Xiaomi 15 Ultra Review: Casual Photographers Need Not Apply

The Xiaomi 14 Ultra was one of the best phones of 2024, thanks in no small part to an awesome camera system that took some of the best photos I’ve ever seen from a camera phone. The follow-up, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, has a lot to live up to, and in many ways, it does. 

It’s an absolute powerhouse: It’s got a gorgeous display, and its camera setup takes amazing images. You can still buy it with the photography kit that adds a grip and shutter button to effectively turn it into a compact camera, but there are some caveats holding me back from calling the 15 Ultra a total success. 

After taking over 1,000 photos with the phone, I’ve come to the conclusion that while this phone can take incredible images, you need to work harder to get them. Simply shooting in the auto mode isn’t the way to get the best results here. I’ll come back to this later. But for now, just know that this is a phone for dedicated photographers only — casual snappers will be better off looking toward the iPhone 16 Pro or even the Pixel 9 Pro.

The 15 Ultra uses the exact same 1-inch type image sensor for its main camera as its predecessor, and I am disappointed to not see a hardware upgrade, especially considering the phone’s high price. Xiaomi also opted to ditch the 14 Ultra’s rare variable aperture — one of my favorite features — in favor of “software-based” solutions that I can confidently say are not a suitable replacement. 

I’ll admit, though, that the benefits of the variable aperture are minimal, and most people will probably never even notice a difference. Still, it irks me to see genuine innovation chucked out in favor of software workarounds. It’s exactly what I complained about last year, with AI being the only area where companies are innovating now. Ironically, in that article, I applauded Xiaomi for the 14 Ultra’s reliance on hardware for its great images, but I can’t say the same about this new model. 

There’s no question though that the 15 Ultra is a powerhouse Android handset overall. Its strong performance, decent battery life and vibrant display help justify its flagship status. Also, its six years of total software support isn’t too bad either. But this phone is far from cheap. It’s on sale in the UK and wider Europe now for £1,299 with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, or £1,499 if you want 1TB. That’s more expensive than both the iPhone 16 Pro and the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra. 

Like other Xiaomi phones, the 15 Ultra will not be available to buy in the US, but for reference, that base UK price converts to $1,630 or AU$2,630.

Is it worth your cash? Let’s take a look. 

Xiaomi 15 Ultra camera

I took over 1,000 test images with the phone so far, and I expect I’ll take many more throughout 2025. I’ve taken it to Scotland and England, to Barcelona, and even to a frozen and wintery Sweden. I tried to capture everything from street photography to landscape and travel imagery. In short, I’ve really come to understand this camera. 

I feel comfortable telling you that you can take some truly superb images with the phone. I’ve gotten shots that would rival what I’d expect from dedicated professional cameras, and I’d have no problem with posting some of them to my photography portfolio to sit alongside images from my Canon R5, Leica Q3 43 and other high-end cameras. At the heart of the 15 Ultra is the same Sony LYT-900 1 inch-type image sensor found in the 14 Ultra. It’s physically larger than the sensors found in almost any other phone camera and typically, a larger image sensor allows for better details and dynamic range.

But the 15 Ultra makes you work hard to get your best shots. In pure auto mode, I was often underwhelmed. My biggest complaint is the white balance, which errs too often on the cool side in many circumstances. Sunny scenes that should be flooded with warm tones instead looked cold and uninspiring. 

You can’t adjust the white balance in the standard camera mode, so I shot mostly in the Pro mode to adjust the white balance and other settings. I typically warmed the white balance up and set the exposure compensation to slightly underexpose the image, as the default exposure often looked a bit too bright to my eye. 

When I took manual control like this, the images dramatically improved. You can change the settings so that each time you load the camera, it will keep your previous shooting settings. Working this way felt more like my process when shooting on my Leica Q3 43 — a slower, more methodical approach to crafting an image, rather than simply snapping away and hoping for the best. 

I shot images with the 15 Ultra in JPEG and DNG raw, the latter allowing me to edit my shots further in apps like Adobe Lightroom to get precisely the look that I wanted. Following a firmware update, raw files look great and are highly editable. I recommend shooting in both JPEG and raw if you want to squeeze every ounce of quality you can from these cameras. 

Once I started using the phone like this, I was able to get some awesome images. But if you’re looking for better quick snaps in a hurry, then you’d be better served with the iPhone 16 Pro, Galaxy S25 Ultra or Pixel 9 Pro, which can more consistently take better images using totally default settings. The standard camera mode can do a good job sometimes, but I found myself switching to the Pro mode to exercise more creative control.

As was the case with the 14 Ultra, one of my favorite ways to shoot is using the built-in Leica high contrast black and white filters. It gives a punchy mono look, which works super well for street photography, especially when you pair the phone with the camera grip. 

At night, the phone can take superb photos, especially when you manually control the white balance. But Xiaomi’s decision to eliminate the variable aperture bothers me here. The 14 Ultra’s ability to close down its aperture allowed it to create authentic star-burst effects around points of light (streetlights, etc) in night scenes. The 15 Ultra lacks this variable aperture, so those same light sources now just look like amorphous blobs, much as they do on other phones. 

It was one of my favorite features of the 14 Ultra, and I loved how it transformed the look of night photos. I am genuinely disappointed Xiaomi has removed this unique feature. But creating small star-bursts on urban night-time photos is niche, and I suspect I’m in a minority of people who’d truly notice that it’s no longer there. 

Xiaomi 15 Ultra photography kit

You can buy the 15 Ultra with the same photography kit that was offered with last year’s model. It has a case, a grip with a shutter button and settings dial, and an attachable ring that allows you to use regular 67mm photography filters. The filter ring is great for more advanced photographers who want to use circular polarizers, neutral density filters or cinematic black or gold mist filters to really craft their images.

The grip makes the phone much easier to hold, especially when you’re out and about shooting quick street photos. It clicks in neatly, adds some extra battery life to the phone, and the shutter button and settings wheel allow you to shoot as if you were using a compact camera. 

It now comes with a new thumb grip attachment to make it a bit easier to hold. There’s also a soft-touch, screw-in shutter release button, which is bigger and easier to find and hit than the original button it screws into. If you’re keen on using your phone for street or travel photography, the photography kit is worth getting, though bear in mind that it will add an extra £250 on to your bill, making an already expensive phone even more so.

Xiaomi 15 Ultra processor, software and AI

The Snapdragon 8 Elite chip found inside the Xiaomi 15 Ultra has already impressed us on phones like the OnePlus 13, and its power is noticeable here, too. It put up impressive scores on our benchmark tests, while everyday operation is fast and lag-free. 

It’s great for gamers, too, with demanding titles like Genshin Impact playing smoothly at max graphics settings and at 60 frames per second. Qualcomm’s 8 Elite chip isn’t just designed for raw power though, it’s built for better AI processing. It’s no surprise then that there’s a whole bunch of AI stuff baked into the phone.

Google Gemini and Gemini advanced are on board as standard, including the conversational Gemini Live and Circle to Search. But Xiaomi has thrown in a few of its own features, too. There’s a generative text tool to create blocks of text based on your prompts, along with a helpful tool that creates text transcriptions from voice recordings — great for a busy tech journalist. 

There’s also a variety of image-focused AI tools for expanding an image using generative AI, removing things in a scene or simply sharpening the picture. The AI tools all work as well as I’d hope, but it’s worth keeping in mind that all of them require an internet connection in order to use — including the voice transcript tool, for some reason. 

The 15 Ultra launches with Android 15 on board, and Xiaomi promises it’ll receive four generations of Android updates along with six years of security support. It’s less than the seven years both Samsung and Google provide for their flagships, and I would’ve liked to see Xiaomi match or even beat its rivals here, especially considering the high price of the phone. 

Still, a shelf life of six years is decent enough (a third of people keep their phones for three years or longer) and matches what OnePlus offers for its recent OnePlus 13 flagship. 

Xiaomi 15 Ultra battery, display and design

Battery life is good, but not outstanding. On our demanding video streaming test, it held out better than the OnePlus 13 but didn’t do as well as the Galaxy S25 Ultra. You can safely expect a full day of use, but if you’re planning to use it as your main camera for your holiday, it’s definitely worth carrying a battery pack to give you peace of mind. 

As with all phones, you’ll probably want to charge it fully overnight. It supports 90W wired fast charging, which will help you cram the power back in faster, as long as you have a compatible charger. 

The 6.7-inch display is bright enough to use under midday Scottish sun and it’s vibrant enough to do justice to colorful mobile games and YouTube videos. The phone is IP68-rated to help keep it safe from spilled drinks, while its glass and metal design feels satisfying to hold. 

Xiaomi 15 Ultra: Should you buy it?

There’s no question that it’s a phone that ticks pretty much every box you’d expect from one of today’s flagships. It’s powerful, has a great-looking display, decent software support period and features like fast charging and water resistance. But its sky-high price tag is impossible to ignore and difficult to justify for anyone who isn’t a die-hard photographer.

Like its predecessor, the camera is the sole reason to consider this phone over its rivals. Those of you wanting more casual photographs of your friends and family on days out will likely be better served with alternative Android phones — or the iPhone — most of which can take better-looking snaps in auto modes and at lower prices. But the Xiaomi 15 Ultra can take stellar images if you spend the time to craft them, both in the Pro camera and in post-processing. 

I wish Xiaomi had done a bit more with its camera over the 14 Ultra — or at least not removed one of my favorite features. It would make this phone much easier for me to recommend more broadly to photographers. But still, those of you who want an amazing everyday-carry camera for travel and street photography will be well-served with the 15 Ultra.