Both Xiaomi and Sony have compelling flagship smartphones to offer at the moment. In this article, we’ll compare them. We’ll be comparing the Xiaomi 14 Ultra vs Sony Xperia 1 VI. Both of these phones were announced this year. Xiaomi’s arrived back in February, while Sony’s followed earlier this month. These two phones are quite different, despite the fact that they’re both large Android powerhouses.
We’ll first list their specifications, as per usual. Following that, we’ll compare their designs, displays, performance, battery life, cameras, and audio performance. Considering how different they are, there is plenty to talk about here. So, without any further ado, let’s see what these two phones have to offer and which one better suits you.
Specs
Xiaomi 14 Ultra vs Sony Xperia 1 VI, respectively
– Screen size:
6.73-inch LTPO AMOLED display (curved, adaptive 120Hz, 3,000 nits max brightness)
6.5-inch LTPO OLED display (flat, adaptive 120Hz, HDR)
– Display resolution:
3200 x 1440
2340 x 1080
– SoC:
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
– RAM:
16GB (LPDDR5X)
12GB (LPDDR5X)
– Storage:
512GB (UFS 4.0)
256GB/512GB (UFS 4.0)
– Rear cameras:
50MP (wide, f/1.6-f/4.0 variable aperture, OIS, multi-directional PDAF, 1.6um pixel size), 50MP (ultrawide, f/1.8 aperture, 122-degree FoV, 0.7um pixel size, dual pixel PDAF), 50MP (telephoto, f/1.8 aperture, 0.7um pixel size, dual pixel PDAF, OIS, 3.2x optical zoom), 50MP (periscope telephoto, f/2.5 aperture, 0.7um pixel size, dual pixel PDAF, OIS, 5x optical zoom)
48MP (wide, f/1.9 aperture, 24mm lens, 1.12um pixel size, dual pixel PDAF, OIS), 12MP (ultrawide, f/2.2 aperture, 123-degree FoV, 1.4um pixel size, dual pixel PDAF), 12MP (telephoto, f/3.5 aperture, 170mm lens, 1.0um pixel size, dual pixel PDAF, 3.5x-7.1x continuous optical zoom, OIS, 4cm macro)
– Front cameras:
32MP (wide, f/2.0 aperture, 0.7um pixel size)
12MP (wide, f/2.0 aperture, 1.22um pixel size, 24mm lens)
– Battery:
5,000mAh
5,000mAh
– Charging:
90W wired, 80W wireless,, 10W reverse wireless (charger included)
30W wired, 15W wireless, 5W reverse wireless (charger & cable not included)
– Dimensions:
161.4 x 75.3 x 9.2mm
162 x 74 x 8.2mm
– Weight:
219.8 grams
192 grams
– Connectivity:
5G, LTE, NFC, Wi-Fi, USB Type-C, Bluetooth 5.3/5.4
– Security:
In-display fingerprint scanner & facial scanning
Side-facing fingerprint scanner
– OS:
Android 14 with HyperOS
Android 14
– Price:
€1,499
€1,399+
– Buy:
Xiaomi 14 Ultra (Amazon)
Sony Xperia 1 VI (Amazon)
Xiaomi 14 Ultra vs Sony Xperia 1 VI: Design
These two phones look considerably different from all angles, basically. Both of them come with a frame made out of aluminum, though a titanium variant of the Xiaomi 14 Ultra is available in China. The global variant of the device has vegan leather on the back, though a glass model is also available, but only in China. The Sony Xperia 1 VI has a glass backplate. Both of them are IP68 certified for water and dust resistance.
The Xiaomi 14 Ultra has a curved display, but only barely. It also includes a centered display camera hole at the top and very thin bezels. The Xperia 1 VI includes a flat display, and thicker top and bottom bezels in order to avoid a display hole. Both phones have physical buttons on the right-hand side. Their power/lock and volume up and down buttons have a similar placement. The Xperia 1 VI also includes a shutter key on the right-hand side.
The frame of the Xperia 1 VI is flat all around, with a rather interesting design. The frame is raised from the rest of the device, with a rather steep drop-off, which makes this phone a bit different in the hand than its competitor. The Xiaomi 14 Ultra also has a flat frame, but with curvature to the sides, and it feels entirely different in the hand.
If we flip them over, you’ll notice a huge camera oreo on the Xiaomi 14 Ultra. There are four cameras included in there. The Xperia 1 VI, on the other hand, has three vertically aligned cameras which are placed in the top-left corner. That camera setup is considerably smaller than the on on the Xiaomi 14 Ultra.
Both of these phones are large. They’re almost the same height, but the Xperia 1 VI is narrower and slightly thinner. It is also lighter at 192 grams, compared to 219.8 grams (of the global model) of the Xiaomi 14 Ultra. The thing is, the Xperia 1 VI does have a smaller display. Not much smaller, but smaller nonetheless. Both phones do feel like quality pieces of tech, though.
Xiaomi 14 Ultra vs Sony Xperia 1 VI: Display
The Xiaomi 14 Ultra features a 6.73-inch QHD+ (3200 x 1440) LTPO AMOLED display. It has an adaptive refresh rate of up to 120Hz. That display is slightly curved, and it supports Dolby Vision. HDR10+ is also supported, while the display’s brightness peaks at 3,000 nits, in theory. You’ll never get that high, though. The display aspect ratio here is 20:9, while the screen-to-body ratio is around 89%. The Xiaomi Shield Glass protects this panel.
The Sony Xperia 1 VI, on the flip side, has a 6.5-inch fullHD+ (2340 x 1080) LTPO OLED display. That panel is flat, and it can project up to 1 billion colors. It has an adaptive refresh rate of up to 120Hz, and HDR is supported. The display aspect ratio here is 19.5:9, while the screen-to-body ratio is at around 86%. The Gorilla Glass Victus 2 from Corning is here to protect the display.
Both of these displays are great. They’re vivid, sharp enough, have good viewing angles, and the blacks are deep. The Xiaomi 14 Ultra does have the sharpness advantage, even though many people won’t notice the difference, in all honestly. It also has the advantage of being brighter than the Sony Xperia 1 VI’s panel. That is a difference you’ll notice in direct sunlight, even though the Xperia 1 VI’s display is far from being dim.
Xiaomi 14 Ultra vs Sony Xperia 1 VI: Performance
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 from Qualcomm fuels both of these smartphones. The Xiaomi 14 Ultra is also equipped with 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM globally, and 512GB of internal storage. The Sony Xperia 1 VI comes with 12GB of LPDDR5X RAM, and up to 512GB of UFS 4.0 flash storage. Both smartphones are well-equipped in regards to performance-related hardware and are actually on the same playing field in that regard.
You’ll be glad to know that they both perform admirably too. Regular, everyday performance is outstanding. They both fly through any task you throw at them. Multitasking is not an issue, neither is image processing, browsing, consuming multimedia, and so on. They’re both truly outstanding in that regard, even though their software UIs are different. The Xiaomi 14 Ultra does come with more bloatware, but you can remove the vast majority of it.
What about gaming? Well, they’re both really good in that aspect too. One thing worth noting, however, is that the Xperia 1 VI has a tendency to throttle both CPU and GPU under considerable stress, presumably to keep cool. That is something that happens once you run rather demanding games. Still, the phone performs really well in the gaming department, as does the Xiaomi 14 Ultra.
Xiaomi 14 Ultra vs Sony Xperia 1 VI: Battery
Both of these smartphones include a 5,000mAh battery. The Xiaomi 14 Ultra even comes with a 5,300mAh battery pack in China, but globally it has a 5,000mAh unit. These two phones are actually rather similar in terms of battery life, as you’d assume based on their performance-related hardware and battery packs. Both of them offer really, really good battery life.
Getting over 7 hours of screen-on-time is doable on both smartphones, as long as you’re not actively trying to kill battery life. If you’re extremely careful you can push both to go above that level. That is considered to be good battery life, in all honesty. Your mileage may vary, of course, as you’ll be using your phone differently, with different apps, and different signal strengths. The point is, both of these phones generally offer good battery life.
The Xiaomi 14 Ultra easily wins the charging comparison, though. The phone supports 90W wired, 80W wireless, and 10W reverse wireless charging. The Sony Xperia 1 VI offers support for 30W wired, 15W wireless, and 5W reverse wireless charging. Do note that Xiaomi’s flagship does come with a 90W charger in the box, while the Xperia 1 VI doesn’t include a charger in the box. Sony’s flagship doesn’t even have a charging cable in the box.
Xiaomi 14 Ultra vs Sony Xperia 1 VI: Cameras
The Xiaomi 14 Ultra has four cameras on the back, while the Sony Xperia 1 VI sticks to three. There is a 50-megapixel main camera with variable aperture included on the Xiaomi 14 Ultra. In addition to that, you’ll find a 50-megapixel ultrawide unit (122-degree FoV), a 50-megapixel telephoto camera (3.2x optical zoom), and a 50-megapixel periscope telephoto camera (5x optical zoom). Leica’s lenses and expertise are also a part of the experience.
The Sony Xperia 1 VI, on the other hand, has a 48-megapixel main camera, a 12-megapixel ultrawide unit (123-degree FoV), and a 12-megapixel telephoto camera (3.5x-7.1x continuous optical zoom) 4cm macro). Sony’s flagship is backed by ZEISS, and there’s also a T* coating applied to the camera lenses.
Both of these smartphones do a fantastic job in terms of photography. They do a great job in all lighting scenarios, even though the pictures do tend to look a bit different. The Xiaomi 14 Ultra usually goes for a more contrasty and vibrant look, it all depends on whether you go for Leica Vibrant or Leica Authentic mode. Sony’s flagship tends to want to keep things closer to real life in terms of how the photo looks.
In low light, both smartphones do a fantastic job, and manage to pull plenty of details from the shadows, not to mention retain really good color palette at the same time. Their ultrawide and telephoto cameras are also admirable. Truth be said, both of these smartphones are fantastic camera phones, and chances are you’ll be happy with either one.
Audio
You’ll find a set of stereo speakers on both of these phones. The ones on the Sony Xperia 1 VI are a bit louder, but the difference is not that noticeable. Both sets of speakers are actually more than good enough, and well-balanced too.
What you will not find on the Xiaomi 14 Ultra is an audio jack. One is located at the top of the Xperia 1 VI, however. You can always utilize the Xiaomi 14 Ultra’s Type-C port for the same purpose, however.
