Xiaomi exhibits the camera of its new high-end smartphones at MWC | Technology

There’s always one smartphone that catches all eyes at Mobile World Congress. And in this edition, it seems that the crown belongs to the Xiaomi 14. In the absence of flagship products from other brands, most of which are presented in advance or postponed, the Chinese manufacturer is sticking out its chest. Although your presentation is accompanied spoilerssince the company launched the devices in its home country a few days ago.

Xiaomi’s two high-end smartphones feature a camera developed in collaboration with German optics specialist Leica. But before going into details, the group’s president, William Lu, opened the event with a few words describing the company’s strategy. Its nerve center is its brand new HyperOS operating system.

The Xiaomi boss highlighted that his company has nearly 700 million active IoT (Internet of Things) devices. The goal is for all of them, at least the most recent ones and those sold now, to work with HyperOS. The platform is prepared to facilitate the connection of all terminals together. And the strategy that Lu proposed goes in this direction, summarized in three pillars: people, cars and home. Among the three, there is only one category that the manufacturer does not yet cover, but hopes to do so very soon. Previously, it had already announced its electric car, the Xiaomi SU7, a bet that was also discussed during the event.

Next, the company dove into its new smartphones. The camera was the star of the presentation. The strategic alliance with Leica, confirmed by the presence on stage of Matthias Harsch, CEO of the German company, has borne fruit. The Xiaomi 14 Ultra mounts four sensors on the back. They’re all 50 megapixels, but they play around with other specs to get the best possible photographic performance. The main lens has a variable aperture from f/1.63 to f/4.0, allowing controlled adjustments to brightness and defocus. The brand designed the device to deal with different scenarios. That’s why he added two telephoto lenses, one with a focal length of 120 mm and the other 75 mm, as well as a wide angle of 12 mm. The cameras can also record video in 8K or 4K at 120 fps (executives per second).

The younger brother makes do with a triple camera, also equipped with 50-megapixel Leica lenses. The specifications are more modest but still typical of a high-end. The focal length range covered by its sensors goes from 14 mm for the wide angle to 75 mm for the telephoto lens. The company notes that the minimum focusing distance is 10cm. In addition, both devices feature the new Xiaomi AISP technology, aimed at improving photographs using artificial intelligence. “We cannot present a product in 2024 without talking about AI,” was one of the sentences uttered from the stage. And obviously, the presentation was filled with references to AI.

The Xiaomi 14 has a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, the same one used by other brands’ flagships, like the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra. Both are equipped with WiFi 7 and 5G connectivity. These terminals already have Xiaomi HyperOS, which replaces the company’s previous operating system, MIUI. Its technological base is also Android, but it covers not only Xiaomi smartphones, but also wearables, tablets, IoT devices, TVs and even cars.

The Xiaomi 14 Ultra has a 6.73-inch AMOLED display, with a pixel density of 522 dpi and a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz. The screen of the base version of the series measures 6, 36 inches, with AMOLED technology and a density of 460 dpi. Its battery is 4610 mAh, while the Ultra version reaches 5000 mAh.

The Xiaomi 14 is sold from 999 euros, with a configuration of 12 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage, while the Xiaomi 14 Ultra is priced at 1,499 euros (in its version with 16 GB of RAM and 512 GB capacity). Both are now available on the market.

The Chinese manufacturer also took the opportunity to present a tablet, the Xiaomi Pad 6s Pro 12.4, equipped with a 12.4-inch 3K screen and a refresh rate of 144 Hz, as well as a small range of devices portable. The Smart Band 8 Pro appeared on the scene, which offers several exercise options and has functions for monitoring health parameters, and two smart watch: the Watch S3, which is reminiscent of a classic watch, and the Watch 2, whose battery promises a long life, up to 65 hours of typical use.

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