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Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Yahoo
Pixel 10 telephoto camera rumor could mean big trouble for the iPhone 17 — here's why
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. After using the Pixel 9 Pro XL for most of the past year, it's still one of the best camera phones in my opinion because of the impressive performance of its telephoto camera. However, I did debate early on how both the Pixel 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL were overrated because of the big upgrades Google gave the standard Pixel 9 model. That's why I've been keeping a close eye on all the Pixel 10 rumors, especially around how Google might be adding a telephoto camera to its arsenal. Not only would this be a big shakeup for the series, but it also would absolutely put the iPhone 17 on notice. We're just a couple of weeks away from the next Made by Google event, where we'll also presumably learn more about the Pixel 10 Pro, Pixel 10 Pro XL, and Pixel 10 Pro Fold. By introducing a telephoto camera to the base Pixel 10, it would set a precedent going forward in what I'd expect in a phone that's around the $799 price point. And it could turn out to be the secret weapon used against the iPhone 17. Telephoto would be a first for the series Before I explain why the iPhone 17 is in trouble if this rumor turns out to be true, it's worth detailing what to expect with the Pixel 10. Google has kept the formula the same ever since the Pixel 6 — by giving its 'Pro' models the better cameras complete with dedicated telephoto shooters. With the Pixel 10, though, the rumors hint at a shakeup because it would be the first time that the base model gets treated to a triple camera system. There was a major specs leak a few months ago that reportedly detailed a telephoto shooter with the Pixel 10. The specs leak showed an 11MP telephoto camera, which would supplement its rumored 50MP main and 13MP ultrawide cameras. Google Pixel 10 (Rumored) Google Pixel 9 Main Camera 48MP 50MP Ultrawide Camera 12MP 48MP Telephoto Camera 10.8MP (5x optical) N/A Selfie Camera 11MP 10.5MP By adding a telephoto camera, it would greatly add more utility to the Pixel 10. It would effectively cover all the range: near, far, and everything in between. Even though Google has leaned on pixel binning techniques in the past to deliver 'optical-like' zoom from its main cameras, a dedicated telephoto with the Pixel 10 is one serious upgrade I'm stoked about. While this rumor makes me excited, there might be an unintentional downgrade to this triple camera system in the form of a smaller sensor with the main and ultrawide cameras. Meaning, the current 50MP main camera in the Pixel 9 would be replaced by a 48MP shooter similar to the one in the Pixel 9a. Likewise, the ultrawide camera would go from 48MP on the Pixel 9 to a 12MP one. I'm confident the camera performance will be an improvement, even with these changes. It's rare for a new phone to have a worse camera than its predecessor. Uh oh for iPhone 17 Apple has also kept to a similar format with its iPhone releases, and it doesn't look like it's going to be any different this fall. There have been virtually no iPhone 17 camera rumors or leaks that hint at any major changes, so I wouldn't be surprised if it recycles the current camera combo of the iPhone 16 — which would be a 48MP main shooter paired with a 12MP ultrawide. The Pixel 10 would have the upper hand in convincing people it's the better phone because of its rumored telephoto shooter. Three cameras are better than two. That's just the reality and the iPhone 17 faces an uphill battle because all zooming would have to lean on the performance of its main camera. I will say, though, that Apple has leveraged its own set of techniques to deliver decent zooming performance — which I've tested with the iPhone 15. But even if the iPhone 17's zooming capabilities are improved, it's going to have a difficult time I think to match the 5x optical zoom lens performance reportedly coming to the Pixel 10. Take a look at the photos I captured above: one with the Razr Plus (2025) using its dedicated telephoto camera (with 2x optical zoom) at 30x zoom, then the Razr Ultra (2025) getting the same shot at 30x with its main camera. It illustrates exactly why optical zooms are superior, no matter how much image processing and AI enhancements are thrown at the photo. I shoot a lot of photos professionally and can tell you there's a substantial difference in performance from shooting a photo that I would crop in post to look like a 5x zoom, versus the results straight from the camera paired with a telephoto lens with the same 5x optical zoom framing. Using this logic, not only would the Pixel 10 offer more utility, but it would also show more value. Pixel 10: Potentially much better value Another interesting thing to consider is that the Pixel 10 is tipped to have the same price as last year's model. That would put it at $799, which would only fuel its value over the iPhone 17 because of an added telephoto camera. I always love getting more features on a newer device without its price being jacked up in any way. By introducing a telephoto camera, the Pixel 10 would instantly have a huge advantage over the iPhone 17 since it's likely to come at the same $799 price. However, the pressure isn't solely on the iPhone 17 because the Pixel 10 would also presumably be on a par with the Galaxy S26. Samsung's next flagship isn't expected until early next year, but we're presuming that the new flagship will sport a triple camera setup just like the Galaxy S25. Still, Samsung's next phone needs to move the needle up because 3x optical zoom won't be as attractive as the 5x optical one rumored for the Pixel 10. To be fair, there are other phones priced lower than $799 that have triple cameras with a dedicated telephoto shooter. The CMF Phone 2 Pro is one of them, but its 2x optical zoom performance isn't worth writing home about. Even though it's a top contender among the best cheap phones, its zoom performance leaves a lot to be desired. But I will say I'm optimistic for the Pixel 10. Follow Tom's Guide on Google News to get our up-to-date news, how-tos, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button. More from Tom's Guide Google looks set to fix one of the worst things about Android 16's useful Private Space feature iOS 26 Liquid Glass icons — how to get the stunning new look on your iPhone Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra's rumored 60W charging might not offer much of an upgrade — here's what we know
GSM Arena
6 days ago
- GSM Arena
Huawei Pura 80 Ultra review
The Huawei Pura 80 series has now launched outside of China and we got the crown jewel for review - the Pura 80 Ultra. Huawei has consistently been keeping at the top of its imaging game, but this year, it has surpassed our expectations. But before we dive into the camera intricacies of this exotic cameraphone, let's cover the basics first. The Pura 80 Ultra is a stylish curved phone with Kunlun glass panels and IP68/IP69 ratings. It has a triangular camera housing on the back, which has grown significantly larger in this device and for all the right reasons. The Pura 80 Ultra also packs a 6.8-inch LTPO OLED with 1276p resolution, 120Hz dynamic refresh rate, 10-bit color depth, and HDR Vivid video support. It is powered by the Kirin 9020 7nm chip, which we've already seen elsewhere, and we have established that it falls in the mid-range category. While it's no gaming chip, it is no slouch either. The Pura 80 Ultra comes with a 5,700mAh battery in China and 5,170mAh for the rest of the world. It supports 100W wired, 80W wireless, and 20W reverse wireless charging. But this phone is mostly about the cameras. The primary camera uses a 50MP 1-inch Ultra Lighting HDR sensor with RYYB color filter, a variable aperture lens, and record-breaking 16 stops of dynamic range - Huawei promises significant improvements in low-light and backlit scenes, as well as in video dynamic range. Then comes another industry first - a switchable dual-lens telephoto camera. It combines two lenses - an 83mm 3.7x medium telephoto and a 9.4x long telephoto. Both of these share the same 1/1.28-inch sensor - the largest in a smartphone telephoto camera to date. The switch between lenses is handled by a built-in light-blocking mechanism that's driven by a tiny motor. Essentially, this is a dual-prism, four-lens-group design, which manages to make the light inside the mechanism travel a much longer effective distance - Huawei says it's a 129% increase compared to periscope systems in other phones. The final camera on the back is a 40MP ultrawide shooter with autofocus - a more conventional piece of kit. For selfies you get an ultrawide 13MP AF-capable camera also advertised for its impressive dynamic range. Huawei Pura 80 Ultra 5G specs at a glance: Body: 163.0x76.1x8.3mm, 234g; Glass front, aluminum frame, glass back; IP68/IP69 dust tight and water resistant (high pressure water jets; immersible up to 2m for 30 min). 163.0x76.1x8.3mm, 234g; Glass front, aluminum frame, glass back; IP68/IP69 dust tight and water resistant (high pressure water jets; immersible up to 2m for 30 min). Display: 6.80" LTPO OLED, 1B colors, HDR, 120Hz, 1440Hz PWM, 3000 nits (peak), 1276x2848px resolution, 20.09:9 aspect ratio, 459ppi. 6.80" LTPO OLED, 1B colors, HDR, 120Hz, 1440Hz PWM, 3000 nits (peak), 1276x2848px resolution, 20.09:9 aspect ratio, 459ppi. Chipset: Kirin 9020 (7 nm): Octa-core (1x2.5 GHz Taishan Big & 3x2.15 GHz Taishan Mid & 4x1.6GHz Cortex-A510); Maleoon 920 GPU. Kirin 9020 (7 nm): Octa-core (1x2.5 GHz Taishan Big & 3x2.15 GHz Taishan Mid & 4x1.6GHz Cortex-A510); Maleoon 920 GPU. Memory: 512GB 16GB RAM, 1TB 16GB RAM. 512GB 16GB RAM, 1TB 16GB RAM. OS/Software: EMUI 15 (Android 12). EMUI 15 (Android 12). Rear camera: Wide (main) : 50 MP, f/1.6-4.0, 23mm, 1.0"-type, dual pixel PDAF, OIS; Telephoto : 50 MP, f/2.4, 83mm, 1/1.28", PDAF, sensor-shift OIS, 3.7x optical zoom; Telephoto : 12.5 MP, f/3.6, 212mm, PDAF, sensor-shift OIS, 9.4x optical zoom; Ultra wide angle : 40 MP, f/2.2, 13mm, AF; : 50 MP, f/1.6-4.0, 23mm, 1.0"-type, dual pixel PDAF, OIS; : 50 MP, f/2.4, 83mm, 1/1.28", PDAF, sensor-shift OIS, 3.7x optical zoom; : 12.5 MP, f/3.6, 212mm, PDAF, sensor-shift OIS, 9.4x optical zoom; : 40 MP, f/2.2, 13mm, AF; Front camera: 13 MP, f/2.0, (ultrawide), AF. 13 MP, f/2.0, (ultrawide), AF. Video capture: Rear camera : 4K, 1080p, 1080p@960fps (interpolated), HDR Vivid, gyro-EIS, OIS; Front camera : 4K, 1080p, 1080p@240fps, HDR Vivid, gyro-EIS. : 4K, 1080p, 1080p@960fps (interpolated), HDR Vivid, gyro-EIS, OIS; : 4K, 1080p, 1080p@240fps, HDR Vivid, gyro-EIS. Battery: 5170mAh; 100W wired, 80W wireless, 20W reverse wireless, 18W reverse wired. 5170mAh; 100W wired, 80W wireless, 20W reverse wireless, 18W reverse wired. Connectivity: 5G; Wi-Fi 7; BT 5.2, L2HC; NFC; Infrared port. 5G; Wi-Fi 7; BT 5.2, L2HC; NFC; Infrared port. Misc: Fingerprint reader (side-mounted); stereo speakers. It's not all sunshine and roses, of course. The Pura 80 Ultra is expensive and given the mid-range silicon inside, you'd be right to think the phone is not exactly great value for money. It also does not support 5G connectivity due to a long-standing ban that prevents Huawei from developing 5G chips. And finally, with the lack of access to fully-fledged Google Mobile Services and apps, it's clear Huawei has been dealt a rough hand, if you excuse our card-playing metaphor. The company, however, is not a stranger to this situation and has become incredibly good at making the most of bad hands like this one with resourcefulness and sheer engineering ingenuity. Huawei Pura 80 Ultra unboxing The Huawei Pura 80 Ultra ships inside a large luxurious cardboard box that contains more than what we've gotten used to recently. Perhaps most importantly, the bundle includes a 100W power adapter - with a dual-port interface to handle either a USB-A or a USB-C cable (only one at a time) - and a 6A-rated USB-C cable. There is also a rather nicely designed protective case in a color that complements the phone (off-white in our case), accented by Pura triangle logos. Finally, the Pura 80 Ultra comes with a pre-applied plastic screen protector on the front. Page 2
Phone Arena
25-07-2025
- Phone Arena
Huawei Pura 80 Ultra review: Pure camera joy!
If you thought that smartphone innovation was dead, think again. Enter the Huawei Pura 80 Ultra. Despite all the woes the company has been facing ever since the US ban, Huawei remains one of the largest phone manufacturers in the world, and the Pura 80 Ultra is the latest brainchild of the Chinese engineering mind. And it's a real prodigy, the first phone with a switchable telephoto camera, the Huawei Pura 80 Ultra is indeed a very interesting beast. It still carries scars from the aforementioned US ban but tries to innovate where it counts. Nowadays, we're hearing the term "camera phone" more and more often, and the Pura 80 Ultra is set out to try and take this crown, challenging the likes of the Galaxy S25 Ultra and the Xiaomi 15 Ultra. The Pura 80 Ultra costs around 1,200 euros, and you can't get it in the States. Furthermore, there are no Google Services and apps preinstalled on the phone, so not much has changed in that regard. With this out of the way, let's dive into the review. Our composite review score aims to encapsulate the most important areas of the smartphone experience, and the values in each category have their own weight and subcategories as well. In this case the Pura 80 Ultra scored quite high in camera, battery and charging, while at the same time the old hardware and the lack of software support dragged the final score down. Table of Contents: Let's start with an overview of the Huawei Pura 80 Ultra specs: The design of the Huawei Pura 80 Ultra follows in the footsteps of the previous model. The triangular shape of the camera housing is very similar to the one on the Pura 70 Ultra, but it has grown substantially, both in size and in of, the phone is listed as 8.3 mm thick, but if we include the camera bump, it measures around 14-15 mm. The camera rings are also huge (and golden in our color variant), and the look is quite system aside, the Pura 80 Ultra feels a bit stuck in the past design-wise. The frame has a slight curvature to it, and the 6.8-inch display is also curved from all sides, a design often referred to as "quad-curved." Huawei uses its own, in-house-developed tempered glass for protection. It's called Kunlun glass, and the Pura 80 Ultra features the second generation of the material, which is also basalt-tempered. One interesting feature worth mentioning is the capacitive fingerprint scanner embedded in the power button. This solution is rarely seen on candy bar phones nowadays, and it's normally reserved for foldables. The Pura 80 Ultra is available in two colors but they look pretty classy | Image by Huawei The Huawei Pura 80 Ultra comes in Prestige Gold and Golden Black color variants. Both look very classy, with the black one giving off ceramic vibes, while the gold version mimics the color of real gold quite well. The retail box is reasonably lavish, especially by modern standards. You get a big 100W charging brick with two sockets—USB-A and USB-C. There's a USB-C to USB-C cable included in the package, and there's also a fancy back cover with a nice lip around the camera and a stylish pattern. All packed inside a big square box with a paper sleeve on top. Good job! Moving to the quad-curved 6.8-inch OLED display, we find that the curvature is not that aggressive, but the bezel around the screen is rather thick, negating the design effect of the curved edges. The resolution is 1276 x 2848 pixels, which translates into 459 PPI pixel density. Subjectively speaking, the display looks quite nice and bright under direct sunlight and also crisp and sharp. The panel is an LTPO one, meaning it can dynamically change the refresh rate up to 120 Hz. You can also lock the refresh rate to 60 Hz or 120 Hz if you prefer to do so. Time for some tests! The Pura 80 Ultra managed to output around 1000 nits at both 20% APL and 100% APL, which suggests that there's a limiter in play. Even though this result might be considered average by modern standards, the phone remained perfectly visible under the scorching July sun during our field metrics such as minimum brightness, color temperature, and color accuracy are on par with other flagship phones, so even though the Pura 80 Ultra doesn't break any display records, it gets the job done. In terms of biometrics, the phone relies on a physical capacitive fingerprint scanner embedded in the power button. It works as advertised, but the small footprint of the button itself poses a problem and can result in failed readings. Arguably the best feature of the Pura 80 Ultra is its camera system. The huge bump on the back houses four cameras in a unique arrangement. There's a 50MP 1-inch Ultra Lighting HDR camera with a focal length equivalent of 23 mm and a variable aperture (f/1.6-f/4.0). The ultrawide snapper relies on a 40 MP sensor under a lens with an f/2.2 aperture and a 13 mm focal the most interesting part of the camera system is the telephoto pair. Huawei has managed to cram in two separate periscope zoom lenses over one sensor (which is also quite big at 1/1.28"). One of the lenses offers 83 mm focal length and a 3.7x optical zoom power, while the other gives you 212 mm and 10x zoom. There's a motor that physically moves the prism under these lenses to change which one captures the light and focuses it on the time for some real-life samples! Let's see if the images reflect the impressive score the Pura 80 Ultra managed in our camera benchmark (also check out our Camera Benchmark page to see how this phone fares against the competition). Photos taken with the Huawei 80 Ultra look quite impressive. The main 1-inch sensor does a great job at capturing details and also offering a wide dynamic range. The color palette is also pleasant and close to what our eyes saw during the real star of this show, though, is the elaborate dual-periscope telephoto camera. The system uses one sensor and two sets of lenses over it with a motorized prism that changes which one is in use. The smaller one offers 3.7x zoom, and photos look quite good at that magnification—very detailed and sharp. The second telephoto bumps the magnification up to 10x, and it's equally impressive. The images retain sharpness, and the exposure is also pretty decent at this zoom level. The ultrawide camera snaps decent photos as well; they preserve the overall color tonality, and the details are also present thanks to the big 40MP sensor, but the dynamic range is a tad narrower compared to the main camera. You also have the ability to shoot super macro photos, and even though this feature is a bit niche, you can get some nice shots if you like the world of the tiny. Overall, the camera system of the Huawei Pura 80 Ultra is absolutely up there with other camera phones, and the two telephoto cameras offer added flexibility along with great quality. The Huawei Pura 80 Ultra can record videos with up to 4K at 60 frames per second. There's no 8K mode, and it's probably a limitation of the Kirin chipset. Videos shot in 4K are quite good, though; you can switch between all the cameras while recording and pause, and the image stabilization is also decent. The hardware department is where the US ban has done the most damage. The Huawei Pura 80 Ultra features a locally-made Kirin 9020 chipset manufactured on a 7 nm node. This silicon packs 8 CPU cores—1x 2.5 GHz Taishan Big + 3x 2.15 GHz Taishan Mid + 4x 1.53 GHz Cortex-A510—and uses the HiSilicon Maleoon 920 GPU to tackle graphics tasks. In fact, it's the same chip used in the Huawei Mate X6 foldable, so we should expect very similar results when it comes to synthetic benchmarks. In terms of RAM, the Pura 80 Ultra comes in two storage configurations both featuring 16GB of RAM. You can get 512GB of onboard storage or 1TB. On to the benchmarks. It's clear to see that this 7nm CPU is no match for modern, non-US-vetoed silicon. The single-core performance is lagging behind the flagship Qualcomm benchmark, but it's interesting to see that the multi-core score is very close to the Tensor G4 inside the Pixel 9 Pro XL. GPU Performance The graphics performance is even worse, lurking in the sub-2000 range in 3DMark Wildlife Extreme. And there's some severe thermal throttling going on as well, as the sustained score is even lower at 644 points. All that being said, in normal day-to-day use the Pura 80 Ultra doesn't feel outdated and gets the job done. There's no noticeable lag or hiccups during normal tasks; the camera opens quickly, and the UI is quite responsive too. Speaking of the UI... Huawei Pura 80 Ultra Software The Huawei Pura 80 Ultra runs on EMUI 15 based on Android 12 with a HarmonyOS overlay on top. This setup doesn't sound too modern, and as a matter of fact, in China Huawei phones run pure HarmonyOS, which is much more capable. The interface feels a bit dated, to be honest; there are no visual candies or clever Android 16 stuff on board. What's even more lackluster is the AI situation. The tools at hand are very basic; there's no circle to search, fancy AI real-time voice translation, image to video, or even a third-party LLM such as Gemini. What you're stuck with is some AI suggestions, AI Lens that can recognize bar codes and translate text, and a smart assistant called Celia that's not very helpful. There are some AI features inside the camera app, such as the "Remove" tool (similar to Magic Eraser) and AI Retouch, but they are rough around the worst part of the software deal is the support cycle. The EMUI interface is quite old already and a dead end, considering the fact that Huawei pushes HarmonyOS in China. It's also based on a quite old Android 12 version, with very limited updates coming (Huawei is silent about the actual update cycle, but according to our research, it's two major updates at best). In a smartphone world where software is one of the major development pillars and an area of AI innovation, the Pura 80 Ultra suffers quite a blow. The global version of the Huawei Pura 80 Ultra comes equipped with a 5,170 mAh lithium-polymer battery, while the Chinese model has a 5,700 mAh cell inside (possibly silicon-carbon). This huge 500+ mAh difference is probably due to regulations, but even the 5,170 mAh global version looks pretty solid, capacity-wise. The overall score of 7 hours and 50 minutes in our composite battery benchmark puts the Huawei Pura 80 Ultra in the ballpark with the big guys. The result is just 10 minutes shy of what the Galaxy S25 Ultra managed in the same test, and both the browsing and video streaming scores are quite solid at around 15 hours. When it comes to charging, phones from the Far East often deliver blazing-fast speeds, and the Huawei Pura 80 Ultra is no exception. The phone supports up to 100W of wired charging power, filling up its battery from zero to full in just 39 minutes. The Pura 80 Ultra also supports 80W wireless charging with a proprietary charger, and 0 to 100% takes under one hour in that scenario. The stereo speaker system inside the Huawei Pura 80 Ultra is quite powerful. You won't have any problems with missed calls or not hearing your music or video in a loud environment. That said, there's more to be desired from the audio quality. There are some harmonic distortions at max volume in the upper midrange and high-frequency range, and sometimes sibilant sounds can produce a harsh hissing effect. The haptics are also nothing to write home about, and you can't adjust the strength or timings. There's no 3.5 mm headphone jack on this phone, so you have to rely on an adapter or simply use Bluetooth headphones. The Huawei Pura 80 Ultra is a tough sell | Image by PhoneArena That's a very tough question. The Huawei Pura 80 Ultra is no doubt a very powerful camera phone, but it lags behind in almost every other area. The chipset is built on an old node, the screen is not the brightest out there, and the software support is almost nonexistent. The price is also steep at around 1,200 euros (around $1,400 after direct conversion), and the lack of Google Mobile Services adds salt to the already open wound. For that amount of money most people will probably buy a Galaxy S25 Ultra and be done with it. Which is a shame, really, because the camera system inside the Huawei Pura 80 Ultra is a true masterpiece, from the big 1-inch sensor under the main camera lens to the innovative dual-periscope telephoto camera. Let's just hope that the Pura 80 Ultra will raise the bar and push other manufacturers to up their camera game.
GSM Arena
11-07-2025
- GSM Arena
vivo X200 FE review
The ever-expanding vivo high-end lineup has gotten a new member - the vivo X200 FE. The FE might sound like a certain other brand's Fan Edition, but vivo's meaning may be rooted elsewhere. One thing is clear, this phone is anything but a downscaled version. It's a great cameraphone, a powerful flagship, a compact handset with a huge battery. A rare blend of qualities, that's for sure. The vivo X200 FE impresses right off the bat - it is indeed a colorful compact phone (8mm thin, 186g) with a 6.31-inch 120Hz 1216p AMOLED display, top-notch Dimensity 9300+ chip, and a massive 6,500 mAh battery promising over 25h of YouTube streaming or 10h of gaming (we'll see about that). That's not all, though. Being a part of the X series means the X200 FE must have some impressive photography skills, and the specsheet doesn't disappoint - we're getting Zeiss-enhanced 50MP primary camera and 50MP 3x telephoto, an 8MP ultrawide unit, and a 50MP selfie shooter. Not quite Ultra-level specs, but pretty remarkable for the size. Unlike the X200 Ultra, the vivo X200 FE is a global model that boots Android 15 with Funtouch 15. It's got an IP68/IP69 ingress protection rating, and, of course, you can choose between a handful of colorways - Blue Breeze, Yellow Glow, Pink Vibe, and Black Luxe. vivo X200 FE specs at a glance: Body: 150.8x71.8x8.0mm, 186g; Glass front, aluminum frame, glass back; IP68/IP69 dust tight and water resistant (high pressure water jets; immersible up to 1.5m for 30 min). 150.8x71.8x8.0mm, 186g; Glass front, aluminum frame, glass back; IP68/IP69 dust tight and water resistant (high pressure water jets; immersible up to 1.5m for 30 min). Display: 6.31" LTPO AMOLED, 1B colors, 120Hz, 2160Hz PWM, HDR10+, 4500 / 5000 nits (peak), 1216x2640px resolution, 19.54:9 aspect ratio, 461ppi. 6.31" LTPO AMOLED, 1B colors, 120Hz, 2160Hz PWM, HDR10+, 4500 / 5000 nits (peak), 1216x2640px resolution, 19.54:9 aspect ratio, 461ppi. Chipset: Mediatek Dimensity 9300+ (4 nm): Octa-core (1x3.4 GHz Cortex-X4 & 3x2.85 GHz Cortex-X4 & 4x2.0 GHz Cortex-A720); Immortalis-G720 MC12. Mediatek Dimensity 9300+ (4 nm): Octa-core (1x3.4 GHz Cortex-X4 & 3x2.85 GHz Cortex-X4 & 4x2.0 GHz Cortex-A720); Immortalis-G720 MC12. Memory: 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 12GB RAM; UFS 3.1. 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 12GB RAM; UFS 3.1. OS/Software: Android 15, up to 4 major Android upgrades, Funtouch 15. Android 15, up to 4 major Android upgrades, Funtouch 15. Rear camera: Wide (main) : 50 MP, f/1.9, 23mm, 1/1.56", 1.0µm, PDAF; Telephoto : 50 MP, f/2.7, 70mm, 1/1.95", 0.8µm, PDAF (15cm - ∞), OIS, 3x optical zoom; Ultra wide angle : 8 MP, f/2.2, 1/4.0", 1.12µm. : 50 MP, f/1.9, 23mm, 1/1.56", 1.0µm, PDAF; : 50 MP, f/2.7, 70mm, 1/1.95", 0.8µm, PDAF (15cm - ∞), OIS, 3x optical zoom; : 8 MP, f/2.2, 1/4.0", 1.12µm. Front camera: 50 MP, f/2.0, (wide). 50 MP, f/2.0, (wide). Video capture: Rear camera : 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120fps, gyro-EIS, HDR; Front camera : 4K, 1080p. : 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120fps, gyro-EIS, HDR; : 4K, 1080p. Battery: 6500mAh; 90W wired, 100% in 57 min, Reverse wired. 6500mAh; 90W wired, 100% in 57 min, Reverse wired. Connectivity: 5G; eSIM; Wi-Fi 7; BT 5.4, aptX HD; NFC; Infrared port. 5G; eSIM; Wi-Fi 7; BT 5.4, aptX HD; NFC; Infrared port. Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, optical); stereo speakers. The specsheet is nothing short of impressive, given the size of the phone and its battery. Wireless charging would have been nice, or a larger sensor for the ultrawide camera, but even as is - it does look like an awesome package. Unboxing the vivo X200 FE The vivo X200 FE arrives inside a large carboard box, which contains the phone, a 90W power adapter, and a USB-A-C cable. The bundle also packs a color-matching protective case for extra security and extra grip. Finally, there is also a pre-applied screen protector on the display, in case you need better scratch resistance. Page 2
Phone Arena
03-06-2025
- Business
- Phone Arena
Vivo X200 Ultra PhoneArena camera score: A photographer's "Yes!", a videographer's "Maybe"
That's a scenario that's definitely true of the recent Vivo X200 Ultra super cameraphone, which easily aims to sit on the same bench as the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, Oppo Find X8 Ultra, and the Galaxy S25 Ultra with pretty promising claims in the photography department. And just like the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, it even delivers in terms of excessive but oh-so-interesting accessories, allowing users to turn it into a proper point and shoot camera by attaching the available camera grip, case, and super-long periscope lens to the back. Now that's some commitment to mobile photography! But what makes the Vivo X200 Ultra so interesting? Aside from the cool optional accessories, it's the powerful Zeiss-powered hardware that excites. Despite the lack of a dedicated periscope, which is a common sight on most Ultra flagships out there, the Vivo X200 Ultra still boasts some impressive hardware. We get dual 50MP cameras responsible for the wide and ultrawide angles, and both employ the rather capable Sony LYTIA-818 sensor, with large 1/1.28" size and pixels. What's fascinating here is that the main camera uses a 35mm equivalent lens, which is slightly more zoomed-in as compared to pretty much all other phones out there that adopt a wider 23mm-25mm main camera. A 35mm camera like the one on this Vivo phone is excellent for street photography, but you might be forced to take a step back to capture the same scene in comparison with another phone. This makes the ultrawide camera on this phone that much more useful, as it will cover that wider field-of-view. The telephoto is a 200MP one here, and it has some pretty impressive telemacro capabilities thanks to its super-close focus point of 14cm. This means you can get super-tight and detailed shots of any flora and fauna that would sit still. Oh, and there's also a capacitive camera button that lets you interact with the camera by swiping, clicking, and tapping. Useful! Is this enough to beat the rest of the Ultra flagships released this year, like the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, Galaxy S25 Ultra , and the Oppo Find X8 Ultra? vivo X200 Ultra PhoneArena Camera Score BEST 158 153 PhoneArena Photo Score BEST 165 164 Main (wide) BEST 87 85 Zoom BEST 29 28 Ultra-wide BEST 26 26 Selfie BEST 30 24 PhoneArena Video Score BEST 155 143 Main (wide) BEST 83 71 Zoom BEST 27 26 Ultra-wide BEST 24 22 Selfie BEST 28 24 Vivo X200 Ultra compared to its rivals Photo Video Phone Camera Score Photo Score Main (wide) Ultra Wide Selfie Zoom vivo X200 Ultra 153 164 85 26 24 28 Xiaomi 15 Ultra 158 165 85 26 26 29 OPPO Find X8 Ultra 157 160 82 23 28 27 Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra 158 165 87 23 27 28 Phone Camera Score Video Score Main (wide) Ultra Wide Selfie Zoom vivo X200 Ultra 153 143 71 22 24 26 Xiaomi 15 Ultra 158 150 78 21 25 26 OPPO Find X8 Ultra 157 155 83 22 25 26 Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra 158 150 75 21 28 26 Find out more details about photo and video scores for all phones we have tested on our PhoneArena Camera Score page Well, despite the strong hardware, this Vivo's rivals come up on top, mostly due to slightly stronger performance in the front-facing camera and video-recording capabilities. If we only look at the main cameras, the Vivo X200 Ultra performs very well, achieving a pretty high score that puts on par with the rest of its rivals. It's on par with the Xiaomi 15 Ultra and just slightly worse than the Galaxy S25 Ultra ; the Oppo Find X8 Ultra is soundly beat. The ultrawide camera on the Vivo X200 Ultra, however, is among the best we've seen. It's on par with the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, but is arguably more capable thanks to its exceptional image quality. The zoom capabilities of the device are mostly fine, but it loses to the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, which simply boasts hardware that's better at zooming. Pros One of the best ultrawides we've seen One of the best ultrawides we've seen Excellent detail with no oversharpening Excellent detail with no oversharpening Great colors and superb dynamic range Cons Video quality is good, but way less impressive than still photography Video quality is good, but way less impressive than still photography The camera setup is a bit peculiar and requires some getting used to The camera setup is a bit peculiar and requires some getting used to A proper periscope would have been better The selfie camera drags down the overall score, as it's just good, but not exceptional. Main camera All things considered, the main camera could easily pass as a short telephoto. It's a bit more zoomed-in than what we're used to, but that's not a weakness. Considering all other properties of this camera, it's pretty much perfect in most areas, giving us wonderful detail with no oversharpening or artifacts present. We'd have loved slightly better overall exposure here as the phone tends to overexpose the image slightly, but apart from that, it's excellent. Zoom Quality Now, the zoom camera is very capable, it even beats the one on the Oppo Find X8 Ultra in our tests. With no oversharpening and detail that just looks great, this camera impresses despite lacking very impressive hardware. Ultrawide camera 14mm mode In standard ultrawide mode, this camera performs very well. You get lovely colors, lots of detail, great dynamic range, and no distortion. That's what every ultrawide should strive to be! 28mm mode Now that's the mode we are all most familiar with, and here, surprisingly, the Vivo performs pretty much indistinguishable from a standard wide-angle camera. Thanks to the in-sensor 2X crop, you get superb images, with exceptional detail, no oversharpening, exceptional dynamic range, and lovely colors. Front-facing camera Xiaomi 15 Ultra, and the Oppo Find X8 Ultra. Selfies are splendid. Great dynamic range, great colors, and excellent exposure. The only downside here is that the sharpness is lacking, especially when compared to such exceptional camera phones as the Galaxy,Ultra, and the Oppo Find X8 Ultra. Video quality When it comes to video, the Vivo sadly disappoints a bit. Detail is lacking, and the dynamic range isn't great, often resulting in under- or over-exposed portions of the scene. Colors are vivid, even a bit too vivid for our liking, and the stabilization could have been better. Audio capture has some issues, too. Overall, the video capabilities of the phone are slightly less impressive than its still photography prowess. Conclusion Overall, the Vivo X200 Ultra is a very impressive cameraphone with many strengths, but you will only like it if you focus on still photography. Sadly, the overall video capabilities, while good, aren't up to speed with regular still images you might take, which could be slightly disappointing. The phone excels at stills, with superb detail uninterrupted by oversharpening or artifacts, lovely dynamic range that's seemingly always on point, and colors that could be either vivid or realistic depending on which Zeiss mode you go for. There's a lot to love here, making the Vivo X200 Ultra a worthy peer of the Galaxy S25 Ultra , Xiaomi 15 Ultra, and the Oppo Find X8 Ultra! You just know it that when a phone has the "Ultra" sobriquet, it's simply destined to be a super-capable camera phone.
