Review Xiaomi 14: Masterful Photography
The triple-camera setup boasts a 50MP primary camera featuring a Leica Summilux optical lens with an impressive f/1.6 aperture, coupled with a Light Fusion 900 image sensor.
- Mar 16, 2024,
- Updated Mar 16, 2024 10:44 AM IST
Cameras have become a pivotal selling feature for smartphones. Consequently, numerous smartphone titans have forged partnerships with renowned camera manufacturers. OnePlus collaborated with Hasselblad, Vivo with Zeiss, and Xiaomi with Leica. However, does this collaboration truly yield significant improvements? While some partnerships focus on enhancing colors and modes, Xiaomi has taken a step further by integrating changes at the hardware level.
Throwing light about the partnership, Kay Plaetke, Strategy & Business Development Manager Mobile, Leica explained “the ideas behind photography, it's nearly the same from Xiaomi and Leica, and this is the reason why we come together and established this partnership. It’s not just marketing or sales partnership but technology partnership.” He added, “With this partnership, we bring our philosophy on photography, our idea about how the picture looks like and work together and bring our expertise, lenses, optics, and more. We have established the optical Institute together with Xiaomi and that's for is the big thing to come in in the future.”
In contrast to many smartphones on the market that predominantly emphasize image colours and representation, Xiaomi has directed its focus towards hardware advancements, extending beyond mere lens enhancements. Setting itself apart, the Xiaomi 14 showcases Summilux lenses Co-Engineered by Leica. Notably, this latest iteration exceeds previous standards, boasting an aperture value surpassing f/1.8, thereby facilitating even greater light intake. Does this upgrade result in noticeable improvements? Undoubtedly.
The triple-camera setup boasts a 50MP primary camera featuring a Leica Summilux optical lens with an impressive f/1.6 aperture, coupled with a Light Fusion 900 image sensor. Additionally, it includes a Leica 75mm Floating telephoto lens with an f/2.0 aperture and a Leica 14mm ultra-wide lens offering a expansive 115-degree field of view.
The primary Leica Summilux optical lens, with its large f/1.6 aperture, delivers outstanding optical performance. This results in the camera capturing sharp and detailed photos, particularly excelling in both daylight and low-light conditions—areas where many smartphone cameras often struggle. Personally, I found joy in capturing low-light images, especially indoors, as the lens allows ample light intake, resulting in noise-free images with remarkable detail and accurate colour reproduction.
In addition to hardware enhancements, Leica has introduced various shooting styles such as ‘Leica Authentic’ and ‘Leica Vibrant’, catering to different preferences. These styles cater to both those who prefer natural-looking images and those who favour vibrant ones, ideal for sharing on social media platforms. Easily accessible with a tap on the top right, images captured using Leica Vibrant exhibit vibrant colours and enhanced contrast, whereas those taken in Leica Authentic mode appear more natural. When shooting indoors, I found Leica Vibrant preferable as it rendered images with brighter tones. For example, the bottle green colour of the lounge chair in my room appeared lackluster in Authentic mode but regained its true vibrancy in Vibrant mode.
Furthermore, the camera offers a range of Leica filters, including Leica VIV, NAT, BT NAT, BW HC, SEPIA, and more, providing ample opportunities for experimentation and creative expression. Even when zooming in at 10x, the camera retains impressive details, although further zooming may result in a loss of clarity. Portrait photography on the Xiaomi 14 is packed with features worth exploring. With just a single tap, you can easily adjust your distance to the subject, but the portrait modes take this experience to a whole new level. Each focal length is accompanied by a unique effect, such as documentary mode at 35mm, swirly bokeh mode at 50mm, portrait mode at 75mm, and soft focus at 95mm.
Overall, the camera excels in edge detection, although it occasionally struggles to differentiate white hair against a white background. However, when it comes to skin tones, colours, and overall image quality, it performs exceptionally well.
Moreover, there are plenty of other modes hidden under the 'more settings', including night mode, panorama, supermoon, director mode, among others. For professionals and photography enthusiasts who understand various camera settings, the Pro mode offers extensive control and customization options.
Beyond its impressive specifications, the Xiaomi 14 delivers stellar camera performance, adeptly capturing colours and preserving details with remarkable precision.
Setting aside its camera prowess, the Xiaomi 14 performs admirably as a smartphone. Xiaomi has crafted it with ergonomic design in mind, striking a balance between size and usability. It feels just right to hold and operate with one hand, although it does tip the scales a bit at 193 grams. The screen size doesn't disappoint either, boasting a spacious 6.36-inch AMOLED LTPO display with a smooth 120Hz refresh rate. This high-quality display not only appears bright and vivid but also enhances the experience across various activities such as reading, viewing images, enjoying entertainment, and more.
Transitioning to performance, the Xiaomi 14 boasts is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset coupled with up to 16GB of RAM, with no complaints about its performance. The device effortlessly handles intensive tasks such as photo and videography sessions without any hiccups.
In terms of software, while some users may have had reservations about Xiaomi's Mi UI in the past, the new Hyper X OS appears clean and manageable. Despite the presence of some preinstalled apps, many of them can be easily uninstalled.
During a recent work trip to Dholera in Gujarat, I extensively relied on this phone, with my day starting as early as 5:30 AM and ending at midnight. Despite the continuous and heavy usage throughout the day, the battery held up remarkably well, providing reliable performance when needed the most.
Upon returning home with just 5% charge left, the 90W fast charger came to the rescue, juicing up the battery to full capacity in just 45 minutes. This rapid charging capability ensured that the device was quickly replenished and ready for another day of use.
Verdict:
When Xiaomi entered the Indian market, it leveraged its strength of offering feature-rich yet affordable smartphones with its Redmi series. However, as the market landscape evolved, many Chinese brands identified the opportunity in the premium tier - smartphones priced at Rs 50,000 and above. In line with this trend, Xiaomi is also aiming to establish its presence in this segment. With the Xiaomi 14 priced at Rs 69,999, the company has successfully introduced a stellar smartphone that competes effectively in the premium market segment.
Cameras have become a pivotal selling feature for smartphones. Consequently, numerous smartphone titans have forged partnerships with renowned camera manufacturers. OnePlus collaborated with Hasselblad, Vivo with Zeiss, and Xiaomi with Leica. However, does this collaboration truly yield significant improvements? While some partnerships focus on enhancing colors and modes, Xiaomi has taken a step further by integrating changes at the hardware level.
Throwing light about the partnership, Kay Plaetke, Strategy & Business Development Manager Mobile, Leica explained “the ideas behind photography, it's nearly the same from Xiaomi and Leica, and this is the reason why we come together and established this partnership. It’s not just marketing or sales partnership but technology partnership.” He added, “With this partnership, we bring our philosophy on photography, our idea about how the picture looks like and work together and bring our expertise, lenses, optics, and more. We have established the optical Institute together with Xiaomi and that's for is the big thing to come in in the future.”
In contrast to many smartphones on the market that predominantly emphasize image colours and representation, Xiaomi has directed its focus towards hardware advancements, extending beyond mere lens enhancements. Setting itself apart, the Xiaomi 14 showcases Summilux lenses Co-Engineered by Leica. Notably, this latest iteration exceeds previous standards, boasting an aperture value surpassing f/1.8, thereby facilitating even greater light intake. Does this upgrade result in noticeable improvements? Undoubtedly.
The triple-camera setup boasts a 50MP primary camera featuring a Leica Summilux optical lens with an impressive f/1.6 aperture, coupled with a Light Fusion 900 image sensor. Additionally, it includes a Leica 75mm Floating telephoto lens with an f/2.0 aperture and a Leica 14mm ultra-wide lens offering a expansive 115-degree field of view.
The primary Leica Summilux optical lens, with its large f/1.6 aperture, delivers outstanding optical performance. This results in the camera capturing sharp and detailed photos, particularly excelling in both daylight and low-light conditions—areas where many smartphone cameras often struggle. Personally, I found joy in capturing low-light images, especially indoors, as the lens allows ample light intake, resulting in noise-free images with remarkable detail and accurate colour reproduction.
In addition to hardware enhancements, Leica has introduced various shooting styles such as ‘Leica Authentic’ and ‘Leica Vibrant’, catering to different preferences. These styles cater to both those who prefer natural-looking images and those who favour vibrant ones, ideal for sharing on social media platforms. Easily accessible with a tap on the top right, images captured using Leica Vibrant exhibit vibrant colours and enhanced contrast, whereas those taken in Leica Authentic mode appear more natural. When shooting indoors, I found Leica Vibrant preferable as it rendered images with brighter tones. For example, the bottle green colour of the lounge chair in my room appeared lackluster in Authentic mode but regained its true vibrancy in Vibrant mode.
Furthermore, the camera offers a range of Leica filters, including Leica VIV, NAT, BT NAT, BW HC, SEPIA, and more, providing ample opportunities for experimentation and creative expression. Even when zooming in at 10x, the camera retains impressive details, although further zooming may result in a loss of clarity. Portrait photography on the Xiaomi 14 is packed with features worth exploring. With just a single tap, you can easily adjust your distance to the subject, but the portrait modes take this experience to a whole new level. Each focal length is accompanied by a unique effect, such as documentary mode at 35mm, swirly bokeh mode at 50mm, portrait mode at 75mm, and soft focus at 95mm.
Overall, the camera excels in edge detection, although it occasionally struggles to differentiate white hair against a white background. However, when it comes to skin tones, colours, and overall image quality, it performs exceptionally well.
Moreover, there are plenty of other modes hidden under the 'more settings', including night mode, panorama, supermoon, director mode, among others. For professionals and photography enthusiasts who understand various camera settings, the Pro mode offers extensive control and customization options.
Beyond its impressive specifications, the Xiaomi 14 delivers stellar camera performance, adeptly capturing colours and preserving details with remarkable precision.
Setting aside its camera prowess, the Xiaomi 14 performs admirably as a smartphone. Xiaomi has crafted it with ergonomic design in mind, striking a balance between size and usability. It feels just right to hold and operate with one hand, although it does tip the scales a bit at 193 grams. The screen size doesn't disappoint either, boasting a spacious 6.36-inch AMOLED LTPO display with a smooth 120Hz refresh rate. This high-quality display not only appears bright and vivid but also enhances the experience across various activities such as reading, viewing images, enjoying entertainment, and more.
Transitioning to performance, the Xiaomi 14 boasts is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset coupled with up to 16GB of RAM, with no complaints about its performance. The device effortlessly handles intensive tasks such as photo and videography sessions without any hiccups.
In terms of software, while some users may have had reservations about Xiaomi's Mi UI in the past, the new Hyper X OS appears clean and manageable. Despite the presence of some preinstalled apps, many of them can be easily uninstalled.
During a recent work trip to Dholera in Gujarat, I extensively relied on this phone, with my day starting as early as 5:30 AM and ending at midnight. Despite the continuous and heavy usage throughout the day, the battery held up remarkably well, providing reliable performance when needed the most.
Upon returning home with just 5% charge left, the 90W fast charger came to the rescue, juicing up the battery to full capacity in just 45 minutes. This rapid charging capability ensured that the device was quickly replenished and ready for another day of use.
Verdict:
When Xiaomi entered the Indian market, it leveraged its strength of offering feature-rich yet affordable smartphones with its Redmi series. However, as the market landscape evolved, many Chinese brands identified the opportunity in the premium tier - smartphones priced at Rs 50,000 and above. In line with this trend, Xiaomi is also aiming to establish its presence in this segment. With the Xiaomi 14 priced at Rs 69,999, the company has successfully introduced a stellar smartphone that competes effectively in the premium market segment.