A few days back, Vivo announced that it will be launching the X50 Pro next week. But today, the company arranged for media outlets to get hands-on experience with the device ahead of time. So here are a few quick first impressions of the phone.
In many ways, the Vivo X50 Pro actually reminds me of the Nex 3 from late last year. This is mainly because of the display. Specifically, the degree of its chamfering on the sides. For one it’s not as severe as the one found on the Nex 3’s Waterfall FullView display.
On one hand, this is good, because the base of your thumb isn’t making contact with the screen as often. On the other, the operative phrase here is “as often”, because it still happens. The chamfering here still feels a good deal steeper than other phones. But for what it’s worth, the Vivo X50 Pro does come with a case in the box, which mostly alleviates this issue.
The Vivo X50 Pro also comes with a tad smaller display, which measures 6.56 inches. It does come with a punch hole camera at the top left corner, and a slight chin at the bottom. The screen also has a 90Hz refresh rate and a 180Hz response rate, as the company claims. The refresh rate checks out in my eyes, but it’s a little harder to tell with the response rate.
Not being chamfered as aggressively means space for buttons. And that means the power button and volume rocker on the right. The top and the left is left relatively featureless, and at the bottom is where the SIM tray is, alongside the USB-C port and the speaker grille. No 3.5mm audio jack here, sadly.
The back of the Vivo X50 Pro is also quite pretty, something that I’ve said about a lot of the company’s phones. It has what’s called AG Matte Glass giving it a nice frosted look, which goes well with its Alpha Grey colour.
On the top left corner is the camera island, consisting of four shooters. The highlight here is obviously the 48MP Gimbal Camera System, which sits at the top. Then there’s the periscope zoom lens, which sits separately from the other three cameras. There seems to be an extra layer of elevation for the three cameras on top as well. It’s an odd design choice that has become more common with more recent smartphone models.
At this point, I should mention that the Vivo X50 Pro also supports 5G. But as before, this is only here for future-proofing for now, as there’s no way to actually make use of it.
In summary, the Vivo X50 Pro looks great and feels great to use, at least in my limited time with the device. Although whether it’s something worth buying, that will have to wait for a full review. Also, and probably more importantly, its price, which the company will only announce next week.
