As the first Ultra model after the start of the year, Xiaomi 15 Ultra from the exterior design is also not difficult to see that the image is the main focus of this new product. So what are the imaging highlights of the Xiaomi 15 Ultra this time? What are the other upgrades besides imaging?
Both the black and white colorways of the Xiaomi 15 Ultra have received an update, which simply means that they are more premium and have a more subtle feel. The most recognizable is the color blocking design that pays homage to the camera, and there are two color schemes on the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, “Classic Silver Black” and “Cedar Green”. In our hands is the “Cedar Green” color, compared to the previous generation of pure leather design into more camera style, I personally think that this color will be a little more outstanding compared to the “classic silver black”.
In terms of lens module design, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra has a larger ring compared to its predecessor, in order to put down the two lenses of the “one king and one queen”, and the image performance, which we'll talk about later, is sure to surprise you. Back to the lens module, Xiaomi 15 Ultra adopts an asymmetrical lens arrangement, which can rationally allocate the position of the image hardware while further enhancing the recognition, the best of both worlds.
In detail, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra has a professional “Ultra” nameplate next to the lens module, which better highlights the identity of the Ultra. The aluminum alloy frame has a reverse wrap design so that the frame won't pinch your hand when you hold it, and with the lychee grain vegan leather and glass splicing design, it feels good in your hand whether you're holding the phone vertically to use it or horizontally to take photos.
On the front, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra features a 6.73-inch full-equal depth micro-curved screen design that supports a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate and 2K resolution. The Xiaomi 15 Ultra's screen dynamically increases to 3200nit in sunlight, so you won't have to look at the screen when you're out shooting, allowing you to focus more on image creation.
The biggest upgrade in imaging for the Xiaomi 15 Ultra this time around is this ultra-telephoto lens, so let's see how this HP9 performs first.
This 200-megapixel HP9 sensor has a 1/1.4-inch base, f/2.6 aperture, Xiaomi in order to make the equivalent focal length of this lens to 100mm, in the optical design and internal stacking of the two aspects of effort, which also makes this “Night God telephoto” volume has become very large, the huge lens ring has nearly half of the position belongs to this ultra-telephoto.
In terms of actual shooting experience, this ultra-telephoto of Xiaomi 15 Ultra is really very good, and the large bottom and large aperture can reduce the processing of algorithms, and more use pure optics to present the image.
(Super Telephoto Sample)
(Super Telephoto Sample)
With the combination of 100mm focal length + f/2.6 aperture, shooting portraits or animals with the Xiaomi 15 Ultra's ultra-telephoto can bring a natural optical bokeh effect, and you don't need to key in to get a shallow depth of field, which highlights the main subject more.
(Ultra-telephoto Portrait Sample)
(Ultra-telephoto Sample)
The Xiaomi 15 Ultra's ultra-telephoto provides a wider variety of shooting scenes thanks to its outsole design, and the 200MP feature allows the telephoto lens to have lossless zoom support at 200mm and 400mm. When you use the Xiaomi 15 Ultra to shoot at a concert, you'll get excellent results even without the Stage Mode.
(Super Telephoto Sample)
(Super Telephoto Sample)
On night scenes, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, an ultra-telephoto, also has pristine images with very natural overall light and darkness, and shoots with lights with good highlight suppression and very good color reproduction.
(Super Telephoto Night Sample)
(Super Telephoto Night Sample)
Having said that about the ultra telephoto, this 70mm telephoto lens of Xiaomi 15 Ultra can be considered as a filler in the 50mm-100mm focal length range and can be considered as a good portrait lens as well. Using this IMX858 telephoto lens for portraits at these focal lengths of 70mm and 85mm is also a good option.
(Telephoto Sample)
(Telephoto Sample)
Most importantly, the closest focusing distance of this super telephoto lens will be farther away, and this time with this 70mm telephoto lens you will be able to take better telephoto macro shots to further enrich the shooting scene.
(Telephoto Macro Sample)
Then it's on to the main camera of the “One King”, this LYT-900 sensor, which I'm sure you're all familiar with, has a large one-inch base + f/1.63 aperture, which brings a natural optical shallow depth of field, restoring details of light and shadow while still highlighting the subject.
(Main Photo Sample)
(Main Photo Sample)
The large pixel addition also shortens the exposure time, which allows you to better frame the moment, and also provides a higher dynamic range, so whether it's day or night, this lens will give you stunning images.
(Main Photo Sample)
When it comes to the final ultra-wide-angle lens, perhaps because of internal imaging hardware stacking considerations, this time the Xiaomi 15 Ultra's ultra-wide-angle lens was replaced with a JN5 sensor, and the imaging quality is quite good. If you have some good creative shooting inspiration, you can still make good movies with this ultra-wide-angle lens.
(Ultra Wide Angle Sample)
In addition, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra's camera UI has also been updated, with a new interface with new icons, fonts, animations, and smoother to use. For a better shooting experience, you can also equip the new Professional Photography Kit, which not only has a customizable wave wheel with adjustable EV, aperture, and other parameters, as well as a video recording button, but also has an adapter at the lens for 67mm filters to provide more image creation, and a 2000mAh built-in battery for a little power recovery.
(Professional Photography Kit “Legendary Collector's Edition”)
To summarize, I can directly describe the Xiaomi 15 Ultra's images as “whatever you want”. When you want to take photos when you're out and about, just take out the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, and there's always a focal length that can satisfy the shooting scenario of the moment, and the smoother camera UI can also better inspire your creativity and help you take more satisfying photos.
In terms of performance, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Extreme Edition mobile platform with TSMC's 3nm process, and the new Oryon architecture that delivers better peak performance as well as lower power efficiency. There's also a flagship LPDDR5X+UFS4.1 RAM combo, and a USB 3.2 specification Type-C connector for assured performance.
Heat dissipation on the Xiaomi 15 Ultra also has a dual-channel three-dimensional ring cold pump, not only can give the chip cooling, but also to the image module special cooling, the so-called image flagship, that is, the heat dissipation should also be done. Endurance Xiaomi 15 Ultra also has a 6000mAh Jinshajiang battery, as well as 90W wired flash charging and 50W wireless flash charging, endurance can also give you peace of mind performance.
In addition, Xiaomi 15 Ultra also supports Xiaomi Star communication system, two T1S chips and one T1 chip support, so that the signal is stable online. The upgraded network-less calling ability can realize a maximum of 7km ultra-long distance; there is also Beidou + Tiantong dual satellite communication support, so you can stay connected to the world.
Xiaomi 15 Ultra as a flagship imaging phone, whether it is an inch of the main camera or the 200 megapixel ultra-telephoto, can give you excellent imaging performance, ultra-wide-angle lens and 70mm telephoto lens can also further make up for the missing end of the corner of the shooting, so that Xiaomi 15 Ultra inherited the camera in the “big three yuan”, and can meet most of the shooting scenes with it. With it, you can fulfill most of the shooting scenarios. Not only has it ushered in a major breakthrough in imaging, but it also brings a very high level of design and hardware configuration.
Maybe you're an amateur photographer, or maybe you don't have that high of a need for photography, but when you have the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, I'm sure it can go a long way in stimulating your desire to take photos, making you want to take out your phone anytime, anywhere to record the beautiful moments of the moment, and the sheer optical imaging is sure to satisfy you as well.
