- The Xiaomi 17 Ultra Leica Edition will be called the ‘Leica Leitzphone powered by Xiaomi’ outside China
- This phone has a mechanical zoom ring for the camera
- It’s launching on February 28
Late last year Xiaomi unveiled one of the most interesting phones we’ve seen in a while, and no, we’re not talking about the second screen-packing Xiaomi 17 Pro and Xiaomi 17 Pro Max. Rather, we’re referring to the Xiaomi 17 Ultra Leica Edition, which only has one screen but includes a mechanical zoom ring for the camera, which can also be used to adjust the focus or exposure.
That launch was just for China, but the phone is about to go global, and Xiaomi has just confirmed that it will do so under a new name.
Posting on its Spanish X account (via Phandroid), the company has revealed that the Xiaomi 17 Ultra Leica Edition will be sold outside China as the Leica Leitzphone powered by Xiaomi, and added — according to the AI translation — that this phone “takes mobile photography one step further.”
Inspirado en el siglo de luz y sombra de Leica y forjado tras cuatro años de colaboración, el Leica Leitzphone impulsado por Xiaomi lleva la fotografía móvil un paso más allá.Conéctate al Lanzamiento Xiaomi para presenciar el nacimiento de una nueva leyenda.28 de febrero ·… pic.twitter.com/Ok3ppbUzLeFebruary 26, 2026
A tweaked design but the camera ring’s intact
Based on leaked images shared by @Frankforphones it seems that this change in name will be accompanied by some tweaks to the design, with this version seemingly ditching the two-tone rear of the Chinese version, and rotating the Leica logo 90 degrees.
But the mechanical zoom ring — which is its most interesting feature — seems to still be present, and we’d expect the specs will be similar too.
For reference then, the Chinese model has a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset, up to 16GB of RAM, up to 1TB of storage, a 6.9-inch 120Hz screen, a 6,800mAh battery with 90W charging, a 50MP wide camera, a 50MP ultra-wide, and a 200MP periscope camera which you can control with that zoom ring.
We’ll find out if there are any spec differences for the global model soon, as Xiaomi is unveiling it tomorrow (February 28) at MWC 2026 in Barcelona.
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