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As impressive as smartphone cameras are today, even the best camera phones face some significant limitations. One is the selection of lenses, as there’s a limit to the number of different ones you can reasonably equip a phone with, and the other is the quality of those lenses, which is limited based on their necessarily small size. But Xiaomi has just unveiled a phone that solves both problems.
The company took Weibo (opens in new tab) – a Chinese social network – to unveil a modified version of the Xiaomi 12S Ultra (which already includes a one-inch sensor) on which you can mount a Leica M-series lens. The post contained a video uploaded to YouTube by XDA Developers (opens in new tab)so you can check it out below.
One inch is impressively large for a smartphone camera sensor, but as with any smartphone that touts photography as a major selling point, the sticking point then becomes the smartphone-sized lenses used. While the standard Xiaomi 12S Ultra’s 50MP Sony IMX989 is styled like any other smartphone camera, this newly unveiled Xiaomi 12S Ultra concept doesn’t have a lens over the sensor at all – or at least not until you attach one.
To keep the sensor as clean as possible when there is no lens on it, the company has opted for a sapphire glass cap, which should repel scratches well; however, dust between the lens elements and the sensor still seems to be a persistent challenge.
Since you can attach and change Leica M-series lenses, you’re not limited to just that one lens there, so you can take advantage of that powerful 1-inch sensor for a variety of lenses (assuming you invest in a variety).
And these Leica lenses are designed for good mirrorless and rangefinder cameras, so they’re much bigger and more capable than the lenses you usually find on a smartphone. Having one permanently attached to this Xiaomi phone would be impractical, but you can easily remove it when not in use to keep the phone’s conventional form factor intact.
For now, this is just a concept phone, so there’s no guarantee it will ever go on sale, but it’s not impossible to imagine we’ll ever see this or the like sold.
Analysis: a niche but exciting idea
A phone like this Xiaomi 12S Ultra concept will probably never go mainstream as it will only appeal to people who already have or want to have a good camera and are not satisfied with the quality or look of conventional smartphone photos, but for those few, it could be a revelation.
There’s a saying that the best camera is the one you have with you, and since we all carry our phones everywhere with us, they’re the best – or at least the most useful – even if they aren’t the highest quality.
For most of us, carrying a DSLR or mirrorless system is something we would only do if we actively plan on taking pictures while we’re out, and even then it’s an extra thing to carry around, which is annoying could be.
Xiaomi’s 12S Ultra concept could thus offer the quality of a good camera without the need for a separate snapper. You still have to bring at least one lens, of course, but there is less weight and size there than in a very special camera system.
In addition, there is a wide variety of Leica M series lenses, so there are already a lot of compatible options, and for people who already own a few, this Xiaomi concept can be even more tempting. So there is no doubt that this would be one of the best camera phones and the best Xiaomi phones, if it ever launched.