Sony Xperia 1 VIII vs Xiaomi 15 Ultra
Verdict
Sony Xperia 1 VIII scores higher on the OH Rank (78 vs 77), winning 4 of 10 categories including Performance and Selfie. Xiaomi 15 Ultra is 1mm wider than Sony Xperia 1 VIII. Sony Xperia 1 VIII is the more recent release, from Jun 18, 2026.
Score Breakdown
Performance /15
Battery /15
Screen /15
IP Protection /15
Main Camera /15
Selfie /5
Video /5
SD Memory /5
Software /5
Desktop Replacement /5
TOTAL
78
77
Sony Xperia 1 VIII
74mm (2.91in) · Jun 18, 2026 · Rank #24
13+10+10+12+12+4+4+5+5+3 = 78
SUPERIOR* TOP Memory Expansion* TOP Software
EDITORIAL: Sony is back with it's top-dog 1 Series phone but the alarming lack of software effort remains. As usual, the hardware is amazing: premium build, great battery life, bright screen, good front-facing stereo speakers, two-stage camera button and now exclusive in the flagship world: SD memory expansion and a headphone jack. The phone is still one of the narrowest flagships and the only one to hide the selfie in a bazel to let you view content on a full screen.
PROs
relatively narrow, updated design, good SD 8 Elite Gen 5 performance (tho it will heavily throttle under heavy load), 36hr long endurance from a (still just) 5000mAh lithium battery, selfie-free >1500nits bright (and sub-1nit capable) LTPO OLED screen with options like Creator Mode and HDR support, IP68 protection, excellent 52MP 24mm OIS main + 50MP 70mm OIS telephoto + 50MP 16mm ultrawide (all with dual-pixel PDAF) setup, very good 12MP 24mm selfie, good video recording, fast and tool-free expandable memory slot, 4 years of stock-like Android OS with some proprietary tricks, limited desktop replacement functionality with Android 17 update, very fast USB-C 3.2 port with OTG and Video Out, headphone/microphone jack, very good front-facing stereo speakers, two-step camera button
CONs
85min slow 30W (15W wireless) charging, sub-400ppi LTPO screen doesn't drop refresh below 30Hz, flagship-grade camera hardware should produce better images, no AF on a selfie, minimal AI integration and general lack of effort on the software side
Xiaomi 15 Ultra
75mm (2.95in) · Feb 27, 2025 · Rank #33
11+11+15+12+15+3+5+0+5+0 = 77
FLY* TOP Screen* TOP Camera* TOP Video Recording
EDITORIAL: This year, one of the TOP 5 camera phones came with a significant battery endurance improvement. The main camera retained the 1" sensor, lost the variable aperture but the 2 zoom cameras are now better then ever. There is no AF on the selfie and like last year, there is an extra camera grip available for the ultimate photo & video creation. Still missing are SD memory card and the desktop replacement feature. Promised are 4 years of OS updates.
PROs
SnapDragon 8 Elite processor with UFS 4.1 fast overall performance, a 5410mAh Silicone Carbon battery (6000mAh in China) with a >30hr endurance, 90W wired or 80W wireless charging, >1500nits bright 500+ppi LTPO OLED screen with Dolby Vision, one of the best cameras on the market: 50MP 23mm main + 200MP 100mm tele + 50MP 70mm tele (all with PDAF & OIS) + 50MP 14mm PDAF ultrawide, great back camera recording, 4 years of OS updates
CONs
32MP 21mm selfie with no OIS or even AF, lack of expandable SDmemory storage (while offering 8k video recording) and a lack of desktop replacement software
Both phones here were scored by me, using the same ten categories, with no ads, sponsorships, or manufacturer relationships — this comparison is as objective and honest as it gets.
Visit Home page to compare world's best phones. You can see scoring and ranking explained on the About page.