Xiaomi 14 Ultra

With a large sensor, four lenses and Leica backing, is this the best smartphone for photographers?

- Amy Davies

Xiaomi is one of several Chinese smartphone makers vying for our attention alongside mainstream rivals such as Apple and Samsung. It has become well known for producing extremely capable phones, now working in partnership with German stalwart Leica.

Its latest flagship, the 14 Ultra, provides appealing specifications for photography enthusiasts that give those bigger names a massive run for their money. 

Notably, we see high-end Leica Summilux lenses being used by Xiaomi for the first time. This doesn’t come cheap, though. The Xiaomi 14 Ultra will set you back £1,299, putting it in the same realm as the likes of the Samsung S24 Ultra and the iPhone 15 Pro Max.

Features

A huge number of enticing photographic features are packed into this phone, helping it to earn the ‘Ultra’ in its name. 

Let’s start with the fact that it has four cameras, all of which have high-resolution 50MP sensors, and all of which are fronted by Leica Summiluxbranded lenses. The main sensor is of the large 1in type, which is bigger than you’ll get from Samsung, Apple or Google.

On top of that, the main lens has a variable aperture, giving you the option to choose from f/1.6 to f/4.0. This isn’t something we often see. Macro photography is available from three out of the four lenses, so you can really get creative with your close-ups. Two further focal lengths are available losslessly, with 2x and 10x using the central portion of a sensor to create images (known as in-sensor zoom). You can extend digitally up to 120x zoom – beating the 100x of the Samsung S24 Ultra.