Xiaomi 13T Pro

Xiaomi's latest model is the most affordable Leica-branded phone on the market. But can it live up to the name? Joshua Waller reviews it

- Joshua Waller

Xiaomi continues to make an impression in the smartphone market, in part thanks to a partnership with Leica. Last year, the Xiaomi 13, 13 Pro, and 13 Ultra were the flagship models in the range. Now we’ve got the Xiaomi 13T Pro, a more affordable option, with a triple-camera system and, of course, Leica branding. Could this be the cheapest Leica camera available, and how does it compare to other phones on the market?

Features

Let’s start with the Leica-branded cameras. The main camera has a wideangle lens, with a 24mm equivalent focal length. This 50MP camera uses a large sensor (for a smartphone) of the 1/1.28in type. There’s PDAF (phase-detection auto-focus), and optical image stabilisation (OIS) to help with low-light shooting. You can shoot at the full resolution of 50MP but to use all of the different shooting modes, the camera will (by default) use pixel-binning, and give you 12.5MP images.

The ultra-wideangle camera has a 15mm equivalent focal length, and is the smallest of the three cameras on the back – it’s the one just under the LED flash! This features a 12MP sensor, an f/2.2 aperture, and is fixed focus, which means you won’t be able to use it for close-up macro shots.

The telephoto camera has a 50mm equivalent focal length, so offers roughly 2x zoom compared to the main camera. It’s also got a 50MP sensor, with an f/1.9 aperture, and whilst it has autofocus, it doesn’t feature optical image stabilisation (OIS).