These days, smartphones have become very stagnant. Even the so-called ‘new’ smartphones are starting to feel plain, dull and boring. The design language feels the same, there is not much improvement in the performance department, and even the cameras have just been limited to megapixel count.
But amongst all this dullness, vivo has continued to innovate, managing to impress with its smartphones in the recent past. Last year, they brought with them the X300 series, which has given rise to fierce competition in the flagship segment.
Well, it looks like vivo isn’t looking to stop this trend anytime soon. With the launch of the Vivo V70 and V70 Elite on the horizon, it is safe to say that they are looking to dominate the more mass premium segment now. Both the latest vivo V70 and the V70 Elite have made some incremental changes.
From the new design language to the performance underneath and the cameras. It draws heavy inspiration from its big brothers in the flagship series and brings it to the affordable luxury crowd. Without wasting much time, let’s check out how the vivo V70 and the V70 Elite are making the biggest innovation in the V series.
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Most might agree that the core foundation of a smartphone starts with the design since it’s one of the most important things with which you interact. And since its inception, the vivo V series has always been known to focus on the design aspect. Heck, I’d go as far as to say that vivo’s V series is almost a fashion statement at this point.
And with the latest V70 and the V70 Elite, it is simply no different since it builds upon the roots of the V series. The vivo V60’s design was already one of the best in its segment, but with the latest entry, vivo has evolved above and beyond. Many might call the move from the hyper-curved design of the predecessor a bit of a gamble, but vivo has played it smart.
Vivo chose to go with a new ergonomic design which feels much more handy, and simply put, it’s a masterclass that attracts the more “mass-premium” audience. It has adopted a flat frame design that comes in an aluminium alloy, which not only gives it good structural rigidity but also makes it feel premium in the hands, too.
And oh, I can certainly talk about the diverse colour options of the device all day long; it really makes the V70 and the V70 Elite the most colourful in the V series yet. From the bold Passion Red colour that is available on both the V70 and the V70 Elite.
The Elite also gets the minimal Sand Beige and the classy Authentic Black colourways. Not to forget, the Lemon Yellow colour option of the V70. Safe to say, vivo has a colour option for everyone. All the colours not only feel premium, but they also complement the overall aesthetics of the device.
Another design aspect that most makers miss out on is the display bezels. I mean, you don’t just want the phone to look great from the back; it also has to look equally good from the front. And with the V70 Elite, vivo has worked on both these aspects.
The display bezels on the vivo V70 and the V70 Elite are thin, measuring at just 1.25 mm. They are among the narrowest in the segment, and not only that, but they’re also uniform all along. Along with the premium design, the beautiful display helps you give a premium and immersive experience.
Historically, the V series isn’t really known to be a performance powerhouse, and that makes sense given that the devices are targeted more towards the camera and design-centric crowd. However, with the V70 Elite, vivo is breaking that tradition, since they’re bringing out the big guns with the Snapdragon® 8s Gen 3.
Built on a 4nm process, the 8s Gen 3 is a flagship powerhouse that manages to punch well above its weight. Scoring comfortably around 1,889,405 in the Antutu Benchmark tests, this chipset is bringing a revolution to the V series. It brings an overall 92% upgrade to the GPU performance while reaching close to a 20% upgrade in the CPU department when compared to the previous generation.
Though you have to understand that this chipset isn’t just about hitting high benchmark scores. It’s also about the intelligence that it manages to bring to the table. While it is a major reason why the phone performs multitasking very well: it is also the reason for the advanced AI imaging that the device has.
Combine all that with the fast and high-performance LPDDR5X memory, along with the blazing-fast UFS 4.1 storage, and the overall experience is just buttery smooth. Even the gaming performance on the device is simply lovely because of the X-Axis Linear Motor that vivo has integrated. It really helps in giving an advanced 4D vibration while playing games.
With the V70 and the V70 Elite, it almost feels as if all the major global powerhouses, which include Sony, ZEISS, Qualcomm and vivo, sat at one table to work on something exceptional. Ever since ZEISS and vivo started their collaboration, the camera department of vivo’s devices has evolved to another level.
On one hand, there are ZEISS and Sony, the camera powerhouses that bring years of imaging experience. And tying it all together is the smart algorithm built by Vivo, along with Qualcomm’s smart AI ISPs, which have set the standard for smartphone imaging. All in all, it’s such a smooth blend of processes, where the device is able to process data from the Sony sensor through the ZEISS-calibrated colour profiles to bring some unprecedented results.
This clever combination of these powerhouses also helps with optical flexibility on the device. It is almost as if you’re carrying a bunch of prime lenses inside your pocket.
You have the option for multiple different focal lengths that allow you to tell a different view, based on how you see it. Be it capturing those scenic landscapes or skylines, which becomes possible with the 15 mm ultrawide in your hands. Or suppose, if you want to tell a story, the tighter 24 mm view is just perfect for that.
Thanks to the 50MP ZEISS Night Telephoto camera on the device, we get access to the iconic 50mm photographer view that gives you that natural portrait feel. Be it those early-morning portraits during sunrise or those low-light portraits during the night, the overall output that the device is able to produce is simply spectacular.
The dedicated ZEISS telephoto camera becomes even more useful, as it is able to go as far as 85 mm optically, helping in achieving a different level of creativity. Just check out some of the awesome pictures we managed to take with both these devices.
Honestly, though, the best part is that all these different modes aren’t just limited to photographs. In the growing digital age, where videos have seen a big rise, upgrades to smartphone videography has also become important. Vivo has given equal focus to both these aspects.
The device comes with support for 4K 60 fps video with zoom clarity, and it’s genuinely such a nice feature to have. It allows for stable and smooth footage to be recorded at multiple focal lengths, be it on 1x, 2x or even 3x. Definitely useful for all the growing content creators and influencers who want a phone mainly for recording videos.
With the V70 and V70 Elite, vivo is expanding the use case of AI-based features into the camera application, and these definitely work as a game-changer. Let’s take a look at some of the best AI features I’ve found in the device so far.
First up, the AI Magic Weather was one of my favourite features, as it almost worked like magic. It allows you to change the weather conditions of an image. Just take a look at one of the sample pictures. While originally it featured a dark background, with the help of this feature, it became possible to completely revamp the look and feel of the image.
Not only that, but the AI Floral Blessing feature is also very useful and handy for adding a different level of depth and emotion into some of the moments of your life. It adds authentic petal showers to the picture, which helps in making the image cherishable forever.
Both the vivo V70 and the V70 Elite are thoughtful evolutions for the V series. The devices have built upon the design and the camera heritage of the V series while fusing it with a new focus on performance. As a consumer, you no longer have to choose between a phone that looks premium and a phone that performs like a flagship.
By bringing Qualcomm, Sony, and ZEISS into a tighter alignment than ever before, vivo has created its most complete V series smartphone to date. As we count down to 19 Feb, the launch of the V70 and V70 Elite, one thing is clear: the V series is no longer just a fashion statement; it’s here to dominate its segment.
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