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Xiaomi 17T: Two-minute review
The Xiaomi 17T is an Android smartphone with an impressive spec, including prestigious Leica lenses in the camera.
It looks almost identical to the iPhone 16 Pro, sharing pretty much the same dimensions and camera design. The bright Violet colorway of my review unit did help to make it a little less anonymous, though.
The 17T seems well-made. The materials feel quite premium, but peer closely and you’ll see it’s not quite on the same level as the best phones. It’s by no means flimsy, but it doesn’t quite match the refinement of others.
The display is sharp, vivid, and bright — as you would expect from a 1.5K AMOLED. The 120Hz refresh rate makes motion smooth, too. However, shades of black are perhaps a little too muddled, making it hard to discern fine details in dark content.
Xiaomi makes much of the Leica lenses in its marketing for the 17T, and on the surface, it’s right to. There are three rear cameras: a 50MP main, 12MP ultra-wide, and 50MP 5x telephoto.
Taking photos is a breeze and the results are clear and vibrant, if not quite as stunning as those of other phone cameras. There are several AI features for shooting, but these are relatively basic compared to others — which I’m thankful for. There are also such features for the phone’s system as a whole, but again these are mercifully limited in scope.
The brand’s HyperOS is a superb instance of Android. It’s incredibly smooth and easy to navigate, free as it is from clutter or confusing UI elements. Numerous first-party apps come preinstalled, but they’re largely unintrusive. Many are poor substitutes for Google’s counterparts, although one or two are genuinely useful.
The overall performance of the 17T is excellent. Zipping between apps is seamless, while streaming Ultra HD content is entirely feasible. It’s even exceedingly capable when it comes to gaming, and best of all the unit keeps cool throughout all these tasks.
Battery life is also quite good. It lasted about three days straight on a single charge. And during this time, I used it for a variety of everyday tasks. Charging is quick, taking just over an hour to fully replenish the battery.
There’s no denying that the Xiaomi 17T offers plenty of performance and features for the price. There are a few niggles here and there, but not many Android phones offer better value for money.
Xiaomi 17T review: Price & availability
- Starts from £649 (about $870 / AU$1,200)
- Available in the UK in various colors
- Reasonable price for the spec
The Xiaomi 17T starts from £649 (about $870 / AU$1,200) and is available now in the UK, but not currently in the US or Australia. Four colorways are available: black, white, violet, and blue. The base model features 256GB of storage, while the top model has 512GB, and costs £699 (about $940 / AU$1,300).
Given the spec, this is a reasonable price for an Android phone. It’s more expensive than the Xiaomi 15T, which features a less powerful processor, although it does have a bigger screen. It’s also more expensive than the Honor 600, which has similar specs, but doesn’t have as powerful a telephoto lens.
Xiaomi 17T review: Specs
|
Dimensions |
6.20 x 2.96 x 0.32 inches / 157.6 x 75.2 x 8.2mm |
|
Weight |
7.1 oz / 200g |
|
Screen |
6.59-inch AMOLED |
|
Resolution |
2756 x 1268 |
|
Refresh rate |
120Hz |
|
Chipset |
MediaTek Dimensity 8500 Ultra |
|
RAM |
12GB |
|
Storage |
256GB / 512GB |
|
OS |
Android 16 (HyperOS 3) |
|
Rear cameras |
Main: 50MP (f/1.7); 5x Telephoto: 50MP (f/3.0); ultra-wide: 12MP (f/2.2) |
|
Front camera |
32MP (f/2.2) |
|
Battery |
6,500mAh |
|
Charging |
67W wired |
Xiaomi 17T review: Design
- iPhone-esque looks
- Well-made
- Included case is sufficient
At first glance, it’s hard to not see the similarities between the 17T and many iPhones — specifically, the iPhone 16 Pro. Both share virtually the same rounded corners, large square camera cluster, and dimensions. It weighs about the same, too, which is to say that it’s fine to hold and carry around in your pocket.
The design is neat and functional, if a little bland — although the Violet colorway of my review unit did lend some vibrancy. Every surface is flat and there are only three buttons: one for power and two for volume. The word ‘Xiaomi’ emblazoned on the back is quite small.
The 17T also comes with a case, which is a simple affair. It doesn’t feel particularly premium, but it should provide adequate protection for everyday use. I wouldn’t trust it to protect the 17T from more extreme knocks and drops, though. Also, the case doesn’t sit flush with or extend beyond the camera bezel; this part still sticks out, which means those lenses are more likely to take the brunt of any fall or slam.
Like the iPhone, the 17T feels quite premium in the hand. The body material is smooth to the touch and feels very solid. It’s not made from a single piece, though; the back panel is separate from the sides, and there is a small but noticeably gap in between the two, which is bound to fill with debris over time.
Xiaomi 17T review: Display
- Bright and vivid
- Sharp resolution
- Useful Reading Mode
The Xiaomi 17T features a 6.59-inch AMOLED display with a 1.5K (2756 x 1268) resolution. Given these specs, it’s no surprise that content looks sharp and vibrant, making it great for productivity and entertainment. The 3500 nits peak brightness means you’re never wanting for more brightness, either. However, I did notice that shades of black are a little unrefined, meaning that details in dark content can get lost.
With a maximum refresh rate of 120Hz, the screen provides supremely smooth scrolling and navigation as you flit around app windows. In its default setting, the 17T will automatically switch between refresh rates based on scenario, in order to balance performance and power usage. However, you can fix this to 60Hz or 120Hz at all times, and can even set it on an app-by-app basis.
There’s also a Reading Mode that can be set to turn on at certain hours or toggled manually. It filters out blue light and adds a slightly grainy texture, similar to that of paper. I did find this helped when reading reams of text, but that graininess isn’t great when viewing other kinds of content.
However, you can adjust this texture using a slider, letting you disable it altogether. You can also adjust the strength of the blue light filter, and even change the output to black and white only.
In use, I found the screen a little grabby at times, with my fingers and thumbs sticking slightly as I scrolled up and down. However, the effect wasn’t too egregious, and a quick wipe often remedied the issue.
Xiaomi 17T review: Cameras
- 50MP rear cameras
- Ultrawide and 5x Telephoto lenses
- AI enhancements available
The Xiaomi 17T features three rear cameras with lenses made by Leica. Aside from the main lens, there’s an ultra-wide lens and a 5x telephoto lens. The main and telephoto lenses are capable of shooting at 50MP, although this drops to 12.5MP when selecting an aspect ratio other than 3:4, which is disappointing.
Given this impressive spec, it’s no wonder that the photos I shot turned out very well. They were sharp, and colors were vivid, although I can’t say they were as rich and as detailed as those taken with the best cameras phones. Shots that utilized the 5x zoom were great as well, although there was a slight but noticeable loss in clarity (we tested the Xiaomi 17T Pro’s equivalent telephoto lens in detail elsewhere on TechRadar).
The camera app itself is easy to use. There are plenty of settings and adjustments available, and they’re readily available without digging too deep. On top of this, there is a range of filters available to change the tone, as well as a Beautify feature. There are various modes, too, such as a super macro mode for extreme close-ups, and a Pro mode that lets you make more advanced tweaks, from changing the ISO to setting the focus manually.
There are some AI features for shooting, but mercifully these aren’t as bloated or as useless as those on other smartphones. You can toggle AI recommendations, which can improve low-light and zoomed-in photos, among other automations.
Rather disconcertingly, there’s also a mole removal setting when taking selfies. As someone with moles on their face, I can say that this feature actually worked. Video can be shot in 1080p and at 30fps or 60fps. The results from my videos were smooth and sharp.
Xiaomi 17T review: Software
- HyperOS is excellent
- Xiaomi’s apps less so
- Various but basic AI features
Despite its terrible name, the Xiaomi 17T’s HyperOS is fantastic to use. It has a soft visual theme that’s easy on the eye, and it’s simple to navigate, thanks to the uncluttered and intuitive layout. There are also plenty of explanations for many of its settings. It’s fast and smooth, responding quickly to gestures and when switching between apps.
Unlike some Android phones, the Notification Bar and the Quick Settings panel are separated. Both are easy to access, though, since you simply drag down from the left to access the former, and from the right to access the latter.
The Quick Settings panel has plenty of actions on hand, including the aforementioned Reading Mode and a screenshot tool (if you don’t like using the power and volume button combination). You can of course substitute the default actions with a plethora of others, and thanks to that aforementioned separation between the Notifications Bar and the Quick Settings, the 17T squeezes in more than other phones can. However, unlike some phones, you can’t have multiple pages of these actions.
There are numerous first-party apps preinstalled on the 17T, but unfortunately many of these aren’t very useful. This is a problem for every Android phone that isn’t made by Google, since you get an unnecessary doubling-up of many apps, from file managers and photo galleries to note-takers and calendars.
And as with virtually all of these ersatz apps, I can’t recommend any of them over Google’s equivalents, especially if you have a Google account and want to sync your data over the cloud. Xiaomi even has its own app store, Get Apps, but having pursued its selection, I’m not sure I would trust downloading any of them.
There are some useful first-party apps, though. There’s an app called Mi remote, which can be used to control all sorts of devices from all kinds of brands. I was quite amazed that it worked with my Sony Bravia TV, which is over a decade old.
On top of this, there’s the Security app, which can scan for viruses. I can’t speak to its effectiveness in this regard, but the app has other functions besides this, such as app management, battery monitoring, drive cleaning, and speed boosting.
The 17T also comes preinstalled with popular third-party apps, such as Amazon Shopping, Facebook, Spotify, TikTok, Instagram, and AliExpress, to name a few — and none of which I asked for when setting up the phone.
Since this is 2026, you won’t be surprised to hear that the 17T has AI features, too. Mercifully, these are basic and unobtrusive, and are largely confined to speech and text functions, including AI-generated subtitles.
Xiaomi 17T review: Performance
- Fast for all kinds of tasks, even gaming
- Stays remarkably cool
- Interesting haptics
Perhaps the strongest aspect of the 17T is its performance. No matter the task, it handled it well. I managed to stream 4K content without a hitch. Meanwhile, switching between apps was seamless, no doubt thanks to the 12GB of RAM on board, which is quite high for a smartphone.
What impressed me even more, though, was how well it gamed. I managed to play graphics-heavy titles such as Hitman: Blood Money — Reprisal and Asphalt Legends without issue. Both looked fantastic and ran as smoothly as I could’ve wished for. It also paired brilliantly with the GameSir X5 Lite, which is one of the best mobile controllers around in my view. Equally impressive was just how cool the 17T remained, with only the back warming up slightly.
One odd thing I noticed about the 17T, though, was its haptic response. It’s not bad, but I think it’s best described as springy, which is especially evident when typing. In one way, this prominent feeling is quite good for feedback, but it can feel like a slightly odd sensation at times, and is unlike the response from other smartphone haptics.
Connectivity also seemed to work well. I didn’t have a problem connecting to my Wi-Fi or to my Bluetooth earphones.
Xiaomi 17T review: Battery life
The battery life of the 17T is quite good. It lasted just over three days, during which time I used it for a whole host of tasks. This included streaming video, gaming, and web browsing, as well as connecting to Bluetooth earphones.
The battery saver feature turned on at 19%, and made the bold claim that it could eek out eight more hours. But this did indeed seem to be the case, which impressed me. Charging is quite quick, too, taking just over an hour to fully recharge.
Should I buy the Xiaomi 17T?
Scorecard
|
Attributes |
Notes |
Rating |
|---|---|---|
|
Design |
Like the iPhone in pretty much every way, but it doesn’t exude that same premium feel. |
3.5/5 |
|
Display |
Sharp and vibrant, but shades of black are a little harsh. Can be a little grabby at times, too. |
4/5 |
|
Software |
HyperOS is superb, but most first-party apps are surplus to requirements. AI features are basic and functional. |
4/5 |
|
Cameras |
The Leica lenses impress, but photos aren’t quite as spectacular as those taken with the best phone cameras. |
4/5 |
|
Performance |
Capable of all kinds of tasks, even high-end mobile gaming. It stays remarkably cool, too. |
4.5/5 |
|
Battery life |
Lasts for several days on a single charge, and recharging is very quick. |
4/5 |
Buy it if…
Don’t buy it if…
Xiaomi 17T review: Also consider
How I tested the Xiaomi 17T
I tested the 17T for several days, during which time I used it for a variety of tasks. I browsed the web using Google Chrome, streamed video on YouTube, including 4K content, and played demanding mobile games.
I also shot numerous photos, including those with the 5x Telephoto lens and the selfie camera, as well as video. I tried out as many of the phone’s features as I could, including its AI ones where possible. I also paired my Bluetooth earphones to test connectivity.
I’ve used numerous Android phones for over a decade, and currently use a Google Pixel 7a as my daily phone. I’ve also reviewed Android tablets.
Read the full article here
