Xiaomi 13 Pro: a serious competitor for the Galaxy S23 Ultra

2023-05-04 14:51:27

With its 13 Pro, Xiaomi no longer hides its ambition to establish itself as Samsung’s main rival. Thanks to its partnership with Leica, the manufacturer is making a giant leap in the field of photography. Explanations.

Difficult to stand out today on the smartphone market. At the top of the range in any case, manufacturers are betting everything on the form-factor with flexible models and photography. Xiaomi’s 13 Pro is thus positioned as a serious competitor for Samsung’s Galaxy S23 Ultra. As we know, however, Xiaomi has always been a step behind its rivals in this area. His new partnership with the photo specialist Leica, however, seems to work in his favor.

Datasheet: Xiaomi 13 Pro

  • Screen
    6.73″
    1440×3200 pixels
    120Hz
    LTPO AMOLED

  • Processor
    Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
    8-core CPU
    8Go/12Go RAM

  • Battery
    4820mAh

  • Connectivity
    5G
    WiFi 6/6E
    Bluetooth 5.3
    NFC

  • Front camera
    32MP
    1080p 30fps stabilized video

  • Camera
    50.3 MP f1.9 main sensor
    50 MP f2.0 telephoto sensor
    50MP f2.2 ultra-wide-angle sensor
    8K 24FPS stabilized video
    4K 60FPS stabilized video

  • Storage
    128Go/256Go/512Go

  • Charge
    USB-C
    Charge rapide 120W
    50W fast wireless charging

  • Operating system
    Android 13

Sold €100 less than its rival, the Xiaomi 13 Pro generally displays a slightly more attractive technical sheet than that of the S23 Ultra. In general, the two devices flirt with each other in terms of specificities. We are faced with two screens among the best on the market, two of the most powerful devices too (with their Snapdragon 8 Gen 2), and two monsters in the field of photography (we come back to this). However, the 13 Pro stands out from the 23 Ultra in two points: its fast charging system (120W once morest 45W and 50W once morest 10W wireless), and its front sensor, which displays a much higher resolution with 32 megapixel shots once morest 12 at Samsung. The S23 Ultra has two advantages for it: its stylus and its higher storage capacity (256 GB by default – which is felt in terms of price since it is 100€ more expensive).

For the rest, the two devices offer almost an almost identical experience. Everyone will however have a noticeably different opinion depending on the overlay. That of Samsung has the merit of being a little more adapted to Western tastes, that of Xiaomi, on the other hand, seems more sober by default. Same story in terms of design, attractive from both manufacturers, but not necessarily very original. The 13 Pro adopts a look somewhat reminiscent of the first iPhones. With its curved edges, its stylish island and its very pretty case with a mirror coating, it impresses as much as Samsung’s new flagship.

Comparateur: Xiaomi 13 Pro / Apple iPhone 14 Pro / Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra

Xiaomi 13 Pro Apple iPhone 14 Pro Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra

Screen:

6.73″
1440×3200 pixels
120Hz
LTPO AMOLED
6.1″
2556×1179 pixels
120Hz
OLED
6.8″
3088×1440 pixels
120Hz
Dynamic AMOLED

Camera:

50.3 MP f1.9 main sensor
50 MP f2.0 telephoto sensor
50MP f2.2 ultra-wide-angle sensor
8K 24FPS stabilized video
4K 60FPS stabilized video
46MP f1.78 main sensor
12MP f1.78 telephoto sensor
Capteur ultra grand-angle 12MP f2.2
4K 60FPS stabilized video
Main sensor 200MP f1.7
10MP f2.4 telephoto sensor
10MP f4.9 telephoto sensor
Capteur ultra grand-angle 12MP f2.2

Processor:

Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
8-core CPU
8Go/12Go RAM
A16 Bionic
6 core CPU
6 Go RAM
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
8-12Go RAM

Storage:

128Go/256Go/512Go 128 Go 256Go-1Tb

Battery:

4820mAh 3.200 mAh 5,000mAh

Charge:

USB-C
Charge rapide 120W
50W fast wireless charging
Lightning
25W wired charging
Charge MagSafe 15W
Charge sans-fil 7,5W
USB-C
Charge rapide 45W
Charge sans-fil 10W

Connectivity:

5G
WiFi 6/6E
Bluetooth 5.3
NFC
5G
WiFi 6
Bluetooth 5.3
NFC
5G
WiFi 6E
Bluetooth 5.3
NFC
Stylet

Operating system:

Android 13 iOS 16 Android 13

Front camera:

32MP
1080p 30fps stabilized video
12MP f1.9
4K 60FPS stabilized video
12MP f2.2

As we have said, the two devices share a strong interest in photography. Xiaomi’s smartphone not one or two but three photo sensors. A main sensor of 50 megapixels (f1.9), an ultra wide angle sensor of 50 megapixels (f2.2) and a telephoto lens of 50 megapixels (f2.0). Samsung’s trump card is 200 megapixels, Xiaomi’s is 1 inch in size. And in practice, the 13 Pro does almost as well as the S23 Ultra, and sometimes even better than its rival.

The 13 Pro has the strengths of its excellent colorimetry, its controlled exposure and the excellent image processing with the Leica overcoat. Samsung shines on the other hand in terms of sharpness, especially at night, thanks to its smartphone which captures brighter images, and its better general rendering in terms of detail. Quite paradoxically, however, the 13 Pro seemed to us to be more efficient in terms of zoom with its 3.2x which works miracles. Xiaomi’s smartphone also impresses with the efficiency of its autofocus and its portrait mode, with an excellent black and white mode, and several configurations (35, 70 and 90mm). Portrait lovers will get their money’s worth. So yes, not everything is perfect yet. The cutting of the subject is not always ideal, in direct sunlight, the colorimetry goes a bit into a spin. But overall, Xiaomi has done a great job. And he manages to match the result of his rival.

Still, even at €1,299, the bill remains (very) salty, knowing that the S23 Ultra is €100 more expensive but offers twice as much memory, and especially that the 12 Pro was sold… €200 cheaper! Inflation is hitting the sector hard and it shows. And if de facto, the 13 Pro is an excellent smartphone, the asking price still seems very timid to us given the meager changes in the technical sheet, compared to the 12 Pro. It’s very simple, comparing the technical sheets of the two devices, there are very few improvements. The photo certainly evolves, but mainly thanks to the involvement of Leica. As a result, it must be admitted, it is a little difficult to pay 200€ more for a configuration which has not necessarily evolved much in a year. In pack or on sale, however, the 12 Pro might be an excellent deal.

So, do we crack?

€200 more expensive than its predecessor, the Xiaomi 13 Pro only introduces a very limited number of new features. Inflation has hit the sector hard, and it shows. The Xiaomi 13 Pro is certainly a very attractive smartphone, but it does not have a lot of arguments to put forward in its favor. Xiaomi has done an excellent job with the photo, however, with performance comparable to that of the Galaxy S 23 Ultra. The 13 Pro is definitely one of the best camera phones on the market. Sleek, powerful but also heavy in hand, the device is intended above all for lovers of portrait photography with its 3 capture modes (35, 70 and 90mm). At € 1,299, however, it will be necessary to provide a nice budget to obtain it.

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