Samsung Should Be Worried: Xiaomi’s Leica Leitzphone Is the Camera Phone That Puts Photography First

In the last week, both Samsung and Xiaomi have taken the wraps off their latest superphones, but only one of them has properly impressed me. I’ve spent weeks testing the Leica Leitzphone by Xiaomi ahead of its launch at MWC 2026 and I concluded that it’s the best camera phone I’ve ever used. I even gave it a CNET Editors’ Choice award because it has been so damn impressive—and I think Samsung should be worried.

Samsung’s Galaxy S26 Ultra is a jack-of-all-trades phone, packing a supercharged processor, a funky privacy screen and that all-important S Pen stylus. But its cameras only saw small improvements, with a slightly larger aperture on the main and telephoto cameras being the most notable upgrades. Beyond that, it really comes down to Samsung’s various software AI tricks, like the ability to change the style of hat you’re wearing in a photo.

This has become a trend for Samsung, with the last few Ultra phones only slightly iterating on previous camera setups, adding a few extra megapixels here and there but largely leaning into software updates to make up for a lack of hardware innovation. While Samsung’s top-tier phones have been among the best camera phones around, Xiaomi and Leica’s Leitzphone has shown what true photography innovation looks like.

The Leitzphone’s Revolutionary Camera Technology

This camera beast packs a number of firsts. We’ll start with the LOFIC image sensor, which stands for Lateral Overflow Integration Capacitor and is basically a new type of sensor technology that improves dynamic range in a single image. It’s capable of taking gorgeous images in all conditions, including at night. Samsung was rumored to be considering LOFIC sensors for its phones (as is Apple) but evidently opted not to go down this route just yet.

The Leitzphone is also among the first phones ever to use real moving lens elements in its telephoto zoom, allowing true lossless zooming rather than jumping only between specific zoom levels. It works well and a similar setup has been rumored to appear on the last few generations of Ultra, but it’s never actually happened.

Then there’s the physical control ring around the Leitzphone’s camera, the stunning Leica colour profiles built right into the camera experience and the pristine quality of the Leica Summilux optics used in the lenses.

By partnering with such a photography icon, Xiaomi has truly innovated its photography, delivering multiple firsts that genuinely improve the image-taking experience. As both a professional photographer and a genuine enthusiast myself, I’ve been blown away by the photos I’ve been able to shoot with the phone.

Samsung’s Missed Opportunity

Samsung’s Galaxy S26 Ultra’s cameras haven’t seen much of an upgrade this year. The S Pen, privacy screen, and AI gimmicks can’t compensate for the lack of meaningful camera hardware improvements. Samsung seems content to let software tricks paper over the cracks of aging camera hardware.

As such Samsung risks losing out on the huge number of photographers and content creators (both professional and amateur alike) who are instead going to be looking at rivals like Xiaomi for products that can live up to their imaging demands.

The Leitzphone is arguably more camera than it is phone. It represents a bold statement that photography matters and deserves dedicated hardware innovation. Samsung’s approach suggests photography is just another checkbox feature to be ticked off with software updates.

The Bottom Line

Samsung should be worried. The Leica Leitzphone by Xiaomi isn’t just another good camera phone—it’s a wake-up call that true photography innovation requires more than just throwing AI at the problem. It requires genuine hardware breakthroughs, legendary optics partnerships, and a commitment to the craft of photography that goes beyond what can be achieved in software alone.

If Samsung doesn’t respond with meaningful camera innovation in its next flagship, it risks becoming irrelevant to the very photographers and creators who once championed its devices as the ultimate camera phones.

Tags: Xiaomi Leica Leitzphone, Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra, best camera phone 2026, LOFIC sensor technology, moving lens elements, Leica Summilux optics, photography innovation, mobile photography, MWC 2026, camera phone comparison, smartphone camera technology, Xiaomi vs Samsung, photography first, content creator smartphone, hardware vs software photography

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