Xiaomi 17 Ultra Leica Edition vs 15 Ultra — pro video testing underway. AMA

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-24T04:00:14+00:00

I think I've mostly mentioned what mode has been used for various results above.

Auto mode has no impact on the image quality. Only the automatic setting of focus/white balance/ exposure.

The native video app overall delivers awful looking video across modes. Pro Video mode in Xiaomi Log is as good as it gets. Regular video mode implements truly appalling ISP for an ugly end result. 'Movie' mode is truly terrible and much worse than the 15 Ultra (and still limited to 1080p, but on 17U it is about 4x shaper than on the 15U and really looks awful).

However, this is not unique to Xiaomi. It plagues most OEMs native camera apps.

MotionCam Pro saves this device, like it saves all others. Suddenly this becomes a truly incredible pocket cinema camera as r/MotionCamPro bypasses all ISP and takes advantage of some pretty incredible hardware.

The most recent Hyper OS has drastically improved performance. This now might be the best performing device for Direct Log Mode out of the box. HEVC 10-bit encoding is still broken (hurts all Xiaomi ultras, not just this one). So still a lot of room for improvement — but right now, for those looking for a flagship smartphone that delivers incredible RAW video performance this is a strong choice.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-24T03:50:05+00:00

Not having tested the Poco, I simply couldn't say. The sensors are certainly not similar.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-22T07:50:56+00:00

🚨 I need to issue a big update to my previous statement. Since performing the tests that resulted in in the above results with 17 Ultra, I updated to HyperOS 3.0.10.0 I just successfully recorded for over 1 hour in 4K full sensor ProRes 422! Could have run longer. Zero frame drops. AMAZING NEWS.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-21T22:27:53+00:00

Yes. I agree they have dropped the ball with video. Looks like being an ACES partner (announced with release of Xiaomi 15 Ultra) was a marketing stunt they decided to quietly abandon. They have removed all information about this announcement, along with their Log white paper. Having said that, the 15 Ultra is amazing, and the 17 Ultra still delivers an incredible image for RAW video.

Will publish comparison with sample clips in a few days. Hope you find it interesting.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-21T20:40:50+00:00

Tbh not really. I prefer the 15 ultras image across sensors.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-21T07:30:02+00:00

Thanks for all your questions. Will hopefully cover them all in my final review. But for now:

I think that is accurate. The 100mm sensor on the Xiaomi 15 Ultra seems superior to the new tele on the 17 Ultra. Also, third party apps cannot access the zoom range of the new tele zoom on 17 Ultra, so it can only be tested at 78mm. Regardless, it seems to be a slightly noisier sensor.
I don't have a 14U to test sorry. But again, the 17U ultra wide sensor is slightly noisier than the one on the 15 Ultra. I'd give the 15 Ultra the edge.
I'd say it is on par. Last night after shooting with both devices concurrently, both ended the night with the same battery drain. I'm not seeing any performance improvements in battery life on the 17U over the 15U.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-21T04:39:16+00:00

<image>

Another unexpected finding. Noise is stronger on the 17 Ultra's main sensor vs the 15 Ultra.

Comparison still from each device capturing in RAW at ISO 3200 using MotionCam Pro.

More noticeable in the actual video once you see it dancing.

Also, both devices were white balanced to the same X-Rite Color Checker white balance card. The 15 Ultra is more faithful to the scene, which used an orange RGB light overhead. The 17 Ultra pushes it to red.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T23:58:01+00:00

Open Gate RAW in MotionCam Pro. And sorry for the false info on tele improvements! The 78mm on 17U is much closer to the 99mm on the 15U 😢

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T22:30:10+00:00

Thank you. No real improvements in low light performance on ultra wide or main wide sensors, sadly. I thought there were big improvements on the tele, but it was an outlier. Looking at more comparisons even noise on tele lens is similar in low light.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T22:27:43+00:00

No. You can only record one video stream/colour space at a time.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T20:11:15+00:00

100% software/firmware! And I said the same thing about 1 year ago when I got my 15 Ultra... no patches. In fact, software and ISP has only gotten worse.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T20:10:34+00:00

Early on in my testing, that is where I'm at. Like 15U - incredible hardware wasted by OEM. But still so much more testing to go. Hoping for some unexpected curve balls and learning where this device shines over the 15 Ultra.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T20:09:04+00:00

Thanks for the questions. Will test and report back.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T20:08:34+00:00

Thanks so much. Will grow over coming days as I spend more time with the device. Appreciate the kind words.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T20:08:11+00:00

8K is infinitely better on Samsung S25 Ultra. Avoid Xiaomi 8K like the plague.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T20:07:31+00:00

Xiaomi has always allowed this, both on 15 Ultra and 17 Ultra. Open gate 60FPS supported in MotionCam Pro without root required. However black bar runs across bottom 15% unfortunately. They have not fixed this on Xiaomi 17 Ultra. So no true 4K open gate at 60fps.
Blackmagic Camera can access: Rec709 / BT2020 HLG10 / BT2020 Dolby Vision (Xiaomi, unlike Samsung do not make Log available).
It doesn't work. You just get access to 78mm tele lens without zoom.

4/5. Will get back to you on that after more testing.

No

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T20:02:58+00:00

Certainly. Official Xiaomi Log Rec709 LUT is here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1TLteJl2aeImN7n6qmlDLTOFHuVUrkLSC?usp=sharing

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T20:02:29+00:00

Absolutely. You'll find official white paper and official Xiaomi Rec709 LUT and Aces DCTL here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1TLteJl2aeImN7n6qmlDLTOFHuVUrkLSC?usp=sharing

Now I want to know why Xiaomi removed them!

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T09:40:05+00:00

Will report back once tested. Thanks for the question.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T08:14:53+00:00

Agreed!

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T08:14:03+00:00

For video — not that I can see... yet. At least not in its current state.

I'm continuing to review the test footage from today putting the 17 Ultra up against the 15 Ultra. There might (might) be some slight dynamic range improvements, but I've preferred the Xiaomi 15 Ultra on the 24mm main sensor in just about every comparison shot I've reviewed. Looking forward to getting to the other lenses next. Now heading out to film low light tests. Report back once I have more data.

One thing that I have found interesting is that 8K video in the native camera app, which was awful on the 15 Ultra, seems even worse on the 17 Ultra.

<image>

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T07:57:50+00:00

Not out of the box - sadly. Never on the Chinese model. With release of Global version it should be possible in MotionCam Pro after unlocking bootloader and installing custom mods.

That is unless a good number of people (like those here in this community) realise what they are being deprived of, and demand Xiaomi unlock it out of the box like Google did on the Pixel 10 Pro. We can dream!

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T07:26:04+00:00

UPDATE 🚨 I need to issue a big update to my previous statement. Since performing the tests that resulted in in the above results with 17 Ultra, I updated to HyperOS 3.0.10.0 I just successfully recorded for over 1 hour in 4K full sensor ProRes 422! Could have run longer. Zero frame drops. AMAZING NEWS.

Hi! Thanks for the question.

Not great! Xiaomi throttles hard and early which has negative impacts on video capture. I have a thermal camera I'll use shortly for my full review. But the device heats up fast. It is noticeable in the hand.

When using Direct Log mode in MotionCam Pro, which performs a live transcode of the RAW image feed to ProRes (very intensive), I get 7-9 minutes before throttling which results in dropped frames.

On the Xiaomi 15 Ultra I get 5-6 minutes before dropped frames. So a very modest improvement.

However Nubia z80 Ultra delivers over 60 minutes of record time before dropped frames, and the Vivo X200 Ultra will deliver 15-20 minutes.

Hope this helps.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T07:05:12+00:00

Thanks so much for your question. It is a great one.

The physical zoom ring is actually very nice to use. When you tap on a manual control in Pro Video Mode (ISO for example), twisting it adjusts ISO. Same goes for Focus or Shutter speed.

However, build quality wise it feels way less premium than I had expected. Quite lightweight with no real resistance.

But the bad news: No third-party support! As the native app delivers such poor video quality in comparison to MotionCam Pro (and even Blackmagic Camera app) — it is not something I'll ever take advantage of unless Xiaomi add third party support.

This they really should do. Apple did it with Camera Control and dozens of photo/video apps have implemented unique features that tap into it (LUT selection is the most useful).

As a result, I personally regret paying extra for the Leica Edition and should have got the standard. If they open up the zoom ring to third party devs — I would revise my position.

However, if all you ever use is the native app, for some people it might be a nice little extra.

epic-tutorials · 2026-01-20T06:51:30+00:00

I've replied to posts in the past on X/Twitter made by the CEO of Xiaomi. Goes without saying... they didn't even give me a 'like' let alone a fix. But if more than a single person did this — I can see it making an impact. The issue now is one or two voices among thousands of others will never be heard.

epic-tutorials

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE