Xiaomi 15 Ultra VS Xiaomi 17 Ultra

The Xiaomi 15 Ultra and Xiaomi 17 Ultra differ in several key design aspects. For water resistance, the 15 Ultra is rated IP68, meaning it is waterproof, while the 17 Ultra has no water resistance rating provided.

In terms of size, the 17 Ultra is slightly taller and wider, with a height of 162.9 mm and width of 77.6 mm, compared to the 15 Ultra’s height of 161.3 mm and width of 75.3 mm. However, the 15 Ultra is thicker at 9.4 mm, while the 17 Ultra is slightly slimmer at 8.5 mm. The weight of both devices is quite similar, with the 15 Ultra at 229 g and the 17 Ultra at 230 g, showing a minimal difference.

The Xiaomi 15 Ultra has a volume of 114.17 cm³, which is larger than the 17 Ultra’s 107.45 cm³. Both devices lack a rugged build and cannot be folded.

The displays of the Xiaomi 15 Ultra and Xiaomi 17 Ultra share several similarities but differ in some key areas. Both feature OLED/AMOLED display types and have a 120Hz refresh rate, providing smooth visuals. The 15 Ultra has a slightly smaller 6.73″ screen size, while the 17 Ultra offers a larger 6.9″ display.

When it comes to pixel density, the 15 Ultra has a higher value at 522 ppi, compared to the 17 Ultra’s 416 ppi. The 15 Ultra also boasts a higher resolution of 1440 x 3200 px, while the 17 Ultra has a resolution of 1200 x 2608 px. Additionally, the 15 Ultra features a significantly brighter display with a typical brightness of 3200 nits, while the 17 Ultra's brightness is much lower at 1200 nits.

In terms of protection, the 17 Ultra includes branded damage-resistant glass, which the 15 Ultra lacks. Both devices support HDR10, HDR10+, Always-On Display, and Dolby Vision, and neither has a secondary screen. Both are touch screens as well.

The performance specifications of the Xiaomi 15 Ultra and Xiaomi 17 Ultra are quite similar, though there are a few differences. Both devices feature 1024GB of internal storage and 16GB of RAM. The Xiaomi 17 Ultra has a higher AnTuTu benchmark score of 3963774, compared to the 15 Ultra’s 2746580, indicating a potential difference in overall performance.

The chipsets of both phones are Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite-based, but the 15 Ultra uses the standard version, while the 17 Ultra is powered by the newer Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. The 17 Ultra’s CPU speed is slightly higher, with 2 x 4.6 GHz & 6 x 3.62 GHz compared to the 15 Ultra’s 2 x 4.32 GHz & 6 x 3.53 GHz. Additionally, the GPU clock speed is also faster on the 17 Ultra at 1200 MHz, compared to 1100 MHz on the 15 Ultra.

Other specs like RAM speed, semiconductor size, and memory bandwidth are identical on both devices, with both featuring 5300 MHz RAM speed, 3 nm semiconductor size, and 85.1 GB/s maximum memory bandwidth. The Geekbench 6 scores show that the 17 Ultra excels in both multi-core (10990 vs. 10059) and single-core (3530 vs. 3234) performance. Both devices share several advanced features, including support for DirectX 12, OpenGL 3.2, multithreading, and a maximum memory amount of 24GB. Other details such as thermal design power (8.2W), integrated LTE, and support for ECC memory are also identical across both devices.

The camera specifications of the Xiaomi 15 Ultra and Xiaomi 17 Ultra are quite similar in many respects, but with some notable differences. Both phones feature a quad-camera setup on the rear, with the same 200 MP, 50 MP, and 50 MP sensors, though the wide apertures differ slightly: the 15 Ultra has 2.6f, 1.8f, 1.6f, and 2.2f, while the 17 Ultra has 2.4f, 2.2f, and 1.7f.

The front camera of the 15 Ultra is 32 MP, whereas the 17 Ultra has a significantly higher 50 MP front camera. The 15 Ultra includes built-in optical image stabilization (OIS) for better stability, which the 17 Ultra lacks. Both devices support video recording at 4320 x 30 fps, but the 17 Ultra offers an additional 60 fps option for smoother video capture. Both phones have a dual-tone LED flash with two LEDs and share features like continuous autofocus, phase-detection autofocus, HDR mode, manual exposure, and raw image capture.

While both devices support slow-motion video recording, the 15 Ultra can shoot 360° panoramas, while the 17 Ultra does not. The 17 Ultra lacks HDR10 and Dolby Vision recording support, which the 15 Ultra includes. Both devices can create panoramas in-camera and feature timelapse functionality, but neither has a front-facing LED flash, a dual-lens front camera, or a front-facing camera under the display. Both also lack 3D photo/video recording capabilities.

The operating systems of the Xiaomi 15 Ultra and Xiaomi 17 Ultra show both similarities and differences. The 15 Ultra runs on Android 15, while the 17 Ultra uses Android 16. Both devices feature clipboard warnings, location privacy options, camera/microphone privacy options, theme customization, app tracking blockers, and media picker functionalities.

Key differences include that the 15 Ultra has focus modes, while the 17 Ultra does not. Both devices support dark mode, Wi-Fi password sharing is not available on either, and both have battery health check features. Additionally, the 15 Ultra offers dynamic theming and customizable notifications, while both support split screen, PiP, Live Text, and full-page screenshots. Neither device gets direct OS updates.

Other shared features include offline voice recognition, voice commands, and the ability to track the device's current position. Both are multi-user systems, have sharing intents, child locks, and support widgets. Neither device has the Quick Start feature or can be used as a PC. Both devices are free and open source and offer the ability to offload apps.

The battery specifications of the Xiaomi 15 Ultra and Xiaomi 17 Ultra are quite similar, with both devices supporting wireless charging, fast charging, and reverse wireless charging. The 15 Ultra features a 6000 mAh battery, while the 17 Ultra has a slightly larger 6800 mAh battery. Both phones support 90W fast charging, but the 15 Ultra offers a faster wireless charging speed of 80W, compared to the 17 Ultra's 50W wireless charging speed.

Both devices have reverse wireless charging at a speed of 10W. Neither phone has a removable battery, but both come with a battery level indicator, a rechargeable battery, and support for wireless charging. Overall, the 15 Ultra and 17 Ultra share many features, with the main difference being the wireless charging speed and the slight difference in battery capacity.

The audio capabilities of the Xiaomi 15 Ultra and Xiaomi 17 Ultra are very similar, with both devices lacking a 3.5 mm audio jack but featuring stereo speakers. The 15 Ultra supports a wider range of Bluetooth audio technologies, including aptX, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive, and aptX Lossless. In comparison, the 17 Ultra also supports aptX, aptX HD, and aptX Adaptive, but it does not include LDAC or aptX Lossless support.

Neither device includes a radio. Both phones offer robust wireless audio features, but the 15 Ultra provides additional support for LDAC and aptX Lossless, which the 17 Ultra lacks. These differences will affect the overall wireless audio experience for users who value high-definition audio streaming.

The Xiaomi 15 Ultra and Xiaomi 17 Ultra are closely matched in terms of connectivity and features. Both devices support 5G, have dual SIM card slots, USB Type-C with USB 3.2, and NFC. They also have identical download (10000 Mbits/s) and upload (3500 Mbits/s) speeds. Both models feature a fingerprint scanner, GPS, compass, accelerometer, barometer, infrared sensor, and a cellular module, as well as satellite-based emergency SOS.

One difference is in Bluetooth: the 15 Ultra supports Bluetooth version 6, while the 17 Ultra supports Bluetooth version 5.4. Both models support Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n), Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax), Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac), Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be), and Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax), so there are no differences in Wi-Fi connectivity.

Both devices lack support for external memory, HDMI output, 3D facial recognition, an iris scanner, and a built-in projector. Neither supports ANT+, motion tracking, or optical tracking. The 15 Ultra supports Galileo for positioning, while the 17 Ultra also supports Galileo and has identical features in this area. The main differences are the Bluetooth versions and no additional features exclusive to either device.

In terms of miscellaneous features, both the Xiaomi 15 Ultra and Xiaomi 17 Ultra are quite similar. Both devices come with a video light, which can be useful for low-light situations. However, neither of the two phones includes sapphire glass for the display, nor do they feature a curved display or an e-paper display.

Overall, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra and Xiaomi 17 Ultra are practically identical in this group, with no differences in terms of video light, display type, or additional display features.