Xiaomi 17 Pro Max hands-on review | Infinium-tech

Introduction

Xiaomi is skipping number 16 for this year’s flagships, and moving straight to number 17, meaning it’s ready to take on the iPhone 17 series directly. Further underscoring those ambitions, the Xiaomi 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max are identical to their iPhone 17 counterparts in terms of design, but with one big twist.

Xiaomi’s latest Pro models have a secondary OLED screen right next to the camera, which is undoubtedly their most attractive feature. This isn’t something we haven’t seen before, not even in Xiaomi. The Xiaomi 11 Ultra from a few years ago had a second screen on the back, but this one is bigger, brighter, and much better overall.

Looking specifically at the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max, we also see an updated front screen. The Pro Max features a 6.9-inch LTPO OLED panel with thin, symmetrical bezels all around. It is said to be brighter than the previous lineup, but we need to complete testing of the device before we can confirm the accuracy of those claims.

The secondary display measures 2.9″ and has the same 120Hz refresh rate as the main one. According to Xiaomi, the maximum brightness on both is 3,500 nits.

Naturally, the 17 Pro Max runs on the latest Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, which promises improvements in performance and efficiency as always. Impressively, the 17 Pro Max comes with 512GB of storage in its base variant.

The camera system gets a small update, the main camera now has a slightly larger sensor, the new Light Fusion 950L developed by Xiaomi in collaboration with Leica. The 50MP 5x telephoto has minor changes to the prism layout, allowing for a larger 1/2″ sensor. In contrast, the 50MP ultrawide unit loses autofocus capability for some reason. However, you can still get excellent macro shots with the zoom camera, which actually focuses from closer distances and is better suited for macro work anyway.

Much to our surprise, Xiaomi is finally replacing the old 32MP selfie camera with a much-improved 50MP shooter with autofocus. Too late update.

The battery also gets a massive update. The 17 Pro Max is now equipped with a power pack worthy of a small tablet, with a capacity of 7,500 mAh. There is no compromise in fast charging either, as the handset supports 100W wired and 50W wireless charging. It’s also a small step up from last year’s Xiaomi 15 Pro.

Let’s take a tour of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max now – join us on the next page!