The Xiaomi 13 Ultra will arrive in Europe on June 12, as the most expensive smartphone ever sold by Xiaomi in global markets. The device stands out in the photography segment, where Xiaomi has joined Leica. But does this have practical effects?
One would expect the smartphone to come, see, and win. But the truth is that the Xiaomi 13 Ultra passed the DxOMark camera tests and did not live up to what one would expect. It achieved “only” 140 points and came in at a modest 14th place in the world camera rankings.
Putting the result in perspective, it was tied for this position with the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra or the Google Pixel 7. But it was behind the predecessor Mi 11 Ultra (141), and far from the ranking leader Huawei P60 Pro (156). .
The smartphone was mainly noted for its zoom qualities, which according to DxOMark give the best results in this field. The device also excels in low-light photography and video autofocus.
However, the device has some problems with the color and exposure transitions in the photo. Also, it reveals some noise in brightly lit videos, and the stabilization proves to be inconsistent.
Strengths of the Xiaomi 13 Ultra camera
- Very consistent image quality throughout the entire zoom range
- Good neutral white balance in photos and videos
- Fairly wide dynamic range in photos
- Fairly good texture noise compensation under most test conditions
- Smooth and precise video autofocus
- Good facial exposure even in very dark night shots
Weaknesses of the Xiaomi 13 Ultra camera
- Delay between pressing the shutter and capturing
- Saturated colors outside
- Tonal compression on faces in high dynamic range scenes
- ‘Halo’ effect sometimes in outdoor photos
- White balance and exposure transition issues sometimes visible in videos
- Occasional artifacts in scenes with moving elements in videos
- Segmentation errors are sometimes visible in bokeh
If you want to know more about the test, see the dxOMark.