I spent a day with the Xiaomi 17T Pro, and the Leica cameras made every shot a challenge

The phone camera partnership has had a rough start. This collaboration, while bringing in big names, felt vague at times. Simply hitting the logo on the camera module and making a few color tuning changes will make you wonder how much it really changes the photos you take, especially when the price of the phone goes up.

Such partnerships have been bringing good results for the past few years, and the device that really made it clear was the Xiaomi 17T Pro.

I spend the day photographing with it, walking between outdoor portraits, cafe shelves, product displays, and dimly lit corners of the bar. What drew me to the experience wasn’t the realistic colors or camera detail; it was an actor. Each shot has its own composition, mood in the shadows, and a sense of purpose that made me want the next frame.

I’ve always had a soft spot for Xiaomi’s Leica collaboration. The partnerships of Zeiss, Pantone, and Hasselblad all have their own taste in the range of products, but Leica’s tuning by Xiaomi feels like a different shooting experience. The Xiaomi 17T Pro has a triple camera setup with a 50MP primary camera, a 50MP 5x periscope telephoto, and a 12MP ultra-wide-angle lens.

Leica helps to celebrate

I shot mostly in Leica Authentic mode, which immediately gives the phone its personality. It relies on deep contrast, dark shadows, and dramatic scene definition. The result isn’t always what I’d call color accurate, but accuracy isn’t the most exciting thing a phone camera can chase.

You can see the difference between the Leica Authentic and the Leica Vibrant in the breadcrumb images. It is very easy to see. Authentic pulls the scene into a warmer, more restrained, slightly moodier frame. Colors are controlled, and interior lighting looks flawless. But the picture has more air. Meanwhile, Vibrant lifts colors and makes packaging pop more, which is useful if you’re looking for a clean, bright shot that’s good for social media.

I enjoyed having both of these options because they didn’t feel like throwaway filters. They change the personality of the photo before you even start editing.

The image below of the yellow flowers also shows what this camera can do when the scene has a bit of natural layering. There’s strong background compression and isolation, greenery paired with flowers, and the road in the background all combined with software to make the image feel less like a random phone shot.

This shot leads to Xiaomi’s new talking point with the 17T series, which is Leica Live Moments. It works the same way in Live Photos or Movies, capturing short video and quick snapshots. This allows you to choose a time highlight and even set it as a cover. It came in handy many times, allowing you to choose between different shots of the same frame.

Looking through the lens of cinema

Some of my favorite photos were less obvious. A bag on a chair and a plant on a dusty window are just two examples. From cat paintings to a candle in a dark room, every scene doesn’t look like it came from a smartphone. There was a surprising amount of restraint, and the Xiaomi 17T Pro didn’t flash everything unnecessarily.

For example, the bag adheres to the texture of the fabric, the details of the thread, and the light that falls on the chair. Images of plants and windows have a hazier, almost film-like quality because the camera isn’t in a rush to clean up the whole scene. Even the low-light chandelier and bar photos carry a warm, imperfect light that works because the image has a clear viewing angle.

So I understand why some people don’t like it. Shadows can always be heavy, and processing can look a little stilted. If you want everything to be reliably compact and social media-friendly, there are iPhones and Galaxies for that. Still, I kept coming back to it because the pictures were so disposable.

Leica makes the Xiaomi 17T Pro camera generic

The Xiaomi 17T Pro isn’t trying to be the Xiaomi 17 Ultra, and I didn’t treat it that way. I’m sticking to the general Leica experience, especially jumping between the Leica Authentic and the Leica Vibrant. The best camera phones today are all good at technology. They focus quickly, handle HDR well, capture sharp images, and clean up noise better than phones from a few years ago. What is hard to find is humanity.

That’s the experience Xiaomi 17T Pro gave me in this short day out. The pictures weren’t always good, and they weren’t the most faithful version of the scene. But they were biting. And that’s why I continued to take another picture.