We exclusively tested the most expensive Xiaomi. The Leica LeitzPhone is an exceptional piece of technology

There are phones that are technologically interesting. Then there are phones that, in your hand, evoke the feeling that this is simply a different category. Leica Leitzphone powered by Xiaomi sits in the second group — and we were able to try it out in advance before its sales launch today. A few days, a few photos, and many questions for which answers are still being sought. We will share our first impressions.

What exactly is the Leitzphone?

First, the most important thing: The Leitzphone shares its complete hardware foundation with the Xiaomi 17 Ultra. The same Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, the same 1-inch LOFIC Light Fusion 1050L sensor, the same 75–100 mm mechanical telephoto lens, the same 6,000 mAh battery, and 90W charging. Anyone expecting a different camera or hardware differences will be disappointed. The difference lies elsewhere — and it’s a difference that cannot be described by numbers in a spec sheet.

In terms of materials, the Leitzphone goes further than the Ultra. The body is made of an aluminum alloy with a nickel-plated anodized finish, which refers to traditional Leica manufacturing standards. In practice, this means a different texture to the touch — less cold, less smooth than a typical premium smartphone. After the first grip, you realize this is intentional. It is available only in black, only in the 16/1 TB version. No compromises in features, no cheaper variants.

The iconic red Leica dot dominates the back — and beneath the camera module sits what truly makes the Leitzphone unique: the physical Leica Camera Ring.

Camera Ring: excellent concept, execution with reservations

The knurled ring surrounds the camera module, and by rotating it, you can control the focal length, exposure, or switch filters — depending on how you set it up. Upon first encounter, it’s a moment of pure joy. Finally, a physical element that brings camera control back from the touchscreen to your hand.

But after a while, sobriety sets in. The ring is deliberately loose — Xiaomi explains this by the need for resistance to drops and dust — and this looseness becomes apparent during use. It’s not the firm, precise movement that Leica users are accustomed to. Sometimes it rotates unintentionally. If you use the Camera Ring as an accessory to other controls, it works well. However, as the primary method of camera control, it does not yet fully realize its potential. It’s a detail that deserves to be reworked in the next generation.

For more serious photographic work, we definitely recommend the Photography Kit Pro, which is part of the introductory offer. A grip with an integrated 2,000 mAh battery, a redesigned controller, and a detachable shutter button give the phone ergonomics that complement and in many ways surpass the Camera Ring.

Leica Essential: this is not a filter

This is where the Leitzphone enters a different league. The Leica Essential mode is not a set of filters that mimic a film look. It’s image processing directly in the ISP chip — in the image processor at a hardware level. The result is therefore as it comes out of the sensor. It cannot be reproduced by additional editing in Lightroom, nor can it be imitated by another phone.

Two styles are available: Leica M9 and Leica M3 with MONOPAN 50 film. We tried both. The M9 look maintains a warm white balance firmly in daylight — highlights are tamed, shadows are allowed to be dark, contrast is not artificially enhanced. The result looks like a photograph, not a mobile image processed by artificial intelligence. MONOPAN 50 goes even further: fine grain, toning that restores a depth to black and white photography that you simply don’t see in smartphones today.

One thing to be prepared for: the M9 look has a fixed white balance set for daylight. Indoors under artificial lighting, images may appear too warm. In such a situation, it’s better to switch to Leica Vibrant or Leica Authentic, where white balance works adaptively. Also, entering Essential mode is not as fast as switching to classic Fastshot mode — for quick moments, Leica Essential needs to be pre-prepared.

Redesigned Camera User Interface

The Leitzphone comes with a camera application redesigned directly in collaboration with Leica. The layout of controls, parameter selection, transitions between modes — everything is tuned differently than in the standard HyperOS interface. It’s not just a visual skin, but a different control philosophy: less automation on the main screen, more room for manual intervention. Users who just want to press the shutter and go might quickly get lost. Photographers who want to have everything under control, on the other hand, will quickly find their way.

Camera in practice: strengths and question marks

The main 1-inch LOFIC sensor is a real step forward. The Lateral Overflow Integration Capacitor technology — a capacitor pixel architecture — addresses one of the biggest problems in mobile photography: overexposed areas. Instead of highlights simply „blowing out” to white, the sensor captures detail across the entire contrast range from a single exposure. In scenes with harsh backlighting or strong point lights, the difference compared to the previous generation is immediately visible.

The mechanical telephoto lens with optical zoom in the range of 75 to 100 mm is functionally interesting — physical zooming of the lens without jumping between discrete values is something other phones cannot do. In practice, the difference between 75 mm and 100 mm is smaller than the numbers would suggest — two steps forward yield a similar result — but for portraits, the choice of equivalent focal length is crucial, and the possibility of fine-tuning proved genuinely usable.

In slightly worse lighting conditions, the telephoto lens slightly loses sharpness; this is a direct consequence of the compromise of mechanical optics in a thin body.

Video is an area where the Leitzphone still has room to improve. 4K at 120 fps support in Dolby Vision or ACES Log is impressive on paper. However, electronic stabilization sometimes leaves slight blurring when recording motion — and with a 1-inch sensor, this is more noticeable than with smaller chips. It can be assumed that software updates will improve this situation.

What you can expect from the Leitzphone

Firstly: the 6,000 mAh battery combined with the efficient Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 keeps the phone going for an entire demanding day and then some. After a day of intense street photography, we returned home with approximately a quarter of the capacity remaining. 90W HyperCharge recharges the battery from zero to full in less than an hour — that’s fast enough that charging will never be an issue.

Secondly: the display. The flat OLED panel with HyperRGB technology, 3,500 nits peak brightness, and an adaptive frequency of 1–120 Hz is among the best you’ll see on a smartphone. For playing HDR content and evaluating photos, it’s a reference screen.

Thirdly: IP68 and Shield Glass 3.0 with 30% better drop resistance compared to the Xiaomi 15 Ultra. For a phone you’ll take out for field photography, this is a relevant specification.

Who the Leitzphone is for — and who it isn’t for

The Leitzphone doesn’t shoot for charts and benchmarks. It shoots for people who want the resulting photograph to tell a story, not to prove the phone’s technical capabilities.

It’s a phone for photography enthusiasts who love Leica but cannot or do not want to pay for a true M-Series body. It’s a phone for people who value physical control, the original over the copy, and the DNA of a hundred-year-old tradition brought into their pocket. And it’s a phone for those who don’t mind paying 48 499 Kč for the combination of all the above.

For others — and let’s be honest, that’s most customers — the Xiaomi 17 Ultra for 35 999 Kč is an identically powerful camera without the premium for Leica branding. The choice is purely personal.

What do you think of the LeitzPhone powered by Xiaomi?

Source: own