First, let’s summarize the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max’s key upgrades in a few words. Compared to the previous generation, its performance and body heat dissipation capabilities are much stronger, and its camera performance has seen a significant boost. And of course, there’s the appearance and dimensions, which have also been completely overhauled. Next, let’s look at them one by one to see if this leapfrog upgrade of the 17 Pro Max is worthy of the skipped Xiaomi 16 series.
Performance tests & Games
The chip is naturally Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 5. Let’s quickly go over the benchmark scores. In Geekbench 6 single-core, the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max scored 3,495 points. In multi-core, it was 10,505 points. Compared to its own predecessor, the 15 Pro, the single-core performance has increased by about 14.7%, and the multi-core improvement is around 13%. There’s still some distance to the A19 Pro’s 3,800+ points in single-core, but its theoretical peak performance in multi-core has already surpassed the A19 Pro. I wonder if Apple can release something bigger next year? This multi-core score is starting to look a bit unimpressive.
In the 3DMark Sling Shot Extreme test, the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max scored 2,680 points. Although it also surpassed the A19 Pro’s score, the improvement over the previous generation is less than 6%. It seems that for GPU this year, we’ll have to see how MediaTek performs.
And here, I believe everyone also wants to see the real-world gaming performance of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max, as the first device this year to feature Snapdragon’s latest flagship chip. So, without further ado, let’s get started. In Honor of Kings at 120 FPS and max settings, we played a ranked match. The Xiaomi 17 Pro Max’s average power consumption was 3.09W, and the peak body temperature was 36.7°C. The Xiaomi 15 Pro’s average power consumption was 3.62W, with a peak body temperature of 35.9°C. It seems the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max performs quite well in low-power gaming scenarios, and the improvement is not insignificant.
Next, let’s look at the famous medium-load game, Genshin Impact. At the highest graphics settings, in the Spiral Abyss, with a dual-Anemo team featuring Yelan and Sayu for exploration, the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max averaged 60 FPS, with an average power consumption of 4.34W. The peak body temperature was 39°C. The Xiaomi 15 Pro averaged 59.8 FPS, with an average power consumption of 4.73W, and a peak body temperature of 45.7°C.
I just have to say, holy crap, you’ve got to be kidding me! This time, the heat dissipation of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max is truly impressive. I don’t know whether to say the previous generation’s cooling was too poor, or this generation’s improvement is too great. This massive 5533mm² annular vapor chamber is really effective.
Finally, it’s Honkai: Star Rail, with the highest graphics settings. Running around the Crimson Calyx on the Xianzhou Luofu, the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max averaged 58.8 FPS. The average power consumption reached 6.88W, and the peak body temperature was 45.7°C. The Xiaomi 15 Pro averaged 58.4 FPS, with an average power consumption of 6W, and a peak body temperature of 47.1°C. Hey, something’s not quite right here. The frame rates are basically the same, so how can there be a 0.88W difference in power consumption?
Let’s look at the CPU scheduling when both phones are running the game, and we’ll understand immediately. The Xiaomi 15 Pro’s scheduling can be said to be precisely tuned. The CPU frequency is very conservatively limited, giving you just enough performance to run at 60 FPS. And although the tuning philosophy of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max is consistent with the Xiaomi 15 Pro, I don’t know if it’s because Xiaomi’s engineers are very confident in the cooling capabilities of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max this time.
When facing high-load gaming scenarios, HyperOS 3 is more aggressive in its scheduling, which leads to higher average power consumption during gaming. This once again validates from the side that the cooling capabilities of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max are indeed very excellent.
Camera Capabilities
In terms of the camera, let’s first take a brief look at whether there are any changes in the two styles co-tuned by Xiaomi and Leica.
First is the main camera in Leica Classic mode. Compared to the 15 Pro, the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max has slightly lower brightness and saturation. The overall contrast of the image has increased, and the vignetting is more pronounced.
Let’s look at the Vibrant mode. It’s the same story: brightness and saturation are slightly lower, contrast is increased, and the vignetting is more pronounced. Let’s look at another set of comparisons with the 5x telephoto. Whether it’s Leica Classic or Vibrant mode, the changes are consistent. The new color performance feels like it will be more suitable for a wider range of scenes. The previous Leica Classic and Vibrant modes were a bit scene-dependent. If you chose the wrong style, the photo might turn out looking quite bad.
Now let’s move on to the basic image quality of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max’s three lenses. Let’s start with the ultra-wide. This time, the sensor for the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max’s ultra-wide has changed from the 15 Pro’s JN1 to the OV50M. Although both are 50MP, the OV50M is slightly smaller in size. Moreover, the equivalent focal length of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max’s ultra-wide is now 17mm, and the 15 Pro’s 14mm has a relatively large difference in field of view. We will mainly look at the framing range and the difference in the overall image performance.
First is the difference in overall exposure. Compared to the 15 Pro’s ultra-wide, the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max’s is a bit darker in good lighting. The overall exposure is on the darker side. If you’re not shooting in bright outdoor sunlight, you can appropriately adjust the exposure compensation. As for comparing image quality, the 17 Pro Max, with its focal length advantage, indeed performs much better in terms of detail.
Then let’s look at a set of shots in a darker scene. The exposure difference is still quite obvious. But, whether it’s the naked-eye perception or zooming in on details, the 17 Pro Max’s performance is better. The noise and smudging in the 15 Pro’s shot are clearly more severe. The overall look is a bit muddy and not as transparent.
Now let’s look at the main camera. In the first set, thanks to the 15 Pro’s larger aperture, the overall image is slightly brighter than the 15 Pro’s, but let’s mainly look at the image details. Looking at the central part, the difference is clear at a glance. The 17 Pro Max performs better in terms of detail. The Light Hunter 950L on the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max is equipped with LOFIC Gen 3 high dynamic range technology, which can have a relatively large improvement in dynamic range.
Let’s look at this set of samples. Zooming in on the central area of the image, on this poster, you can see that the Xiaomi 15 Pro has crushed blacks in the hair and the poster area. The Xiaomi 17 Pro Max, however, can still show some color gradations.
Now let’s look at the bottom right corner. In the area where the Xiaomi 15 Pro is overexposed, the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max’s photo retains more detail. Let’s look at another comparison. In this set, the overall perception is clearly that the 17 Pro Max is better. The 15 Pro, in order to avoid overexposing the frame, heavily suppressed the highlights in the neon sign area and boosted the shadows, causing the entire image to look gray and lose the sense of light and shadow. The 17 Pro Max’s main camera has a larger dynamic range, retaining more information in both the shadow and highlight areas. The overall atmosphere and sense of light and shadow are very distinct.
The next set is a comparison in an extremely dark scene. Let’s zoom in directly on the focus area. The difference in detail is quite obvious.
Finally, of course, is the telephoto. In the first set of samples, let’s zoom in to look at the details. The Xiaomi 17 Pro Max performs slightly better. The sharpening artifacts from the 15 Pro’s algorithm are a bit more obvious. And when we switch to 10x, oh, the difference becomes much larger. The Xiaomi 17 Pro Max’s detail performance is much better. Then, the second set for the telephoto. Let’s zoom in on the text in the center of the frame. In the 5x samples, the difference is still relatively small. But on the sweater of the model next to it, the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max has richer detail. Let’s switch back to 10x. The difference becomes obvious again. But this time, we can see that the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max’s algorithm is applied quite heavily.
The sharpening halos on the denim jacket are more pronounced. In the last set for the telephoto, let’s look at a comparison of outdoor night scenes. Zooming in on the central part, in this case, the difference at 5x is quite obvious. The performance in terms of color and detail on the 17 Pro Max is better than the 15 Pro. Switching to 10x, the conclusion is still the same. The 17 Pro Max is clearly better than the previous generation.
Okay, that’s it for the sample comparisons. The imaging capabilities of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max, compared to the previous generation, can be said to have improved significantly.
Design and screen
After talking about performance, gaming, and camera, let’s go back and look at the phone’s appearance and screen. First, the appearance. The overall size of the device is a circle larger than the previous generation. The screen has grown from 6.73 inches to 6.9 inches. The All-Around Liquid Display has been changed to a flat screen, and the screen’s corner radius has also been increased, making it look rounder.
The rear camera module is an even bigger change. A back screen has been added, and the ultra-wide camera has been moved to the very bottom. It no longer has the prestige of being in the large rectangular module. This time, the appearance of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max definitely pays homage to Apple. And this new back screen is a rather special feature. It’s quite playable. Back then, the back screen of the Xiaomi 11 Ultra was a source of great entertainment on various platforms.
The screen on the front of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max is also somewhat special. It uses TCL CSOT’s brand-new M10 luminescent material, with a resolution of 2880×1200. This screen uses a domestic red luminescent material with a different pixel arrangement, which Xiaomi calls a “Super Pixel.” In short, the technology of this screen is quite advanced.
In our tests, the manual peak brightness was 902 nits, and the full-screen peak brightness was 1124 nits, which is close to the performance of the Xiaomi 15 Pro. Additionally, the front cover glass of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max has been upgraded to Glass 3.0, further improving its drop resistance. In terms of colorways, the Xiaomi 17 Pro series has a total of four: black, white, purple, and green.
Battery and charging
Now, in the very end, let’s look at the charging and battery life of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max. The Xiaomi 17 Pro Max is equipped with a 7500 mAh Xiaomi Golden Sand River battery. In our test, a full charge from 0 to 100% took 41 minutes, with less than 2 minutes of trickle charging. This charging speed is still quite impressive. It maintained around 45W for half an hour. If an iPhone were to charge this battery, huh, it would probably take at least 2 hours. In our standard battery life model, the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max lasted for 10 hours and 38 minutes.
Conclusion
After see our tests, what do you think of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max’s performance? Does it meet your expectations? If you are an existing user upgrading, you will get a noticeable experience upgrade in every aspect. After Apple restructured its own phone product line, Xiaomi closely followed suit and also restructured its own phone product line.
