iPhone 15 vs Xiaomi 17

iPhone 15

Apple

8.1

Best non-Pro iPhone yet — USB-C and Dynamic Island finally arrive

Xiaomi 17

Xiaomi

8.1

A standout compact flagship, with caveats

iPhone 15

What Reviewers Agree On

USB-C finally arrives on a standard iPhone — universal charging with iPad/Mac/AirPods Pro (USB-C versions)
Dynamic Island trickles down from the 14 Pro — same software experience as the Pro models
48MP main camera from the 14 Pro brings 2x lossless zoom (sensor crop) and meaningful detail upgrade
Contoured aluminum frame with rounded edges — comfortable in-hand vs the boxier iPhone 12-14 design
$799 starting price unchanged from the iPhone 14 — Apple held the line on entry pricing

Deal Breakers

Pros & Cons

iPhone 15

Pros

USB-C finally arrives on a standard iPhone — universal charging with iPad/Mac/AirPods Pro (USB-C versions)
Dynamic Island trickles down from the 14 Pro — same software experience as the Pro models
48MP main camera from the 14 Pro brings 2x lossless zoom (sensor crop) and meaningful detail upgrade
Contoured aluminum frame with rounded edges — comfortable in-hand vs the boxier iPhone 12-14 design
$799 starting price unchanged from the iPhone 14 — Apple held the line on entry pricing

Cons

Detailed Comparison

Cameras

iPhone 15

48MP main camera trickles down from the 14 Pro, enabling 2x lossless zoom via sensor crop. 12MP ultrawide + 12MP TrueDepth selfie complete the kit. No telephoto and no periscope — the camera that pleases casual shooters not creators.

48MP main camera (f/1.6) with sensor-shift OIS — same sensor as last year's 14 Pro, a real upgrade from the 14's 12MP.
2x lossless zoom via 12MP crop of the 48MP sensor — best telephoto-substitute on a non-Pro iPhone yet, but no real optical telephoto.
12MP ultrawide (f/2.4) + 12MP TrueDepth selfie carry over from the 14 — same hardware, same daylight output.
Excellent daylight photos and video with consistent natural color processing — Apple's signature look on the cheaper hardware.

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Xiaomi 17

What Reviewers Agree On

Genuinely compact flagship form factor — one of the only small phones that doesn't compromise on the chipset or battery
Exceptional battery life for the size: a 6,330mAh cell (7,000mAh China) routinely delivering 6–7 hours of screen-on time, more on lighter days
Very fast 100W wired charging — roughly 0–100% in 45–61 minutes — plus 50W wireless and 22.5W reverse wired
Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 is a significant performance jump over the Xiaomi 15, with strong Geekbench and AnTuTu numbers
Bright 120Hz LTPO AMOLED rated at 3,500 nits peak that stays legible in direct sunlight
Class-leading stereo speakers — repeatedly called among the best on any smartphone
Long software commitment: 5 major OS upgrades and 6 years of security patches (EOL February 2032)

Deal Breakers

The ultrawide camera is a clear downgrade — only ~17mm equivalent, poor quality, narrower field of view and still no autofocus
Inconsistent sustained performance: prolonged CPU stress and demanding games (Genshin, Honkai Star Rail) trigger heavy throttling and heat on some units
HyperOS 3 ships with bugs and missing basics (no native screen-on-time counter) and bundles ads in some proprietary apps
The global model's 6,330mAh battery is smaller than the 7,000mAh China version, and the China ROM lacks Google services out of the box

Xiaomi 17

Pros

Genuinely compact flagship form factor — one of the only small phones that doesn't compromise on the chipset or battery
Exceptional battery life for the size: a 6,330mAh cell (7,000mAh China) routinely delivering 6–7 hours of screen-on time, more on lighter days
Very fast 100W wired charging — roughly 0–100% in 45–61 minutes — plus 50W wireless and 22.5W reverse wired
Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 is a significant performance jump over the Xiaomi 15, with strong Geekbench and AnTuTu numbers
Bright 120Hz LTPO AMOLED rated at 3,500 nits peak that stays legible in direct sunlight
Class-leading stereo speakers — repeatedly called among the best on any smartphone
Long software commitment: 5 major OS upgrades and 6 years of security patches (EOL February 2032)

Cons

The ultrawide camera is a clear downgrade — only ~17mm equivalent, poor quality, narrower field of view and still no autofocus
Inconsistent sustained performance: prolonged CPU stress and demanding games (Genshin, Honkai Star Rail) trigger heavy throttling and heat on some units
HyperOS 3 ships with bugs and missing basics (no native screen-on-time counter) and bundles ads in some proprietary apps
The global model's 6,330mAh battery is smaller than the 7,000mAh China version, and the China ROM lacks Google services out of the box

Xiaomi 17

A capable Leica-tuned main and telephoto pairing lets the compact 17 shoot above its class, but the ultrawide is a clear step backwards and default autofocus on people can be unreliable.

The main and zoom cameras are nothing short of excellent, though against the Vivo and Pixel 10 Pro it isn't such a clear-cut win.
The ultrawide is downgraded — poor quality, narrower field of view and still no autofocus.
The ultrawide lens is just 17mm wide, so the images aren't very wide at all.
Reviewers loved the Leica tuning on the base Xiaomi 17, even where exposure occasionally clips highlights.
The 60mm-class telephoto is good, but after a month you find yourself wishing it had more reach.
Like the Ultra, the Xiaomi 17 can struggle to focus on living subjects unless you dig into settings and enable the motion track-and-focus option, which is off by default.
Cameras haven't seen big upgrades over the previous generation.