Tested Vivo X60 Pro
Ready to take a punt on a brand you’ve never heard of? With a camera steadied by a built-in gimbal, the X60 Pro aims to make Vivo a big name…
This is also a good smartphone, but it’s not quite as good as that other good smartphone
£748 / stuff.tv/x60pro
Despite doing big things in China for the best part of a decade,
Vivo isn’t quite a household name in Europe yet – but phones like the video-centric X60 Pro could be about to change that.
With a gimbal-aided snapper that uses glass certified by lens experts Zeiss, a very capable (if not quite top-spec) Snapdragon 870 processor, 12GB of RAM, 256GB of onboard storage and a 6.56in AMOLED screen that can automatically toggle between 60Hz and 120Hz to save battery life, the X60 Pro’s hardware should have enough about it to tempt some people away from rival mid-tier flagships from more recognisable names like Oneplus and Oppo.
At £750-ish it doesn’t exactly have price on its side, though. Will that be a deal-breaker for a brand yet to gain a solid foothold in the UK? Or will the promise of sharp snaps and smooth home movies be enough to make people look past the unfamiliar name?
Art of glass
This is a proper head-turner, with a curved-edged screen, subtle branding, svelte dimensions and just the right amount of heft to its aluminium-and-glass frame (1). The frosted rear looks particularly tasty and feels satisfying under your fingers, yet manages to avoid being a smudge magnet.
Colour queen
The AMOLED display is easy on the eye, gets impressively bright and delivers retina-pleasing colours that stay the right side of realistic (2). The 120Hz refresh rate puts it on a par with pricier rivals, but the Full-hd-and-a-bit resolution can’t compete with proper flagships for detail.
Flat’ll be the day
You’ll get a day of use between charges from the 4200mah battery, but not a lot more, and that’s if you’re sensible with energy-intensive games and
HDR streaming binges. Wireless charging is sadly absent, but when plugged in it’ll go from flat to full in just under an hour (4).
Chip of promises
Most people will be well served by the Snapdragon 870 and 12GB of RAM (3). It’s an octa-core chip and will cope with just about anything you choose to throw at it. Apps load quickly, it won’t trip over when multitasking, and swiping between home screens is flawlessly smooth.
Skin and phones
Vivo’s latest Funtouch skin isn’t dissimilar from stock Android.
You get the familiar app drawer, optional gesture navigation, and the Google feed just a swipe away from the main home screen. Customisable animations let you add a personal touch, but it doesn’t go overboard with daft icons.