Today vivo X300 Ultra launched in Russia, and against that backdrop, the Xiaomi 17 Ultra story looks particularly awkward. While one manufacturer releases the best camera phone of the year, the other manages to break the camera on its flagship with a firmware update. And not in some secondary module, but in the periscope telephoto lens — the very reason people buy the Xiaomi 17 Ultra smartphone for 80,000+ rubles. Here’s what happened and what to do now.

Xiaomi managed to break its top camera phone with its own update. Image: TechTablets

HyperOS Update Problems

In mid-April, Xiaomi released the HyperOS 3.0.301 update for the Xiaomi 17 Ultra and its Leica versions. The update rolled out to smartphones and brought something nobody expected: the periscope telephoto lens stopped focusing properly. More precisely: it only works at 3.7x magnification. Everything else (any other zoom values) fails to focus and produces blurry images.

But in this case, one broken feature cancels out any benefits of the update. Buying a flagship camera phone for a huge amount of money and ending up with a smartphone without a working telephoto lens — that’s not what buyers expect.

This is what photos look like from the most expensive Xiaomi smartphone

A Xiaomi update failure of this scale is not an isolated complaint. Dozens, then hundreds of messages with the same problem appeared on Xiaomi support forums and Reddit. Users from different countries, with different firmware versions, with different settings — and all have the same result after installing HyperOS 3.0.301.

Which Xiaomi Models Broke After the Update

Xiaomi update problems affected three models at once, in both regions:

  • Xiaomi 17 Ultra: global version (G) and Chinese (CN);
  • Xiaomi 17 Ultra by Leica: same regions;
  • Leica Leitzphone powered by Xiaomi: likewise.

This is an important point: the problem is not with a specific batch or region. It’s systemic and affects everyone who installed the ill-fated update. And here’s where it gets really unpleasant: subsequent updates 3.0.302 and 3.0.306 did not fix the problem. Meaning Xiaomi continued to release updates, but none of them restored the telephoto lens functionality.

The Xiaomi 17 Ultra camera is the main reason people buy this smartphone. A periscope telephoto with 5x optical zoom and Leica optics — that’s exactly what sets the Ultra apart from the regular Xiaomi 17. After the update, that distinction essentially disappeared. The Xiaomi 17 Ultra phone costing 80,000 rubles turned into a mid-range smartphone in terms of camera capabilities.

What to Do If the Camera Doesn’t Work on Xiaomi

The main thing first: a factory reset doesn’t help. This has already been verified by numerous affected users — after a reset, the Xiaomi camera telephoto behaves exactly the same way. But there are some things that might help.

If the update hasn’t been installed yet:

  1. Go to “Settings — System Update.”
  2. If you see an available HyperOS update, do not install it until an official fix from Xiaomi is released.
  3. You can postpone the installation by tapping “Remind me later” or simply dismissing the notification.

Don’t forget to disable automatic updates in the settings

If the update has already been installed:

  1. Contact an authorized Xiaomi service center: there is a documented case where an affected user was given a new unit of the smartphone.
  2. Try rolling back to the previous version of HyperOS: this is technically possible through fastboot, but requires bootloader unlocking and carries a risk of data loss.
  3. Follow official Xiaomi channels: as soon as a fix is released, it should appear in the “System Update” section.

Should you update your Xiaomi right now? Definitely not. Wait for an official announcement from the company about a fix release.

When Will the Xiaomi Camera Problem Be Fixed

Xiaomi officially acknowledged the existence of the problem. This happened about ten days ago in a thread on Reddit. The company confirmed that it knows about the bug and is working on a fix. But no specific timeline was given. The Xiaomi fix should come in the form of another HyperOS update. When exactly — unknown. Meanwhile, three subsequent updates after the bug appeared did not resolve the issue. This is itself a troubling sign: either the fix is technically complex, or Xiaomi is not giving it priority attention.

Xiaomi acknowledged the problem, but a month has passed and there's still no fix.

A month without a working telephoto lens on a flagship camera phone is not a minor UI bug. It’s a breakdown of the device’s main feature.

Is It Worth Buying the Xiaomi 17 Ultra in 2026

The question is quite reasonable, given the problem users have encountered. Let me try to look at it honestly so you can decide for yourself: is it worth buying the Xiaomi 17 Ultra.

Arguments against buying right now:

  • Active software issue with the periscope: buying the smartphone today, you risk getting a device with a non-functional telephoto lens;
  • Xiaomi hasn’t named a fix timeline: it’s unknown when this will be resolved;
  • Alternatives are strong: vivo X300 Ultra offers a more powerful camera system without active critical bugs.

Arguments for:

  • When the fix comes out, this is still one of the best camera phones on the market;
  • Leica optics, 5x periscope, and photo quality when the firmware works properly remain at the highest level;
  • The price makes it competitive.

The HyperOS update in this case became an unpleasant reminder that even the most expensive smartphones are not immune to critical software failures.