Xiaomi 17 series camera breakdown: new sensors, curious trade-offs

Xiaomi 17 camera breakdown is here. The new series has landed in China alongside the trimmed-down Xiaomi 15T, and a fresh leak has mapped out the camera hardware across all four phones. The short version: there are genuine upgrades, a few eyebrow-raising downgrades, and plenty of shared parts.

Xiaomi 17

• Main: 50MP Light Hunter 950, 1/1.31-inch — a newer custom sensor that keeps the same size as the Xiaomi 15’s 50MP Light Fusion 900.

• Telephoto: 2.6× unit carries over unchanged from the Xiaomi 15.

• Ultrawide: 50MP OV50M, 1/2.88-inch — slightly smaller than the Xiaomi 15’s 1/2.76-inch Samsung ISOCELL JN1.

• Selfie: 50MP OV50M — an upgrade over the Xiaomi 15’s 32MP OV32B (1/3.14-inch).

Takeaway: The main sensor modernizes without growing, telephoto status quo, ultrawide steps down in size, and the selfie camera gets a sizable bump.

Xiaomi 17 Pro & 17 Pro Max

Both Pro models share a near-identical stack, splitting only on the periscope:

• Main (both): 50MP Light Hunter A950L, 1/1.28-inch — a class-matching sensor in the same league as those used by current iPhone 17 Pro, Galaxy S25 Ultra, and Pixel 10 Pro families.

• Periscope telephoto:

  • 17 Pro Max: ISOCELL GN8, 1/1.95-inch, 5× optical — the larger, more capable module.

  • 17 Pro: JN5, 5× optical — smaller than the Max’s GN8, representing a clear downgrade in sensor size.

• Ultrawide (both): 50MP OV50M.

• Selfie (both): 50MP OV50M.

Takeaway: The A950L main cam is a genuine upgrade; the Max gets the premium 5× GN8 periscope, while the regular Pro sticks with a smaller JN5.

Big picture

Xiaomi’s 17 series mixes modernized main sensors with conservative telephoto choices and a uniform 50MP OV50M for ultrawide and selfie across the board. Expect meaningful gains from the new A950L and the Max’s GN8 periscope, while the standard 17’s smaller ultrawide may prove a step back on paper. Processing and tuning will decide how much of this hardware translates into real-world wins.