The countdown to the Xiaomi 17 series launch is nearly over, but the company isn’t waiting to showcase what it sees as the star of the show: its new Pro models’ cameras. With official launch day set for September 25 in China, Xiaomi has released a set of sample shots that highlight how the upcoming phones handle tricky lighting. To raise the stakes, one of those examples has been set directly against Apple’s latest iPhone 17 Pro.
At the center of the upgrade is the Light Hunter 950L sensor, developed with Leica. Xiaomi claims it can capture a dynamic range of 16.5 EV, a step up from the 13.5 EV of last year’s Light Fusion 900 used in the Xiaomi 15 Pro (review). In practice, that should mean more detail in both shadows and highlights, with less of the blown-out look that often comes from backlit scenes. The company has also highlighted a new lens coating designed to cut down glare and ghosting, particularly in scenes such as a bright street light against a night sky.
The most attention-grabbing sample so far is a backlit portrait shared by Xiaomi president Lu Weibing, showing the Xiaomi 17 Pro’s output alongside the iPhone 17 Pro. Xiaomi’s shot keeps brighter areas under control and adds more saturation, while the iPhone’s version stays closer to natural tones. It’s a clear difference in approach: Xiaomi leaning into vivid, ready-to-share color, Apple sticking with subtlety.
Of course, pre-release samples shared by company executives rarely tell the whole story. Independent reviews and benchmarks will give a fuller sense of how the Light Hunter 950L holds up, especially against Apple’s updated 48MP Fusion Telephoto. But with the launch just hours away, Xiaomi has succeeded in setting up a direct camera showdown.
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