I Bought A Leica (Phone)

$2,394. That's how much it cost me to eBay the latest Leitzphone (plus its optional photography kit). If you know Leica, you know that’s the price to pay for the privilege of bearing one of the most coveted camera brands in history ... and I’ve spent two weeks trying to condense my thoughts about this latest "Leica Phone" into something coherent. From one viewpoint, it’s an impostor: a cynical money grab that wasn’t even built by Leica, can’t live up to the quality and won’t hold the value of a real camera. But while I understand that reflexive cynicism, I don’t share it. Because in my view, the Xiaomi 17 Ultra by Leica is everything a special-edition smartphone should be: it’s respectful to the heritage of the brand it’s building upon; it brings features (and photos) no other phone can produce; and it’s based on a flagship foundation with very few compromises. I’m MrMobile and I love this thing; lemme tell ya why. [ABOUT MRMOBILE'S XIAOMI 17 ULTRA / LEICA LEITZPHONE REVIEW] This video was produced following over two weeks with a Leica Leitzphone by Xiaomi (aka Xiaomi 17 Ultra by Leica) purchased by MrMobile. The device was tested on T-Mobile and Google Fi in New York City and San Francisco. MrMobile does not offer manufacturers the opportunity to preview, edit or approve content before publication. Neither Xiaomi, nor Leica, nor any other manufacturer provided compensation or editorial input in exchange for this coverage. [LINKS] Xiaomi 17 Ultra Review: A Camera That Happens to Also be a Phone [PetaPixel]: https://petapixel.com/2026/02/28/xiaomi-17-ultra-review-a-camera-that-happens-to-also-be-a-phone/ Leica vs "Leica" – Xiaomi 17 Ultra [Tyler Stalman]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzf23zw6GRE [CHAPTERS] 00:00 Should a "Leica phone" exist? 1:11 Hardware heritage done right 03:04 The accessory you shouldn't skip 05:23 Camera testing (NYC/SF) 09:41 Software ups and downs 13:09 I like-a this Leica 14:31 Outro & Disclosures [SOCIALIZE] https://instagram.com/themrmobile https://threads.net/captain2phones https://twitter.com/captain2phones https://mrmobile.tech [DISCLOSURES] Additional information concerning MrMobile’s ethics policy can be found here: https://mrmobile.tech/ethics #leica #xiaomi #xiaomi17ultra #leitzphone #leicaphone #xiaomi17 #camera #mobilephotography #phonephotography #smartphones #android #tech #google