The Lowdown
Honestly, after spending some time playing with the Vivo V30 Pro, I’m kind of sad this doesn’t work on US markets. It’s a lightweight and responsive phone, and that camera is top-notch. If you’re in a market where it’s supported, it’s definitely worth a first, second, and third look!
Overall
Pros
- The camera is outstanding
- The interface is fluid and smooth
- The Fingerprint reader works well
- It’s not too overloaded with bloatware
Cons
- You can’t use it in the USA 🙁
Many great phones are available worldwide, and while we can’t always use them on USA carriers, it’s still exciting when we get to test one out. Vivo, in particular, makes some amazing devices, and it’s been a blast checking out the Vivo V30 Pro.
The Vivo V30 Pro sports the following specs:
- 6.78″ AMOLED screen with an in-display fingerprint reader and a 2800 × 1260 resolution.
- 5,000 mAh battery
- Support for dual nano-SIM
- MediaTek Dimensity 8200 processor
- 12GB RAM+512GB ROM
- Front 50MP selfie camera, rear 50MP triple rear camera powered by Zeiss
The V30 Pro runs on Vivo Funtouch 14, powered by Android 14. It’s still recognizably Android but has some Vivo-specific apps and other tweaks. There’s also a Vivo app store in addition to Google Play and the Google Apps Suite.
Vivo also supplies a separate app to copy information from your old phone, its own cloud backup service, and a special app to customize the phone’s theme.
I like how Vivo approaches the apps they preinstalled or want to showcase. There are folders with “hot games” and “hot apps,” but when you open them, there are shortcuts to download the selected apps. This way, you can snag the ones that look interesting to you more quickly, but you don’t have to go through and delete the ones you weren’t going to use from the start.
Physically, the Vivo V30 Pro is a super attractive phone. It’s got a smooth matte finish on the back, with a protrusion in the upper left for the camera lenses and the flash, and the only branding along the back is VIVO along the lower left and a Zeiss logo on the camera.
The Vivo V30 Pro’s sides are glossy and do attract some fingerprints, but nothing too terrible. Along the bottom, there’s a speaker, the USB-C charge port, and the SIM tray.
Size-wise, it’s about as long as my Pixel 8 Pro but slightly thinner. The screen slightly curves to the sides but not so much that you accidentally tap it while holding it. Without a case, it slides into your pocket and blends in without feeling bulky or heavy.
In-screen fingerprint readers have come a long way, and the one in the Vivo V30 Pro has been quite solid for me. I haven’t had any issue with it reading my fingers to unlock the phone, and it reads my thumb extremely quickly. You can also unlock it with your face or with a passcode or pattern.
The screen itself is lovely and features bright colors and contrast. It’s also very responsive, and the UI is surprisingly snappy. It’s a pretty, pretty phone that stacks up aesthetically and performance-wise with more expensive rivals.
The whole phone is phenomenal, but the Vivo V30 Pro’s cameras stand out in particular. In fact, Vivo credits Zeiss with co-designing the V30 Pro, so it’s not surprising that this is practically a powerful camera with a phone attached!
There are an almost overwhelming number of camera options on the Vivo. The rear-facing camera has options ranging from opening the camera app and shooting to a full-blown pro mode, where you can fiddle with the settings to get the optimal shot. You can even shoot in RAW if that’s your jam.
The zoom on the Vivo V30 Pro’s camera is unreal, as you can see from these shots of a 3D-printed ball. From a distance, it looks reasonable, and when you zoom in with the camera, you can really pick out every rough edge. I might need to shoot every 3D-printed item with this until I get the printer dialed in a bit cleaner because when I zoomed in, that was honestly a little embarrassing!
Vivo also has some neat video tricks. You can shoot videos with two cameras at once, so if you want to give someone a video tour but want them to see your shining face, you can.
You can also shoot with two back-facing lenses, giving both a zoomed-in and distance look in the same video.
Another cool camera feature is that the V30 can handle HD document scanning. I tested this by scanning the back of a lottery ticket, and the camera automatically zoomed, cropped, and scanned perfectly. That’s a super handy feature!
Of course, the Vivo V30 Pro’s front-facing selfie camera has plenty of filters for anything you need. It can shrink your chin, shave off some of your nose, and smooth out your skin. There are also backgrounds and patterns to pose for if you want to send the perfect crafted selfie.
Everything about the camera app for the V30 shows that Vivo and Zeiss took into account exactly how people use cameras these days. They know it’s for social media and sharing, so the selfies have a ton of features. Likewise, there’s an option to make bite-size videos, perfect for sharing on social media platforms that may or may not be banned by Congress.
Honestly, after spending some time playing with the Vivo V30 Pro, I’m kind of sad this doesn’t work on US markets. It’s a lightweight and responsive phone, and that camera is top-notch. If you’re in a market where it’s supported, it’s definitely worth a first, second, and third look!
The Vivo V30 Pro sells for Rs. 41,999 (~$503) and is available in Asian markets, including India, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand; you can learn more about it by clicking here.
Source: Manufacturer provided review sample
What I Liked: The camera is outstanding; The interface is fluid and smooth; The Fingerprint reader works well; It’s not too overloaded with bloatware
What Needs Improvement: You can’t use it in the USA 🙁
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