Xiaomi 15 Ultra Flagship Flaunts Snapdragon 8 Elite And A Big 200MP Camera

In recent years, Xiaomi's flagship smartphones boasted some of the best, if not the best camera hardware and processing. Following multiple leaks and now an official teaser, it puts no doubt that Xiaomi intends on forging ahead of the competition. Come March 2, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra will officially be available globally with expected top-level hardware and a Leica-tuned quad-camera array spotlighted by a new huge 200 megapixel periscope telephoto lens that captures 136% more light than before.
Outside of the camera race between iPhone 16 Pros, Samsung S24 Ultras, and Pixel 9 Pros here in the United States, there lies a few Chinese phone makers that have earned the respect of mobile (and even professional) photographers. Specifically, Vivo and Xiaomi have been having at it by merging the latest and greatest imaging hardware with their own take on post-processing. This year, many have been excited about the upcoming Xiaomi 15 Ultra that, from the rear, looks more like a 35mm camera wannabe, than a phone.

As previously reported, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra will carry a Leica-tuned four-camera setup. The 1-inch 50MP Sony LYT-900 primary wide-angle shooter with 23mm lens now has a fixed aperture (f/1.63 versus variable f/1.6-4.0 in the 14 Ultra). The 1/2.51-inch IMX858 telephoto is carried over as well, but the lens has been reduced by 5mm to a 75 mm f/1.8 piece. For the ultra-wide, the 1/2.51-inch Samsung JN5 is now a 14 mm f/2.2 lens.


Similar to the Vivo X100/200 Pro series, the 15 Ultra will get an all-new periscope telephoto. It's a 200MP Samsung HP9 f/2.6 1/1.4-inch sensor, which is larger than the Xiaomi 14 Ultra's 1/2.51-incher. In fact, the company claims that the new sensor captures up to 136% more light.

The rear cameras can all shoot up to 8K/30 (the primary and telephoto can also shoot 4K/120), while the selfie tops out at 4K/60. 

Besides the camera package, the phone has the Snapdragon 8 Elite running HyperOS 2.0 paired with 12/16GB memory options. The 6.73-inch display is a 3200 x 1440 AMOLED panel with variable refresh rate up to 120Hz protected by Xiaomi's Shield Glass 2.0. Battery life ought to be robust as well since the device packs a 6,000mAh cell with 90 watts wired and 80W wireless charging.

The Xiaomi 15 Ultra is expected to drop (and go on sale globally) on March 2 during the Mobile World Congress convention in Barcelona, Spain. It's currently live in China starting at $900 all the way to $1,070.