files there. It’s also worth checking the Recycle Bin section inside Google Drive itself, as the rules for storing deleted files there may differ from the system gallery.
If you use third-party file transfer applications such as Send Anywhere or self-save messengers (such as Telegram with the cloud enabled), try searching for videos in the correspondence history or folder of sent documents.
Analysis and recovery with PC programs
When software methods through interfaces don't work, you have to use "heavy artillery," specialized software for deep memory scanning (PC-version) or Tenorshare UltData can find traces of deleted files that have not yet been overwritten with new information.
To work with such utilities, you will need a computer with Windows or macOS and USB-It's critical to turn on the smartphone debugging mode. USB. To do this, go to the Settings. → About the phone and seven times quickly click on the build number (MIUI Version to unlock the developer menu.
Settings → Advanced settings → For developers → Debugging by USBOnce you connect your smartphone to your PC and start scanning, you'll start analyzing memory sectors, which can take anywhere from 15 minutes to several hours depending on the storage capacity, and you'll try to reconstruct the file structure of the deleted videos.
☑️ Preparing for recovery via PC
The effectiveness of this method depends on how much you use your phone after deleting it, and the less new data you write, the better the chance of success.
Use of mobile scanning applications
If you don't have a computer at hand, you can try to recover data directly on your smartphone using apps from Google Play. The leader in this niche is DiskDigger. The application works in two modes: basic scanning (without root rights) and deep scanning (requires superuser rights).
Without root rights, the app can only find cached thumbnails or low-quality versions of video that have remained in the system folders. Full restoration of original quality often requires access to deep layers of the file system, which is impossible without unlocking the bootloader and obtaining administrator rights.
⚠️ Attention: Getting root rights (through Magisk or other utilities) will void the warranty on the device and may cause system failure if you do not do it.
Popular recovery apps on Android:
- 📱 DiskDigger – a simple interface, effective for photos and videos.
- 🔍 Dumpster – works like an extended shopping cart, but can search for old files.
- ♻️ Recycle Bin – an analogue of the Windows basket for Android.
After scanning, the app will offer a list of found files. Save the recovered videos immediately to external media (SD-map) or to the cloud to avoid taking up internal memory again.
Table of comparison of recovery methods
To make it easier for you to choose the right method, we have systematized the methods according to their effectiveness, complexity and conditions. Not all methods are suitable for every situation, so focus on the specific circumstances of deleting the file.
| Method | Conditions required | Efficiency | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gallery basket | Less than 30 days have passed. | 100% | Low. |
| Mi Cloud / Google Photo | Synchronization enabled | Tall. | Low. |
| PC programs (Dr.Fone) | USB-cable, PC, debugging | Medium/High | Medium |
| Mobile applications | Root rights for a full search | Medium | Tall. |
| Service centre | Physical access to the device | Depends on the case. | Tall. |
As you can see from the table, having pre-syncs is the best thing with minimal effort, and using third-party software is a lottery, where success depends on a lot of technical factors.
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The best chance of returning the video to its original quality is through regular backups, and preventive measures are always more effective than treatment.
Prevention of data loss and frequent errors
To avoid memory loss on a regular basis, you need to develop a file-handling habit. Xiaomi users’ main mistake is to ignore notifications of space shortages. When memory is full, the system is unstable, and the risk of accidentally dumping files increases.
Use the 3-2-1 rule: three copies of data, on two different media, one in a different location (cloud). For owners of Redmi and Poco with support for microSD cards, the ideal solution is to configure the storage of photos and videos immediately to an external card.
You should also check your sync settings regularly. After updating your Android or changing your account password, sync can automatically turn off, and periodic monitoring of settings in the Accounts section and sync will help you avoid unpleasant surprises.
⚠️ Warning: Never interrupt the process of recording videos or copying files, which damages the file spreadsheet and makes recovery extremely difficult even for professionals.
What do you do if nothing helps?
Remember, time is against you, and the faster you start the process of recovering from a missing person, the better the chances of success, and every minute of your phone's life reduces the chances of file returns.