Xiaomi nailed it. They launched a new concept phone, titled Xiaomi 12S Ultra Concept Phone. This smartphone is armed with a 1-inch sensor, and more importantly, a Leica lens mount, which means you can attach a Leica lens straight to the smartphone. Well, you know the potential of that. Is this the future of mobile cinematography?
Large sensor + lens mount, in a mobile phone
The Xiaomi 12S Ultra Concept is a new smartphone that was introduced by Xiaomi, as a specialized version of the 12S Ultra. The specs are pretty impressive. A lot of mega-pixels (~51), a large sensor (1-inch), and more importantly, a Leica lens mount. Explore the pictures below
The story of the 12S Ultra Concept
Xiaomi announced this concept phone on Weibo, with the help of the Head of Product PR teams showcasing it on various social media channels. As explained, this is a more sophisticated, professional dedicated device, which has an updated circular rear camera ring that supports the connection of Leica M-series lenses (Leica worked with Xiaomi to design and produce this concept device). Also, there’s a layer of sapphire glass protecting the camera module. This was added to protect the onboard lenses from scratches and marks that can come from the screw motion when attaching compatible Leica M-series lenses. The sensor might be the Sony IMX989 1-inch, but this is not confirmed by Xiaomi.
Installing a professional lens on it
As shown in Xiaomi’s demonstration, in order to install an interchangeable lens onto the Xiaomi 12S Ultra Concept, you must first unscrew the protection ring around the rear camera island, then by way of an adapter, you’ll be able to mount any Leica M lens. As captured by Agatha Tang – Head of Product PR at Xiaomi International, in the above photo, the full assembly with a Leica Summilux-M 35mm f/1.4 ASPH lens looks fairly impressive from the side. And the results? Check out the sample footage below (released by Xiaomi):
Not for mass production
According to Engadget, Xiaomi stopped short of saying whether the 12S Ultra Concept Phone will ever be mass-produced. This project was developed alongside the actual 12S Ultra, and in the end, only 10 units of the former were made. A few of those samples were sent to influencers for tests and feedback.
Not an innovative idea per se
Xiaomi isn’t the first smartphone manufacturer to consider the benefits of using a professional camera lens on a smartphone, it just might be the first to make a native physical mount that is attached to the body. Back in 2014, Sony produced a pair of smartphone attachment devices called the QX1 and QX30 that accepted E-mount lenses. The lenses did not physically mount directly to a connected smartphone, though, and images were instead sent wirelessly after capture. However, the sensors were smaller, and with lower processing capabilities, hence limiting the quality of the image, and thus, not utilizing correctly the full-size optics.
A new era of mobile cinematography (!?)
Now, imagine this: An iPhone 16 with a Leica lens mount, armed with a 1-inch sensor, that can accept Leica Summilux compact lenses. Or, a Samsung smartphone, with a Canon mount, that can be paired with full-size high-quality glass. Although the lens has to be small in order to reduce the physical pressure on the mount, the results can be defined as professional. Devices like these can fairly replace professional MFT cameras. There’s no need for a multiple-cameras phone. Just one good sensor (1-inch and above is preferred), and a lens mount, and you’re good to go. The sky is the limit regarding creativity, for photographers, and cinematographers as well. What do you think?
