Xiaomi just handed Apple a brilliant way to reinvent MagSafe—except this time, it’s not about charging. At MWC 2025, I saw a concept that could redefine smartphone photography altogether: Xiaomi’s Modular Optical System. It takes the biggest limitation of smartphone cameras—their tiny sensors and restrictive optics—and fixes it with a simple snap-on lens. Instead of trying to cram larger sensors into increasingly massive camera bumps, Xiaomi outsources the optics to an external lens that attaches magnetically, letting the phone handle the processing while the lens does the heavy lifting.
Your phone is already a powerhouse. It runs AI-enhanced computational photography, processes RAW images in milliseconds, and even records 4K video with real-time stabilization. The only thing holding it back from being a true professional camera is physics. Sensors need space, and high-end lenses aren’t exactly pocket-friendly. That’s where Xiaomi’s solution comes in. By separating the sensor and optics into a modular attachment, the system achieves a best-of-both-worlds approach. You get professional-grade optics with the power of AI-driven post-processing—all without making your phone look like it’s carrying a brick on its back.
Designer: Xiaomi
The concept I tested at MWC featured a Xiaomi 35mm f/1.4 lens with a 100MP Light Fusion X Type 4/3 sensor, which is more than double the size of any sensor currently found in smartphones. The aperture range makes it excellent for low-light photography, and thanks to the dedicated optics, there’s no need for artificial portrait blur. The bokeh effect is real, created naturally by the lens instead of being generated through edge-detection algorithms that often struggle with complex subjects like hair or eyeglasses. Lean into your phone’s computational camera app and you can exaggerate that bokeh even more, showing how the handshake of hardware and software can really give these camera phones an edge over DSLRs or mirrorless counterparts.
Attaching the lens to the phone felt like snapping on a MagSafe accessory. It connected magnetically, aligning perfectly thanks to small pogo pins for power transfer. But the real magic is in Xiaomi’s proprietary LaserLink technology, which uses near-infrared laser communication to transfer image data at speeds up to 10 Gbps. That’s fast enough for real-time photo capture, video recording, and computational enhancements without noticeable lag. It felt as seamless as using a built-in camera, but with the undeniable quality of a dedicated system.
Once attached, the camera app recognizes the modular lens instantly. Switching between the built-in camera and the detachable lens was as simple as tapping an icon. Autofocus worked smoothly, thanks to a built-in motor, but Xiaomi also included a physical focus ring—something photographers will appreciate. Shooting in Pro mode, I had full manual control over shutter speed, ISO, and white balance, making it feel like a proper mirrorless camera experience, minus the bulky body. RAW capture was available too, ensuring photographers could get the most detail out of their shots.
One of the biggest advantages of this system is what it does to smartphone design. With the sensor and optics moved to an external module, flagship smartphones no longer need enormous camera bumps. The recent trend of oversized camera modules has made phones thicker, less ergonomic, and sometimes incompatible with wireless charging. Xiaomi’s approach eliminates that problem entirely. In theory, this could lead to slimmer, more balanced phone designs while giving users the flexibility to attach high-end lenses only when needed.
The implications of this modular system go beyond photography. LaserLink’s high-speed data transfer and magnetic attachment system could pave the way for a new ecosystem of accessories. Imagine snapping on an external gimbal for stabilization, a professional-grade microphone for video recording, or even gaming accessories that benefit from the low-latency connection. While Xiaomi hasn’t announced any additional modules, the potential is obvious.
Of course, modular phone concepts have been attempted before, with varying degrees of success. LG’s Friends modules, Motorola’s Moto Mods, and Google’s Project Ara all aimed to introduce swappable components, but they never gained mass adoption. The CMF Phone tried to dabble with modularity too, but it was more open-sourced than actually creating an ecosystem of tech modules. Xiaomi’s approach feels different because it doesn’t try to make the entire phone modular—just the part that truly benefits from it. The challenge will be whether users are willing to carry additional lenses, but for photography enthusiasts, that’s hardly a deal-breaker.
For now, the Xiaomi Modular Optical System is still a concept with no official release date or pricing. But after testing it at MWC, I can say this: It’s one of the most exciting smartphone photography innovations in years. With smartphone AI advancing at an incredible pace, pairing it with professional optics makes perfect sense. This could be the first step toward a future where flagship phones are no longer constrained by physical camera limitations, but instead, embrace modularity to push mobile photography beyond what we thought was possible.
