Our Verdict
The Xiaomi 15 is a truly impressive Android flagship phone, with a better display than the iPhone 16 and faster charging than the Samsung Galaxy S25. If you’re looking for something that offers elite performance in a compact form factor, and don't mind your device getting a little warm, I can’t recommend this option enough.
- Dazzling performance
- Top-tier display
- Best-in-class battery life
- Refined operating system
- Gets warm quickly
- Hard to get in the US
Once again, it’s Android flagship season, and the latest on the scene is the Xiaomi 15. While Xiaomi might not be as recognizable as Samsung or Google Pixel in the US, I’ve been consistently impressed with the brand’s flagship phones, offering top-tier performance, impressive cameras, and unmatched battery life year after year. I’m happy to report that it’s more of the same in 2025.
The Xiaomi 15’s sleek and compact design almost hides the fact that this latest offering is a gaming beast, thanks in part to its Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset. Sure, Xiaomi puts a lot of emphasis on the phone’s fantastic cameras, but with the level of performance and the vivid OLED display, the Xiaomi 15 could easily compete for a place on our guide to the best gaming phones. Still, that’s just part of what makes this Android so impressive, so let’s get into the details.
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Price and availability
At the time of writing, we still don’t have the exact pricing details for the Xiaomi 15, but we’ll be sure to update this after the big launch. Unfortunately, we’re still not expecting widespread availability in the US, but the device is available in Europe, and if you’re reading this from the US, the option to import is always there.
When picking up the Xiaomi 15, you can choose between the 12GB+256GB version or the souped-up 16GB+512GB model, which is what we’ve got for testing. In terms of colorways, there are four on offer, including Black, White, Green, and Liquid Silver.
Specs
Here are the Xiaomi 15’s specs:
Performance and gaming
The Xiaomi 15 utilizes the same Snapdragon 8 Elite chip as the Samsung Galaxy S25 and the Honor Magic 7 Pro, and given how impressed I was with the performance of those Android rivals, I expected more of that with the latest Xiaomi flagship. Unsurprisingly, that’s exactly what I got, with the device taking everything from scrolling social media to running demanding games in its stride.
As I almost always do when testing new phones, especially top-end devices like the Xiaomi 15, I booted up Honkai Star Rail, pushed the settings as high as they’d go, and got to grinding in-game resources to see how it all performed. Remarkably, that’s how. I didn’t experience any noticeable frame rate dips, with the game consistently running at 60fps, and all the in-game animations were nice and smooth thanks to that 120Hz refresh rate.
While the Snapdragon 8 Elite chip is the main reason the Xiaomi 15 offers next-level performance, the fact that the version I’m using has 16GB of RAM – twice that of the iPhone 16 – also helps out, making for almost non-existent load times. That isn’t to mention the 512GB of storage, which is more than enough space to download all the titles from our guide to the best Android games, with plenty of room left over for pictures and apps.
We’ll get onto general battery life later, but the 15 is mighty efficient when it comes to gaming, losing only around 8% for every hour you spend playing Genshin Impact or PUBG Mobile. If maths isn’t your forte, that equates to around eight hours of gaming before you have to go into power-saving mode at 20%, which is the best part of a long-haul flight. Even at this higher price point, you’re not going to find many devices that match that efficiency, so you can mark that as another win for the new Xiaomi phone.
The only slight caveat to the Xiaomi 15’s superb performance is that it can get a little warm quite quickly when you’re gaming. It never gets so hot that you have to put the phone down and stop playing, but it does get slightly toasty, and it’s noticeable even when you’ve equipped the phone with the case that comes in the box. You can pick up some cooling tech to mitigate the warmth, but in a year where Samsung has gone all in on expanding its flagship’s vapor chamber, and the latest iPhone has no notable heating issues, it’s a bit of a shame that the Xiaomi 15 can’t quite keep its cool as well as I’d like.
Features and software
The Xiaomi 15’s HyperOS 2 operating system is the brand’s most streamlined software to date, offering a smooth experience that feels easier to use than anything we’ve seen from Xiaomi so far. It still might take a bit of getting used to if you’re coming from Apple’s iOS or Samsung’s One UI, but once you adjust, it’s nowhere near as tedious as Xiaomi’s retired MIUI with its occasional bugs and mistranslations.
As is fast becoming the norm in 2025, the Xiaomi 15 launches with a suite of AI features. You’ve got everything from live translation to an image eraser à la Google’s Magic Eraser with plenty in-between. They’re all fine enough, though, AI Image Expansion occasionally spits out something a little terrifying, but I don’t find a reason to use them all that much. I’m not sure whether that says more about my paranoia of AI coming for my job or the approachability of the features, but if you’re an AI fan, there’s plenty to check out.
It’s not just Xiaomi’s own AI tools you can find on the latest flagship, though. You’ve also got both Google Gemini and Circle to Search. I’ll admit, even as an AI skeptic, I find both of these tools are pretty useful, and more importantly, they’re not invasive, so if you’re not a fan, you don’t have to deal with them getting in the way.
Usually with Xiaomi phones, this is the bit where I’d complain about bloatware, but it’s not quite as prevalent with this year’s model. Yes, Booking.com is still there, but there’s not a bunch of sub-par games and unwanted apps to delete in the same way I experienced when writing my Xiaomi 14T Pro review.
In terms of software updates, Xiaomi is in the middle of the pack when it comes to how many years of support you get. The four years on offer isn’t quite as extensive as Samsung’s eight or Google Pixel’s seven, but it’s better than RedMagic and HMD’s three years. Admittedly, if you’re picking up a flagship phone, you likely won’t use it for more than a couple of years anyway, so four years seems fair.
Design
I’ll be honest, the design of the Xiaomi 15 isn’t going to blow minds. It’s very similar to the Xiaomi 14, and the 13 before it, while also bearing a resemblance to the iPhone 16, Google Pixel 9, and OnePlus 13 (though its camera setup isn’t nearly as ugly as the latter’s). It’s a candy bar cell phone, and it looks like one, with rounder corners and a flat screen, but no magic extra button equivalent to the iPhone 16’s Camera Control or the RedMagic 10 Pro’s Game Mode slider.
I might sound a little critical there, but honestly, I loved the design of the Xiaomi 14, so I’m just as happy with this year’s model. The frosted effect on the back of the phone is a little slippery, but I always keep mine in a case, so it’s not a big deal. The device is also IP68 rated, the golden standard for dust and waterproofing, so if, like me, you use your phone to listen to podcasts in the shower, you don’t have to worry about coming out to a damaged device.
Display
The Xiaomi 15’s 6.36-inch display is almost identical to last year’s flagship, but honestly, that’s not bad news. The bezels are a little slimmer, giving you 0.7% more screen-to-body retail estate, and it offers 3,200 nits of peak brightness compared to 3,000, but outside of that, it feels very much like more of the same goodness we celebrated in our Xiaomi 14 review this time last year.
Whether you’re opening new packs in Pokémon TCG Pocket or watching new episodes of Severance on Apple TV – which is fortunately now available on Android – everything looks great. Thanks to that high peak brightness level, you also don’t have to worry about seeing the screen in direct sunlight, as you can just pump the slider and keep on gaming. Just don’t do what I did and forget to turn the slider down when you go back inside, as it can get ridiculously bright. I’ve only just got the visual of a Marvel Snap game out of my retinas.
Xiaomi 15’s cameras
The last few Xiaomi flagships have had fantastic cameras co-engineered with the world-famous photography brand Leica, and the same goes for the brand’s latest flagship. The camera bump on the back of the phone consists of a 50MP main lens, a 50MP telephoto, and a 50MP ultrawide, and all three get the job done. As always, to test out the main camera, I’ve used my dog, Floyd, as a model, and the results are as good as I’ve seen from a flagship phone.
The images I captured are remarkably sharp, and the colors are all lovely and lifelike, which is especially noticeable in the hazel tint of Floyd’s eyes. The telephoto’s bokeh effect goes a little hard in portrait mode, but the subject’s clarity and level of detail are top-notch, even in less-than-ideal lighting scenarios. There’s also a nice level of contrast, with the Xiaomi 15 managing to find the middle ground without losing any visual impact. It’s worth noting, though, that I always use the Leica Authentic mode, as the other option, Leica Vibrant, makes almost everything seem oversaturated to me, but in all honesty, I’m not the most avid photographer, so you should test both out to see which you prefer.
The thing that impresses me most about the Xiaomi 15’s main camera is the zoom quality. I took the picture of the meerkat statues below from at least 10 feet away, but the definition is staggering and, if I’m being honest, a real reminder that I need to give them a hose down. That aside, the quality of images you get from 5x zoom is higher than any phone I’ve used, and whether you frequent museums or sports stadiums where you often can’t get close enough to the action for a decent shot, the Xiaomi 15 can change all that, capturing the moment in all its glory.
The 32MP selfie camera on the front of the phone is also pretty decent, though I’ve found that no matter how much I tone down the beautify effect, my complexion is still a little overprocessed, resulting in a sort of oily skin tone that doesn’t reflect what I see in the mirror. Don’t get me wrong, the quality of the image is great, and you can make out individual hairs on my horrendous mustache, but the processing just goes a little hard for my liking.
Battery
If there’s one area in which the Xiaomi 15 blows away the big-name competition – particularly the iPhone 16 and Samsung Galaxy S25 – it’s the battery life and charging speeds. The phone’s 5,240 mAh battery just runs and runs, even after a long day of gaming and streaming video content, you’ve always got enough battery to get you through a bit of nighttime social media scrolling before it’s time to charge.
While the battery life is impressive enough, the wow factor really kicks in when it’s time to juice the device. With 90W charging speeds, you can get from flat to full battery in around 40 minutes, matching the similarly staggering Honor Magic 7 Pro. That equates to a 50% charge in just 20 minutes, which, considering the device’s super-efficient battery, should be more than enough to keep you going until the end of the day.
Should you buy the Xiaomi 15?
Yet again, Xiaomi has delivered a flagship that offers top-tier performance, brilliant cameras, a gorgeous display, and lightning-fast charging. It’s the complete package. The AI features might not be quite as extensive as you get with the latest premium Samsung and Apple cell phones, but honestly, I don’t really care for image generation and custom emojis all that much, I’d much rather have a specced out phone that runs any game you throw at it with ease.
The only real drawback to the Xiaomi 15 is that it’s not widely available in the US, and you might have to pay over the odds to import it. It’s also worth reiterating that it gets warm a bit quicker than I’d like when gaming, but never too hot, so I’m not expecting the sort of backlash we got a couple of years ago when the iPhone 15 was burning up in users’ hands. That aside, though, this is an Android flagship with the chops to take on its big-name competitors, and I can’t recommend it enough.
Alternatives
If we haven’t sold you with our Xiaomi 15 review, check out our suggestions for alternatives below.
Samsung Galaxy S25
Honestly, there’s not all that much to separate the Xiaomi 15 and the Samsung Galaxy S25 as they’re two of the best Android phones of 2025 so far. While the Xiaomi might have a better battery life and faster charging speeds, the Samsung is slightly more user-friendly when it comes to the operating system and its AI features. It all depends on which you feel is more important to you. If you want more information, check out our full Samsung Galaxy S25 review.
iPhone 16
If you’re willing to make the leap from Android to iOS, the iPhone 16 is a great option. While its display and battery life aren’t quite as impressive as the Xiaomi 15’s, there’s no denying that Apple’s operating system is the most user-friendly, and the latest iPhone has a few more AI tricks up its sleeve. For the full lowdown, see our iPhone 16 review.