Nothing Phone (4a) vs Xiaomi 17 Ultra

Nothing Phone (4a)

A genuine highlight for the price — a big 6.78-inch 120Hz AMOLED that's bright, sharp and HDR-capable, beating similarly priced rivals.

• 6.78-inch AMOLED, 120Hz, 2160Hz PWM, HDR10+, 800 nits typical / 1,600 nits HBM / 4,500 nits peak at 1224x2720 (440ppi).
• The 6.78-inch display is 23% brighter than the 3a, reaching 1,600 nits outdoors with a 4,500-nit HDR peak.
• Brightness goes up to 4,500 nits peak, remaining easily readable outdoors — the display is very strong for this price range and one of the standout features.
• In the real world it hits around 700 nits peak SDR and ~1,550–1,600 nits in HDR, with 460ppi and dynamic 120Hz.

Xiaomi 17 Ultra

A 6.9-inch 1.5K LTPO AMOLED rated at 3,500 nits peak. Measured brightness is strong on small patches but middling full-screen, and one long-term user was pleasantly surprised by it.

• 6.9-inch M10 OLED LTPO flat display at 1.5K resolution, 120Hz, with up to 3,500 nits peak brightness, HDR10 and Dolby Vision.
• In automatic brightness the screen measured over 1,100 nits, rising to over 3,600 nits on a small patch of the screen.
• Manual full-screen white brightness reached only 675 nits in controlled testing — well below the headline peak figure.
• The display surprised one long-term user in a positive way — not at the level of the Pixel 10 Pro's panel, but still rather good.

Nothing Phone (4a)

A standout 3.5x periscope telephoto at this price and a solid main camera, undercut by an under-optimised zoom and a basic ultrawide.

• A triple setup — 50MP main, a 50MP periscope telephoto and an 8MP ultrawide — undoubtedly one of the best experiences at this level.
• The telephoto has been tweaked to a much better 3.5x (80mm) zoom factor.
• A telephoto with optical zoom at this price is great, but this is the worst optimisation I've seen on a 3.5x camera — expect disappointment if you buy for the zoom.
• The 3.5x optical-zoom telephoto is one of the biggest highlights, adding much more flexibility than most competitors in this price range, and the cameras are surprisingly capable.
• Each camera here feels better than what you'd get on Samsung at the price, and the main is solid with nice detail.

Xiaomi 17 Ultra

The reason this phone exists. A 1-inch LOFIC main sensor and an industry-first continuous mechanical optical zoom put it at or near the top of the smartphone camera rankings — but JPEG processing and a steep learning curve divide opinion.

• The 17 Ultra keeps a 1.0"-type main sensor while most makers go smaller; its main camera is quite probably the best of its kind and the phone is among the best for taking pictures currently on the market, possibly the best.
• It combines two technologies not seen together in mobile before — a 1-inch LOFIC sensor in the main camera and a mechanical periscope with continuous optical zoom — reducing ghosting and capturing highlights and shadows in a single exposure.
• Camera kit details: 23mm 50MP 1-inch main at fixed f/1.67, a 200MP 75–100mm true mechanical optical zoom (not a digital crop), and a 14mm 50MP f/2.2 ultrawide.
• This is one of the best camera systems ever used on a smartphone, as was the 15 Ultra.
• The sensor is excellent, but Xiaomi's automatic JPEG post-processing is an absolute disaster, and distant faces can look like paint blobs.
• The bigger 1-inch sensor lets you get significantly closer with nicer background blur, and raw long exposures on a tripod are a real strength the iPhone can't match.

Nothing Phone (4a)

A capable mid-range chip that handles everyday use and casual gaming well — not a powerhouse, but appropriate for the price.

• Gaming is absolutely possible on this device, with solid everyday performance for the class.
• There's no shortage of substantial hardware upgrades over the 3a, even if the design doesn't stand out as much as the Pro.
• After 24 hours the home screen is extremely customisable and feels massively more functional than iOS, with no responsiveness complaints.
• Gesture-based navigation is fully supported and the overall experience is good thanks to Nothing's optimisations.

Xiaomi 17 Ultra

Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 keeps it firmly in the flagship tier with strong gaming, though sustained behaviour and thermals draw mixed verdicts.

• The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 brings ~20% faster CPU, ~23% faster GPU and peak speeds up to 4.61GHz over the previous generation.
• The iPhone has a slight single-core edge but the Xiaomi takes the lead in Geekbench multi-core.
• Genshin Impact at very high settings ran 30 minutes at an average of 55.3fps with a 1% frame drop, while lighter titles like Honor of Kings averaged 107.8fps; both front and back stayed around 40°C.
• It delivered significantly better gaming performance than the Xiaomi 17 Pro and performed better in the stress test than the 17 Pro with the same 16GB of RAM.
• Delta Force ran for 23 minutes straight with impressive thermal management and no notable heating.
• Running AnTuTu pushed the phone to 47.5°C — hotter than rival devices measured at 40–42°C.
• Xiaomi makes some of the best fingerprint sensors in the game, and the ultrasonic sensor works well even with tempered glass.

Nothing Phone (4a)

A ~5,080mAh cell with 50W wired charging — reviewers call endurance strong, but a notable group of owners report disappointing screen-on time.

• The Nothing Phone (4a) features a ~5,080mAh cell which delivers very strong endurance in everyday use.
• The battery grew slightly — about 80mAh in most markets but a more meaningful 400mAh in India — with a 50W PD unit recommended on the box.
• Several owners report only 4–6.5 hours of screen-on time with moderate use — worse than other phones with similar ~5,000mAh batteries.
• Battery life on this phone is excellent in everyday use.

Xiaomi 17 Ultra

The single biggest divide in the coverage: lab tests record an excellent active-use score, but the global model's smaller battery, ~10%/hour real-world drain and heat make endurance inconsistent. Charging stepped down to 90W wired / 50W wireless.

• The global 17 Ultra earned an excellent active-use battery score of over 19 hours, charging 0–70% in half an hour and to full in just 43 minutes.
• After 3 months a user still had around 45% battery left at the end of the day when not using the camera intensively.
• For a 6,000mAh battery, ~4 hours of screen-on time over a full day was disappointing — the S26 Ultra's 5,000mAh cell matched or beat it under the same camera-and-navigation use.
• In a head-to-head extreme test the 17 Ultra ran hotter and lost more battery than the OnePlus 15 and Oppo Find X9 Pro at nearly every stage, finishing about 8 hours 8 minutes at 43.7°C.
• The global model holds ~800mAh less than the China version and drains roughly 10% per hour, so it can't last a full 15-hour day the way the China version does.
• JerryRigEverything's battery test had the 17 Ultra last 19.25 hours versus the iPhone 17 Pro Max's 26.5 hours.
• Charging stepped down this generation — 90W wired (full charge ~62 minutes) and 50W wireless, down from 80W wireless previously.
• It's one of the best phone batteries used on a flagship in recent memory according to a dedicated battery review.

Nothing Phone (4a)

Near-stock Nothing OS is repeatedly singled out as one of the best, cleanest and most customisable Android experiences at any price.

• The UI is pretty much stock Android, which is the best Android experience — Nothing and Pixel offer the best Android experience.
• While hard to compare to Samsung's far more customisable One UI, Nothing's OS is one of the best ways to experience Android.
• The in-house gallery, voice recorder and weather apps have wonderful design consistency, with everything else left as Google's clean defaults.
• The home screen is extremely customisable with built-in and user-made widgets — fresher, clearer and bolder than iOS.

Xiaomi 17 Ultra

The phone's most consistent weakness. HyperOS is widely seen as not up to par with the hardware, with camera-app limitations and an iOS-clone feel — though a minority of long-term owners disagree.

• The 17 Ultra perfectly embodies a great camera held back by software — the HyperOS interface is seriously lagging and not up to par with the rest of the phone.
• Android Police's verdict: the best camera phone of 2026 has a serious problem.
• Camera-app software limitations frustrated reviewers — quick-launch buried in gesture settings and the ultrawide preview looking awful.
• After 3 months one owner called HyperOS 3 one of the best versions of Xiaomi software they've used, with 6 years of security support.
• Even fans note HyperOS hasn't visibly evolved in years and Xiaomi should work on the software more.
• HyperOS still blatantly copies iOS design down to the details, though the animations are near iOS-level — better than stock Android.

Nothing Phone (4a)

Aggressively priced below the Pixel 10a with a more distinctive design and a real telephoto — the standout budget pick for buyers who want personality.

• It's a good chunk of change cheaper than the $500 Pixel 10a.
• It fits the perfect budget for buyers who can't afford the ~$1,000 needed for an entry-level iPhone 17, with good hardware and excellent battery.
• A very strong mid-range smartphone that stands out with unique design, great display, solid performance and surprisingly capable cameras — definitely worth a closer look.
• Nothing stands out among the crowd with a brand identity strong enough to turn consumers into fans.

Xiaomi 17 Ultra

A premium price for a premium camera. Reviewers agree the hardware is exceptional but increasingly question whether the global price and software make it the right buy versus the cheaper Xiaomi 17 or rivals.

• The 17 Ultra starts from £1,299 / €1,499 (about $1,750) globally, with the limited Leitzphone at £1,699 / €1,999 ($2,300) — right up there with high-end Pixel and Galaxy models.
• The 17 Ultra is getting all the attention as a camera-focused device with best-of-the-best specs, but most buyers are likely considering something closer in price to the standard Xiaomi 17.
• The Xiaomi 17 Ultra's value proposition has weakened compared to the previous generation, though at a discounted price it suddenly becomes excellent value.
• Tech Advisor argues the standard Xiaomi 17 actually comes out ahead for most people — bigger 6,330mAh battery, 35+ hours video playback and faster 100W charging.
• It's hard to fully recommend the 17 Ultra to a regular consumer unless that person knows photography and how to switch the camera settings to make it work.
• Still, in a vacuum it's an excellent premium flagship with one of the best camera systems around — definitely one of the best phones tested in 2026 so far.