Vivos X100 Pro Offers Another Massive Camera Sensor To An International Audience

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January 02, 2024
Vivos X100 Pro Offers Another Massive Camera Sensor To An International Audience
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The Vivo X100 Pro brings another huge camera sensor to the international audience

The Vivo X100 Pro brings another huge camera sensor to the international audience

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Previously sold only in China, the device will arrive in Europe with a heavier camera, including an improved telephoto lens.

Alison Johnson is a reviewer with 10 years of experience writing about consumer technology. He is particularly interested in mobile photography and telecommunications. He previously worked at DPReview.

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Back of Vivo X100 Pro.
Vivo X100 Pro Blue.
Image: Vivo

Even with small smartphone cameras, lenses are important. Vivo seems to agree with this, as lens improvements are the focus of its new flagship smartphones, the Vivo X100 and Vivo X100 Pro. They were first launched in China on November 13th, and Vivo is now launching them globally with a 6.78-inch 120Hz OLED display.

The X100 is available in Southeast Asian markets including India and Indonesia, while the more expensive X100 Pro is available in European markets. And no wonder the US doesn't accept guns.

Like its predecessor, the X90 Pro, the X100 Pro offers a one-inch 50-megapixel primary camera, a large sensor by smartphone standards. Vivo claims it's calibrated with "optical precision calibration" for "consistent clarity and quality." The X100 Pro's 50-megapixel telephoto lens also benefits from up to 4.3x optical zoom, up from 2x on the previous model. It has the new name APO, which is the term Zeiss uses for lenses designed to reduce chromatic aberration. There's also a floating lens element—no, literally floating—that lets you take close-up shots with the telephoto lens.

Vivo X100, pocket computer, back pocket.
No Pro X100 is sold in Europe.
Image: Vivo

The X100 has a modest 50-megapixel 1/1.49-inch main camera with a 64-megapixel 3x optical telephoto lens. No flare, but both cameras have a Zeiss coating on the lens. Both phones have 50-megapixel ultra-wide-angle cameras as well as an additional imaging chip, but the X100s is the older V2 version and the Pro is the newer V3 version, which offers cinematic 4K portrait video.

The X100 and X100 Pro are powered by the flagship MediaTek Dimensity 9300 chipset. Most other flagship series equip the "small" model with a smaller screen. Things are different with the Vivo, both using the same 6.78-inch OLED panel with a 120Hz refresh rate. Both have an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance. So the main differences are in the cameras listed above.

When I tested the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra's camera earlier this year, the Vivo X90 Pro showed promising results. The company is following an extensive image sensor strategy, which has some advantages, such as better noise-base performance and more natural bokeh. But at the time, Samsung was leading in most cases thanks to its "more pixels is better" philosophy and smart calculations. It's good to see that Vivo has doubled down on the quality of the lenses. in my testing, the X90 Pro showed some lens flaws that ruined some of my images. Either way, it probably won't be long before the X100 Pro and the inevitable Galaxy S24 Ultra meet in a rematch.

Vivo declined to provide pricing information in Europe at the time of the ban, but the X100 Pro will sell in Hong Kong for HK$7,998, which equates to €937 or $1,024. The non-Pro X100, meanwhile, costs HK$5,998 (approx. US$768/€702).