Vivo X90 Pro Review: Pushing The Limits Of Smartphone Photography
The Vivo X90 Pro is a mobile phone with a 1-inch camera sensor. Not much there. The sensor itself is good but benefits from Vivo's image processing and ZEISS optics and craftsmanship on this phone. The end result is...spoiler alert...great. I need to open this entry focusing on the camera, there is no other way to do it. Of course, there's more to the Vivo X90 Pro than just its camera setup, although that's a strong point of this phone and we're here to review it to give you a better idea of what it is. . In you must decide to buy.
Vivo X90 Pro is the company's flagship smartphone. The more powerful Vivo X90 Pro+ was also launched in China, but unfortunately not globally. The good news is that the two phones are very similar. The bad news is that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is exclusive to the Vivo X90 Pro+ as well as the Periscope telephoto lens. Apart from that, the same 1-inch camera is included in both phones and the MediaTek Dimensity 9200 that powers the phone is also very good. So let's get started, there's a lot to talk about.
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Vivo X90 Pro review: hardware / design
The first thing that came to my mind when I held this phone in my hands... This is a big difference from the Vivo X60 Pro+. It looks very similar to the phone, which is great. It feels good in hand, unlike the Vivo X80 Pro, which feels quite bulky (but not by much) and a bit difficult to hold. The vegan leather backplate helps with grip, which I've always liked on larger phones. The vegan leather gets a little sticky after using the phone without a case for a while.
Only one color available outside of China
The phone is only available in one color worldwide, the Legendary Black color. It's basically a dark gray model. The “Red” color option is only available in China, at least for now. The front and back are identical as they both fold into an aluminum frame. Yes, this phone's screen is curved and the bezels are very small. There's also a hole for the view camera at the top center. All physical buttons are on the right side and the device includes a fingerprint reader. More quickly.
On the back is a large circular camera island.
On the back is a large round camera module that hides the triple camera. The main camera uses a 1 inch Sony sensor, we will talk more about the camera part. The ZEISS branding as well as that of Vivo is visible on the back. The company decided to add a metal line that reads "Xtreme Imagination" under the camera module to separate the top and bottom of the phone. The design is much better in person than in proof. This design won't be for everyone, but the phone feels premium, feels good in the hand and looks great on metal and glass. I personally have no complaints because Vivo makes this phone more compact than before.
Accesories
The Vivo X90 Pro that we received comes with a silicone case. You may have noticed that some models have a vegan leather case with the same design as the back of the phone. I don't know if it's exclusive to the Vivo X90 Pro+ model in China or if it also comes with the red Vivo X90 Pro model. It's not included in this package but that's all I can say.
Vivo X90 Pro review: Ad
The Vivo X90 Pro has a nice big screen. It features a 6.78-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 2800 x 1260. The panel can project up to 1 billion colors and has a 120Hz refresh rate (yes, it's an LTPO panel). It supports HDR10+ content and reaches a maximum brightness of 1,300 nits. It has an aspect ratio of 20:9, in case you were wondering, and the screen is curved.
The screen is in FullHD+ mode by default, which is great.
Now the panel itself is beautiful. Even in the default FullHD+ mode, the phone's default mode, it's pin-sharp. To be honest, you can't tell the difference. The colors are strong and the viewing angles are also very good. But if you look directly at the screen, you can see some fog on the side through the indentation. Unfortunately, the screen is curved at this point. We know that Gorilla Glass protects the screen, but we don't know the exact frequency.
Smooth scrolling despite the high touch sample rate.
This control panel is specially designed for this phone. The scrolling is buttery smooth and the animations are excellent. I speeded them up a bit and they worked perfectly before and after these tweaks. Touch response is also quite good, but I wish Vivo had at least a 480Hz touch sample rate instead of 300Hz. If you use a higher touch sample rate, the difference is noticeable, sure. If not, you don't care. To be honest, the only thing I wish for is a higher brightness. Very comfortable and bright enough to receive direct sunlight. Oh yes, there is also an AOD (Always On Display) mode.
You can easily customize this look to your liking.
Vivo gives you the option to customize the screen to your liking. You can manually adjust the color temperature or select one of the preset modes. If you prefer lighter colors, that's no problem. If you want the real thing, then Vivo is for you. The default settings are fine though, so don't worry if you don't want to make these changes.
Vivo X90 Pro review: performance
OK, so... the specs. The Vivo X90 Pro is a very powerful smartphone on paper. It doesn't pack the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC like its Chinese "Plus" sibling, but it does come with the MediaTek Dimensity 9200 SoC. This is MediaTek's most robust offering to date, and it performs very well. It was my first phone with this chip, and to be honest, I didn't miss the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 very much in terms of performance. More quickly.
Here you will find LPDDR5X RAM and UFS 4.0 flash memory
Vivo has also integrated 12GB of LPDDR5X RAM with 256GB of UFS 4.0 flash storage into this phone (this is the only model available worldwide). In other words, the company hasn't really expanded RAM or storage yet. This is the last available module. Both handsets with the aforementioned SoC ensure this phone performs well every time. It doesn't matter if you use it for multitasking, media consumption or gaming... it works great.
It can run even the most demanding games on Android.
This phone doesn't sweat even when you're using the most intense themes for Android. Sometimes it's hot, but not hot and doesn't affect performance. Vivo has thought of cooling here and does well in this regard. In fact, we couldn't tell the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and MediaTek Dimensity 9200 apart from everyday performance. The MediaTek chip is a lower benchmark than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC, but you won't feel the difference in everyday use. It can even run Genshin Impact on the highest settings available, so... here we go.
Vivo X90 Pro review: Battery
Let's get rid of the list first. The Vivo X90 Pro comes with an internal 4,870mAh battery. It supports 120W wired charging and a 120W charging brick is included in the retail box. The device supports 50W wireless charging, but of course you need to get a wireless charger separately. Apart from that, reverse charging is also supported if you want to charge your headphones on the go or something similar.
The battery life is very good, but could be better
That said, how is the battery life? Well, that's pretty good, but not as impressive as what we've seen on other flagship phones recently, as the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 seems to have pretty good control over power consumption. I was able to get around 6-7 hours of screen time while using it, going as high as 7.5 once or twice. The first few days I was closer to 5.5-6 hours because YouTube was active for some reason. Battery life improves when I limit background activity and get 6.5 to 7 hours of screen time.
Note that I don't play games on my phone, but I do edit photos, watch a lot of YouTube, take a lot of photos, surf, text, email... anyone else can guess. Another thing to note is that like many of you, I spend most of my day on wifi. However, your mileage can of course vary. Different usage habits, different applications, different signals, etc. will affect the battery life.
Even if you run out of battery early, you can recharge here at high speed
Now don't worry if your battery is draining prematurely. The Vivo 120W Flash Charger will take you from 0-50% in 8 minutes. It takes less than half an hour to fully charge. 50W charging is slow, but also very fast if you choose this option. Charging is a lot faster than the 15W charging offered by Samsung and Apple, not even close.
Vivo X90 Pro review: Camera
Spoiler alert... The Vivo X90 Pro is an excellent camera smartphone. I really enjoyed my time with him and took some great photos, some of which I will share below. There's actually a lot to talk about here, but let's start with the technical stuff first. Unfortunately, unlike the China-exclusive Vivo X90 Pro+, it doesn't have a periscope camera. But it has the exact same main camera and uses Sony's 1-inch camera sensor. If you keep track of it, it's the Sony IMX989 sensor. It's the largest camera sensor ever for a smartphone and has a lot of potential. It needs the right software to turn it on and Vivo definitely delivers here.
Excellent camera sensor powered by ZEISS and excellent camera software.
Vivo has a 50.3-megapixel main camera with an aperture of f/1.8 and a pixel size of 1.6um. It supports OIS, and the same goes for Dual Pixel PDAF. The laser autofocus also ensures faster focusing times. A 50-megapixel ultra-wide camera is also present here. This camera has an aperture of nf/2.0 and a FoV of 108 degrees. This camera supports auto focus. A 50-megapixel capable telephoto lens is also included on the rear. It has an aperture of nf/1.6, a pixel size of 0.7 µm, OIS support and 2x optical zoom.
As far as photos from the main camera go, it's pretty good. They are lively, detailed and balanced. The phone handles highlights like a champ even in the harshest HDR conditions. Given the size of the sensor, you get a creamy bokeh effect reminiscent of a DSLR camera. I've never seen such depth of field on any other smartphone camera, it really brings photos to life. Capturing my pets with this sensor is great fun, even in low light. Some of these examples are listed below.
You can choose between the standard recording modes Vivo and ZEISS.
Note that you now have two recording modes available. You can take photos with Vivo's default settings or in "ZEISS" mode. I prefer ZEISS because the colors are less saturated and the images are closer to reality but still sharp and real. Sometimes the Vivo mode is useful, but once I realized what kind of photos I was taking I used the ZEISS for over 90%. Most of the following examples were taken with ZEISS settings. I've included some comparisons below so you can see the differences. I use ZEISS in normal and low light conditions because it makes photos look better.
You don't even have to use a separate night mode, at all
In low light there is no need to use the special night mode available here. If you want the picture to be brighter you can do it, but normal mode will work. This phone can take photos in low light instantly or within seconds depending on your settings. Bottom line, it's very fast and the results are very good. It fits the image well. It captures plenty of shadow detail, but not to the point of overexposure. Thanks to the ZEISS T* coating, reflections are also minimized. That's been the case with Vivo's flagships for years, and I'm very glad it's here. Vivo and ZEISS have been working together for a long time, and you can tell.
Unfortunately, there is no periscope camera.
Aside from that Vivo telephoto lens, I'd rather see a periscope telephoto lens on this phone, but...yes. You can zoom to a certain level and still retain good detail (depending on the scene), but don't expect crazy zoom levels. The macro photography, on the other hand, is excellent. Below are some examples. Even in the harshest light at home, at night, he was able to get the job done. The ring picture below shows this best.
Video recording is also very good.
Video recording is also very good. It's not the best, as you can see the jelly effect in low light when drawing, and there are a few other issues, but overall the video capture is pretty good. This phone shines when it comes to quiet, but it shines to an extent that's difficult to describe in words. The Vivo X90 Pro is my favorite camera smartphone so far, making full use of the 1-inch camera sensor to get great results. It takes a little getting used to, but once you've done it, it's a pleasure to use.
ZEISS sample and without ZEISS sample:
Various camera examples (almost all in ZEISS mode)
Vivo X90 Pro review: Software
Android 13 comes preinstalled on the Vivo X90 Pro, with the company's Funtouch 13 UI on top. Funtouch is different from stock Android but includes many standard components. It feels like your real Android experience and way better than last year's version. However, I haven't noticed any major problems with the software. It works very well and it is also very fluid. Even the notification center and quick toggle look like stock Android, which is always a good thing. It works for both looks and functionality. In the notification center you will find a media widget with a scrolling animation.
Funtouch UI has some useful features
You can choose to install all apps on your home screen, or you want a more standard Android experience with an app drawer. The settings screen is similar to Samsung's. The overall look is great and as said, the user interface works well. You will also find some additional functions there. For example, gestures allow you to swipe up or down with three fingers to activate specific actions, such as B. Create screenshot, enable split screen, etc. . I've used it many times like previous Vivo phones.
This UI gives you the ability to multitask your app when a specific app closes and you don't want it to. RAM management is generally very good, and if you're having trouble with apps running in the background, you can always close them. For example, I have to do this with an app for my smartwatch. I've been doing this since the beginning and haven't had any problems since.
There are a few minor issues, but overall the software is great.
I've had a few instances where the notification didn't appear a second time, but it only happened twice. Everything else is inherently fast-paced, so I think things will clear up soon. I also have this version of the UI on my Vivo X60 Pro+ and it works great. I really can't fault the user interface and I'm sure most of you will be happy with the software that comes with the Vivo X90 Pro.
Vivo X90 Pro review: Should you buy it?
The Vivo X90 Pro is currently one of the best camera smartphones on the market. Vivo has managed to combine the best camera sensor available (for a smartphone) with the best software and optics from ZEISS to deliver an amazing experience. Vivo X80 Pro has consistency issues but Vivo X90 Pro does not have these issues. I wish Vivo would introduce Vivo X90 Pro+ to the world because Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 has better battery life and the periscope camera is very useful. Even without those extras, the Vivo X90 Pro is an excellent deal. Price is a big concern for most of you and unfortunately we are currently unaware of prices outside of China. One thing is for sure, this phone is superior in many ways and doesn't have many flaws. So if camera performance is important to you, this is a phone you should definitely consider.
