Xiaomi 15T review – How much flagship technology is packed inside!

Xiaomi 15T: Design, build quality and scope of delivery

Weighing in at 194 grams, the Xiaomi 15T is pleasantly light and, at only 7,5 millimeters thick, sits sleekly in the hand. The frame makes a strong first impression. Unlike the better-equipped Xiaomi 15T Pro, it's made of plastic, not aluminum. While this makes it feel less "premium," it proves to be pleasantly grippy and durable in everyday use.

The flat sides of the casing give the device a clean, defined look. It appears neither playful nor over-designed, but rather understated and deliberately restrained. The fiberglass back has a pleasant matte finish and proved to be particularly resistant to fingerprints in our tests. After a long day, the device still looks as good as it did in the morning, without the need for constant wiping.

The IP68 protection rating is rather unusual for this price range. A quick dip in the sink would therefore be no problem.

The build quality is also excellent. The buttons are firmly in place, click cleanly, and the casing remains stable even under light pressure. The USB-C port, speaker, microphone, and SIM card slot (dual nano, no microSD) are located on the bottom. Xiaomi has cleverly concealed a small IR transmitter on the top, allowing you to control TVs when the remote isn't readily available.

The package includes a USB-C charging cable, a SIM card eject tool, some paperwork, and a TPU case. Nothing exciting, but it does the job. A charger is missing, which has almost become standard practice these days.

Xiaomi 15T: Display

The Xiaomi 15T features a flat 6,83-inch display that covers almost the entire front and boasts a crisp resolution of 1280 x 2772 pixels (approximately 447 ppi). The panel used is an AMOLED from the LTPS category.

Unlike the LTPO display in the Pro model, the refresh rate switches in fixed steps between 120 and 60 Hz, instead of decreasing smoothly down to 1 Hz. Scrolling is still buttery smooth, and when playing videos, it cleanly switches down to 60 Hz to save power.

The overall presentation is well-balanced. Content appears clear, text is pleasantly crisp, and colors can be easily adjusted to personal taste via the system settings. HDR10+ and Dolby Vision are supported, resulting in noticeably better contrast for streaming content.

The panel's strength is particularly noticeable in its brightness. Xiaomi specifies a peak brightness of up to 3200 cd/m² (HDR peaks), but in real-world measurements, the device achieves around 1500–1600 cd/m² in automatic mode under sunlight. This means it remains easily readable even in direct sunlight. Outdoor navigation and reading messages are possible without having to shade the screen with your hand.

At low brightness levels, the display operates with a PWM dimming frequency of 3840 Hz. This reduces perceptible flicker, especially at lower brightness levels, and is easier on sensitive eyes when reading or scrolling in dark environments. While DC dimming is not used here (unlike some LTPO panels), the high PWM value largely compensates for this.

Xiaomi uses Corning Gorilla Glass 7i as screen protection, which has proven to be resistant to scratches and friction in several weeks of everyday use.

Xiaomi 15T: Performance

The Xiaomi 15T is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 8400 Ultra, manufactured using a 4nm process (TSMC). The CPU utilizes a 1+3+4 cluster with four performance-oriented Cortex-A725 cores and four efficiency cores for background tasks.

Combined with 12 GB of LPDDR5X RAM (high data rates, low latency) and either 256 GB or 512 GB of UFS 4.1 storage (high sequential and random read speeds), this results in very responsive system behavior in practice. Apps launch without delay, animations run smoothly, and more complex apps like Lightroom, CapCut, or Maps with live navigation benefit from the high memory bandwidth.

Under load, the device maintains a relatively constant performance. Xiaomi has incorporated an IceLoop cooling system that distributes heat from the SoC across multiple layers. While the back panel does get noticeably warm during use, it doesn't overheat, so clock speeds are only moderately reduced. Graphically demanding games like Genshin Impact or Wuthering Waves run stably, but they only achieve their best frame rates with medium or customized graphics profiles.

Xiaomi 15T: Connectivity

The Xiaomi 15T also leaves little to be desired in terms of connectivity. It features 5G, an eSIM as a second SIM option, fast Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 6.0, and NFC for payments. GPS location tracking with L1 and L5, as well as Galileo, was consistently accurate in our tests. BDS, GLONASS, and NaviC are also supported.

The USB-C port proved to be a bottleneck. It only operates at the outdated USB 2.0 speed, which noticeably slows down the copying of larger files. Output to external monitors is also not supported, which is a problem if you plan to use your smartphone for presentations or as a mobile desktop.

The speakers use a hybrid stereo setup, where the earpiece works in conjunction with the main speaker at the bottom. The sound is balanced, gets sufficiently loud, and remains clear in the highs. The bass is adequate, though not particularly deep. Voices occasionally sound a bit thin, for example in podcasts or dialogue scenes.

During phone calls, the 15T proved to be unobtrusive in the best sense of the word. Voices sounded natural and easily understandable. In noisy environments, the noise cancellation worked reliably. The caller's voice was transmitted clearly to the other party, without any noticeable compression or metallic sound. VoLTE and VoWiFi worked without any special setup, provided the network operator supported them.

Xiaomi has cut corners on the sensor technology in one area that can be noticeable in everyday use. Instead of a traditional hardware proximity sensor, a software-based solution is used. Normally, turning off the display when held to the ear works reliably. However, in rare cases, such as when the device is held at an unusual angle, there is a slight delay in its reaction.

The fingerprint sensor is located under the display and uses optical technology. Recognition is fast and accurate as long as the finger is dry. With slightly damp or cold fingers, the system sometimes requires a second attempt. The sensor is positioned easily accessible, neither too high nor too close to the edge. Alternatively, fast and reliable facial recognition via the front camera is available, although without additional hardware security.

Xiaomi 15T: Operating system

 HyperOS 2, based on Android 15, is a noticeable improvement over the old MIUI days. It runs smoothly, stably, and has a clean look. Google features like Circle to Search are seamlessly integrated. Xiaomi also includes its own AI functions. The notes app summarizes texts, the gallery can remove objects, and the recorder creates transcripts with speaker recognition.

An exciting feature is "Astral Communication." This allows offline messaging from mobile phone to mobile phone over a distance of 1,3 km. Currently, however, this only works between two 15T devices.

Why Xiaomi torpedoes this otherwise good software experience with a mountain of bloatware remains a mystery. After setup, you're immediately occupied deleting pre-installed games, shopping apps, and annoying folder recommendations. This really shouldn't be necessary in 2025.

Xiaomi's update promise, however, is very promising, according to which there will be four major Android versions and six years of security updates (until September 24, 2031). 

Xiaomi 15T: Camera

The biggest differences between the Xiaomi 15T and the 15T Pro are in the camera. Only the main camera performs exceptionally well, while the rest seem more like filler.

main camera

The 50 MP main camera is based on an Omnivision OV50, 1/1.55 ​​inch sensor with optical image stabilization (OIS). In daylight, the sensor, also known as the "Light Hunter 800", delivers consistently good to very good results. Details such as grass or leaves are rendered cleanly without appearing oversharpened.

For color calibration, the two Leica color profiles "Vibrant" and "Authentic" are available. "Vibrant" delivers vibrant, but not unnatural, colors. "Authentic" is higher contrast, slightly darker, and depicts reality more faithfully. In testing, it was noticed that some images in Vibrant mode had a slightly "hazy" look, meaning they lacked some contrast. Additionally, bright clouds in the sky occasionally appeared overexposed.

Thanks to OIS and a very effective automatic night mode, the camera is perfectly usable even at dusk and at night. Light sources are well controlled without overexposure, and details and shadow definition are preserved even in dark areas. The portrait mode also works reliably, cleanly separating subjects from the background and producing pleasing skin tones.

Telephoto lens

The first compromises begin with the telephoto lens. Xiaomi uses a 50 MP telephoto lens (Samsung JN5) with 2x optical zoom (46mm focal length). In perfect sunlight, the images are surprisingly good. They are clean, detailed, and offer excellent contrast, making them almost better suited for portraits than the main camera.

The "but" is a crucial one. Xiaomi has omitted optical image stabilization (OIS). This becomes a major problem as soon as you're indoors or the light fades outdoors. The camera has to drastically increase the ISO to avoid blurry images. The result is images that are extremely noisy and where fine details blur into a muddy mess. Digital zoom beyond 2x, for example to 5x, only produces soft and blurry results.

Ultra wide angle

Significantly weaker, and the weakest link in the chain, is the 12 MP ultrawide lens (OmniVision OV13B, f/2.2). In daylight, the results are just about usable. The colors are acceptable, and the dynamic range is surprisingly good. However, there is a clear lack of detail compared to the main camera and noticeable blurring towards the edges.

The biggest drawback here isn't the pure image quality, but a missing component: the lens lacks autofocus. In plain terms, this means no macro photography. Anyone wanting to quickly photograph a flower, the fine print on a package, or an interesting texture is out of luck.

Front camera

The 32 MP front camera (presumably the same Samsung KD1 sensor as in its predecessor) is unfortunately nothing special. Xiaomi has again opted against autofocus, meaning that in some situations the correct distance isn't always captured. If you're too close or too far away, either you or the background will be blurry.

video function

Where the secondary cameras disappoint, the video function impresses. The main and telephoto cameras can record videos in 4K resolution at 60 frames per second (the ultrawide camera manages 4K at 30 fps). Recording is done in HEVC format by default.

The image quality is very good in good lighting conditions. The videos show many fine details, vibrant colors, and good contrast. The electronic gyro-EIS also performs well, ensuring smooth, shake-free recordings. Additionally, there are professional features such as 10-bit Log and HDR10+. The same applies to low light. The main and telephoto cameras remain good, but the ultrawide camera visibly struggles with the lack of light.

Xiaomi 15T: Battery

The Xiaomi 15T's battery is one of its greatest strengths. Inside, a 5.500 mAh cell easily provides one to two days of runtime with typical use, including messaging, social apps, camera, navigation, and music streaming. Even on more intensive days, such as several hours of Google Maps and outdoor photography, there was usually still a little battery left in the evening for the next day.

Charging is done via cable at up to 67 watts. In half an hour, the battery goes from almost empty to around 70 percent. A full charge takes about an hour. Short charging breaks are usually enough to make the device usable for several more hours. Unlike the Xiaomi 15T Pro, it lacks wireless charging.