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Shadowing practice: Xiaomi 17 Ultra - More Camera than Phone!

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  1. So the year is 2026 and it feels like most smartphones these days are like 50 % computer, 50 % camera, and the camera has been a more and more0:02
  2. increasingly important part of every smartphone.0:12
  3. But what if we just went all the way?0:15
  4. What if it was just all camera?0:17
  5. That happens to have a phone attached to it.0:19
  6. So this is a Leica camera, but now this is the Xiaomi 17 Ultra Leica edition.0:22
  7. Everything about this just kind of screams, I'm really trying to buy a camera and then the rest of the smartphone is kind of secondary to that.0:28
  8. And it starts all the way from the unboxing.0:35
  9. So from the jump, they make it very clear that this is a Leica edition with their heavy use of that logo.0:38
  10. You get the phone in the box, of course, but just to lean all the way into the camera feel, you also get this custom case with MagSafe magnets built0:43
  11. in, which also has a Leica logo on it.0:50
  12. And you will also get an aluminum lens cap that works with this case, which obviously also says Leica even bigger on it.0:53
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  1. And it comes with this really soft, extremely high quality microfiber cleaning cloth for keeping those lenses clean and a wrist strap that can attach to the corner of the1:01
  2. case like a camera lanyard.1:10
  3. This accessories package alone probably costs 50, 60 bucks just based on how nice they are.1:12
  4. Now you probably remember the Xiaomi 17 Pro and Pro Max from last year, which pretty clearly took after the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max as far as design.1:17
  5. But this 17 Ultra, not so much.1:25
  6. This camera kind of looks a little different and is pretty sweet, actually.1:27
  7. I've got this cream color way here, but there's actually a kind of a two tone look.1:32
  8. The bottom two thirds of the phone or camera has a slight texture where the top third is just smooth.1:35
  9. The buttons are super clicky and I kind of love the circular volume buttons with the plus and minus on them.1:41
  10. Kind of a throwback to like the 2010s with the iPhone 4 days.1:46
  11. But again, this is a camera more than it is a smartphone, so all of the branding on the back, of course, is horizontal.1:49
  12. And if you've been paying any attention to the branding, you've probably also noticed it says Leica on this phone more than it says Xiaomi.1:56
  13. It's the Xiaomi text on the back here is one time, but there's the Leica logo up here in the corner.2:02
  14. It also says Leica on the camera plateau itself and turn it sideways.2:07
  15. And you'll see it says Leica Camera Germany on the side of the phone, right above this sweet knurled texture for better grip.2:11
  16. And to top it all off, the big camera plateau sits in a circle surrounded by a metal ring with more texture for grip.2:18
  17. And that ring actually moves.2:25
  18. So we'll get to that in a second.2:27
  19. Really the only thing missing and I'm kind of shocked it is, is like just a dedicated camera shutter button and that normal spot on the side for taking pictures2:29
  20. in landscape mode.2:37
  21. But you know, if it's really all about these cameras and let's just get right to them.2:38
  22. So triple camera setup on the back here, main camera, ultra wide and a telephoto.2:41
  23. And each one kind of has its own little magic to it.2:45
  24. The main camera is a massive one inch sensor.2:48
  25. It's 50 megapixels.2:51
  26. It's at f 1 .67 and it's just absolutely gigantic.2:52
  27. The ultra wide is a good sensor to it's a nice wide 14 millimeter lens, 50 megapixels at f 2 .2.2:56
  28. And then there's the zoom, which is a 200 megapixel sensor.3:02
  29. But more importantly, it's also a real variable focal length zoom.3:07
  30. So it'll zoom in and out smoothly from a 75 millimeter equivalent to a 100 millimeter equivalent from f 2 .39 to f 2 .96.3:11
  31. So there is a lot going on here.3:19
  32. Now, you know, what's really interesting now that I've been shooting with this camera is I wouldn't crown it necessarily the absolute best set of smartphone cameras like quality wise.3:21
  33. It's still really good.3:31
  34. It's very high up there, but it's not necessarily like the absolute best.3:32
  35. It's got some flaws.3:35
  36. It's not super clinical.3:35
  37. But I would still crown it the best overall like most fun smartphone camera shooting experience that I've ever had.3:37
  38. And you know, when I first got this phone, I was a little nervous.3:46
  39. It was, you know, covered in like a logos.3:48
  40. And I feel like this was primed to disappoint me.3:51
  41. Like I would figure out it's just really a branding exercise from the like a licensing department.3:54
  42. But this has turned out to be a much more thoughtful execution than I was expecting.3:59
  43. This camera app and the experience taking photos is just fun.4:03
  44. It's a lot of fun, which is what you want out of a camera.4:07
  45. So if you're just pointing and shooting like a normal smartphone camera, you'll have a great time.4:10
  46. It's got reliable quick autofocus.4:14
  47. That big sensor gives you a lot of detail and a nice shallow depth of field images look great.4:16
  48. It still does the classic Xiaomi brightening of skin tones, but that's not shocking at this point either.4:21
  49. I also shot most of my Tussle Model Y performance review on the autofocus channel with this phone in video mode and it looks great.4:26
  50. It's so easy to just point and shoot and get good looking 8K video out of this phone without even batting an eye.4:33
  51. The microphones aren't as great, but I use an external mic with that video, which solved it instantly.4:39
  52. So go watch that over there and subscribe if you're into car videos, but then beyond just the normal point and shoot, there's so many camera features.4:43
  53. So I'll just, I'll give you some of my highlights.4:50
  54. So the ultra wide, like I mentioned, is actually very wide.4:52
  55. It's a 14 millimeter equivalent and it's actually decent quality, which makes it very usable.4:55
  56. So that's really good.4:59
  57. The variable zoom is pretty smooth and actually works.5:00
  58. It's a 75 to 100 millimeter zoom, which means you can punch in with the full 200 megapixels before doing any cropping, which makes it that much more powerful of5:05
  59. a zoom.5:14
  60. And then the Leica partnership goes even deeper.5:15
  61. So there's standard photos where you can switch between Leica vibrant or Leica authentic profiles.5:18
  62. I mostly stick with vibrant cause it looks good, but when I do want a little more character, you can swipe over to Leica essential mode.5:23
  63. So if you thought buying an actual Leica camera was too expensive, now you can get one just through the image processing pipeline of this phone.5:29
  64. Kind of, I'm exaggerating a little bit, but it is worth noting that this isn't just filters.5:38
  65. It is actually built into the capture process.5:43
  66. So you can't like undo it at all.5:45
  67. So the M nine is locked in daylight white balance and obviously is more contrasty and has a different color profile, but it looks really good.5:47
  68. Still sharp, but a little less process looking and more organic.5:54
  69. It's just fun to take more artsy looking photos with this.5:58
  70. Then the M three is monochrome.6:01
  71. But again, it's not just a black and white filter.6:03
  72. It's actually emulating like a monopan 50 film.6:05
  73. So it's contrasty.6:09
  74. It has less dynamic range.6:10
  75. It also has a nice grain to it.6:11
  76. These are obviously not the highest quality photos of all time, but they are fun.6:13
  77. There's dozens of other subtle looks that you can switch between in the camera app to and there's a ton of other camera modes.6:18
  78. Also, it is very satisfying to have a 200 megapixel telephoto that you can then continue to crop in on and get really respectable far zoom stuff without needing a6:25
  79. bunch of AI enhancement physics.6:34
  80. Also 1920 by 1080 video at 1 ,920 FPS.6:38
  81. Because why not?6:44
  82. And so then there is the ring around the camera on the back of this phone.6:46
  83. OK, so this ring, obviously it's metal.6:50
  84. It turns and it turns fluidly.6:52
  85. But as I turn, I get these haptics that make it feel like it's clicking.6:55
  86. So it simulates a notched ring and it's it's pretty convincing and satisfying.6:59
  87. So twisting this ring really quick will actually act as a camera shortcut for opening the camera.7:03
  88. And then once it's open, you can zoom in and out while taking photos in the normal camera mode by just turning the ring.7:08
  89. But they didn't stop there.7:14
  90. In video mode, the ring is actually mapped to adjusting exposure value by default.7:15
  91. And then the customization keeps going because you can go into the camera ring settings and there's a whole menu that lets you choose what the ring does in every7:20
  92. single camera mode and how sensitive it is.7:27
  93. So in Pro mode, for example, you can map the ring to be a manual focus ring if you really want to, or for it to change shutter speed or7:30
  94. white balance Kelvin value, which is sick.7:38
  95. It's like the iPhone's camera control, but way more physical and clearly with way more flexibility.7:41
  96. They really went all out with this camera experience from the sensors, the hardware itself, to the accessories around it, to the all the software customization, all the modes, to7:46
  97. all the like integration, to the camera ring.7:58
  98. And the best part is it's a Xiaomi phone.8:01
  99. So the rest of the phone underneath is still really good.8:04
  100. It's actually a flagship.8:08
  101. It has a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, LPDDR5X RAM, UFS 4 .1 storage.8:09
  102. So performance is pretty great for a camera.8:14
  103. It also has this huge 6 .9 inch flat 120 Hertz display that gets up to 3 ,500 nits.8:17
  104. It's got a 6 ,800 milliamp hour silicon carbon battery with 90 watt fast charging, 50 watt wireless charging.8:23
  105. And it also somehow keeps its full IP 69 dust and water resistance rating despite having the moving part that camera ring.8:29
  106. So that's pretty cool too.8:35
  107. And it's running the same software as other Xiaomi flagships, HyperOS 3 on top of Android 16.8:37
  108. But you know what?8:42
  109. It's not perfect though.8:43
  110. Nothing's ever perfect.8:44
  111. This does have some flaws.8:45
  112. And I'll just, I just want to start with the camera ring.8:47
  113. Like it's a really cool idea, obviously, and it works.8:50
  114. But similar to Apple's camera control, it's a little more awkward to use sometimes in real life.8:53
  115. It feels a little bit clunky.9:00
  116. Like if you stick to the default, which is zooming in and out, there's about a 99 .995 percent chance your fingers will get in the shot, especially if you9:01
  117. zoom out to the ultra wide versus just a regular zoom by pressing on the touchscreen.9:10
  118. And it's also annoyingly easy to accidentally trigger or brush the ring just when you're holding the phone, which means sometimes accidentally quick launching the camera app.9:14
  119. Then there's the variable zoom from the telephoto lens from 75 to 100 millimeters.9:22
  120. And it's cool.9:26
  121. It's really interesting tech, but it's also not that much zoom.9:28
  122. Like it's, it's cool that they've fit it into a periscope camera that turns all the elements sideways and takes advantage of the space.9:32
  123. But you can see it's it's 3 .2 X to 4 .3 X.9:38
  124. That's where all the smooth continuous zoom is.9:42
  125. So I feel like you could just take two steps forward and get the same result.9:44
  126. And then, you know, for a phone that's so focused on being such a good camera experience, I'm usually going in and playing with the settings and like trying to9:47
  127. get the highest quality photo as possible.9:53
  128. So I'm going from the 12 megapixel binned photos to 50 megapixels.9:55
  129. And then when I close the camera app and then reopen it again, it's back to 12 every single time.9:59
  130. I can't think of a real camera that would forget my settings if I'd sat it down for a while and picked it back up and woke it up again.10:06
  131. And I know that's what most smartphones do.10:15
  132. They always switch back to the bin settings just to keep your storage use down.10:16
  133. But this isn't supposed to be a normal camera phone, you know.10:20
  134. But look, there is that famous quote and you've probably heard it before that the best camera is the one you have with you.10:24
  135. And I don't know who said it first or where it came from.10:31
  136. But it's still true.10:34
  137. And so it's pretty sick that in the year 2026, you can have that be a full fledged Leica experience that fits in your pocket.10:36
  138. So well played, show me well played and shout out to Rocket Money for sponsoring this video because it's January and so it's of course resolution time.10:44
  139. And I'm sure I'm not alone, but one of my resolutions is to clean up spending and Rocket Money has been the perfect tool to help me do that.10:52
  140. It automatically tracks all my transactions in one place.10:58
  141. And as you can imagine, when I first connected all my accounts, there was immediately a couple of subscriptions that it shows that I'm paying for that I kind of11:01
  142. forgot I was paying for.11:08
  143. But then the best part I think is that you can cancel them right in the app with a couple of taps.11:09
  144. So that was just a great beginning of the year task for me, saving the hassle of digging through emails and dealing with customer service and trying to accomplish the11:13
  145. same thing in other ways.11:21
  146. And then the nice thing is once you're in, you get a bird's eye view of all your finances.11:22
  147. All my accounts are in one dashboard.11:25
  148. So checking savings credit card.11:27
  149. So I can actually see how much I spend on video gear versus other more responsible things without logging into five different apps.11:30
  150. And I also like that it automatically categorizes all spending so I can see the breakdown.11:37
  151. I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who is a little surprised by how much you eat out versus groceries.11:40
  152. But now I know Rocket Money is free to download and you can unlock even more features with premium.11:45
  153. So you can go to rocketmoney .com slash MKBHD or scan the QR code.11:49
  154. There's also going to be a link in the description if you want to check it out.11:53
  155. Thanks for watching.11:56
  156. Catch you guys in the next one.11:57
  157. Peace.11:59

A B2 Tech Review at 214 Words a Minute: English Speaking Practice with the Xiaomi 17 Ultra

This clip is Marques Brownlee's commentary on the Xiaomi 17 Ultra camera phone, spoken in an American accent at a measured B2 level. It runs at 214 words per minute, faster than most of the catalogue, so it rewards a second or third pass once the words feel familiar rather than being a good first attempt.

The subject is straightforward: a reviewer walks through unboxing a Leica branded phone, from the custom case and lens cap to the two tone finish and the circular volume buttons. Because it is one speaker narrating what he sees rather than two people trading turns, it works well for english listening practice before you try to speak the lines yourself.

American Accent Pronunciation Practice in This Camera Review's Casual Phrasing

Brownlee leans on the filler "kind of" throughout, and it is worth hearing how loosely he lets it sit inside a sentence: "Everything about this just kind of screams, I'm really trying to buy a camera and then the rest of the smartphone is kind of secondary to that." The word barely gets stressed, it just glues two clauses together.

  • "Kind of a throwback to like the 2010s with the iPhone 4 days." Three casual markers stacked in one short line: "kind of", "like", and the decade shorthand. Say it fast and flat, the way he does, instead of stressing each word.
  • "This accessories package alone probably costs 50, 60 bucks just based on how nice they are." The price comes out as two numbers side by side with no "or" between them, a habit of quick estimates in everyday American speech.
  • "But what if we just went all the way?" A short rhetorical question that pivots the whole video. Notice the rising pitch on "way": it is not really a question expecting an answer.

How to Shadow This Line by Line Tech Commentary from the Opening

Work through the first block of lines before the clip moves on to specs. They are short and declarative, which makes each one easy to isolate and repeat on its own.

  • Start with the two short questions in a row, "But what if we just went all the way?" and "What if it was just all camera?", and repeat them until the rhythm feels automatic.
  • Move to the long sentence that begins "Everything about this just kind of screams" and break it at the comma before attempting it whole.
  • Take the accessories line and practise saying "50, 60 bucks" as one unbroken pair of numbers, without a gap between them.
  • Finish on "Kind of a throwback to like the 2010s with the iPhone 4 days." and record yourself, checking the score against the flat, unstressed delivery of "kind of".
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