Vivo’s V sequence has at all times been about delivering svelte designs and good cameras within the mid-range section, and the Chinese language producer is taking issues to a complete new degree in 2024. The model’s Zeiss integration is being prolonged to cowl the V sequence with the introduction of the V30 and V30 Professional, and that makes issues very attention-grabbing.
Clearly, Vivo is not the one model to do that; Xiaomi additionally did the identical factor final yr with the Xiaomi 13T sequence, bringing Leica-tuned imaging modules to its mid-range portfolio. The place Vivo has an edge is with the design; the V30 Professional appears beautiful, and it’s the thinnest and sleekest cellphone I used this yr.
But it surely’s the cameras that actually stand out. The cellphone has a trio of 50MP cameras on the again, and so they’re a big improve over final yr. You get a 50MP digicam on the entrance as properly, and it does an excellent job with selfies.
Vivo additionally has a brand new design on the again that appears slightly placing, and the model by some means managed to fit in a 5000mAh battery into a tool that is simply 7.45mm thick. I used the Vivo V30 Professional for the higher a part of per week, and this is why I feel the cellphone is a good alternative for those who’re trying to swap to a brand new mid-range gadget in 2024.
Vivo V30 Professional: Pricing and launch date
Vivo unveiled the V30 Professional on February 28, and the cellphone will go on sale within the coming weeks in choose areas — India, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines, and Taiwan. The cellphone is launching in Indonesia and Thailand initially, and is slated to debut alongside the usual V30 in India on March 7.
The V30 Professional is about to retail at IDR 7,999K ($510) in Indonesia, and THB 19,999 ($555) in Thailand. Vivo is releasing two configurations of the V30 Professional in international markets: a base mannequin with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, and a 12GB/512GB model.
Vivo V30 Professional: Design
Vivo is aware of a factor or two about trendy designs, and the V30 Professional could be certainly one of its finest choices but. The cellphone has an unbelievably svelte profile, and switching from the Honor Magic 6 Professional, I instantly seen the distinction. The cellphone has comparable dimensions because the V29 sequence, however the total design appears a lot cleaner because of the modifications on the again.
The V30 Professional makes use of a brand new digicam housing that appears rather more elegant, with Vivo switching out the blocky rectangular design with a elegant housing that appears nice. The important thing differentiator for these units is that the digicam housing does not jut out from the chassis, so there is no wobble when utilizing the V30 Professional on a desk.
The digicam island has smaller rings round every module, and I discover this ironic as a result of final yr’s design had arguably mediocre auxiliary cameras that had been slotted into big rings. This time round, the V30 Professional encompasses a trio of 50MP cameras on the again, however they’re housed in diminutive rings.
There is a motive for this, and it has to do with the Aura Gentle; the function is principally an auxiliary flash module that is designed to supply a light-weight that is brighter and softer than the common LED flash sensor, and it does an amazing job in low-light conditions. I am going to cowl Aura Gentle intimately within the digicam part, however the extra of the module means the precise digicam housing is smaller.
The design additionally has so much going for it, significantly the Bloom White model that mimics the “delicate gradient shade scheme of flower petals with a serene white base, seamlessly transitioning right into a refined blue gradient.” The gradient impact is refined, and it appears very cool. You additionally get a refined shimmer sample on the again, the matte texture is a delight to make use of, and it’s placing to behold — it appears a lot better than its product photographs recommend.
Anyway, I acquired the V30 in Bloom White and the V30 Professional in Noble Black, and the black model is as plain as designs get in 2024. It has a shimmering glow as properly, and the frosted glass design means you aren’t getting a lot smudging. The cellphone has flowing curves at the back and front, and this lets you maintain the gadget comfortably.
That mentioned, there is not a lot to carry on to on the sides, and I would recommend getting a transparent case to make use of with the gadget (there’s one bundled within the field). The facility and quantity buttons are on the correct, the SIM card tray is on the backside, and also you get the identical metallic plate up high because the X100 Professional, but it surely says Skilled Portrait this time.
There’s additionally IP54 ingress safety, and whereas it is not pretty much as good because the IP68 ranking that the majority units on this section provide, it’s higher than nothing — which was the case till final yr. The one design quibble is that the cellphone is a bit tall, however apart from that, Vivo nailed the general aesthetic.
Vivo V30 Professional: Show
The V30 Professional has a 6.78-inch AMOLED panel with 120Hz refresh, and it ticks all the correct bins: it has good shade saturation and vibrancy, will get extremely vivid in out of doors use, and has HDR10+. The panel goes as much as 2800 nits in HDR content material, and as much as 1200 nits in out of doors use.
The panel has good customizability, and Vivo’s always-on mode has loads of distinctive types. I did not see any points in every day use, and the display is nice for streaming content material and enjoying video games. The display refresh is about to Sensible Change out of the field, however you’ll be able to manually toggle between 60Hz and 120Hz from the settings.
Though the gadget is on the broader aspect, the svelte design means it is not uncomfortable within the least in every day use, and having examined the Nubia Z60 Extremely not too long ago, I can not consider two units which have such a contrasting design. I additionally just like the curved panel, and it permits the gadget to face out on this section. There may be stereo sound right here, but it surely does not get significantly loud or detailed.
Vivo V30 Professional: Efficiency and battery
Whereas Vivo modified numerous issues this yr, the V30 Professional makes use of the identical Dimensity 8200 platform as final yr’s V29 Professional and V27 Professional. It’s constructed on a 4nm node and is respectable in every day use, but it surely has older Cortex A78 and A55 cores, and so they simply do not measure up in 2024. Most telephones on this class use Arm v9 cores as customary — the Cortex A710 and A510 — and the effectivity positive aspects with the 4nm node are offset by means of older cores.
Whereas the gadget is not sluggish as such, it does not fairly ship the identical degree of efficiency as its rivals, significantly on the subject of gaming. Vivo does not place this as a gaming cellphone, and I perceive the model’s reasoning to make use of a secure platform with confirmed reliability, however it is a drawback of its personal making. Vivo’s insistence to launch a brand new gadget within the V sequence each six months, and there is solely a lot that may really change between generations.
| Class | Vivo V30 | Vivo V30 Professional | OnePlus 12R |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCMark Work 3.0 (General) | 10560 | 10789 | 12189 |
| PCMark Work 3.0 (Net Looking) | 7950 | 8503 | 12111 |
| PCMark Work 3.0 (Video Modifying) | 5866 | 5162 | 5548 |
| PCMark Work 3.0 (Writing) | 12225 | 15764 | 15752 |
| PCMark Work 3.0 (Picture Modifying) | 23065 | 24586 | 19074 |
| Geekbench 6 (single-core) | 1099 | 1259 | 1332 |
| Geekbench 6 (multi-core) | 3144 | 3832 | 4475 |
| 3DMark Wild Life Excessive (rating) | 1491 | 1818 | 3686 |
| 3DMark Wild Life Excessive (FPS) | 8.935 | 10.865 | 22.07 |
That is evident on the subject of gaming, with the V30 Professional not going managing to carry its personal in opposition to highly effective units — the one gadget that is slower is the usual V30. You possibly can nonetheless get playable framerates in demanding titles supplied you flip down the settings, however there’s seen jitter. I wasn’t in a position to run the Photo voltaic Bay check as 3DMark highlighted a Vulkan error, however in real-world utilization situations, there aren’t any points launching video games.
Should you play informal video games and do not care about getting one of the best framerates in demanding titles, the V30 Professional may very well be an honest alternative. It has good thermal administration, and my unit did not cross 44 levels even after prolonged use. At that time, it acquired noticeably heat, however not too uncomfortable.
The cellphone does not fairly have the newest connectivity; you get Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.3, however there are respectable Sub-6 5G bands, and also you get the AptX HD codec. Whereas Android producers are doing a very good job switching to the USB 3.1 customary on their high-end telephones, the V30 Professional’s USB-C port continues to be primarily based on USB 2.0, and it’s restricted in its usability outdoors of charging the gadget.
In relation to battery, the V30 Professional does an impressive job. The 5000mAh battery manages to final a day comfortably, and I did not see any points with the gadget on this regard even with heavy use. And when it’s good to cost it, the cellphone takes a smidgen over 45 minutes to cost the battery through the bundled 80W charger.
Vivo V30 Professional: Cameras
The most important difficulty with even the finest mid-range telephones is the dearth of fine auxiliary sensors; most telephones on this section have a very good fundamental digicam, however manufacturers usually throw in a median wide-angle lens and an unusable macro or portrait lens simply to spherical out the advertising supplies.
That is not the case with the V30 Professional; Vivo is delivering a powerful digicam package deal with the gadget, and that features a trio of 50MP cameras on the again. The primary 50MP digicam makes use of a Sony IMX920 module and has OIS, the 50MP wide-angle makes use of Samsung’s ISOCELL JN1 and has autofocus, and the 50MP has a Sony IMX816 and goes as much as 2x optical zoom. The identical 50MP ISOCELL JN1 is getting used on the entrance, and the V30 Professional takes one of the best selfies on this class.
A key function this yr is Aura Gentle; that is primarily a hoop LED gentle that augments the principle flash module, and it’s designed to ship even lighting whereas retaining a very good texture — consider it as a miniature ring gentle that is hooked up to the again of the gadget. What I like concerning the function is which you can swap between cool and heat hues, and you’ll set it to kick in when ambient lighting goes beneath a threshold or have it at all times enabled.
The V30 Professional marks the introduction of Zeiss lenses to the V sequence, and the digicam UI will get a toggle that allows you to swap between the three obtainable modes: Vivid, Textured, and Zeiss Pure. The Vivid mode is chosen out of the field, and it produces vibrant colours that look nice. Because the identify suggests, the Zeiss Pure mode delivers correct colours.
The digicam interface itself is unchanged, and also you get the taking pictures modes, lens choice, macro toggle, Google Lens, flash settings, and sweetness results on the viewfinder.
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The V30 Professional takes nice photographs in daylight situations, with good dynamic vary and shade rendition total. Vivo continues to be a bit on the aggressive aspect on the subject of smoothening particulars of foliage, however apart from that, there aren’t any points on this space. The wide-angle lens does an amazing job in daylight situations as properly, producing photographs with nice colours and good element retrieval.
The 50MP zoom lens solely goes as much as 2x optical zoom, however its greatest energy is as a portrait shooter. The truth is, that is the place the V30 Professional really comes into its personal; the cellphone allows you to select between six Zeiss bokeh types, and it takes among the finest portraits of any gadget at 2x. That is what I like essentially the most concerning the Xiaomi 13 Extremely and Vivo X100 Professional, and to see an analogous caliber of photographs out of a mid-ranger is an enormous deal.
Switching to low-light, the V30 Professional manages to take stellar photographs even with little to no ambient gentle, and once more, that is significantly higher than what the V29 Professional was in a position to obtain final yr. The wide-angle lens struggles a bit on this space, however you continue to get usable photographs, and portrait photographs at 2x look nice at night time as properly.
General, the V30 Professional has the most effective digicam packages of any mid-range cellphone, and the versatile lenses give the cellphone a definite edge.
Vivo V30 Professional: Software program
The V30 Professional runs Funtouch OS 14 primarily based on Android 14 out of the field, and the software program is clear and is assured to be fluid for not less than 4 years. Vivo says it continually optimizes the software program to make sure it does not decelerate, and contemplating the caliber of the {hardware} obtainable, it will likely be attention-grabbing to see if these claims are literally legitimate.
Anyway, I like what Vivo did with Funtouch OS 14, and similar to the X100 Professional, you get loads of customizability. There are just a few Materials You design influences, however for essentially the most half, Vivo has its personal styling, and numerous it’s much like OxygenOS — not astonishing given each use ColorOS as a basis.
No less than Vivo has numerous customized options of its personal that you aren’t getting inside ColorOS, and total, it’s good to make use of; the UI appears polished, and it’s optimized.
The most important difficulty with the software program is that the V30 Professional will get simply two Android OS updates together with three years of safety updates, and that simply is not sufficient. Whereas earlier fashions within the V sequence additionally had the identical assure, the V30 sequence is considerably costlier, and with all of Vivo’s rivals providing not less than three platform updates as customary, the model must rethink its technique.
Vivo V30 Professional: The competitors
The OnePlus 12R is the plain various to the V30 Professional, with each units costing roughly the identical. The 12R has a lot better {hardware}, and also you get a brighter display, bigger battery, and extra software program updates. The primary digicam is terrific as properly, but it surely is not a lot better than the V30 Professional, and the auxiliary lenses aren’t definitely worth the trouble.
Should you just like the look of the V30 Professional, the usual Vivo V30 is an honest various as properly. It has the identical 50MP digicam on the again and a 50MP wide-angle lens, however you miss out on the zoom lens. The 50MP digicam on the entrance is excellent as properly, and also you get the identical svelte design.
Vivo V30 Professional: Must you purchase it?
You can purchase this if:
- You want a mid-range cellphone with terrific cameras
- You desire a modern gadget that is skinny and lightweight
- You want a big battery that lasts all day
You should not purchase this if:
- You want long-term software program updates
- You desire a gaming cellphone
It is arduous to carve out a distinct segment within the mid-range section, however Vivo managed to do exactly that with the V30 Professional. Thanks to a few 50MP cameras on the again and one other 50MP lens up entrance, the V30 Professional delivers a flexible digicam package deal that you just simply do not get on some other gadget apart from true flagships, and that offers the gadget a legit edge.
If something, I am stunned Samsung and Xiaomi have not considered doing this already. Come to consider it, there aren’t many faults with the V30 Professional; the design is completely beautiful — you need to simply get the Bloom White mannequin — the battery lasts all day, the display is nice to make use of, and the gadget is considerably thinner than some other 2024 cellphone.
Vivo turned its software program efforts round as properly, and Funtouch OS 14 is clear and has numerous helpful options. The one draw back is that the cellphone will not get as many platform updates, and it’s costlier than its predecessor. Vivo’s international availability can be missing, and the V30 Professional is not launching outdoors of some Southeast Asian international locations.
That mentioned, I ended up liking the V30 Professional much more than I believed I might, and I could not say the identical for any of its predecessors. Vivo’s resolution to make use of sturdy cameras and lengthen its Zeiss collaboration to the mid-range provides the V30 Professional one thing you do not see usually on this class: uniqueness.