The Xiaomi 17 and 17 Ultra launched in China at the end of Q3 last year – so if you wrote them off as China-only phones that you can’t buy, it’s time to have a second look since they are now launching to new markets.
There are no surprises on their spec sheets, other than the predictable decrease in battery capacity for the global models. Also, the 17 Pro isn’t part of the global rollout, but we’ll talk about it in a second.
Xiaomi 17 Ultra
The Xiaomi 17 Ultra brings serious camera hardware. It is equipped with a 50MP 1”-type Light Fusion 1050L sensor with LOFIC HDR and other improvements. The 200MP telephoto camera (1/1.4” sensor) has a variable focal length lens that goes smoothly between 75mm and 100mm. It’s joined by a 50MP 115° ultra-wide on the back. The front-facing camera is another 50MP module. The new Ultra can record Dolby Vision and Log videos at up to 4K 120fps.
The 17 Ultra is thinner than its predecessor, measuring 8.3mm thick, down from 9.4mm. The Starlit Green has sparkly flecks of minerals, while the other two options (Black and White) use a composite fiberglass material.
The Xiaomi 17 Ultra has a 200MP 75-100mm variable focal length tele camera
The phone has a larger 6.9” LTPO display (up from 6.73”). Although its resolution is technically lower (1,200 x 2,608px vs. 1,440 x 3,200px), note that this is a HyperRGB panel, which is what Xiaomi calls its displays that have the full RGB stripe. Also, the Xiaomi Shield Glass 3.0 on top is 30% more drop-resistant than the glass used on the 15 Ultra.
Xiaomi will offer two camera grips for photography enthusiasts. The Xiaomi 17 Ultra Photography Kit has been stripped down and weighs just 48g. It has a customizable two-stage shutter button and a dedicated video-recording button. It has a grippy texture and comes in Black, White and Purple.
There’s also the Xiaomi 17 Ultra Photography Kit Pro, whose design takes inspiration from iconic Leica cameras and is closer to the 15 Ultra kit. It has grippy PU leather, a thumb support and a detachable shutter button. It also includes a 2,000mAh battery to extend the phone’s battery life.
Xiaomi 17 Ultra Photography Kit and Kit Pro
The global Xiaomi 17 Ultra runs on a 6,000mAh battery (down from 6,800mAh that Chinese units have). It supports 90W fast wired charging (PPS compatible), 50W fast wireless and even 22.5W reverse-wired charging.
Next up, the tiny but mighty Xiaomi 17. This one is powered by a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 like its Ultra sibling. And it even has a larger battery than it – 6,330mAh on the global model (vs. 7,000mAh for the Chinese one). It supports 100W wired charging (including PPS), 50W wireless and 22.5W reverse charging.
Xiaomi 17
This model has a 6.3” display on the front, a 1-120Hz LTPO panel. Like we mentioned above, the Pro version isn’t available, so there’s no way to get a rear display.
Additionally, the camera system is different. The Xiaomi 17 is equipped with a 50MP Light Fusion 950 sensor (1/1.31”), a 2.6x/60mm 50MP telephoto module with a floating lens for macro shots (as close as 10cm) and a 50MP ultra-wide (102°), plus a 50MP selfie camera (90°). The main difference (other than the rear display) here is that the Pro has a longer 5x/115mm telephoto lens. But alas, it’s not available outside of China.
The Xiaomi 17 has a 6M42 aluminum frame, Xiaomi Shield glass on the front and matte glass on the back. It’s available in Ice Blue, Alpine Pink and Black, plus (new this year) Venture Green.
We have reviewed the global Xiaomi 17 Ultra, check that out even if you have already read our review of the Chinese 17 Ultra – among other things, we retested the battery life and charging speed. We also have a video review for you to watch.
We have a Xiaomi 17 review as well – phones with 6.3” displays are now a lot more common than in the previous few years. Did you scroll to the bottom immediately just to see the pricing info? It’s okay to admit it, we were most curious about that too. Well, here you go.
The Xiaomi 17 Ultra can be yours for €1,499/£1,299 in Black, White and Starlit Green with a 16GB/512GB base memory configuration. The handset is also available with 1TB of storage. As for the Xiaomi 17, it starts at €999/£899 for the 12GB/256GB option. A beefier 12GB/512GB variant is also available. Color options are Black, Venture Green, Alpine Pink and Ice Blue.
Xiaomi is also launching a dedicated Photography Kit for the Xiaomi 17 Ultra, and it comes in three colors – Black, White and Purple and is asking $199 for it. There’s also a Pro variant of the photography kit, but it only comes in Black and costs double -€199.
By the way, Xiaomi is also launching the Xiaomi Pad 8 Pro, the Watch S5, the Redmi Buds 8 Pro and the Xiaomi Tag globally. We’ll have hands-on articles for them up shortly.