Notebookcheck Reviews — Tech — Wed, 26 Aug 2026 09:33:00 +0200
Summary
The Xiaomi 17 Max is a larger variant of the Xiaomi 17 featuring a 6.9-inch 120 Hz AMOLED display, a 200-megapixel Leica-branded main camera, a 50-megapixel telephoto with 3x optical zoom, a 50-megapixel ultrawide, and a 32-megapixel front camera. Powered by a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 with 12 or 16 GB of RAM, it delivers Wi-Fi 7 speeds up to 3,200 Mbit/s and battery life that the reviewer says surpasses most flagship phones. Because it is imported from China, the phone is relatively affordable but lacks eSIM support, Android Auto, and Western language options beyond English, and Xiaomi has not stated an official update policy, with security updates expected for roughly four to five years. The review notes drawbacks including heavier weight, the absence of an infrared sensor, and PWM screen flickering at 119.7 Hz that could bother sensitive users. Overall, the reviewer judges the Xiaomi 17 Max a high-quality, good-value smartphone for buyers seeking a large screen, strong performance, and long battery life.
The Xiaomi 17 Max is an interesting addition to the already exceptional Xiaomi 17 series: It offers a larger screen, greater battery capacity, and even better cameras than the Xiaomi 17. Since it’s imported from China, you can get it at a very affordable price, but you’ll have to put up with drawbacks such as a lack of eSIM support, no Android Auto, and English as the only western language for the user interface.
The Xiaomi 17 Max is a very high-quality phone with virtually invisible display bezels, a great camera system optimized by Leica, good zoom capabilities, and a battery life that easily outshines most other top-tier phones.
You’ll need to account for a bit more weight, though, and the AMOLED display with PWM flickering could be a problem for sensitive users.
Overall, however, the Xiaomi 17 Max is a great smartphone at a very reasonable price if you’re looking for a large screen, plenty of power, and long battery life.
The Xiaomi 17 Max is available in three different colors: white, black with a carbon-fiber effect, and light blue. The back of each model is made of glass, and the color-matched frame is made of aluminum.
The build quality is top-notch; the phone feels very high-end, and the transitions between materials are very precise. The bezels around the front screen are barely noticeable, giving the phone a very modern look.
You can choose between 12 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage or 16 GB of RAM and 512 GB of storage; the price difference is about 100 euros. Unfortunately, there’s no eSIM support, and unlike the Xiaomi 17, there’s no infrared sensor either.
Thanks to WiFi 7 support, very fast transmission rates are possible over Wi-Fi; in our test with the Asus RT-BE96U reference router, we measured speeds of up to 3,200 Mbit/s. That’s more than enough for a gigabit Internet connection and delivers good data rates even on fast home networks.
It supports all the 5G and 4G frequencies you need, so you can use the Xiaomi 17 Max for mobile internet worldwide. Reception was very good during our tests, even in challenging situations.
The 120-Hz display allows for precise control right up to the corners and responds very quickly to input. The ultrasonic fingerprint sensor is built into the display. It’s well-positioned and, after a one-time setup, works very quickly. 2D facial recognition via the front camera is also available and works just as reliably.
| Networking | | | Xiaomi 17 Max | | | iperf3 transmit Wi-Fi6/7 RT-BE96U | | | iperf3 receive Wi-Fi6/7 RT-BE96U | | | Xiaomi 17 | | | iperf3 transmit AXE11000 6GHz | | | iperf3 receive AXE11000 6GHz | | | Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra | | | iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | | | iperf3 receive AXE11000 | | | iperf3 transmit AXE11000 6GHz | | | iperf3 receive AXE11000 6GHz | | | iperf3 transmit Wi-Fi6/7 RT-BE96U | | | iperf3 receive Wi-Fi6/7 RT-BE96U | | | OnePlus 15 | | | iperf3 transmit AXE11000 6GHz | | | iperf3 receive AXE11000 6GHz | | | Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max | | | iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | | | iperf3 receive AXE11000 | | | iperf3 transmit AXE11000 6GHz | | | iperf3 receive AXE11000 6GHz | | | Average 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be | | | iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | | | iperf3 receive AXE11000 | | | iperf3 transmit AXE11000 6GHz | | | iperf3 receive AXE11000 6GHz | | | iperf3 transmit Wi-Fi6/7 RT-BE96U | | | iperf3 receive Wi-Fi6/7 RT-BE96U | | | Average of class Smartphone | | | iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | | | iperf3 receive AXE11000 | | | iperf3 transmit AXE11000 6GHz | | | iperf3 receive AXE11000 6GHz | | | iperf3 transmit Wi-Fi6/7 RT-BE96U | | | iperf3 receive Wi-Fi6/7 RT-BE96U | |
Android 16 comes preinstalled, running on top is HyperOS 3, Xiaomi’s in-house user interface, which does many things differently from stock Android. Aside from English, no other Western languages are available, but the Google Play Store can be installed quite easily.
Xiaomi has not officially stated how long updates will be provided. Based on experience with earlier models, we expect security updates for about 4 to 5 years.
The packaging is largely plastic-free, but otherwise there is no information regarding sustainability.
With a 200-megapixel camera, the Xiaomi 17 Max even outshines the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max in terms of pixel count. The main camera, featuring Leica branding, takes beautiful photos that are also very precise in their details.
It’s joined by a 50-megapixel telephoto camera with a 3x optical zoom. It produces good images at up to 10x magnification; beyond that, the AI optimization becomes very noticeable.
There’s also a 50-megapixel wide-angle camera on board; it actually takes quite nice snapshots that retain a fair amount of detail.
On the front, there’s a 32-megapixel camera for selfies. These also turn out very well.
Image comparison
Choose a scene and navigate within the first image. One click changes the position on touchscreens. One click on the zoomed-in image opens the original in a new window. The first image shows the scaled photograph of the test device.
Xiaomi 17 Max: 11.65 ∆E min: 2.41 - max: 22.31 ∆E
Xiaomi 17 Max: 9.86 ∆E min: 3.59 - max: 16.45 ∆E
The 6.9-inch AMOLED screen with a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz offers over 1,000 nits of brightness in everyday use and can become significantly brighter when displaying smaller areas or HDR content. It displays good image quality, even though the resolution isn’t quite as high as on other high-end phones.
You’ll have to live with PWM flickering for brightness adjustment on this phone, so people who are sensitive to it should try out the screen before buying.
| |
| | | 1055 cd/m² | | |
Distribution of brightness
Center on Battery: 1055 cd/m²
Contrast: ∞:1 (Black: 0 cd/m²)
ΔE ColorChecker Calman: 1.2 | ∀{0.5-29.43 Ø4.7}
ΔE Greyscale Calman: 2 | ∀{0.09-98 Ø4.95}
99.8% sRGB (Calman 2D)
Gamma: 2.253
CCT: 6838 K
| Xiaomi 17 MaxAMOLED, 2608x1200, 6.9" | Xiaomi 17LTPO AMOLED , 2656x1220, 6.3" | Samsung Galaxy S26 UltraDynamic AMOLED 2X, 3120x1440, 6.9" | OnePlus 15AMOLED, 2772x1272, 6.8" | Apple iPhone 17 Pro MaxOLED, 2868x1320, 6.9" | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Display | -5% | ||||
| APL18 Peak Brightness (cd/m²) | 2987 | 2713 -9% | |||
| HDR Peak Brightness (cd/m²) | 3002 | 2975 -1% | |||
| Response Times | 15% | 1% | -93% | 14% | |
| Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% * (ms) | |||||
| Response Time Black / White * (ms) | |||||
| PWM Frequency (Hz) | 119.7 | 120 | 240 | 120 | 240 |
| PWM Amplitude * (%) | 10 | 18 -80% | 13.99 -40% | 15 -50% | 17 -70% |
| Screen | -19% | -25% | 4% | -4% | |
| Brightness middle (cd/m²) | 1055 | 1030 -2% | 1339 27% | 1114 6% | 1054 0% |
| Black Level * (cd/m²) | |||||
| Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 1.2 | 1.44 -20% | 2.5 -108% | 1.33 -11% | 1.57 -31% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 2.83 | 3.68 -30% | 3.8 -34% | 2.42 14% | 2.8 1% |
| Greyscale dE 2000 * | 2 | 2.5 -25% | 1.7 15% | 1.9 5% | 1.7 15% |
| Gamma | 2.253 98% | 2.274 97% | 2.05 107% | 2.273 97% | 2.32 95% |
| CCT | 6838 95% | 6868 95% | 6498 100% | 6708 97% | 6993 93% |
| Brightness (cd/m²) | 1021 | 1381 | 1109 | 1059 | |
| Brightness Distribution (%) | 98 | 94 | 97 | 93 | |
| Total Average (Program / Settings) | -2% / -5% | -10% / -12% | -45% / -38% | 5% / 4% |
| Screen flickering / PWM detected | 119.7 Hz Amplitude: 10 % | | | | The display backlight flickers at 119.7 Hz (worst case, e.g., utilizing PWM) . The frequency of 119.7 Hz is very low, so the flickering may cause eyestrain and headaches after extended use. In comparison: 52 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 7680 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 343500) Hz was measured. | | | |
Measurement series with a fixed zoom level and different brightness settings (Although the amplitude curve at minimum brightness appears flat, this is due to the scaling. The info box shows a magnified version of the amplitude at minimum brightness.)
| ↔ Response Time Black to White | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1.3 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 0.6 ms rise | |
| ↘ 0.7 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows very fast response rates in our tests and should be very well suited for fast-paced gaming. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 8 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is better than the average of all tested devices (19.7 ms). | ||
| ↔ Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey | ||
| 1.4 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 0.7 ms rise | |
| ↘ 0.7 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows very fast response rates in our tests and should be very well suited for fast-paced gaming. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.13 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 7 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is better than the average of all tested devices (30.8 ms). |
The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 is one of the fastest smartphone SoCs currently available and, as a result, achieves high scores in our benchmarks. Absolutely smooth performance is guaranteed in almost all situations.
However, the phone can get quite hot under prolonged load and also throttles significantly in the 3DMark stress tests.
The speaker on the bottom edge is supported by the earpiece, enabling stereo effects. The sound can sometimes feature slightly deeper mids and is well-suited for pop music. However, the speakers don’t get very loud.
Bluetooth 6.0 is available for wireless audio transmission and supports a wide range of current audio codecs.
The 8,000-mAh battery is the Xiaomi 17 Max’s standout feature; it offers more capacity than any other devices in the series. So it’s no wonder that the smartphone achieved impressive battery life of over 33 hours in our Wi-Fi test. Hardly any other top-tier phone can keep up with that.
| Xiaomi 17 Max | Xiaomi 17 | Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra | OnePlus 15 | Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max | Average 512 GB UFS 4.1 Flash | Average of class Smartphone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AndroBench 3-5 | -0% | -32% | -19% | -17% | -43% | ||
| Sequential Read 256KB (MB/s) | 3938.47 | 3943.44 0% | 3626.09 -8% | 3962.2 1% | |||
| Sequential Write 256KB (MB/s) | 3802.01 | 3784.97 0% | 1658.91 -56% | 3741.2 -2% | |||
| Random Read 4KB (MB/s) | 488.65 | 487.69 0% | 513.44 5% | 352.6 -28% | |||
| Random Write 4KB (MB/s) | 647.54 | 643.31 -1% | 207.16 -68% | 334.4 -48% |
(-) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 46.4 °C / 116 F, compared to the average of 35.3 °C / 96 F, ranging from 21.9 to 247 °C for the class Smartphone.
(-) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 50.4 °C / 123 F, compared to the average of 34.1 °C / 93 F
| 3DMark | | | Wild Life Stress Test Stability | | | Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max | | | Xiaomi 17 | | | OnePlus 15 | | | Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra | | | Xiaomi 17 Max | | | Wild Life Extreme Stress Test | | | Xiaomi 17 | | | Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max | | | Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra | | | OnePlus 15 | | | Xiaomi 17 Max | | | Solar Bay Stress Test Stability | | | Xiaomi 17 | | | Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max | | | Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra | | | Xiaomi 17 Max | | | Solar Bay Extreme Stress Test Stability | | | Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra | | | Xiaomi 17 | | | Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max | | | Steel Nomad Light Stress Test Stability | | | Xiaomi 17 | | | Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max | | | Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra | |
(±) | speaker loudness is average but good (81.1 dB)Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 62.8% lower than median
(+) | bass is linear (0% delta to prev. frequency)Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(-) | nearly no mids - on average 62.8% lower than median
(+) | mids are linear (0% delta to prev. frequency)Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(-) | nearly no highs - on average 62.8% lower than median
(+) | highs are linear (0% delta to prev. frequency)Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(-) | overall sound is not linear (135.5% difference to median)Compared to same class» 100% of all tested devices in this class were better, 0% similar, 0% worse» The best had a delta of 11%, average was 34%, worst was 136%Compared to all devices tested» 100% of all tested devices were better, 0% similar, 0% worse» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 23%, worst was 136%
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (92 dB)Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 22.6% lower than median
(+) | bass is linear (5.2% delta to prev. frequency)Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 4.9% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (4.8% delta to prev. frequency)Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 3.4% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (1.8% delta to prev. frequency)Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (15.9% difference to median)Compared to same class» 5% of all tested devices in this class were better, 5% similar, 90% worse» The best had a delta of 11%, average was 34%, worst was 136%Compared to all devices tested» 25% of all tested devices were better, 5% similar, 70% worse» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 23%, worst was 136%
Power Consumption
| Off / Standby | 
0.1 / 0.2 Watt |
| Idle | 
0.8 / 1.3 / 1.8 Watt |
| | 
|
| Key: min: , med: , max: Metrahit Energy | |
| Xiaomi 17 Max8000 mAh | Xiaomi 177000 mAh | Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra5000 mAh | OnePlus 157300 mAh | Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max4823 mAh | Average Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 | Average of class Smartphone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power Consumption | 4% | 22% | -19% | 12% | 2% | -5% | |
| Idle Minimum * (Watt) | 0.8 | 0.7 13% | 0.56 30% | 1.2 -50% | 0.6 25% | ||
| Idle Average * (Watt) | 1.3 | 1.4 -8% | 1.18 9% | 1.4 -8% | 1.3 -0% | ||
| Idle Maximum * (Watt) | 1.8 | 1.7 6% | 1.33 26% | 1.8 -0% | 1.6 11% | ||
| Load Average * (Watt) | 5.9 | 14.91 | 6.7 | 4.1 | |||
| Load Maximum * (Watt) | 11.7 | 16.58 | 12.3 | 11.5 |
| Xiaomi 17 Max8000 mAh | Xiaomi 177000 mAh | Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra5000 mAh | OnePlus 157300 mAh | Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max4823 mAh | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Battery runtime | -7% | -46% | -8% | -14% | |
| WiFi v1.3 (h) | 33.4 | 30.9 -7% | 17.9 -46% | 30.7 -8% | 28.6 -14% |
| Reader / Idle (h) | 72.7 | 50.9 | 66.4 | ||
| H.264 (h) | 36.1 | 30.9 | 36.5 | ||
| Load (h) | 4.3 | 3.7 | 4.2 |
The Xiaomi 17 Max is a great smartphone for anyone who wants a larger screen, longer battery life, plenty of power, and great cameras.
In the West, however, there are restrictions due to imports from China that you should be aware of.
Xiaomi 17 Max - 08/26/2026 v8
Florian Schmitt
| Image | Model / Review | Price | Weight | Drive | Display |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. 88.1%  |
Xiaomi 17 MaxQualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 ⎘Qualcomm Adreno 840 ⎘16 GB Memory, 512 GB UFS 4.x | Amazon: 1. $820.00XIAOMI 17T PRO Ai 5G (Compat... 2. $1,520.00XIAOMI 17 Ultra Ai 5G (Compa... 3. $814.00XIAOMI 17T PRO Ai 5G (Compat... List Price: 730€ | 225 g | 512 GB UFS 4.1 Flash | 6.90" 2608x1200 416 PPI AMOLED |
2. 89.2%  |
Xiaomi 17Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 ⎘Qualcomm Adreno 840 ⎘12 GB Memory, 512 GB UFS 4.x | Amazon: 1. $960.00XIAOMI 17 5G Ai (Compatible ... 2. $820.00XIAOMI 17T PRO Ai 5G (Compat... 3. $1,037.14XIAOMI 17 5G Ai (Compatible ... List Price: 650€ | 191 g | 512 GB UFS 4.1 Flash | 6.30" 2656x1220 464 PPI LTPO AMOLED |
3. 89.8%  |
Samsung Galaxy S26 UltraQualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy ⎘Qualcomm Adreno 840 ⎘12 GB Memory, 256 GB UFS 4.x | Amazon: List Price: 1449€ | 214 g | 256 GB UFS 4.0 Flash | 6.90" 3120x1440 498 PPI Dynamic AMOLED 2X |
4. 87.1%  |
OnePlus 15Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 ⎘Qualcomm Adreno 840 ⎘16 GB Memory, 512 GB UFS 4.x | Amazon: $1,439.00List Price: 999€ | 215 g | 512 GB UFS 4.1 Flash | 6.78" 2772x1272 450 PPI AMOLED |
5. 89.2%  |
Apple iPhone 17 Pro MaxApple A19 Pro ⎘Apple A19 Pro 6-Core GPU ⎘12 GB Memory, 256 GB NVMe | Amazon: List Price: 1449 Euro | 233 g | 256 GB NVMe | 6.90" 2868x1320 460 PPI OLED |
The selection of devices to be reviewed is made by our editorial team. The test sample was provided to the author as a loan by the manufacturer or retailer for the purpose of this review. The lender had no influence on this review, nor did the manufacturer receive a copy of this review before publication. There was no obligation to publish this review. As an independent media company, Notebookcheck is not subjected to the authority of manufacturers, retailers or publishers.
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Original article: https://www.notebookcheck.net/Affordable-Leica-phone-with-a-huge-battery-takes-on-the-top-tier-Xiaomi-17-Max-Smartphone-Review.1379116.0.html Source: Notebookcheck Reviews