Pros
- Powerful cpu.
- Camera can take spectacular footage.
- Six years of software program program help.
Cons
- Extremely pricey.
- Useful digital digicam grasp is an costly added.
- Camera’s automotive setting might be underwhelming.
The Xiaomi 14 Ultra was among the many best telephones of 2024, many thanks in no tiny element to an impressive digital digicam system that took a couple of of the best footage I’ve ever earlier than seen from a cam cellphone. The follow-up, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, has an amazing deal to fulfill, and in a number of strategies, it does.
It’s an outright large: It’s obtained a fantastic display screen, and its digital digicam configuration takes spectacular footage. You can nonetheless get it with the digital images set that features a maintain and shutter change to correctly rework it proper right into a small digital digicam, but there are some cautions holding me again from calling the 15 Ultra an total success.
After taking management of 1,000 footage with the cellphone, I’ve pertained to the decision that whereas this cellphone can take wonderful footage, you require to perform harder to acquire them. Simply capturing within the automotive setting isn’t the means to acquire the best outcomes under. I’ll return to this afterward. But within the meantime, really feel in a single’s bones that it is a cellphone for devoted skilled photographers simply– casual snappers will definitely be significantly better off wanting in the direction of the apple iphone 16 Pro and even the Pixel 9 Pro.
The 15 Ultra makes use of the precise exact same 1-inch sort photograph sensing unit for its main digital digicam as its precursor, and I’m let all the way down to not see an tools improve, significantly taking into account the cellphone’s excessive fee. Xiaomi moreover selected to ditch the 14 Ultra’s uncommon variable aperture– amongst my favored attributes– for “software-based” choices that I can with confidence declare aren’t a super substitute.
I’ll confess, nonetheless, that the benefits of the variable aperture are marginal, and many individuals will more than likely by no means ever additionally see a distinction. Still, it annoys me to see genuine growth discarded for software program program workarounds. It’s exactly what I grumbled concerning in 2015, with AI being the one location the place enterprise are introducing presently. Ironically, as a result of put up, I praised Xiaomi for the 14 Ultra’s dependence on tools for its improbable footage, but I cannot declare the very same concerning this brand-new design.
MWC 2025: Xiaomi’s Photography-Focused 15 Ultra Is a Powerhouse
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There’s little question although that the 15 Ultra is a big Android cellular normally. Its stable effectivity, appropriate battery life and vigorous display screen assist warrant its entrance runner situation. Also, its 6 years of total software program program help isn’t regrettable both. But this cellphone is way from low-cost. It’s on the market within the UK and broader Europe presently for ₤ 1,299 with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of cupboard space, or ₤ 1,499 in case you need 1TB. That’s much more pricey than each the apple iphone 16 Pro and the Samsung Galaxy S25Ultra
Like varied different Xiaomi telephones, the 15 Ultra will definitely not be provided to get within the United States, nonetheless, for suggestion, that base UK fee converts to $1,630 or AU$ 2,630.
Is it price your cash? Let’s take a look.
Xiaomi 15 Ultra digital digicam
I took management of 1,000 examination footage with the cellphone up till now, and I anticipate I’ll take way more all through 2025. I’ve taken it to Scotland and England, to Barcelona, and likewise to an icy and winterySweden I tried to file no matter from street digital images to panorama and touring photos. In brief, I’ve really contain acknowledge this digital digicam.
I actually really feel cozy informing you that you simply can take some genuinely glorious footage with the cellphone. I’ve obtained photographs that will surely match what I’d get out of devoted skilled cams, and I’d haven’t an issue with importing a couple of of them to my photography portfolio to relaxation together with footage from my Canon R5, Leica Q3 43 and varied different premium cams. At the center of the 15 Ultra coincides Sony LYT-900 1 inch-type photograph sensing unit situated within the 14Ultra It’s actually greater than the sensing items situated in nearly any sort of assorted different cellphone digital digicam and often, an even bigger photograph sensing unit permits significantly better info and vibrant selection.
The digital digicam’s dealing with of direct publicity under is space on.
Crisp info and vigorous shades– an occasion of when the standard digital digicam setting toenailed the challenge.
Using the excessive comparability black and white setting is only one of my favored strategies to fireside, significantly for street scenes akin to this.
But the 15 Ultra makes you attempt to acquire your greatest efforts. In pure automotive setting, I used to be often underwhelmed. My most important drawback is the white equilibrium, which errs regularly on the fashionable aspect in a number of situations. Sunny scenes that should be swamped with cozy tones quite appeared cool and unexciting.
You cannot change the white equilibrium within the typical digital digicam setting, so I fired primarily within the Pro setting to alter the white equilibrium and varied different setups. I often warmed up the white equilibrium up and set up the direct publicity settlement to considerably underexpose the photograph, because the default direct publicity often appeared a bit bit as nicely sensible to my eye.
Taken using the standard digital digicam setting’s automotive setups, this sunset seems to be as an alternative boring.
By using the Pro setting, I had the flexibility to take hands-on management of the white equilibrium, heating this scene up and readjusting the direct publicity to acquire a a lot significantly better photograph.
When I took handbook management akin to this, the photographs significantly boosted. You can alter the setups to guarantee that every time you fill the digital digicam, it should actually keep your earlier capturing setups. Working by doing this actually felt much more like my process when firing on my Leica Q3 43– a slower, much more systematic technique to crafting an image, as an alternative of simply breaking away and wishing for the best.
I fired footage with the 15 Ultra in JPEG and DNG uncooked, the final enabling me to change my photographs moreover in purposes like Adobe Lightroom to acquire precisely the looks that I desired. Following a firmware improve, uncooked knowledge look improbable and are extraordinarily editable. I recommend capturing in each JPEG and uncooked in case you want to press each ounce of top of the range you possibly can from these cams.
The straight-out-of-camera JPEG seems to be actually darkish under, since I’ve readjusted the direct publicity to file the sensible skies.
But by moreover firing in DNG uncooked, I had the flexibility to attract again an excessive amount of darkness info, brightening this scene and remodeling it proper into a much more eye-catching photograph.
Taken using the ultra-wide lens, I fired this photograph in each JPEG and uncooked, the final enabling me to make use of this movement image edit inAdobe Lightroom
Once I started using the cellphone akin to this, I had the flexibility to acquire some excellent footage. But in case you’re looking for significantly better quick breaks shortly, after that you simply will surely be significantly better provided with the apple iphone 16 Pro, Galaxy S25 Ultra or Pixel 9 Pro, which might much more consistently take significantly better footage using utterly default setups. The typical digital digicam setting can do a superb work in some instances, but I situated myself altering to the Pro setting to work out much more imaginative management.
As held true with the 14 Ultra, amongst my favored strategies to fireside is using the built-in Leica excessive comparability black and white filters. It offers a punchy mono look, which features extremely nicely for street digital images, significantly whenever you mix the cellphone with the digital digicam grasp.
The 4.3 x optical zoom lens can file pin-sharp footage, and I significantly just like the deepness of space it’s had the flexibility to realize under on this black and white street scene.
Taken in Pro setting, this scene has a improbable equilibrium in between the highlights and deep darkness, resulting in a punchy, vigorous sundown scene.
The Portrait setting simply features when it discovers people, as an alternative of issues or animals, but it features nicely. I benefit from the deepness of space it’s attained under on this picture of Senior Editor Abrar Al-Heeti
At night, the cellphone can take glorious footage, significantly whenever you by hand regulate the white equilibrium. But Xiaomi’s option to take away the variable aperture troubles me under. The 14 Ultra’s capability to close down its aperture enabled it to develop real star-burst impacts round elements of sunshine (streetlights, and so forth) in night scenes. The 15 Ultra lacks this variable aperture, so these very same lights presently merely appear as if amorphous balls, lengthy as they do on varied different telephones.
The giant aperture and large photograph sensing unit usually digital digicam permits it to take sensible, sharp footage as the sunshine begins to discolor.
I take pleasure in using the excessive comparability setting for night-time black and white scenes, as nicely.
I took this within the Pro setting to be able to take management of the white equilibrium. I benefit from the look of it, but it’s a pity that the street mild doesn’t have a star-burst end result.
It was amongst my favored attributes of the 14 Ultra, and I loved precisely the way it modified the looks of night footage. I’m actually let down Xiaomi has really eradicated this particular attribute. But growing tiny star-bursts on metropolis night-time footage is explicit area of interest, and I presume I’m in a minority of people that had really genuinely see that it’s no extra there.
Xiaomi 15 Ultra digital images set
You can get the 15 Ultra with the very same digital images set that was used with in 2015’s design. It has a scenario, a maintain with a shutter change and setups dial, and an attachable ring that allows you to make the most of routine 67mm digital images filters. The filter ring is improbable for superior skilled photographers that want to make the most of spherical polarizers, impartial thickness filters or movement image black or gold haze filters to truly craft their footage.
The grasp makes the cellphone quite a bit simpler to carry, significantly whenever you’re out and concerning firing quick street footage. It clicks in properly, contains some added battery life to the cellphone, and the shutter change and setups wheel allow you to fireside as in case you had been using a small digital digicam.
The digital digicam grasp makes the cellphone quite a bit simpler to carry and make the most of like a cam.
It presently encompasses a brand-new thumb grasp accent to make it a bit bit a lot simpler to carry. There’s moreover a soft-touch, screw-in shutter launch change, which is bigger and far simpler to find and strike than the preliminary change it screws proper into. If you want using your cellphone for street or touring digital images, the digital images set deserves acquiring, although understand that it should actually embody an extra ₤ 250 in your prices, making a presently pricey cellphone way more so.
Xiaomi 15 Ultra cpu, software program program and AI
The Snapdragon 8 Elite chip situated contained in the Xiaomi 15 Ultra has presently happy us on telephones just like the On ePlus 13, and its energy is seen under, as nicely. It arrange excellent rankings on our normal examinations, whereas day-to-day process is fast and lag-free.
It’s improbable for gamers, as nicely, with requiring titles like Genshin Impact enjoying effectively at max graphics setups and at 60 constructions per secondly. Qualcomm’s 8 Elite chip isn’t merely created for uncooked energy although, it’s developed for significantly better AI dealing with. It’s not a shock then that there’s a complete lot of AI issues baked proper into the cellphone.
Xiaomi 15 Ultra cpu effectivity contrasted
Xiaomi 15 Ultra 2,971 9,115 6,378Xiaomi 14 Ultra 2,258 6,864 5,021 apple iphone 16 Pro 3,507 8,750 4,672Galaxy S25 Ultra 3,053 9,707 6,950
- Geekbench 6 (Single core).
- Geekbench 6 (Multicore).
- 3DMark Wild Life Extreme
Google Gemini and Gemini progressed get on board as typical, consisting of the conversational Gemini Live and Circle toSearch But Xiaomi has really included a couple of of its very personal attributes, as nicely. There’s a generative message machine to develop blocks of message based mostly upon your triggers, along with a useful machine that produces message transcriptions from voice recordings– improbable for a busy know-how reporter.
The cellphone runs Android 15 at its core.
There’s moreover a collection of image-focused AI units for broadening an image using generative AI, eliminating factors in a scene or simply growing the photograph. The AI units all perform together with I’d hope, but it deserves remembering that each one of them want an internet hyperlink to be able to make the most of– consisting of the voice data machine, someway.
The 15 Ultra releases with Android 15 aboard, and Xiaomi ensures it’ll receive 4 generations of Android updates along with 6 years of safety help. It’s a lot lower than the 7 years each Samsung and Google attend to their entrance runners, and I will surely’ve suched as to see Xiaomi go well with and even defeat its opponents under, significantly taking into account the excessive fee of the cellphone.
Still, a life span of 6 years is appropriate ample (a 3rd of people keep their telephones for 3 years or longer) and matches what On ePlus provides for its present On ePlus 13 entrance runner.
Despite its large 6.7 inch display screen, the cellphone is sort of cozy to carry and make the most of in a single hand.
Xiaomi 15 Ultra battery, display screen and elegance
Battery life is nice, but not superior. On our requiring video clip streaming examination, it held up significantly better than the On ePlus 13 but actually didn’t do together with the Galaxy S25Ultra You can securely anticipate a whole day of utilization, but in case you’re meaning to put it to use as your main digital digicam to your trip, it’s most undoubtedly price lugging a battery pack to give you consolation.
As with all telephones, you’ll more than likely want to invoice it completely over evening. It sustains 90W wired fast billing, which will definitely assist you pack the facility again in a lot sooner, so long as you might have an acceptable battery charger.
The 6.7-inch display screen is sensible ample to make the most of underneath lunchtime Scottish daylight and it’s vigorous ample to do justice to vivid cellular video video games and You Tube video clips. The cellphone is IP68-rated to help keep it safe from splashed drinks, whereas its glass and metal type actually feels pleasing to carry.
Xiaomi 15 Ultra: Should you get it?
There’s little question that it’s a cellphone that ticks mainly each field you will surely get out of amongst right this moment’s entrance runners. It’s efficient, has a fantastic display screen, appropriate software program program help length and attributes like fast billing and water resistance. But its overpriced price is tough to miss and difficult to warrant for anyone that isn’t a die-hard skilled photographer.
The digital digicam is the one issue to think about this cellphone over any considered one of its opponents.
Like its precursor, the digital digicam is the one issue to think about this cellphone over its opponents. Those of you needing much more casual pictures of your loved ones and mates on days out will doubtless be significantly better provided with possibility Android telephones– or the apple iphone– nearly all of which might take handsome breaks in automotive settings and at lowered prices. But the Xiaomi 15 Ultra can take glorious footage in case you make investments the second to craft them, each within the Pro digital digicam and in post-processing.
I would like Xiaomi had really finished a bit bit much more with its digital digicam over the 14 Ultra– or on the very least not eradicated amongst my favored attributes. It will surely make this cellphone quite a bit simpler for me to recommend much more usually to skilled photographers. But nonetheless, these of you that need an impressive everyday-carry digital digicam for touring and street digital images will definitely be well-served with the 15Ultra
