The Xiaomi 13 Ultra has one of the best cameras of any smartphone. In our original review, we were surprised by its excellent image quality. A feat achieved in no small part thanks to its partnership with Leica to develop the optics and the massive 1-inch image sensor, trouncing every other camera phone on the market today. With the new Camera Kit, the Xiaomi 13 Ultra feels more like a camera than ever thanks to a transformative case, wireless shutter and zoom controls, and even a 67mm adapter ring to shoot in bright light.
Specifications
- Current Price: $199 (Giztop)
- Kit Includes:
- Camera grip protective case
- Wireless shutter, zoom control
- 67mm filter adapter ring
- Lens cover
The Xiaomi 13 Ultra Camera Kit is a unique product. With all of its elements installed on your phone, the 13 Ultra feels far more like a point-and-shoot camera than an actual smartphone. It shifts the balance between phone and camera: it’s not a smartphone with a great camera, it’s a stellar camera that also happens to be a first-rate smartphone.
The kit consists of a handful of parts. The first is a two-part protective case. The first is a traditional case that slides onto the camera body with a plastic frame and soft-touch exterior. The second is an ergonomic handle that’s much more pronounced and inspired by traditional camera grips. Both are trimmed in soft-touch leatherette to promote grip, though, with the handle installed, it’s easy to hold with one hand.
The handle has a trick up its sleeve: it’s also a wireless shutter. The button is positioned above the grip, where you would expect to find the shutter release on a normal camera. Along the outside is a zoom control. Push it right to zoom in, left to zoom out. A half-press of the button focuses the camera and a full press takes the shot. Touching the screen isn’t necessary unless you’d like to access its advanced picture settings.
Also included in the box is a 67mm adapter ring and a lens cover. This is a particularly nice touch and adds a level of professional versatility other phones currently don’t offer. By unscrewing the default ring on the protective case and adding the adapter ring, you can add NF filters and polarizers, giving you even more control over your shot.
If you’re new to the world of photography, NF filters and polarizers are key tools of the trade. NF filters decrease the amount of light that makes its way into the sensor — like sunglasses for your camera. While it’s still possible to adjust the brightness down on the camera itself, this involves changing the shutter and aperture settings, which can sacrifice image quality and depth of field. Polarizers, on the other hand, can reduce glare such as reflections on water or glass. The ability to use these here is truly unique and a great feature for content creators that shoot outdoors.
The lens cap is, well, a lens cap. I’m pleased to see it, though, because the Xiaomi 13 Ultra’s camera bump is one of the biggest I’ve ever seen and is covered in a large sheet of glass. Dropping the camera risks breaking this glass and wrecking the cameras, so any extra protection is a good thing, especially if you might be taking pictures or videos in challenging scenarios. The kit also contains a wrist strap for exactly such situations.
Getting up and running with the kit is exceptionally easy. The protective case goes on like any other and the handle simply slides into place and is secured with a lock switch. The filter ring and lens caps screw on and off. Pairing the wireless shutter with your phone is also simple. Holding the button turns the handle on where it’s automatically detected and prompts to connect with an on-screen prompt. It’s really quite seamless.
The goal of this kit was to make the 13 Ultra, a phone sold largely on its camera system, more of a full-fledged camera. It succeeds wholly in this. With everything installed, it absolutely passes for a point-and-shoot and feels very similar in the hand. I especially love that Xiaomi integrated half-press focus. Tap focus is still available, but being able to ignore touch and just snap the shot feels much closer to true photography to me. The ergonomics of the handle are also great.
There are a couple of wishlist items, if Xiaomi releases a new version or software updates. Zooming isn’t as fluid as it could be. The current design allows you to tap the lever left or right to cycle up and down the zoom modes. Actually scaling that range involves holding the lever, which has a touch of delay followed by a too-quick zoom speed; it’s hard to nail exactly the zoom you’d like. I also wish that the lens cap fit onto the filter ring, so it could just stay installed and save having to carry both rings with you. Not adding a rechargeable battery to the handle also seems like a missed opportunity to extend the battery life of your phone if you’ll be shooting over long periods.
These are relatively small issues, though. I would love to see an option added that allows you to change this behavior if you’d rather “slide up” the zoom range, bypassing the steps, but since they deliver the best image quality, so you’re most likely to stick with them anyway. The lens filter issue is a missed opportunity to save extra steps, but generally, you’ll probably be shooting without a filter. For better or worse, swapping rings out is closer to the “real” photography experience. And though the handle doesn’t extend battery life, it also doesn’t detract from it. Still, there are good opportunities here to enhance the package for the inevitable Xiaomi 14 Ultra.
Final Thoughts
The Xiaomi 13 Ultra Camera Kit is a unique product for a very defined audience. At its current $199 price, it’s expensive enough that it won’t make sense for your average user. Instead, this is for the creator that’s currently carrying around a separate point and shoot camera and wants to lighten their load and simplify how much they’re carrying with them.
That might not sound like much, but when you’re forced to carry gear with your every day, it matters. As a tech critic for a number of websites, I used to carry a camera bag with me everywhere. It was a pain. Today, I usually shoot with a smartphone and use Photoshop to make the shortcomings of smartphone photography (lower detail, worse bokeh, poor low light close-ups). The Xiaomi 13 Ultra’s larger sensor has even made Photoshop less necessary, simplifying things further.
Simply put, shifting to a single device that you’re already carrying with you is the content creator’s dream. It’s faster, easier, and all-inclusive. The Camera Kit takes that a step further and does it well, admittedly at a higher price due to its smaller audience. But for those interested in simplifying their setups while still have versatility with filters, this is a unique and well-done choice.
The product described in this article was provided by the manufacturer for evaluation purposes.
