Convert LSAV to MP4

A Xiaomi phone may save a video in its private album as .lsav, which ordinary players and editors cannot open. Recovering it through Xiaomi Gallery is necessary before sharing, editing, or exporting it as a broadly compatible MP4.

What the LSAV format is

In the Xiaomi context, LSAV is an encrypted, application-specific file used by Xiaomi Gallery's private or hidden album on some Redmi and Xiaomi phones running MIUI or HyperOS. It is not a standard video container such as MP4, and changing .lsav to .mp4 does not decrypt or convert the file.

Files commonly appear under a path similar to /MIUI/Gallery/cloud/secretAlbum, but the location and filename behavior vary by Gallery and system version. A file copied from that folder is still protected; VLC, FFmpeg, and web converters normally cannot interpret it. Xiaomi's private-album password or privacy-protection method is required.

The .lsav extension can also be used by unrelated applications, so confirm the source before assuming it is a Xiaomi private-album file. A surveillance recorder or specialist desktop application may use LSAV for a different proprietary format.

What the MP4 format is

MP4 is a media container supported by phones, browsers, televisions, editors, and most sharing services. It can contain different codecs; H.264 video with AAC audio is a common compatibility choice, while H.265/HEVC produces smaller files at similar quality but is less universally supported.

MP4 is useful for editing, playback, sharing, and archiving because software support is broad. Exporting or transcoding can reduce image quality and discard private-album, surveillance, or device-specific metadata.

Recover a Xiaomi LSAV file

1. Open Gallery → Albums on the Xiaomi phone.
2. Open the hidden or private album using the phone's privacy password, pattern, fingerprint, or the authentication method shown by that system version. On some versions, reaching the private album requires swiping down in the Albums view.
3. Select the video and choose the available Unhide, Move out of private album, Restore, or Share command.
4. After it is restored to a normal album, inspect the resulting file in a file manager. It may already be a playable video, often an MP4, so test it before attempting another conversion.

If the file was copied to a computer, return it to the same phone and Xiaomi Gallery installation only if the app requires that location. Restoring the original directory, Xiaomi account, and privacy credentials may be necessary, but there is no guaranteed desktop procedure for manually imported files. Keep an untouched copy of the original .lsav file.

Without the correct privacy credentials, a Xiaomi LSAV file generally cannot be converted with a media converter. Do not upload it to a web service or try random decryption utilities; a failed import does not indicate that the extension is wrong.

Convert a non-encrypted LSAV file with its source software

If the file came from a recorder, camera, or desktop program rather than Xiaomi Gallery, use that product's official player or export utility first:

1. Identify the device or application that created the file and install its current playback or export software.
2. Open the file and use a command such as File → Export, Playback → Export, Download, or Convert.
3. Choose MP4 with H.264 and AAC when available, retaining the source resolution and frame rate unless a smaller delivery file is required.
4. Test the exported file in VLC and in the intended editor, phone, or web service.

Security-camera software may require an administrator password, a licensed client, or a vendor-specific export mode. That export may preserve timestamps, watermarks, indexes, or authentication data better than a general-purpose transcoder.

Use VLC or FFmpeg only when the file contains standard media

Install VLC from videolan.org and test the file with Media → Open File. If VLC plays it, use Media → Convert / Save, add the file, select an H.264 MP4 profile, choose a destination ending in .mp4, and start the conversion. VLC cannot unlock Xiaomi's encrypted private-album files and may not support proprietary recorder data.

FFmpeg provides more control. Install it from ffmpeg.org and inspect the streams:

ffprobe input.lsav

For recognizable standard video and audio, create a broadly compatible MP4 with:

ffmpeg -i input.lsav -c:v libx264 -preset medium -crf 20 -c:a aac -b:a 192k -movflags +faststart output.mp4

If FFprobe reports codecs that MP4 supports and no conversion is needed, remux without re-encoding:

ffmpeg -i input.lsav -map 0 -c copy -movflags +faststart output.mp4

Remuxing is faster and avoids another generation of quality loss, but it cannot handle encryption or unsupported codecs. Use a lower CRF value, such as 18 instead of 23, for higher quality and larger output; transcoding cannot restore detail already lost in the source.

Online conversion limits

CloudConvert and Convertio are reasonable options for a non-confidential LSAV file that has been confirmed to contain a standard, unencrypted video stream. Upload a short sample, check the output, and review the service's retention and deletion terms before uploading the full file.

These services cannot normally decrypt Xiaomi private-album LSAV files or proprietary recorder projects. Avoid uploading private recordings, security footage, identity documents, or evidentiary files; server conversion can expose both the video and its metadata.

Compatibility and preservation caveats

A VLC or FFmpeg failure usually indicates encryption, proprietary encoding, corruption, an incomplete copy, or a file that is project data rather than a standalone video. Obtain the creating application's official export tool instead of renaming the extension.

An MP4 export can omit event indexes, timestamps, GPS information, watermarks, authentication records, multiple camera angles, or Xiaomi-specific privacy data. Retain the original LSAV file whenever its provenance, audit trail, or metadata matters.