Xiaomi 12S Ultra: Kicking it up a notch

Xiaomi has been playing the safe game in Bangladesh for a while now. Churning out generic yet market-tested devices is in its local DNA. We understand that and it does not mean it is a bad thing. In fact, quite the contrary- it has been able to secure the top seat in the market in the last quarter by following the safest playbook. But at its root, Xiaomi is an innovator and pusher of boundaries. 

The Xiaomi 12S Ultra, which we had the opportunity to fiddle with for a month or so, is a very good example of that. Unfortunately, despite having killer specs and top-notch hardware, we could only utilise its camera as it came with Chinese ROM. Even the keyboard was hard to use as it came with only generic Chinese keyboards. As the camera is the central aspect of the phone let's keep our focus locked on the camera for this review: 

Firstly, the main camera system is massive and top-heavy. The Leica-designed camera module is the mainstay here. Supplementing it is a Sony IMX989 processor for the 50 megapixels module. IMX989 is renowned for delivering top-notch photos that are crisp and full of colours. 

The main camera, as a whole as a unit, delivers outstanding photos. The vibrance and details are better than another top-tier Samsung smartphone we are reviewing right now. It performs splendidly well in a low-light environment. Due to the 1-inch sensor, we can get a hint of a bokehish effect in some of the images. 

The 5x periscopic optical zoom does an average job of bringing the far objects closer. The ultra-wide-angle camera also does not stand out, unfortunately. The images visibly lacked the colour contrast and sharpness that is a must in many high-end smartphones these days. 

Before wrapping up, a few things we noticed about the phone: the fingerprint processor is blazingly fast and the vegan leather fill on the back does not do a good job replacing ceramic backs that we have seen on the high-end smartphones of Xiaomi. The phone also comes with an extremely crisp display with a 10-bit colour gamut with a variable refresh rate of up to 120Hz. The brightness of the display is also as good as many other flagships you will encounter in the market.

Verdict: Xiaomi outdid itself. For that, we certainly recommend patting itself on the back. The phone's extraordinary camera can certainly put the top dogs of Samsung and Apple on a chase. Unfortunately, the Chinese ROM hindered us from trying out the rest of the functions of the phone. The phone's price is close to BDT 1 Lac on the grey market. Xiaomi is officially not selling it in Bangladesh so that's a bummer.