The vivo smartphones that we have reviewed in the past, like the Y35 and V23 5G have been decent. So we were thrilled when we got an opportunity to review their latest vivo V25, a mid-range smartphone. This is also known as the lite version of vivo X80 5G which we also reviewed. This model has its series version, the V25e and V25 Pro in which our V25 is in the middle of the succession pack. Will it have a place in the mid-range segment? Let us find out.
Table of Contents
vivo V25 Specs
| OS: | Funtouch 12 - Android 12 |
|---|---|
| Processor: | MediaTek Dimensity 900 |
| Display: | 6.44 inches 90HZ AMOLED Display |
| Wireless Connections: | 5G, Bluetooth 5.2, WiFi, GPS. GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO, QZSS, NavIC |
| Memory: | 8GB RAM + 256 GB Internal Storage |
| Connectors: | USB Type-C, OTG |
| Cameras: | Rear Camera Main - 64MP, f1.8, PDAF, OIS Ultrawide - 8MP, f/2.2, 120˚ Macro - 2MP, f/2.4 Front Camera 50MP, f/2.0 |
| SIM Card Slots: | Dual SIM (Nano-Sim) |
| Battery: | 4,500mAh with 44W charging |
| SRP: | 8GB + 256GB: Php 23,999 |
The Design
This vivo V25 we have here is a Sunrise Gold variant which changes colors and glows when radiated by light. It is eye-catching when you use it, and for sure, this is a head-turner because of how its appearance catches attention from the crowd once you bring it out based on my experience. They also have a Diamond Black color variant which is not as eye-catching compared to Sunrise Gold, but still has an elegant look on it.
The V25’s shape is a box with a rounded corner for its polished metal look frame. The vivo V25 comes with an IP54 water-resistant and dust-resistant rating. Its back panel is coated with a matte finish that is satisfying to touch and it doesn’t leave your fingerprints noticeable. In addition to this, it has a vivo logo on the lower side.
The camera module is in an extruded platform where it has two levels of height: the first layer has a solid color of gold and the second layer is the same material with the entire back of it. The camera layout of it is the same as the Y35 that we already have reviewed, wherein, there are two big camera holes, a flash that is in a rectangle shape, and a small camera.
For the buttons and ports, we have a power button and a volume rocker on the right side. Also, for its bottom part, we will find the SIM card slot which we can occupy with two nano SIM cards. We can also find in this area the microphone jack, USB type-C port, and a speaker grill. Adding up to these is that, the fingerprint scanner is under the screen.
The Display and Sound
The vivo V25 has a decently-sized 6.44-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 1080 x 2404 pixels that is running a 90hz refresh rate. The bezels we got here are on the thicker side and we also got a teardrop-style camera that seems to have a longer and larger droop. In my opinion, with this kind of level of a smartphone, it should have a camera hole rather than a teardrop-style camera.
The display quality of the vivo V25 is good as it produces vibrant display and inky blacks. Also, its brightness is perfectly usable outdoors. As for the refresh rate settings, we can toggle it to 90Hz or 60Hz, but, as you boot up the vivo V25, it is set from default on its Smart Switch, which is on automatic selection according to the actual usage scenario, and system power consumption.
For the speaker, it is a single bottom-firing speaker that sounds average and not that loud. This is what we can consider as a downer because at its price range, it should have at least a good stereo speaker.
The Performance
Inside the vivo V25 is a Mediatek Dimensity 900 chipset, a downgrade from the V23 which is the previous generation powered by a superior Dimensity 920. It is paired with 8GB RAM plus 8GB more of extended RAM and 256GB internal storage. It is running a Funtouch OS 12 on top of Android 12 with signature bloatwares that are pre-installed. Here are some benchmark scores of the vivo V25.
Our experience when using the vivo V25 is quite not that good as sometimes we experience weird quirks, like for instance, the bubble notification is suddenly appearing even if you are not set to enable it. Another thing is that, when you are using the camera app, sometimes it goes laggy or it stutters after taking a picture but will run again well after a few seconds.
I suppose that it focuses all of its resources on the processing of its pictures that makes the camera preview laggy or stuttered after you take a picture. I hope these issues will be resolved along with their roll out on new updates to the phone. Other matters of the vivo V25 run smoothly and we didn’t experience any issues or problems.
As for its gaming experience, it has a dedicated Ultra Game Mode which has features that will make you focus more on your gaming season by disabling notifications and rejecting calls. And also, this has an option to boost a little bit of performance. Upon playing games on the vivo V25, we didn’t experience any problems when running low-demanding games like Mobile Legends on high graphics with super refresh rate. But for high-demanding games like Genshin Impact, we need to lower the quality that makes it a potato quality to be able to make it playable. Nevertheless, we can play games and still enjoy it and we didn’t encounter any heat issues with our vivo V25.
Lastly, for the security feature of the vivo V25, we do have an under-display fingerprint scanner which performs just fine,and nothing is surprising about it. It also has a Face Unlock feature that unlocks quickly and also has a feature called Screen Fill Light that is, when enabled, the screen brightness will be increased during the lock screen when it recognizes that the ambient light is weak for easier scanning of your face.
The Camera
In the camera department of the vivo V25, it sports a 64MP primary sensor with OIS and is accompanied by an 8MP ultra-wide sensor and 2MP macro sensor. As for the front camera, it has a 50MP camera.
Same with the previous vivo smartphones that we have reviewed, it brings many options to tweak our pictures out of the box – from its filter option, up to its lighting effects. Also, they have some vlog gimmick features that they included with this one where it gives us some vlog templates that we can use to help us in editing the video that we recorded (putting a filter in the video and stitching it).
Regarding its picture quality, the 64MP primary sensor produces great images under ideal lighting conditions. The pictures we got have a well-detailed quality, and the colors are natural. For sure, the included OIS feature is a great addition as it ensures steady shots. The portrait shots we took are great also, as it detects the subject to the background pretty decently.
Upon taking zoom shots as it doesn’t have a telephoto lens, we were able to zoom up to 10x digital zoom. But the picture quality with the 2x zoom is still on par with the 1x.
In the matter of low-light shots with the primary sensor. It still executes well as it captures plenty of detail and decent colors with noise and a bit grainy sometimes. Also, there is an occasion that with the light sources available, there is a hard time with its contrast.
Moving to its other camera department, the 8MP ultra-wide sensor also works well in good lighting. The detail we got is decent and the colors are still natural, but, you will notice the downgrade across with its primary sensor. And lastly for the 2MP macro sensor. We can take usable images with it.
For the selfie camera, we got high-quality pictures as it produces great detail and natural colors. It also has decent contrast and dynamic range. As for the portrait shots, we got decent bokeh.
Overall, we are happy with the quality of the pictures we got from the camera of vivo V25. But do take note of the issue that we encountered which I have mentioned in the performance part of this review.
Talking about the video quality of the vivo V25, it can capture up to 4K@30fps video from its main and selfie camera and only 1080p@60fps for its ultrawide camera. As for the stabilization, we got the option to use standard stabilization, ultra, and off.
The Battery
The vivo V25 has a 4,500mAh battery which is smaller than the commonly found 5,000mAh battery. But even if it has a smaller battery, it still has great battery life because of the Dimensity 900 efficiency plus the AMOLED display. We ran a battery test with it and with a 50% brightness of the phone, we got 13 hours and 16 minutes.
Aside from that, it supports up to 44W and they advertised that it can charge up to 61% under 30 minutes.
vivo V25 Verdict
For the price of Php 23,999, the vivo V25 is an acceptable smartphone for its price. It was able to give us the overall value of a smartphone. From its fancy color-shifting back panel, solid display, great battery life, and decent performance even if it is a downgrade from its previous generation. With the vivo V23, we can easily understand that they need to cut down some of the corners to hit its lower price. We can recommend this smartphone for people who are digging the sparkling looks that it has and use it to take plenty of pictures as it produces great images.
The vivo V25 is available on Shopee, and Lazada.
To purchase the vivo V25 5G from the vivo Official Store at Shopee, click here: https://shope.ee/9p4Y1B9cRQ
