Xiaomi 15 Ultra review

Introduction

One of our favorite cameraphone lineups just got a refresh and the new model adds an industry-leading telephoto camera to what was already a hard-to-beat multifaceted setup. Indeed, with top-quality hardware around that Leica logo on the back, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra has every chance of being the ultimate smartphone for photography in 2025.

In case you're not entirely up to speed, the longer of the two telephotos on the 15 Ultra gets one of those 1/1.4" 200MP sensors we've been loving on other models, coupled here with a 100mm-equivalent lens (4.3x zoom). It's not the same package that the vivos have (X100 Ultra and X200 Pro), and it's also different from the Honor Magic7 Pro's zoom camera, so we'd still be in for some new discoveries.

Some restructuring had to happen with the zoom levels, so the shorter tele now stands at 3x (3.2x on the 14 Ultra). The main camera remains sort of the same - it's still a 1.0"-type sensor (one of few remaining), but what was a variable-aperture lens is now a good ol' fixed-aperture lens. The new ultrawide's numbers make it seem like a downgrade and don't carry a whole lot of wow factor, but we'll see how it performs after all. We won't be loving the selfies, that much is clear from the start.

The 15 Ultra joins this year's Elite club, picking the unimaginative path of fitting the latest and greatest Qualcomm chipset (vivo/Oppo have strayed into Mediatek camp). A battery capacity increase is one entry on the list of welcome generational changes, and you'll also find a switch from optical to ultrasonic fingerprint recognition in there.

Xiaomi 15 Ultra specs at a glance:

• Body: 161.3x75.3x9.4mm, 226g; Glass front, glass-fiber back or silicone polymer back (eco leather), aluminum frame; IP68 dust tight and water resistant (immersible up to 1.5m for 30 min).
• Display: 6.73" LTPO AMOLED, 68B colors, 120Hz, Dolby Vision, HDR10+, HDR Vivid, 3200 nits (peak), 1440x3200px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 522ppi.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM8750-AB Snapdragon 8 Elite (3 nm): Octa-core (2x4.32 GHz Oryon V2 Phoenix L + 6x3.53 GHz Oryon V2 Phoenix M); Adreno 830.
• Memory: 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 16GB RAM, 1TB 16GB RAM; UFS 4.1.
• OS/Software: Android 15, up to 4 major Android upgrades, HyperOS 2.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 50 MP, f/1.6, 23mm, 1.0"-type, 1.6µm, dual-pixel PDAF, OIS; Telephoto: 50 MP, f/1.8, 70mm, 1/2.51", 0.7µm, dual pixel PDAF (10cm - ∞), OIS, 3x optical zoom; Telephoto: 200 MP, f/2.6, 100mm, 1/1.4", 0.56µm, multi-directional PDAF, OIS, 4.3x optical zoom; Ultra wide angle: 50 MP, f/2.2, 14mm, 115˚, 1/2.76", 0.64µm, dual pixel PDAF; Depth: TOF 3D.
• Front camera: 32 MP, f/2.0, 21mm (wide), 1/3.14", 0.7µm.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 8K@30fps, 4K@30/60/120fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240/480/960/1920fps, gyro-EIS, Dolby Vision HDR 10-bit rec. (4K@60fps, 1080p); Front camera: 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60fps, gyro-EIS.
• Battery: 5410mAh (6000mAh in China); 90W wired, PD3.0, QC3+, 80W wireless, 10W reverse wireless.
• Connectivity: 5G; eSIM; Wi-Fi 7; BT 6.0, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive, LHDC 5; NFC; Infrared port.
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, ultrasonic); stereo speakers; Two-way satellite communication.

Xiaomi 15 Ultra unboxing

The Xiaomi 15 Ultra arrives in the usual black cardboard box, though closer inspection reveals some differences. It's a smaller box than what we're used to, at least in the Euro spec that our review unit is in, and there's this new-ish symbol on it with a crossed-out adapter likeness that explains the more compact dimensions.

Indeed, the retail bundle is missing an adapter, but it does include a cable. It's a USB-A-to-C cable though, which may be a bit of a nuisance if you're trying to go all-in on USB-C (which you should have been doing for a while now). That said, you probably already have a handful of good USB Power Delivery adapters and 5A USB-C cables lying around, right?

The box also includes a transparent snap-on back cover of pretty decent quality - it's not the most thorough protection you'll be getting, but it's a reasonable compromise between that and keeping some of the phone's design still visible.