Disclosure: this article is sponsored by vivo Malaysia.
A few weeks ago, vivo introduced the vivo V7 in Malaysia. Essentially a more affordable alternative to the vivo V7+, the V7 has most of its larger sibling’s winning qualities – all in a more compact form factor.
Just like the V7+, the vivo V7 comes with a sleek-looking 5.7-inch 1440 x 720 FullView display with 83.6% screen-to-body ratio, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 processor paired with 4GB of RAM, 32GB of expandable storage, and even an all-metal chassis. Packed with a 3,000mAh battery, the V7 promises commendable battery life as well.
While a 3,000mAh battery doesn’t sound awfully big, the V7 only has a 5.7-inch 720p display, which shouldn’t be as power-consuming as other larger, higher resolution panels. On top of that, the Snapdragon 450 processor, which is built on the 14nm process, is a power-efficient SoC too. Taking these into consideration, we reckon the V7 will have good battery life.
And then we have the vivo V7’s 24MP selfie camera, which is identical to the V7+’s front-facing shooter. Naturally, it comes with a slew of selfie-centric features, including a Portrait Mode for shots with bokeh effects, Face Beauty 7.0 – it uses an algorithm to brighten images and offer an even complexion in your selfie shots – and of course, a front-facing flash for those low-light selfies.
Real time beautification also comes standard on the vivo V7. Dubbed Face Beauty, you can use this beautification feature in video calls. Apps that support Face Beauty include WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Line, and Viber.
A normal selfie shot (top) and another one in Portrait Mode.
As it’s marketed as a selfie-centric smartphone, the V7 can take some really good selfie shots. The Portrait Mode can separate the subject from the background quite well, and the level of beautification can be adjusted easily too. Face Access – vivo’s own facial recognition feature – is also a very neat feature. Utilising the V7’s selfie camera, it can unlock the phone very quickly with just a quick glance.
The V7’s 16MP rear camera is quite a capable shooter as well. The autofocus performance is good – thanks to the camera’s phase detection autofocus – and it can take some good-looking shots too. There’s also the V7’s Live Photo feature, which records a short video before and after a particular shot was taken – very similar to Apple’s Live Photos.
Aside from these hardware features, the vivo V7 comes with a number of useful software tricks too in the company’s very own Funtouch OS 3.2. Say you’re watching a video and a message comes in: you can simply click on the notification to split the screen in two thanks to vivo’s Smart Split 3.0. There’s also App Clone, which allows you to run two separate accounts simultaneously for messaging apps like WhatsApp and WeChat.
The vivo V7 has many of the V7+’s best features, and aside from the fact that it’s more compact than the latter, the V7 is more affordable too: it retails at only RM1,299 from popular retailers such as Senheng. To put things into context, the V7+ goes for slightly more at RM1,499. At that price point, the V7 is quite an interesting option, especially for those who are looking for a selfie-centric smartphone that won’t break the bank.
If you’re quick, you can actually get the vivo V7 for RM100 less at RM1,199 now – it’s part of a promotion vivo Malaysia is currently running. On top of the discounted price, a few freebies will also be thrown in, including a backpack, a tempered glass screen protector, and also a case.
