vivo X Fold5 review

GSM Arena

6 days ago

vivo's X Fold series has rapidly earned a reputation for blending cutting-edge hardware with sleek, pocketable design - and the new X Fold5 continues that legacy in bold fashion. Unveiled as the company's sole flagship foldable this year, the X Fold5 builds on the success of the X Fold3 series with meaningful upgrades in design, battery life, and performance. The company has skipped an X Fold4 model altogether, possibly due to the number 4 being considered unlucky in Chinese culture.
At just 4.3 mm thin when unfolded and weighing 217 g, it is the lightest and slimmest "book-style" foldable device that vivo has ever made. This is made possible by a reengineered hinge and the use of aerospace-grade materials, continuing vivo's push to deliver elegant yet robust foldables.
Battery life sees a capacity increase with the introduction of a 6,000 mAh semi-solid Si/C battery, a first for the segment. It's paired with 80W wired and 40W wireless charging. vivo X Fold5 5G specs at a glance: Body: 159.7x142.3x4.3mm, 217g; Glass front (closed), aluminum alloy frame, glass fiber back; IP58/IP59+ dust protected and water resistant (high pressure water jets; immersible up to 3m for 30 min).
159.7x142.3x4.3mm, 217g; Glass front (closed), aluminum alloy frame, glass fiber back; IP58/IP59+ dust protected and water resistant (high pressure water jets; immersible up to 3m for 30 min). Display: 8.03" Foldable LTPO AMOLED, 1B colors, 120Hz, 5280Hz PWM, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, 4500 nits (peak), 2200x2480px resolution, 10.15:9 aspect ratio, 413ppi; Cover display:, LTPO AMOLED, 120Hz, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, 5500 nits (peak), 6.53 inches, 1172 x 2748 pixels, 21:9 ratio, Armor Glass (2nd gen).
8.03" Foldable LTPO AMOLED, 1B colors, 120Hz, 5280Hz PWM, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, 4500 nits (peak), 2200x2480px resolution, 10.15:9 aspect ratio, 413ppi; Cover display:, LTPO AMOLED, 120Hz, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, 5500 nits (peak), 6.53 inches, 1172 x 2748 pixels, 21:9 ratio, Armor Glass (2nd gen). Chipset: Qualcomm SM8650-AB Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (4 nm): Octa-core (1x3.3 GHz Cortex-X4 & 3x3.2 GHz Cortex-A720 & 2x3.0 GHz Cortex-A720 & 2x2.3 GHz Cortex-A520); Adreno 750.
Qualcomm SM8650-AB Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (4 nm): Octa-core (1x3.3 GHz Cortex-X4 & 3x3.2 GHz Cortex-A720 & 2x3.0 GHz Cortex-A720 & 2x2.3 GHz Cortex-A520); Adreno 750. Memory: 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 16GB RAM, 1TB 16GB RAM; UFS 4.1.
256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 16GB RAM, 1TB 16GB RAM; UFS 4.1. OS/Software: Android 15, up to 4 major Android upgrades, Funtouch 15 (International), OriginOS 5 (China).
Android 15, up to 4 major Android upgrades, Funtouch 15 (International), OriginOS 5 (China). Rear camera: Wide (main) : 50 MP, f/1.6, 1/1.56", PDAF, OIS; Telephoto : 50 MP, f/2.6, 85mm, 1/1.95", PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom; Ultra wide angle : 50 MP, f/2.1, 15mm, 119˚, 1/2.76", PDAF.
: 50 MP, f/1.6, 1/1.56", PDAF, OIS; : 50 MP, f/2.6, 85mm, 1/1.95", PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom; : 50 MP, f/2.1, 15mm, 119˚, 1/2.76", PDAF. Front camera: Wide (main) : 20 MP, f/2.4; Wide (main) : 20 MP, f/2.4.
: 20 MP, f/2.4; : 20 MP, f/2.4. Video capture: Rear camera : 8K@30fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60fps, gyro-EIS; Front camera : 1080p.
: 8K@30fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60fps, gyro-EIS; : 1080p. Battery: 6000mAh; 80W wired, 40W wireless, Reverse wired, 5W reverse wireless.
6000mAh; 80W wired, 40W wireless, Reverse wired, 5W reverse wireless. Connectivity: 5G; Wi-Fi 7; BT 5.4, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive; NFC; Infrared port.
5G; Wi-Fi 7; BT 5.4, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive; NFC; Infrared port. Misc: Fingerprint reader (side-mounted); stereo speakers.
Camera-wise, the vivo X Fold5 takes more of a side-step compared to its predecessor than a clear-cut upgrade. The main camera is still a 50MP unit, now with a brighter f/1.6 aperture, though it uses a slightly smaller 1/1.56-inch sensor (down from 1/1.3"). The ultrawide maintains a similar sensor size and 15mm focal length, but it is now coupled with a f/2.1 lens, still offering phase-detection autofocus.
The zoom camera swaps the previous 64MP sensor for a 50MP 1/1.95-inch unit, while extending reach with an 85mm f/2.6 periscope lens, up from 70mm. While the setup is still ZEISS co-engineered and quite capable, it's a reshuffle rather than a significant generational leap.
Powering the device is the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 with up to 16GB of RAM and 1TB of UFS 4.1 storage, ensuring top-tier performance. It runs Android 15 out of the box with vivo's OriginOS 5 in China or Funtouch OS 15 for global markets, complete with enhanced multitasking features and foldable-optimized UI elements.
With a competitive price tag and a spec sheet that ticks all the right boxes - especially in terms of design, battery, and display - the vivo X Fold5 positions itself as a serious challenger in the premium foldable segment. Let's see if the experience lives up to the promise. Unboxing
The vivo X Fold5 ships in a lavish two-piece cardboard box. It is very rigid and should protect the phone quite well during shipping. As with all foldables, the unit itself comes fully open inside a plastic cradle.
Our X Fold5 review unit came with a 90W FlashCharge charger in the box. It still uses a USB Type-A lead on the charger side, but at least the provided USB Type-A to Type-C cable seems to be standard and non-proprietary (without extra pins). Also in the box is a hard plastic case, or rather, shell for the phone. It mostly covers half of it, but that's about what you can hope for out of a case for a book-style foldable.
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