WIRED Names Xiaomi 17 Ultra Camera King Among Phones Unavailable in the US
In an update from July 2026, WIRED selected the Xiaomi 17 Ultra as its top recommendation for smartphones available outside the U.S., praising its 1-inch primary sensor and a 200-megapixel telephoto lens offering 3.2X to 4.3X optical zoom. The Honor Magic 8 Pro secured the second position due to its impressive 6,271-mAh battery and Magic OS 10 running on Android 16. The best folding phone title went to the Honor Magic V6, while the Nubia Redmagic 11S Pro, priced at $799, was recognized as the leading gaming device. The midrange category was won by the Honor 600 (under £550/$729), and the Xiaomi Poco X8 Pro ($510) was deemed the best budget option. The Fairphone (Gen. 6) was acknowledged in the repairable category. The guide also included additional devices and cautioned about potential issues with missing LTE/5G bands and customs fees.
Key facts
- WIRED's July 2026 update named the Xiaomi 17 Ultra the best phone unavailable in the US
- The Xiaomi 17 Ultra pairs a 1-inch 50-megapixel main sensor with a 200-megapixel telephoto offering 3.2X to 4.3X optical zoom
- The Honor Magic 8 Pro was runner-up, featuring a 6,271-mAh battery and Magic OS 10 on Android 16
- The Honor Magic V6 was named best folding phone and the Nubia Redmagic 11S Pro ($799) best gaming phone
- The Honor 600 won best midrange at under £550 (about $729) and the Xiaomi Poco X8 Pro best budget at $510
- The Fairphone (Gen. 6) scored a perfect 10 on iFixit's repairability scale and costs €549 or $749 with /e/OS
- The update added the Honor Magic V6, Nubia Redmagic 11S Pro, Honor 600, and mentions of the Xiaomi 17T and 17T Pro
- The guide warns that imported phones may lack US LTE and 5G bands, incur customs fees, and ship without Google services
Entities
Artists
- Simon Hill
- Julian Chokkattu
Institutions
- WIRED
- Xiaomi
- Poco
- Redmi
- Honor
- Huawei
- Nubia
- ZTE
- Realme
- Oppo
- Leica
- Qualcomm
- MediaTek
- Amazon
- Fairphone
- iFixit
- Murena
- Infinix
- Pininfarina
- Ferrari
- Maserati
- Hasselblad
- Bose
- Doro
- Nothing
- Samsung
- Apple
- VistaPrint
- Squarespace
- LegalZoom
- Canon
- Verizon
- AT&T
Locations
- United States
- China
- United Kingdom
- Europe
- Germany
- Sweden