Xiaomi 12S Ultra

Released July 2022

Ultra-Premium (>$800)
Xiaomi 12S Ultra

Summary

Pros

  • Excellent overall image quality in most use cases
  • Particularly good performance on color as well as exposure and level of details
  • Strong photo performance at night, with a very wide dynamic range, making it ideal for night cityscapes
  • Excellent ultra-wide and zoom performance at all distances, particularly long range, thanks to its dedicated tele lens
  • High-level video quality: extended dynamic range, natural texture rendering and good exposure
  • Versatile camera, offering 2 different image signatures for each user to choose from, rendering similar image quality
  • Good playback especially when listening to music
  • Good recording capabilities overall
  • Smooth display interactions
  • Fast response time when playing video games

Cons

  • Not capturing the moment in low-light conditions and high contrasted scenes when compared with other ultra-premium flagship devices
  • Lack of image consistency, resulting in disparities among images, even sometimes between consecutive shots
  • What is previewed is not exactly what is captured: the preview does not match the final image
  • Inconsistent audio performance, particularly when gaming
  • Underperforming audio zoom
  • Low screen brightness when watching HDR10 video content

Scores

Camera
Display
Audio
136
camera
Overall Camera Score i
136
46
Oppo A57
BEST 149
Top score
Huawei Mate 50 Pro

Sub-scores

Photo i
137
50
Xiaomi Redmi Note 11S 5G
BEST 152
Top score
Huawei Mate 50 Pro
Bokeh i
65
25
Crosscall Action-X5
BEST 80
Top score
Huawei Mate 50 Pro
Preview i
63
34
Fairphone 4
BEST 91
Top score
Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
Zoom i
136
15
Oppo A77 5G
BEST 151
Top score
Honor Magic4 Ultimate
Video i
129
31
Samsung Galaxy A22 5G
BEST 149
Top score
Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max

Use Cases

BEST 142

Friends & Family

Portrait and group photos and videos

BEST 122

Lowlight

Photos and videos in lowlight conditions

Tests

Read the test results

Xiaomi 12S Ultra camera
125
display
Overall Display Score i
125
52
Realme C21
BEST 149
Top score
Apple iPhone 14 Pro

Sub-scores

Readability i
125
40
Realme C21
BEST 160
Top score
Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
Color i
141
49
Xiaomi Black Shark 3 Pro
BEST 163
Top score
Sony Xperia 5 IV
Video i
112
40
Realme C21
BEST 162
Top score
Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Snapdragon)
Motion i
127
54
Realme C21
BEST 155
Top score
Huawei P40 Pro
Touch i
118
40
Realme C21
BEST 165
Top score
OnePlus 9
Artifacts i
122
40
Crosscall Action-X5
BEST 149
Top score
LG Wing
Tests

Read the test results

Xiaomi 12S Ultra display
129
audio
Overall Audio Score i
129
86
Vivo X60 Pro 5G (Snapdragon)
BEST 161
Top score
Black Shark 5 Pro

Sub-scores & Use Cases

Playback i
124
74
Nokia 7.2
BEST 163
Top score
Black Shark 5 Pro

Use Cases

BEST 172

Listening to music

Through the smartphone's integrated speakers

BEST 161

Watching videos

Through the smartphone's integrated speakers

BEST 156

Gaming

Through the smartphone's integrated speakers

Recording i
140
88
Fairphone 4
BEST 157
Top score
Black Shark 5 Pro

Use Cases

BEST 156

Friends & Family videos

With the smartphone's main camera

BEST 164

Selfie videos

With the smartphone's selfie camera

BEST 156

Concert videos

With the smartphone's main camera

Tests

Read the test results

Xiaomi 12S Ultra audio

Specifications

163.17 x 74.97 x 9.06mm

Dimensions

5G
Dual SIM

Network

Water resistant
IP68

Protection

Wireless

Charging

256/512 GB

Storage

Wide, Tele, Ultra-Wide

Main camera
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