Huawei was doing a lot of interesting stuff with its flagship phones, particularly in the camera department, before it was brutally smacked down by US sanctions. The company is admittedly in survival mode now and hasn't been as focused on stealing Samsung's crown as before. Its hands are tied as well since Huawei now has limited markets where it can compete and with no access to Google Play services, Android users outside China have little reason to buy its phones.
The glory days of Huawei would have surely given Samsung nightmares. Huawei had begun to build the perception that it was ahead in terms of executing on new technology than its Korean rival. It was able to get things out the door much quicker at lower price points. It was also willing to take more risks whereas Samsung often stuck to its conventional approach. There was a real risk at one point that Huawei would overtake Samsung to become the world's leading vendor of Android phones. That didn't happen and is now unlikely to happen unless the geopolitical element no longer affects Huawei.
Xiaomi has evidently stepped up to transform Huawei's misfortune into its luck. The company has also been trying some interesting things and has also been leading the Chinese OEMs' push into foldable phones. After Huawei, Xiaomi is possibly the only other major manufacturer that has truly global brand recognition. It's able to capitalize on that to execute on its plans more effectively.
Huawei had particularly focused on setting its flagship phones apart from Samsung's based on their camera capabilities. Its strategies involved outsized camera modules with ridiculous specs, partnerships with legacy camera brands like Leica, and enhanced AI processing to improve results. Even the infamous moon shot controversy wasn't enough to prevent Huawei from keeping up its all-out assault on Samsung.
Xiaomi seems to have adopted that playbook to an extent. It inked a similar partnership with Leica last year, and while this is nothing more than an old wine in a new bottle, it goes to show that the Chinese OEMs prefer the perceived status elevation that an association with a legacy camera brand offers them. It's also genuinely focusing on improving the camera quality on its flagship phones.
Some sample photos from the upcoming Xiaomi 13 Ultra have recently appeared online. The device has a rather interesting quad-camera setup. It includes a 50MP primary sensor from Sony with variable aperture, 50MP ultra-wide, and two 50MP telephoto sensors. On paper, the camera setup would appear to pale in comparison to the Galaxy S23 Ultra, but we all know that simply comparing camera specs is hardly an accurate way to judge performance.
It's well documented that Samsung's phones tend to over saturate images and we find none of that in those samples. The colors look quite genuine with no over-sharpening or colors that just feel unrealistic. The larger 1-inch primary sensor also contributes to the improved bokeh effect, making it feel more reminiscent of conventional cameras.
Samsung, and even Apple to some extent, have this appreciation for heavily processed photos that appears to be missing from these samples. This will particularly appeal to purists who feel that smartphone photography shouldn't be so AI-dominated. Indeed, it's a gutsy move by Xiaomi. Its competitors are focused on providing a camera experience that delivers over-processed photos ripe for social media networks. Xiaomi is going in the opposite direction to bring back artistic quality to smartphone photography.
These observations are based on the samples that Xiaomi has released so it's entirely possible that the camera performance may not be exactly the same once the device does come out. The key takeaway here is that it's not all said and done when it comes to Chinese manufacturers challenging Samsung's way of doing things. They clearly still have a lot of good ideas, one that have true substance and are more than just novelties.
Back when Huawei was becoming a raging success story, it felt like Samsung had perhaps been caught napping, that it had failed to realize the threat before it had become very serious. It would be good for Samsung to prevent a repeat of that with Xiaomi. It may not find sanctions to come as a blessing in disguise again.
