Xiaomi reveals concept phone with a mount for Leica M lenses based on the 12S Ultra. With the announcement of the Xiaomi 12S Ultra and its 1″ sensor, Xiaomi bridged the gap between smartphones and high-end digital cameras. It features lenses with the same fixed focal lengths as a regular smartphone.
In an unusual move, the business has revealed some information on the development of the 12S Ultra: it was one of two projects being worked on simultaneously. The second kind of camera is a cross between a standard smartphone and a mirrorless model.
A second 1″ sensor not obscured by the lens is included in this prototype gadget (but it is covered by sapphire glass for protection). This facilitates (semi-)professional usage by allowing the user to connect Leica M mount lenses. A sophisticated camera software that includes common photography aids like focus peaking, zebra lines, and a histogram is paired with a large selection of lenses.
Xiaomi reveals concept phone with a mount for Leica M lenses based on the 12S Ultra
Naturally, with 10-bit RAW support. The use of an adapter increases the overall size of the unit. This design doesn’t need any additional hardware to capture images and movies since it uses the same primary camera as the 12S Ultra (1″ sensor, 23mm lens) and an ultra wide camera (13mm).
In the past, there have been add-on lenses for smartphones, but their design is problematic since the incoming light needs to go through the phone’s internal and external lenses. This results in light loss and a blurrier picture. With this new Xiaomi idea, a Leica lens is mounted to the camera and shines the light right into the sensor (except for the protective glass that keeps dust and water out).
With a lens mounted, it performs more like a traditional 1″ mirrorless camera. In addition to its superior optical capabilities, the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset gives this device significant computational photography capabilities unavailable on traditional mirrorless cameras. Again, this is not the case with lenses attached to your smartphone.
Xiaomi reveals concept phone with a mount for Leica M lenses based on the 12S Ultra
Sony’s lens-style cameras from a decade ago have nothing on this. The phones were not cameras themselves but rather displayed for digital imagery captured by the cameras. In addition, it’s not like the Android-powered cameras that stumbled onto phone capabilities.
The lenses on them were fixed. What Xiaomi and Leica have created is one-of-a-kind. Despite our lack of knowledge, we can safely assume that this concept phone was created by the same people that brought you the Xiaomi 12S Ultra.
The same fake gripping leather can be found on the device’s back, with complete IP68 dust and water protection. The manufacturer has reinforced the part of the frame where the lens goes to make it more robust.
