The Chinese smartphone maker, vivo has launched the vivo V19 in India featuring 48 MP quad cameras, dual punch-hole selfie cameras, and a 6.44-inch Super AMOLED display. Due to the Coronavirus outbreak, the launch has been delayed, however, Vivo finally manages to launch in an online event. vivo V19, which is the successor to the midranger vivo V17, equips a Snapdragon 712 octa-core CPU on-board competing with the likes of realme XT. Here’s what you need to know about the vivo V19 in our review.
vivo V19 Specifications
- Display: 6.44-inch Super AMOLED, Full HD+ Resolution (2400 x 1080 pixels), 409 ppi pixel density, Corning Gorilla Glass 6
- Software: FunTouch OS based on Android 10
- CPU: Up to 2.3 GHz octa-core Kryo 360 processor, Qualcomm Snapdragon 712 SoC
- GPU: Adreno 616
- Memory: 8 GB LPDDR4X RAM
- Storage: 128 GB OR 256 GB, microSD card support (dedicated)
- Main Camera: Quad cameras, 48 MP f/1.8 primary sensor + 8 MP ultra-wide lens + 2 MP macro lens + 2 MP depth sensor
- Selfie Camera: Dual Cameras 32 MP f/2.1 main + 8 MP f/2.3 wide-angle
- Others: On-screen fingerprint scanner
- Connectivity: 4G network, USB Type-C, Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz + 5 GHz), Bluetooth v5.0, GPS
- Battery: 4,500 mAh battery with 33W FlashCharge 2.0 technology
- Colors: Classic Piano Black, Magical Mystic Silver
- Price: ₹27,990 (8 GB + 128 GB), ₹31,990 (8 GB + 256 GB)
- Availability: Sale starts from May 15, 2020, on vivo India E-store, Amazon.in, Flipkart and other major e-commerce websites along with all offline partner retail stores across India.
Design, Display, Build, & Ergonomics
The design of the vivo V19 isn’t something new, I’ve seen similar design aesthetics in the iQOO 3, a new gaming-centric smartphone featuring Qualcomm Snapdragon 865. However, the iQOO 3 isn’t quite a compact device, the phone is bigger and feels bulky in the hands, which gives the vivo V19 a slight edge in the design.
The back of the phone has a 3D glass-finish reflective design that glows when light falls on it and is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 6. You’ll find a quad-camera setup at the top-left corner. vivo V19 comes in Classic Piano Black edition and Magical Mystic Silver edition.
When we talk about its display, the vivo V19 packs a large 6.44-inch LIV Super AMOLED HDR10 screen with up to 1,200 nits brightness and is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 6. The display uses dual punch-hole selfie cameras instead of the usual notch or the modern pop-up style camera, vivo calls it a Dual iView display.
The right side has the usual power key and volume control and the left side has a triple-slot SIM tray and no smart AI key which you may find on some vivo smartphones. The bottom has a USB Type-C port, loudspeakers, 3.5 mm jack, and a microphone.
Software & User Interface
Moving to the software side, the interface has been upgraded to the new FunTouch OS i.e. 10. The FunTouch OS 10 is based on the latest Android 10 build and a new homescreen with new icons. The FunTouch OS 10 offers 2020/03/01 dated security patch which seems to be the latest Android security patch.
Speaking about the interface, a significant change is the Notification Tray with shortcuts which is now moved to the top from the bottom. You can swipe from the top to open the Notification Tray and access the shortcuts. The previous versions of the FunTouch OS interface offer a control panel that needs to pull up from the bottom edge.
Features include new Dynamic Effects, Ultra Game Mode, Motorbike Mode, Jovi, enhanced Eye Protection, S-capture and more.
About the UI performance, there are no major lags upon using the phone, the performance is smooth and fast. However, you will find bloatware or preloaded apps and some of them are of no use.
Hardware, Performance, & Gaming
Specs include a Qualcomm Snapdragon 712 octa-core SoC clocked at 2.3 GHz and is at par with the realme XT and the vivo Z1Pro launched last year. vivo V19, however, is still behind the likes of the realme X2 and the POCO X2, both of these offer a faster Snapdragon 730G.
Furthermore, vivo V19 offers 8 GB LPDDR4X RAM with either 128 GB or 256 GB storage. The CPU-Z shows incorrect information, it shows rather the flagship Snapdragon 845, nevertheless, an update might correct these errors.
Unfortunately, the AnTuTu benchmark has been unlisted from the Google Play Store, other benchmarks include Geekbench 5, Androbench, & A1 SD Bench. Geekbench 5 benchmarks indicate that the performance of the vivo V19 is as good as that of the realme XT and slightly ahead than the OPPO Reno3 Pro in terms of raw performance.
Geekbench 5 scores 417 points in single-core CPU and 1,599 points in multi-core CPU. Geekbench 5 GPU test scores 1,003 points. A1 SD Bench suggests that the read & write speeds reach up to ~500 MB/s.
On the gaming front, the vivo V19 has Adreno 616 GPU which is sufficient for mainstream gaming. We tried some games like PUBG Mobile, Call of Duty Mobile, and Asphalt 9: Legends, and it worked well. vivo V19 offers Copper Tube Liquid Cooling Carbon to dissipate the heat while on load.
For performance users and gamers, the vivo 19 has ART++ Turbo to enhance your app experience, Game Turbo that optimizes touch control and Center Turbo offers scheduler optimization. Also, the Ultra Game Mode gives you the power to record games while you play, offers Game Vibration, Voice Changer, and Game Countdown as well.
Cameras
If there’s something great about the smartphone is its cameras, you will find a total of 6 cameras on the phone. The quad-camera setup on the rear side includes a 48 MP f/1.79 main camera, an 8 MP f/2.2 ultra-wide-angle camera, 2 MP f/2.4 macro camera, and another 2 MP f/2.4 depth camera.
The dual selfie cameras include a whopping 32 MP f/2.08 main camera and an 8 MP f/2.28 super-wide-angle camera. The company launched the world’s first dual selfie camera smartphone Vivo V5 Plus in 2017, and now, after 3 years, Vivo finally brings back the dual selfie camera configuration, this is the second smartphone dual selfie cameras.
The camera offers a whole lot of features such as Ultra Wide Angle, Super Night Mode, Portrait Mode, Super Macro Mode, Ultra-Stable Video, Art Portrait Video, Super Night Selfie, Super Wide Selfie, Aura Screen Light.
The performance of the camera seems impressive, the vivo V19 takes great images with its quad cameras, selfies are pretty good. I liked the daylight shots, they are quite detailed. The portraits are mind-blowing and Macro shot mode works well. You also get the vlog mode and the ultra-stable mode, however, you are limited to 4K at 30 fps shooting.
Here are some samples I took from the vivo V19 rear and front cameras.
vivo V19 Camera Samples
Battery Life & Charging
The vivo V19 packs a 4,500 mAh battery which is sufficient for a daily driver, it can last up to 2 days on average usage. The battery supports fast charging technology by vivo, it uses a 33-Watt FlashCharge 2.0 that charges the phone from 0% to 70% in just 40 minutes.
On the contrary, the OPPO Reno3 Pro charges up to 80% in 40 minutes while the iQOO 3 with a 55W Super FlashCharge 2.0 charges the phone up to 50% in just 15 minutes, the realme X2 Pro offers Super VOOC charging that charges the phone in 35 minutes from 0% to 100%.
Verdict
Moving to the verdict, vivo has come up with a smartphone packed with great features, the midrange Qualcomm Snapdragon 712 SoC, 48 MP quad cameras, and dual selfie cameras which competes the OPPO Reno3 Pro in its class. vivo has managed to offer a new version of FunTouch OS i.e. 10 and it looks great & performs better, however, the remains of bloatware are still in it. vivo V19 has a comprehensive overall package which includes the great cameras, the cameras perform really well, however, the price is slightly on the higher side as far as the specs are concerned.
A more affordable range of smartphones are available if you are looking for similar CPU performance, if you are into gaming and want to churn out as much performance juice, the Snapdragon 730G would be excellent for this budget. The Snapdragon 730G powered smartphones, say realme X2 as well as POCO X2, could be the best for midrange gamers out there.
Strength
- Bright & Crisp AMOLED Display
- Impressive Quad-Camera Performance
- Dual Selfie Cameras
- 33W FlashCharge 2.0 Fast Charging
- Dedicated microSD Card Support
Weakness
- Price
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