Xiaomi has launched the Xiaomi 18 Pro and Xiaomi 18 Pro Max in China, introducing a flagship smartphone pair built around dual 200-megapixel Leica cameras, unusually large batteries and a second display on the back of each phone.
The company has also confirmed that the 18 Pro series will go global later this year. The announcement gives Xiaomi a wider stage for its most ambitious camera-led phone yet, at a time when premium smartphone makers are competing with larger sensors, longer zoom ranges, professional video tools and increasingly powerful artificial intelligence features.
The two phones share the same Leica-branded triple-camera system. It combines a 200MP main camera using Xiaomi’s 1/1.28-inch Light Fusion 960L sensor with a 50MP ultra-wide camera and a 200MP periscope telephoto camera. The main sensor has an f/1.67 aperture, optical image stabilisation and LOFIC technology, which is designed to preserve more detail in scenes containing both bright highlights and deep shadows.
The periscope camera has a 75mm equivalent focal length, 3.2x optical zoom and up to 12.8x lossless zoom. It also uses a floating-focus design that allows the lens to focus from as close as 12cm, giving the phones a macro mode as well as greater reach for portraits and distant subjects. Xiaomi says the Pro Max telephoto captures 83 per cent more light than the previous generation, a change intended to improve long-range and low-light photography.
The ultra-wide camera uses a 50MP sensor with a 102-degree field of view. Both devices have 50MP front cameras, but the rear screen gives owners another way to take selfies. The small display can act as a viewfinder, allowing users to frame themselves with the higher-resolution rear cameras instead of relying on the front-facing sensor.
Xiaomi has paired the camera hardware with a new imaging system called Legendary Moment. The company says the system uses large-scale training to create more natural depth and an optical-style background blur. It also offers three dedicated camera styles, combining processing on the phone with cloud-based processing to shape the final image.
The camera system arrives after Xiaomi and Leica expanded their relationship. In late 2025, the companies announced a new strategic co-creation model, moving beyond a conventional branding and optics arrangement towards deeper cooperation from the beginning of product development. The Xiaomi 17 Ultra was the first phone created under that model, with Leica involvement in optical design, image rendering and the wider photography experience.
The 18 Pro series takes that partnership into a more aggressive resolution battle. Earlier in September, Apple introduced the iPhone 18 Pro Max with three 48MP rear cameras, while vivo’s X500 Pro Max arrived with a 200MP ZEISS telephoto camera, 4K video recording at 240 frames per second and an optional 400mm-equivalent extender. OPPO then launched the Find X10 Pro Max with three separate 200MP rear cameras and an optional Hasselblad teleconverter capable of extending its zoom to 200x digital magnification.
Xiaomi’s answer is not the largest number of sensors, but a combination of two 200MP cameras, Leica optics, a high-resolution ultra-wide camera and software designed to make the output look more like it came from a dedicated camera. The contest is increasingly moving beyond megapixel counts. Manufacturers are also competing over dynamic range, stabilisation, colour, low-light performance and the tools available after a photograph or video has been captured.
The Xiaomi 18 Pro has a 6.4-inch flat OLED display, while the Pro Max has a 6.9-inch panel. Both support an adaptive refresh rate from 1Hz to 120Hz and reach a claimed peak brightness of 4,000 nits. Xiaomi says the screens use Super Pixel 2.0 and M11 OLED technology, with bezels as narrow as 0.99mm. Hardware-based privacy protection can limit side viewing and automatically protect sensitive apps and content.
A second OLED display sits on the rear of each phone beneath a transparent glass panel. It supports a refresh rate of up to 120Hz and can show notifications, controls, mini-games and more than 100 app cards at launch. Xiaomi has also introduced AI-generated cards for the rear screen, expanding it from a decorative panel into a small control surface for everyday tasks.
The rear display is joined by a customisable AI button. Users can assign the button to features such as privacy controls, voice notes, mute mode or Xiaomi’s XiaoAI assistant. The phones run HyperOS 4 with the Alive Design interface and Super XiaoAI 2.0. The assistant is designed to remember information, handle more complex requests, control smart-home devices and support functions across Xiaomi phones, tablets, Windows computers and Macs.
Performance is divided between the two models. The 18 Pro uses Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6, while the Pro Max uses the faster Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6. Both chips use Qualcomm’s fourth-generation Oryon CPU architecture. The standard version can reach a clock speed of up to 5GHz, according to the specifications released for the series.
The phones come with up to 16GB of LPDDR5X memory and 1TB of UFS 4.1 storage. Xiaomi has fitted a circular cold-pump cooling system to manage heat during gaming, photography and other demanding tasks. The cooling area measures 4,355 square millimetres in the 18 Pro and 5,513 square millimetres in the Pro Max.
Battery capacity is another major difference between the new models and many established flagship phones. The 18 Pro has a 7,000mAh silicon-carbon battery, while the Pro Max carries an 8,500mAh unit. Both support 100W wired charging, 50W wireless charging and 27W wired reverse charging. Xiaomi says the batteries can retain at least 80 per cent of their original capacity after 2,000 charging cycles.
The devices also support 5G-Advanced, ultra-wideband, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC and global roaming. Ultra-wideband can be used with compatible digital car keys. Both phones have ultrasonic fingerprint readers, upgraded vibration motors and IP66, IP68 and IP69 protection against dust and water. The 18 Pro has stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos, while the larger model adds a three-speaker system.
In China, the Xiaomi 18 Pro starts at 5,999 yuan, or about £650 at a simple currency conversion, for the 12GB RAM and 256GB storage version. Prices rise to 8,999 yuan for the 16GB and 1TB model. The 18 Pro Max starts at 6,999 yuan for the same 12GB and 256GB configuration and reaches 9,999 yuan for 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage.
The phones are available in black, white, Ice Peach Pink and Galaxy Blue. Xiaomi is also offering transparent editions, including a 16GB and 1TB version of the Pro Max priced at 10,999 yuan. Sales began in China after the launch, while international pricing and exact release dates have not yet been announced.
The global launch will put Xiaomi’s new devices directly against a growing line-up of camera-focused premium phones. The company’s older Pro variants were kept largely within China, making the decision to take the 18 Pro series overseas a notable expansion. For buyers outside China, the main questions will be whether both models will be sold in every market, whether their battery capacities will remain the same and how Xiaomi will price them against Apple, Samsung, vivo and OPPO.
For now, the 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max represent Xiaomi’s clearest attempt to turn the smartphone camera into the centre of a flagship product. Their defining promise is a pair of Leica 200MP cameras, but the phones also bring larger batteries, rear-screen controls, privacy features and new AI tools to a premium market that has become increasingly crowded and technically ambitious.