Xiaomi 17 Pro Max Review

The Xiaomi 17 Pro Max is one of the most distinctive phones of the year, thanks to a 2.9 inch LTPO AMOLED display built into the camera bump on the back. You can use it as a viewfinder for the main cameras, run widgets and controls, or set it as an always visible second screen. It is a genuinely fresh idea in a category short on them.

The rest is heavyweight too. A Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 drives a 6.9 inch 120Hz front display, and a huge 7,500mAh battery with 100W wired and 50W wireless charging means endurance is simply not a worry. The Leica tuned camera system uses three 50MP sensors, including a 5x periscope, and produces rich, characterful images that rank among the best from China.

Software is HyperOS 3 over Android 16. It is fast and feature packed, though Western users will find some rough edges in translation and a heavier hand with preinstalled apps than a Pixel. The bigger obstacle is availability, since the phone launched in China first and is hard to buy through official channels elsewhere.

Priced around 5,999 yuan, roughly 841 dollars, it is aggressive for the hardware on offer. If you can import one and live with the software quirks, the 17 Pro Max delivers a battery, a camera and a party trick that few phones can match. For most buyers outside China, though, it will stay a curiosity.