Review cover Xiaomi 15 Ultra GBAtemp review
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Over the weekend, Xiaomi introduced its flagship smartphone series, the Xiaomi 15 line. Within this range, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra stands as the top-of-the-line model, blurring the lines between a smartphone and digital camera thanks to its Leica quad camera system. We take a look at it in this review.

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Xiaomi’s Ultra line of devices started only a few years ago but stand out in the crowded smartphone market for doubling as an actual digital camera. Featuring Leica lenses and a dedicated photography kit, it has become my favourite line of Android smartphones for daring to be different. I was thrilled to see a new Ultra model with the Xiaomi 15 Series and we’ll take a closer look at it in this review.

Xiaomi 15 Ultra contents and specs

Xiaomi 15 Ultra comes with 2 storage variant, starting from EUR 1499, and comes with the following items:


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Upon unboxing this premium phone, I was surprised to see that it did not come with a charging adapter. This is a major downer as it supports 90W HyperCharge and 80W wireless HyperCharge. With no adequate adapter, the user cannot make use of such features unless they buy one which really should be included considering the cost of the device. I really hope that this doesn't become the norm.

As for the specs of the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, you can find them below:

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Specs details courtesy of Xiaomi

A camera phone with a camera-like design

In terms of aesthetics, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra follows a design closer to that of the Xiaomi 14 Ultra with a flat back panel and a large, off-centre camera lens. It comes in three colourways, namely Black, White and Silver Chrome. The latter is arguably the best-looking model as it really emulates the camera look with its retro-style stitching and PU leather. That said, the Black variant under review is also a classy piece. Its high-end aluminium frame is finely crafted to ensure durability while being elegant. 

Despite the attention to the looks and quality of the frame, it seems like not as much attention has been paid to the lens itself. On the first day of use and taking the Xiaomi 15 Ultra in and out of my pocket, the camera lens suffered from some scratches. The company could have used a more scratch resistant lens or provided a lens cover, but this is not the case. Considering the size of the lens, it is likely to be more prone to scratches and protecting it should be a priority considering the focus on photography.

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Other than that, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra feels good to use and is relatively lightweight at 226g. It fits neatly in the hands, with all buttons easily accessible and it also features a responsive in-screen fingerprint sensor. It looks and feels like a premium, and will surely attract some attention with its unique looks, especially if paired with the Photography Kit.

Available as a separate purchase for EUR 199, the Photography Kit includes a dedicated case and hand grip. The latter doubles as a 2000mAh power bank and connects to the phone via USB-C. Its main use is, of course, for photography and it really makes the experience more camera-like. This has always been the aim of the kit since the 13 Ultra introduced it, but with this model, Xiaomi has upped the ante. 

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This kit comes with a decorative ring, a multifunctional 67mm filter adapter ring, and, new to the 15 Ultra, detachable thumb support and shutter buttons. The latter further hammer in the camera aesthetics, further blurring the line between smartphone and digital camera. These add-ons also make taking pictures and videos more ergonomic thanks to the physical keys that reduce reliance on touch controls as you can tune aspects such as zoom and exposure value.

I personally preferred the grey look of the Photography Kit of the Xiaomi 14 Ultra but this accessory is highly functional, allowing me to overlook the color scheme. While it does come at an extra cost, I think it is a must-have for owners of the 15 Ultra (but really, it should be included in the package considering the sheer cost of the phone alone). 

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The Xiaomi 15 Ultra as a daily driver

As with other Xiaomi phones, the 15 Ultra is also powered by Xiaomi HyperOS, with this version based on Android 15. While it does come with the expected bloatware from Xiaomi phones, it delivers a fluid experience. The 6.73” AMOLED display with upto 120Hz refresh rate delivers crisp visuals and is complemented with quality stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos support. Watching videos, reading articles and typing is enjoyable, making the device very well suited to be used as a daily driver. This phone also follows the AI hype with a suite of AI features from writing to image editing, but they are mostly nice-to-haves that you can safely ignore should you wish to. 

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With the Ultra line, Xiaomi usually raises the bar when it comes to smartphone photography and they achieve this once again with the 15 Ultra. Its Leica quad-camera system, including a 50MP main, a 50 MP floating telephoto, 200MP periscope telephoto and a 50MP ultra wide, ensures that you can capture high-fidelity images and videos in virtually any situation with rich details and faithful colours. Whether it’s for immortalising sweeping landscapes or highlighting details in low lighting conditions, the 15 Ultra promises a professional photography experience with simple point-and-click maneuvers. 

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Gaming performance 

As Xiaomi’s flagship model, the 15 Ultra packs the corresponding specs. Equipped with the Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, this phone positions itself at the very apex in GeekBench 6 benchmarks.

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You can throw any Android game at it and it will run flawlessly on the Xiaomi 15 Ultra. For example, Zenless Zone Zero at max settings runs at a fluid 60fps. Likewise, Dead Cells and Evoland 2 run steadily at 60 fps.

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It is also well capable of handling emulation, with Dreamcast games Crazy Taxi 2 and Dead or Alive 2 running at 60fps. For Gamecube at 3x resolution, Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes runs at 60fps and Twilight Princess at the capped 30fps. PS2 at 3x resolution is also not a problem to run on this device, with Ratchet & Clank and Shadow of the Colossus playing at 60fps.

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However, it seems like Switch emulators might not yet be optimised for the Snapdragon 8 Elite chip. Some games work well at 60fps like Cuphead while others like Untitled Goose Game run at 60fps but with some graphical glitches. As for Super Mario Odyssey, I would only get a grey screen, indicating the need for more optimisation and others have experienced issues with Switch emulators on this chip.

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Xiaomi flexes again with the Xiaomi 15 Ultra

With its professional-grade imagery prowess and premium price tag, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra is decidedly a niche device. However, it is more of a flex from Xiaomi’s part to show what it can achieve in the smartphone market. I applaud it for daring to be different, in a landscape that is all too familiar and similar. I do wish it was more affordable for others to adopt and that it came with a complete package including the Photography Kit, charger and scratch resistant camera lens. But these downsides don’t prevent it from being a great device. If you are looking for the very best in terms of photography and performance, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra won’t disappoint. 

Verdict

What We Liked ...
  • High-end camera prowess with Leica optics
  • Seamless gaming and emulation performance
  • Premium daily driver experience
  • Photography Kit enhances mobile photography experience
What We Didn't Like ...
  • No charging adapter included
  • Scratch-prone lens and no lens cover included
  • Photography Kit sold separately
  • Pricey device
8.5
out of 10

Overall

With professional grade photography and high-end performance, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra stands at the apex of flagship smartphones of this generation.
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An often overlooked feature of this phone is that the front facing camera can capture 4K video at 60fps.
 
Nice specs.

Personally I will only buy a device like this when I can use it as my desktop, maybe with a docking station?

Asus already did that in past but was way too early. Android was not there yet (well it still lacks but is waaaay better now) and the performance was not good enough to be used as a full fledge PC.

I think we are there now. ARM cores are on par with x86-64 in terms of performance and these flagships now have as much RAM as a gaming PC (sure its UMA and part is shared with the GPU, but still) plus a good size of internal storage.
We only need some brand to bring back the docking station.
 
Looks nice but is the bootloader unlockable?

From my experience, YES! All of them are, they require you to register and wait like a week or so first (anti theft measure?), but then you can unlock it with their own software they provide!

Snapdragon 8 Elite :blink: Wonder how Winlator runs on it?
 
The photography kit addon is really cool, reminds me of my old Sony Ericsson C905 with its dedicated shutter button.

iu


I've always been curious about Xiaomi phones but crap experience with samsung and google pixels have ushered me to the iPhone in 2020 and it's still going strong
 
I think its the norm now that phone companies don't provide a charger adapter, copying off Nintendo cutting costs expecting YOU to already have a charger.

I recently got a new Samsung phone and tablet and neither came with an adapter, just a USB C cable.

I dont think they should be allowed to not provide means to charge a device that requires it, users now risk having to buy it themselves and risk wasting money buying the wrong adapter or a dodgy cheap knock off passed off as legit and causing damage.

But saying that, ive had 4x official Nintendo Switch adapters break and stop working and ended up buying my own multi fast charge adapter which charges the console better than the official crap Nintendo give you.

And 2x of them after taking apart showed signs of it blowing, cheap shitty circuit boards/wire soldering.
 
Nice specs.

Personally I will only buy a device like this when I can use it as my desktop, maybe with a docking station?

Asus already did that in past but was way too early. Android was not there yet (well it still lacks but is waaaay better now) and the performance was not good enough to be used as a full fledge PC.

I think we are there now. ARM cores are on par with x86-64 in terms of performance and these flagships now have as much RAM as a gaming PC (sure its UMA and part is shared with the GPU, but still) plus a good size of internal storage.
We only need some brand to bring back the docking station.
I've had that same thought for a while. I think a laptop "shell" where I just slide in my phone and then I get some sort of desktop environment would be really neat and practical.
My phone is more than powerful enough for many things I do and having a separate device like a laptop just fragments things. If the laptop "shell" could just be a huge battery and external drive with a decent screen, keyboard, trackpad (or maybe one of those cute pop-out mice from years gone), I might even consider it. If there's no actual computer inside, then it should come cheaper, theoretically.
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I even bought something like this once to try and "laptopify" my phone. However, the keyboard was more dreadful than I ever imagined possible so I returned it pretty fast.
 
I've had that same thought for a while. I think a laptop "shell" where I just slide in my phone and then I get some sort of desktop environment would be really neat and practical.
My phone is more than powerful enough for many things I do and having a separate device like a laptop just fragments things. If the laptop "shell" could just be a huge battery and external drive with a decent screen, keyboard, trackpad (or maybe one of those cute pop-out mice from years gone), I might even consider it. If there's no actual computer inside, then it should come cheaper, theoretically.
H3cf6c1cb3ebb4760871753deae704b62Z.jpg

I even bought something like this once to try and "laptopify" my phone. However, the keyboard was more dreadful than I ever imagined possible so I returned it pretty fast.

Those combo "shell" + keyboard go back to the Android 3.0. I had one back then and they suuuuck lol.

I was talking about a real docking station like the Asus transformer had back in the day.
 
Some constructive criticism - It would be good to mention how long the manufacturer will support the phone in the reviews here.

Xiaomi will apparently offer four years of OS and six years of security updates for this device.
 
looks stupid and all those smartphone pics look the same, just slightly different processing.

the article is also written like an LLM would with all the common clichés of an editorial (which it of course is, but still)
 
Why does it feel like gbatemp is promoting a Chinese knockoff POS? I just bought a Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, and this phone doesn't beat it in any way. The S25 Ultra also sports a Snapdragon 8 Elite APU. Don't recall seeing a "news" post about it.
 
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Why does it feel like gbatemp is promoting a Chinese knockoff POS? I just bought a Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, and this phone doesn't beat it in any way. The S25 Ultra also sports a Snapdragon 8 Elite APU. Don't recall seeing a "news" post about it.
I'm guessing it's because Samsung doesn't want to sponsor a website that has ties to any legally ambiguous content, whereas Xiami is more okay with it.


Honestly, I'm down for things that actually shake up the market, so I like this. Something to make the phone unique beyond just a custom case. And this is coming from a person who has rocked Samsung phones since the Galaxy S3.
 
Why does it feel like gbatemp is promoting a Chinese knockoff POS? I just bought a Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, and this phone doesn't beat it in any way. The S25 Ultra also sports a Snapdragon 8 Elite APU. Don't recall seeing a "news" post about it.
Reviews are either what companies are happy to send us, or what we're enthusiastic enough to talk about when we've bought them ourselves. There have been a few Samsung reviews and editorials from folks on the site that have bought them (eg this one), but we don't have any contact with their PR as it stands. I'm fairly sure Prans is in contact with Xiaomi PR, hence the Xiaomi reviews.

If there's stuff or specific brands you want more general news coverage of outside of reviews (since it's down to us editorial people to buy our own stuff if companies aren't sending them for review) by all means say and we can at least see what's possible. We're not a huge team and I know a good chunk of us work full time jobs outside of this, so there are limits on what we can do, but it does help to know what people want for us to direct what time we have.
 
Why does it feel like gbatemp is promoting a Chinese knockoff POS? I just bought a Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, and this phone doesn't beat it in any way. The S25 Ultra also sports a Snapdragon 8 Elite APU. Don't recall seeing a "news" post about it.
Do you run emulators on that or what?
 
why does xiaomi still get coverage as if they're the affordable brand, isnt there a new player giving you all of this for half the money yet?
 
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  • NinStar @ NinStar:
    you can't properly scale 240p games
  • NinStar @ NinStar:
    720, 1440 and 2160 can scale them just fine
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    huh. never realized that
  • NinStar @ NinStar:
    the only common low-res (which is not even that common in games) you can properly scale to 1080 is 360, but even that can also scale to 720
  • NinStar @ NinStar:
    when I'm playing emulators I just stick to 720, if I had a 1440p or 4k screen I would prefer those over 1080p
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    My monitor is 1440p now after years upon years of using 1080p. I don't notice much of a difference except that it makes everything smaller and harder for me to read
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    Sounds like a skill issue
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    Similar boat tbh
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    Minox I fractured a couple of vertibra lol still hurts lol
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    Ouff
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