Users of the Xiaomi 14 and 14 Ultra phones, as well as older models like the Xiaomi 13T, are reporting camera issues, and so far, Xiaomi refuses to acknowledge that this is a technical issue with the phones that they should be fixing. Even we, in the Xiaomi 14 review, noticed that the main camera lens fogs up when there are large temperature differences, but we thought it was an isolated case on our test unit. It seems that most of the devices in the range are affected by this problem, while Xiaomi publicly says that it is a “natural phenomenon”.
Xiaomi does not acknowledge the issue of foggy cameras on Xiaomi 14, 14 Ultra and 13T Pro
It seems that units sold especially in Europe are the most affected by these issues, judging by the number of incidents reported on Reddit and in Amazon reviews of the Xiaomi 14 and Xiaomi 13T Pro series phones. Those most affected seem to be those living in northern countries, who can experience the transition from warm indoor temperatures to cold outdoor temperatures more quickly.
But it is strange that Xiaomi does not want to take responsibility for this problem that only occurs on its expensive series phones. The cheaper Xiaomi phones, but also the phones of other brands do not have such problems, and even the affected ones have this problem with only one camera, usually: the main one. Furthermore, the affected phones are water and dust resistant to the IP68 standard, so water shouldn’t be able to get inside to cause condensation.
Xiaomi says it’s not a “product quality” issue, just a “natural phenomenon”:
“Xiaomi 14 series are tested in our laboratories to ensure protection against dust ingress and water splashes. We assure you that it is not a product quality issue. Instead, it is a natural phenomenon encountered in some specific usage environments, caused by fogging of the camera lens due to temperature differences between the lens and the surrounding air. This is more common in situations where the ambient temperature changes rapidly from high to low temperatures, in case of prolonged exposure to high temperatures and high humidity, or in case of water damage,” Xiaomi representatives told Android Central.
However, these statements do not explain why only these series of phones have these problems and why we do not experience this “natural phenomenon” on phones of other brands or on other models from Xiaomi.
