Vivo V5s Specs and Review: Fresh Design and Better Selfies

Vivo V5s has been launched in India with a price tag of Rs. 18,990 and front Moonlight Camera. It is essentially an upgrade over the Vivo V5 as this new smartphone is also a camera-centric device with a 20MP front camera but with an additional feature.

Camera-centric smartphones have recently acquired a rather big consumer base in India with Oppo and Vivo leading the race of coming out better with every new launch. But when it comes to such smartphones under the Rs 20,000 bracket, this is where the actual battle for glory starts. Vivo V5s’ predecessor has been a go to device in the segment but it had its share of errors and all we have to see is, whether Vivo V5s will be able to make amends to those errors or not?

Vivo V5s Specifications

• 5.5-inch full HD (1080p) display with 2.5D curved glass and Corning Gorilla Glass protection
• 64-bit 1.5GHz Octa-Core MediaTek MT6750 SoC
• 4GB RAM and 64GB of internal storage, expandable via microSD card
• 20MP Sony IMX376 sensor with ‘group selfie mode’, Moonlight Glow, f/2.0 aperture and LED flash, at the front.
• 13MP rear camera with PDAF, f/2.2 aperture and dual-tone LED flash.
• Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) with Funtouch OS 3.0
• 3000mAh battery with Quick Charge support
• Fingerprint scanner and dual-SIM card slots (hybrid setup)
• 4G VoLTE support, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, 3.5 mm audio port and Hi-Fi audio system with an AK4376 audio chip.
• Colour options: Matte Black and Crown Gold

What’s Good in Vivo V5s

• The highlight of Vivo V5s is the ‘group selfie mode’ that comes with the 20MP front camera. This feature allows the users to take wide-angle shots, just like a dual camera setup. The results and bright and detailed, and the addition of front flash further results in better clarity under low-lighting.
• With the metal construction, antenna gaps at the back that are stretching towards the top and bottom edges, Vivo V5s looks a lot like the iPhone 7. It is comfortable to use with one hand and considering the design, it looks more like a torn down Vivo V5 Plus rather than V5’s successor.
• The fingerprint scanner can activate select apps by just swiping the screen down towards the sensor. The fingerprint reader is also water-resistant.
• Smart Split multi-tasking allows split-screen multitasking on supported apps.
• Hi-Fi audio system with AK4376 audio chip offers exceptional audio experience.

What’s Not Good in Vivo V5s

• Although, the 720p resolution of 5.5-inch display offers incredibly detailed and smooth experience, competitors in this segment offer better proportions.
• Android 6.0 Marshmallow with Funtouch OS 3.0 is rather a complex user interface than stock Android. If Vivo V5s is going to be your first smartphone from this Chinese smartphone manufacturer, it will definitely take time to get used to this UI.
• 64-bit 1.5GHz Octa-Core MediaTek MT6750 SoC, 4GB RAM and 64GB of internal storage, is not a good hardware package when compared to the likes of Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 and Moto G5 Plus, both of which are priced way lower than Vivo V5s. However, a Snapdragon Chipset could have helped this device.
• A 3500 mAh battery could have been a better option here.

Verdict

At Rs 18,990, Vivo V5s offers the best camera in this segment but it does compromises on the performance front. It doesn’t mean that owning a Vivo V5s is going to be a lag and frame drop-laden experience, but Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 and Moto G5 Plus and even Lenovo Z2 Plus, are still the better options when it comes to Value for Money and all-around package.

However, if multimedia experience is the only deal breaker for you and you want a decent performance package (the definition of ultimate selfie-smartphone), you can still go for Vivo V5s but we won’t recommend it.