Contacts Transfer Issues from BlackBerry 5.x to 7.x to BlackBerry 10.0? Please Read This First
How to -- Transferring Contacts from BlackBerry 5.x to 7.x to BlackBerry 10.0 and Resolving Issues Resulting from Botched Transfers
Background
A number of people have issues with Contacts transferred from legacy BlackBerry 5.x to 7.x devices to BlackBerry 10.0 devices. This how-to addresses procedure to transfer contacts and precautions as well as providing solutions for failed contacts transfers.
1. If you have contact groups on your BlackBerry 5.x to 7.x device, transferring your contacts directly to a BlackBerry 10 device will NOT work. This is a KNOWN issue and it WILL be resolved. The current workaround is to delete the groups and then the transfer should work. Please BlackBerry statement for further details: KB33578-Contacts are not migrated to a BlackBerry 10 smartphone if contact groups exist
2. Transferring your contacts through Bluetoooth is unsupported. It HAS worked for some but there are several threads with posters that have issues as a result and you may end up having to perform a security wipe, which if botched will require an OS reload.
3. You CAN transfer your contacts successfully if you actually want to do so. Please see several options below.
Proper Procedure for Transferring Contacts from a Legacy BlackBerry 5.x to 7.x Device to a BlackBerry 10 device:
1. Make sure that any and all Contact Groups are deleted from your legacy device.
2. Reboot both devices. On the legacy device, please perform a battery pull (or equivalent). On your BlackBerry 10 device, please press and hold the Power button and tap "Restart." Please do not skip this restart of your devices.
3. Perform Contacts transfer using BlackBerry Link or a micro-SD card and it should succeed. Detailed steps are here: KB33322-How to migrate data from a BlackBerry smartphone running BlackBerry Device Software 5.0 and above to BlackBerry 10
Transfer Data Including Contacts from a Legacy BlackBerry 5.x to 7.x Device to a BlackBerry 10 Device after Several Failed Attempts:
1. Backup your BlackBerry 10 device if it works (data from your botched transfer may make this not doable right now, which is a good reason to get this fixed as you won't get any further backups otherwise).
2. Charge your battery on your BlackBerry 10 device to full. This is IMPORTANT. If you do not do this, you may need to do a full OS reload.
3. Perform a "Security Wipe" on your *BlackBerry 10* device. Go to the Settings app, then "Security and Privacy," then "Security Wipe" and follow prompts. Do NOT wipe your old device.
3. Make sure that any and all "contact group" items are DELETED from your BlackBerry 5.x to 7.x device.
4. Use BlackBerry's instructions to transfer your data between the devices discussed here using either BlackBerry Link or a micro-SD card using these steps: KB33322-How to migrate data from a BlackBerry smartphone running BlackBerry Device Software 5.0 and above to BlackBerry 10
5. Transfer should be successful if you follow instructions from BlackBerry's KB article. If the contacts transfer fails even after following instructions from the article, please contact BlackBerry technical support through your carrier as you may need to create a trouble ticket so that BlackBerry can repair the contacts database from your legacy Blackberry device and take you through the remainder of steps to finish your transfer. Please refer to the KB article number to identify the steps you performed thus far.
Transfer Contacts from a BlackBerry 5.x to 7.x Device to a free Google Gmail / Mail / Apps account for Syncing with a BlackBerry 10 device and Preserve Contact Groups (for future use):
Preface: You can transfer *both* contacts and contact groups from your legacy BlackBerry 5.x to 7.x smartphone into Google Contacts and sync from there. This will preserve your groups, so that you can use them on BlackBerry 10 when they become supported and you will end up with all your contacts on your BlackBerry 10 device.
1. Sync Contacts from your BlackBerry 5.x to 7.x device using BlackBerry Desktop to Microsoft Outlook or Apple Address Book.
2. Import your freshly retrieved Contacts from Outlook or Address Book into Google Contact's by using BlackBerry's instructions at: Merging contacts - Gmail Help
3. If you end up with duplicates, Google Contacts has an excellent feature to find and merging contacts and contact information. You can do this by using the "Find & Merge Duplicates ..." function under the "More" option. For more instructions, see: Merging contacts - Gmail Help
4. If you have setup Google sync for Contacts on your BlackBerry 10 device, all your transferred contacts should appear on your device in the Contacts app.
Transfer Contacts from a BlackBerry 5.x to 7.x Device to a free Microsoft Windows Live / Hotmail / Outlook.com account for Syncing with a BlackBerry 10 device:
Please see instructions already posted by GeekSquad UK and recommended in other threads on the forums here: How to sync Outlook information with Blackberry Z10 | Geek Squad