The Leica Leitzphone is back – and this time it’s going global

While many people might be familiar with Leica co-branding phones released by Xiaomi, far fewer might be aware of its own-branded Leitzphone series of phones. Leica launched the series in 2021, though, as Japanese exclusives co-developed with Sharp, the western world is yet to experience the luxury German camera maker's take on the smartphone – until now.

Leica has unveiled its brand new Leitzphone – and this time it’s going global. To give it its full, not-so-catchy title, the ‘Leica Leitzphone powered by Xiaomi’ is the brand’s first internationally available Leitzphone, and combines Xiaomi’s latest flagship hardware with Leica’s design language.

Inevitably, comparisons must be drawn with the ‘Xiaomi 17 Ultra by Leica’, which launched in China earlier this year. The two devices share the same core hardware, including a processor, battery, and screen, as well as camera hardware with the same 1-inch main sensor and 200MP mechanical periscope telephoto co-developed between Leica and Xiaomi.

The main differentiator is design. The ‘Xiaomi 17 Ultra by Leica’ is a Xiaomi flagship with cameras co-engineered with Leica, while the Leitzphone is presented as a Leica-designed product powered by Xiaomi’s hardware. Are you keeping up? The Leica Leitzphone has a distinctly separate, more overtly Leica-centric physical design, moving away from the two-tone back of the Xiaomi and opting for a look more closely matching the classic black Leica’s classic cameras.

The rear panel is finished in black fibreglass, paired with a knurled metal frame and Leica’s iconic red dot. Leica describes the design as following its principle of “reduction to the essential”.

Camera specs

One of the most distinctive features is the new rotatable camera ring. This physical ring allows continuous adjustment of zoom, ISO, shutter speed, or exposure compensation, as well as switching between Leica Looks.

Behind the lens ring, the triple camera system remains the same as that found in the Xiaomi 17 Ultra. The main camera pairs a 50MP 1-inch Light Fusion 1050L sensor with an f/1.67 aperture and 3.2μm 4-in-1 Super Pixels. It also incorporates LOFIC (Lateral Overflow Integration Capacitor) technology to expand dynamic range by storing greater charge directly at the pixel level, which, simplified, means each Pixel can hold more light for clearer nighttime photography and high-contrast scenes.

Alongside it sits a 200MP periscope telephoto camera using a large 1/1.4-inch sensor, offering a 75–100mm equivalent optical zoom range with optical image stabilisation. Like the Xiaomi 7 Ultra, the zoom is mechanical and physically moves between 75–100mm, so you get genuine optical quality throughout.

Completing the trio is a 50MP 14mm ultra-wide camera with a 115° field of view.

Compared to earlier Leitzphone models, which were largely devices built around a single large sensor as their headline feature, this iteration feels far more in line with modern flagship expectations.

Design & UI

Leica has also redesigned the camera UI, including a new dedicated Leica Essential Mode. The camera app features thirteen Leica Looks and five Leica bokeh simulations from classic Leica lenses, alongside familiar touches such as Leica shutter sounds. There are even digital reinterpretations of classic Leica cameras, including an M9-inspired colour profile and a monochrome profile inspired by Leica Monopan film.

In a move that reflects the growing use of AI in image manipulation, the Leitzphone also supports the Content Authenticity Initiative. As introduced with the Leica M11-P, the Leitzphone embeds cryptographically secured metadata into original images via a dedicated security chip in line with C2PA standards.

Power

Under the hood, this is every bit a 2026 flagship. It runs on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 platform built on a 3nm process, paired with 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage.

The 6.9-inch HyperRGB OLED display offers a 2608 x 1200 resolution, a 1–120Hz LTPO refresh rate, and up to 3,500 nits peak brightness, while a 6,000mAh battery supports 90W wired and 50W wireless charging.

Video capabilities stretch to 8K at 30p and 4K Dolby Vision at up to 120p, with full log recording.

Price & Availability

The Leitzphone is available from today at Leica stores, and will be sold in a single 16GB+1TB model, costing £1,700 / €1,999.

It's not a cheap phone, but an equivalent 1TB iPhone costs £1,599 here in the UK, and for only a small premium, you are getting a superior camera system from an iconic camera brand.

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