Xiaomi 18 Pro Max will have a camera worthy of Xiaomi 17 Ultra

The debut of Xiaomi’s next flagship series is expected in the month of September (at least for China). Despite the time that separates us from the event, rumors are certainly not lacking and have allowed us to outline in advance the profile of the new smartphones. This time it’s the eldest of the trio, Xiaomi 18 Pro Max: an insider reveals a few more details about the photographic department, which of course will be top of the class.

Xiaomi 18 Pro Max: what can we expect from the camera of the upcoming flagship model

Speaking about the top of the line is the usual Digital Chat Station, a Chinese leaker often quite informed about what happens behind the scenes. Xiaomi 18 Pro Max is expected to mount a new main sensor, a 200 MP solution with dimensions of 1/1.28" and produced with a 22 nm manufacturing process.

Let us recall that the current Xiaomi 17 Pro Max offers a triple 50 + 50 + 50 MP setup with a Light Fusion 950 main sensor, OIS, ultra-wide and periscopic/macro telephoto.

Clearly for its successor we expect the return of the collaboration with Leica while among other novelties there would be the addition of a new telephoto lens (still with periscope zoom), updated to 200 MP. Moreover the Pro Max model would inherit a feature from Xiaomi 17 Ultra, namely the LOFIC technology.

This adds a tiny reserve capacitor to every pixel of the sensor. When there is too much light and the normal pixel fills up, instead of burning the image and losing details of the sky or reflections, the excess energy is stored in this side capacitor.

This allows the smartphone to shoot in backlight while preserving all details, both in shadows and highlights, with a single quick shot and without the classic HDR software defects. The results can be seen in our in-depth analysis dedicated to the Camera Phone.

In the case of Xiaomi 18 Pro Max it would be the latest generation LOFIC HDR 3.0, presumably with improved performance.

Presumed specifications

• Dimensions and weight: /
• Colors: /
• Certification: IP68
• Display: Flat AMOLED 6.9" 1.5K (2,608 x 1,200 pixels), LTPO refresh rate at 120 Hz, touch sampling at 300 Hz, 12-bit color, DC Dimming 2,160 Hz and peak brightness up to 3,500 nits, Xiaomi Shield Glass
• Rear display: Flat AMOLED 2.9" HD (976 x 596 pixels), LTPO refresh rate 120 Hz, touch at 120 Hz, DC Dimming and 3,500 nits
• Security: under-display fingerprint reader (ultrasound)
• Liquid cooling with vapor chamber
• SoC: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro, 2 nm TSMC
• CPU octa-core
  • 2 x 5.0/6.0 GHz – Oryon
  • 3 x ? GHz – Oryon
  • 3 x ? GHz – Oryon
• GPU: Adreno 850
• RAM: 12/16 GB LPDDR6
• Storage: 256/512 GB/1 TB UFS 5.0 non expandable
• Battery: 7,500 mAh, silicon-carbon
• Charging: 100W, wireless 50W, reverse wired/wireless 22.5W
• Camera: triple 200 + 50 + 200 MP (f/?) with OIS, ultra-wide and periscope/macro telephoto with OIS | Leica optics
• Selfie camera: 100 MP (f/?)
• Connectivity and others: Dual SIM 5G, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, NFC, Dual GPS, stereo speaker, USB-C 3.2 Gen 1, UWB
• Operating system: Android 17 with HyperOS 4