Xiaomi 15 Ultra review

02 March 2025


Sort by:

I wonder if my fellow car enthusiasts noticed that they used Porsche's "Turbo" font for the Ultra logo on the back. That is cool attention to details. Too bad this phone is running the same OS as entry level, landfill-grade Xiaomi devices.

It's like having a Porsche 911 Turbo with a Mitsubishi Mirage interior. Nobody wants that, no matter how nice the exterior might be, simply because the interior is where you'll spend the most time. Just like the OS on your smartphone.

Having to flip it to remember it's a premium device because it runs a poor men's iOS on the other side ain't gonna cut it.

    • ?
    • Anonymous
    • JHk
    • 02 Mar 2025

    Anonymous, 02 Mar 2025Based on rumours, is this really a 100mm telephoto? Or is i... moreThe exif data states that the focal length is 25.10mm. This means that it should produce about the same field of view as a 95.00mm full frame camera, when used with a 200.0 megapixel 0.56 micrometer pixel size sensor.

    This means that you should get 180 megapixel at 100mm instead of 200 megapixel. 12.5 megapixel at 380mm (but with Tetra²pixel array and Quad Pixel autofocus).

      jiyen235, 02 Mar 2025omg so the price goes EVEN lower? WOW4,599rmb includes the government subsidy but you can probably get it a little cheaper in a physical store

        PureOS, 02 Mar 2025This just proves that optimisation is everything. Lower bat... morepower hungry SOC only at the most demanding instances. Otherwise this is the most efficient Qualcomm CPU. Additionally keep in mind that the 15 Ultra boasts a far superior display, which is quite a bit more efficient.

        Just an example for you at 100 nits :
        Power in watts, from Xiaobai's 15 Ultra review

        15 Ultra : 0.21
        14 Ultra : 0.24
        IQOO 13 : 0.23
        S25 Ultra : 0.19

        Not to mention the boost that the newer android/HyperOS2 must bring over Hyper OS. Hyper OS was already a big boost in battery compared to MiUI so imagine how much of a boost HyperOS2 must've been compared to the iterations of HyperOS we had till the 14 Ultra, alongside the newer Android update. So yeah lots of reasons.

          Aierlan, 02 Mar 2025Yes for the same storage. The Vivo x200 pro can get a gover... moreomg so the price goes EVEN lower? WOW

            As expected... The world best camera phone!

            This is thenone im aiming for this year, very dissapointed with Samsung this year

              This just proves that optimisation is everything. Lower battery and power hungriest soc but best battery life of all Xiaomi models. Btw, calling in article ip68 as base protection is ridiculous.

                jiyen235, 02 Mar 2025better speakers + better UW cam + longer reaching telephoto... moreYes for the same storage. The Vivo x200 pro can get a government subsidy which brings the price down

                  Aierlan, 02 Mar 2025Yeah, it switches to the telephoto at 4.1x. Tried it yester... morebetter speakers + better UW cam + longer reaching telephoto + an addition of a 3x + 1 inch main cam + a whole suite of pro features like log and stuff.

                  I'd say it's at the very least worthy of a 20% price hike but 40% is too much. The X200 Pro cooked too hard. If this phone had fast charging OR a JN5 selfie cam i'd have said it would've been worth it but the X200 Pro just has a better battery experience as of now, i think. Btw are you comparing them for the same storage models? Like 256 gb vs 256 gb?

                    • V
                    • Vasilis
                    • JxJ
                    • 02 Mar 2025

                    The best phone, so far, that is OFFICIALLY released worldwide and not only in some countries.Congats to Xiaomi that respects its audience, presenting real upgrades, and doesn't treat them like sheep that go out to eat their hay.

                      xslvrxslwt, 02 Mar 2025So many downgrades and mediocre hardware that's been l... morewhich photo of the UW/telephoto cam has "poor highlight control"? And which photo is genuinely so ugly from these shots that you're acting like this? Only the Find X7 Ultra has a better UW cam and it's not like that phone's winning in the detail retrieval front either on account of its already lackluster hardware detail and the aggressive NR at night of that phone. The 3x on that phone is class leading but does that really matter when this phone has both a top notch 3x AND a best in class telephoto cam? I don't really get your complaints, you're just complaining for the sake of complaining. Xiaomi also handily beats Oppo in videography so there's that.

                      Now, the vibrator motor thing is real, and if you complained about update policy/the software not being as polished as Oppo you'd 100% be right. And yeah, no variable aperture, but a worthy sacrifice for the telephoto cam being so huge/with such a large aperture and the best thing is that the main cam retains its super large aperture, thus making it the 1 incher with the largest aperture, still. Loss of variable aperture is a bummer but no biggie.

                      Truly, you're just yapping for no reason, this phone has a better night mode than the X200 Pro, which i consider to be EASILY better than the Find X8 Pro apart from the UW cam, this phone is a true X200 Ultra competitor and Oppo's not gonna stand a chance apart from the 3x.

                      The selfie cam is the only valid complaint here but Oppo's most likely gonna use this terrible sensor yet again, yet Xiaomi has great selfies now alongside near iPhone/Samsung level videography which was previously only possible on Vivo's X200 Pro and the X100 Ultra was at times better, save for the oversharpening.

                        jiyen235, 02 Mar 202595mm to 100mm crop.Yeah, it switches to the telephoto at 4.1x. Tried it yesterday. Main camera is 23mm so 4.1 times 23mm would be 94.3 but probably 95mm. Still longer than the Vivo x200 pro though. Having said that where I am in China the Vivo x200 pro is 4,599rmb for the 12gb 256gb model whereas the Xiaomi 15 ultra is 6,499rmb around 40% more. It's probably slightly better camerawise but not sure it's worth 40% more. Phones over 6,000rmb can't avail of the government subsidy in China unfortunately

                          xslvrxslwt, 02 Mar 2025So many downgrades and mediocre hardware that's been l... moreThey should've just used a 96mm focal length (assuming it's 92mm and not 96mm like some have claime) and not cropped in, had a closer minimum focusing distance with the large periscope unit, retained the variable focal aperture (or maybe even change it to 10-step instead of 1,024-step) for the main camera, and put a periscope lens behind the 70mm telephoto.

                            Also, is it just me or the 1x (main) lens results look very unpleasant? I think their new software algorithm that was supposed to "replace variable aperture" isn't really doing a good job, for example the tree and plant picture - the place you'd usually have bokeh from f/1.6 there are some odd artifacts as if they tried to restore it and mimick f/2 or sum

                              • ?
                              • Anonymous
                              • xjH
                              • 02 Mar 2025

                              xslvrxslwt, 02 Mar 202592 or 96mm native, 100mm is upscaledThat's disappointing! I was thinking of getting this, but I'm now having 2nd thoughts!

                                xslvrxslwt, 02 Mar 202592 or 96mm native, 100mm is upscaled95mm to 100mm crop.

                                  David 040882, 02 Mar 2025It's actually more around 92mmhehe i was a nanosecond faster

                                    Anonymous, 02 Mar 2025Based on rumours, is this really a 100mm telephoto? Or is i... moreIt's actually more around 92mm

                                      Anonymous, 02 Mar 2025Based on rumours, is this really a 100mm telephoto? Or is i... more92 or 96mm native, 100mm is upscaled

                                        • ?
                                        • Anonymous
                                        • xjH
                                        • 02 Mar 2025

                                        Based on rumours, is this really a 100mm telephoto? Or is it a crop and upscale?

                                          13 of 14