Xiaomi 15 Ultra review

02 March 2025


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  • Anonymous
  • Yet
  • 22 Apr 2025

Marco M, 20 Apr 2025No, not at all as it starts at 28mm. However, the quality q... moreOh you had the OG RX100. Compact cameras aint gonna have even aperture because zoom lens with even aperture cost as same as compact camera. You can find new ​​Sony E 16-55mm F/2,8 G for like $900 which is a great deal considering they wanted double for it just a few years ago.

On the other hand Xiaomi periscope lens requires tons of light compared to its main sensor. On the native gain I would say it's at least 2.5 stops dimmer than the main sensor, if not more. And on the other hand no matter how much you crop in to zoom in it's still 100mm equivalent. Compared to your RX100/II yes you can more "zoom" so it's more versatile, I am not sure how much you can boost the gain on periscope before digitalization kicks is but I do agree with you that Xiaomi is handier in some conditions than RX. But again RX100/II is $350-400 camera compared to $1,200 phone. If you were to get RX100VI that's the comparison I would love to hear. That could be fun project. I'm sure both would trade blows real good.

My only and major issue with Xiaomi camera is the lack of blades on the main cam. Because of it filming with it is a pain. It's so shallow that you constantly need to focus pull when filming.

    Anonymous, 20 Apr 2025So you've been shooting with your RX100 only at 24mm a... moreNo, not at all as it starts at 28mm. However, the quality quickly falls off due to it not having a fixed aperture throughout the zoom range. The zoom range is also very short on the RX100. Very quickly having to rely on outdoor bright conditions or flash indoors.

    Biggest weaknessess of the RX100 vs. the Xiaomi are the autofocus, shooting speed, as well as indoor photography in low light where you don't have a suitable surface for the bounce flash to work. The software in the Xiaomi does a better job in natural low light situations. Tall ceilings and/or uneven ceilings and you better hope to have a fairly bright wall to bounce the flash off with the RX100 indoors.

    Still wish someone would add proper Xenon flash in a tilted angle for bounce flash in smartphones. Less processing and even more natural photos.

      • ?
      • Anonymous
      • Yet
      • 20 Apr 2025

      Marco M, 08 Apr 2025Did not reach top 20th? It's on shared 13th. . . An... moreSo you've been shooting with your RX100 only at 24mm all this time?

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        • Vals
        • 3Z5
        • 18 Apr 2025

        Why do the Gsmarena team favor Xaomi Ultra so much both this year and last year?

          Marco M, 08 Apr 2025Did not reach top 20th? It's on shared 13th. . . An... moreHaving spent some more time with it, there are some things I really wish were better. Granted all of them were expected in advance, hence my several years of postponing the upgrade to Leica-powered Xiaomi.

          Yes, I know many YT reviewers were always criticizing Xiaomi's colors before and came with more praise after Leica-processing, but for my preferences - I disagree. I miss my 11-series, and sadly the only one in my market available used has a slightly busted screen. . . So that's just not going to happen.

          The smoothing on the 15 Ultra is (way) too strong, as is the noise cancellation and in classic Leica fashion the contrast and roll-off to darkness/shadows is way too steep. This isn't bad when photographing cityscapes or other landscapes and man-made stuff. It gives them a bit of a dramatic look, which is fine. Obviously it does affect textures, but humans get very "airbrushed", even with beauty filter disabled. "Tan people" can get some quite unfortunate looking photos indeed due to the steep roll off to darkness - high contrast.

          Granted many others, do the opposite and people's black clothes, and even hair, appear grey. Overly bright HDR-ey photos. So different companies does it wrong in each their own way.

          I do find it strange though how dark the photos tend to get get on the main sensor, considering the sensor size and aperture. Non-Leica Xiaomis with smaller sensor and aperture take better photos of people indoors in low light, and brighter looking - without looking artificially over processed. I've compared some shots against my wife's base Xiaomi 12. I like the colors more, more skin details, even slightly better details on the strands of hair that overlaps the face in indoor shots. In one of the shots of my daughter outside on a overcast day, the 15 ultra somehow decided that my daughters hair in front covering parts of the forehead was simply noise smeared it all out. A very bad looking photo indeed.

          It is also clear to see that the processing they claim the 15 Ultra can do better vs. the 14 Ultra with regards to the fixed large aperture simply isn't true. Again fairly obvious and known in advance.

          Thankfully though the tele no. 2 is excellent and very much useful for when the kids play sports. And when large vessels sail by. The transition between the lenses when using snapchat is also quite decent. Both tele does well for portraits, though I tend to use tele 2 more, if I can get enough distance.

          I might actually consider gcam for normal point and shoot wiht the wide on this one. Just to compare.

          For now the least Leica-ish mode is Leica authentic and the filter "NAT". This is saved as default so I don't have to enable it each time.

          I wish Xiaomi and Leica could offer a third mode called Leica neutral - or something. With less smoothing, allowing for some noise in low light/dark areas and a less steep contrast.

          I think that Vivo probably has the best photos now, though sadly the availability isn't good in my region and the X200 Ultra will even be China exclusive - it seems. Sadly.

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            • Casey
            • TSQ
            • 15 Apr 2025

            Is the overheating still exist , even with this new 15 Ultra? If yes, which usage that ignite it more to overheating, camera or gaming?

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              • Casey
              • TSQ
              • 14 Apr 2025

              Is the overheating still exist , even with this new 15 Ultra? If yes, which usage that ignite it more to overheating, camera or gaming?

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                • uq
                • 8VT
                • 11 Apr 2025

                yes

                  Anonymous, 09 Mar 2025xiaomi 15 ultra never got top 20th on the dxomark smartphon... moreDid not reach top 20th? It's on shared 13th. . .

                  And this because they tested the Chinese version with early software. . .
                  Xiaomi uses their home market for this. Dxomark should've tested the global version instead. Or at least made it very clear they were testing a Chinese device with Chinese software.

                  The 15 Ultra has a significantly lower video score than the 14 Ultra. Dragging down the total significantly. That alone should tell you the software they tested was a bit premature on the Chinese version at launch.

                  If you disregard the video, which you should if you see tests of the international version, you'll see that for photo it would land in 4th place. Based on dxo's test suite, which of course cannot account for preference.

                  Speaking of preference, the Pixels do really well in dxomark's test, yet the photos they produce are very, very, very artificial and over-processed. This is the pixel way and it seems dxo likes it. I don't. I prefer photos similar to those from mirrorless, and Xiaomi delivers much closer to this.

                  Pixels, Samsungs and iphones all still have that "smartphone photo look" to them. In each their own way, but still very much "smartphone photos" in terms of output. A look I went away from many years ago, starting with Xiaomi's 11-series. And I don't plan on going back.

                  The 15 Ultra for me was the final model where I now feel comfortable to sell my trusted RX100. Still got my A-series Sony, but might just start selling of some of my lenses, as the need for them is being eroded in real time. Likely starting with my 55-210mm, and the last I will still cling on to will be the 50mm (75mm equivalent) prime. Still much better for portraits in that range vs. the 3x of the Ultra. Of course, assuming I carry it with me. Which is becoming less and less frequent. Looking forward for even better performance in that range in future smartphones.

                  Also hoping the Vivo X200 Ultra goes international, even though highly unlikely. Sadly.
                  The only real potential contender to the 15 Ultra this year. Huawei isn't an option at all for me.

                    Anonymous, 09 Mar 2025xiaomi 15 ultra never got top 20th on the dxomark smartphon... moreIt is ranked very high for photos but not for video. That would correlate to many reviews online where you can see the video quality is not top level especially at night it is quite poor in relation to some other flagships (really bad at controlling light jitters for example compared to the x200 pro at night and also detail is worse in video). The review here also points out that the video quality is less than ideal. Also though DXOMARK released the rating early. It's entirely possible that the overall score would improve (especially the video score) after a few updates. In reality though there is very little to separate all the phones in the DXOMARK rankings that are above 150 points. They are all good and all have strengths and weaknesses. Even looking at the top ranked phone, it also doesn't do well for video. The Xiaomi 15 ultra is actually DXOMARK's number 1 ranked phone for photo zoom which I think is fair. It's better to look at the component scores and read the review to see how the phone cameras actually perform in the DXO reviews.

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                      • Daniel Grigoras
                      • ajZ
                      • 02 Apr 2025

                      The Xiaomi 15 Ultra official website presentation does not mention anything about satellite communication, let alone Two-way satellite communication or Starlink Communication.

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                        • D7
                        • snS
                        • 01 Apr 2025

                        I haven't seen many reviewers (if any) mention this "issue" with X15U, but from my brief tests in couple showrooms and analyzing the results on a big screen, the phone has a very very shallow depth of field (DOF) on main camera, which is particularly noticeable in close proximity e.g. 2-5 meters "room" space when recording in 8k video and photos (50 MP) to the point that it looks "disgusting" when you want to capture both background and foreground in sharp focus - you simply can't with this device! For instance, object(s) that are focused at e.g. 2 meters will be sharp, but anything beyond (3 m) and closer (1 m) to it will be extremely blurry! Samsung has advantage here because of a smaller sensor and slightly longer lens, plus more pixels (spatial resolution). This is likely not a huge issue when shooting far / distant objects, landscape, cityscape etc. but in normal smaller constraint spaces and proximity it becomes a huge issue. X14U had a variable aperture to compensate it to an extent, so in that regard it is still a much better choice, despite the better sensor on tele on this newer model.

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                          • Hater
                          • Ibx
                          • 01 Apr 2025

                          Young2125, 25 Mar 2025I still prefer the brighter, sharper images from my VIVO X1... moreThe Xiaomi 15 Ultra has a higher peak brightness and pixel density than the Vivo X100 Ultra. What are you on about?

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                            • Young2125
                            • k3I
                            • 25 Mar 2025

                            I still prefer the brighter, sharper images from my VIVO X100 Ultra. I hope there are some updates to this Xiaomi 15 Ultra, because I'm not impressed

                              Ottonis, 17 Mar 2025Without doubt, the Xiaomi 15 ultra is one of the very best ... moreXiaomi 15 Ultra features both 1920Hz PWM and DC dimming.

                              1 - 120Hz is the adaptive refresh rate based on the content, not the PWM and DC dimming.

                                • ?
                                • Anonymous
                                • BLA
                                • 23 Mar 2025

                                RantProMax, 23 Mar 2025I really like the Xiaomi Ultra series but man how I wish Xi... moreXiaomi done this design and other makers just copied...

                                  I really like the Xiaomi Ultra series but man how I wish Xiaomi would come up with a new rear unique design which can distinguish itself from other phones and series. The way the lens are aligned and placed in a circular form right now, every other Chinese brands are doing it. Such a waste of potential. I believe the Ultra will carry more reputation and weight to its design like the iPhones if Xiaomi can manage this.

                                    • ?
                                    • Anonymous
                                    • gDU
                                    • 17 Mar 2025

                                    Anonymous, 10 Mar 2025even my $200 phone that I use for work doesn't have au... moreNo you are the definition of troll. If those features are so yesteryear then why gsmarena specs always have those features?
                                    Are you saying gsmarena is living in the past?

                                      Without doubt, the Xiaomi 15 ultra is one of the very best cameracentric phones in 2025.
                                      That being said, after reading several other sources, I came across another review (notebookcheck) that found that the 15 Ultra is using PWM-dimming at an extremely low frequency of 120 Hz which supposedly causes headache and eye-strain, especially in susceptible people.

                                        • ?
                                        • Anonymous
                                        • JB5
                                        • 16 Mar 2025

                                        Anonymous, 09 Mar 2025xiaomi 15 ultra never got top 20th on the dxomark smartphon... moreBecause DXOMark a bribed piece of crap that you have to pay for the phone to be at least in 250th place, so DxoMark unfairly compares phones camera

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