vivo X300 & X300 Pro hands-on review

Introduction

Vivo’s X300 series has arrived, and it brings the big flagship X300 Pro and a compact flagship in the X300. This marks a new approach by vivo, which turns 30 by the way, in offering us the equivalent of the X200 and X200 Pro, as well as the X200 Pro mini, all in one go, with just two phones.

Both phones feature the new, ‘All Big Core’ Dimensity 9500 – a 3nm powerhouse of a SoC, which is supposed to push the X300 phones to Antutu 11 scores beyond 4 million.

While last year’s X200 struggled for an identity in the shadow of the same-sized yet better-equipped X200 Pro, this year’s X300 makes a lot more sense as a 6.31-inch phone. It’s on par with the Pro in terms of display and battery technology, design and build, and processing prowess, but lags behind in terms of all-around camera performance. Referring to it on stage during the launch in China, it was all too often called X300 Pro mini, which gives you an idea what vivo is aiming at here.

The smaller phone uses the same 1/1.4-inch 200MP ISOCELL HPB sensor for its main camera as the X300 Pro’s telephoto, which is a marked upgrade over the 1/1.56-inch 50MP of the X200. It also bumps the 32MP selfie up to a new 50MP (again, that’s the same for the X300 Pro). The rest of the cameras are similar, if not the same, as last year’s X200’s – you get a 70mm f/2.6 in front of a 1/1.95-inch sensor, and a 15mm f/2.0 ultrawide with a 1/2.76-inch imager.

But the biggest story here is the more compact body. Fans of smaller flagship phones will like the new X300. It reaches only 151mm tall, 72mm wide, and just under 8mm thick. It also measures only 190 grams. The body is flat on the front and back, and has matte flat sides. You can configure the vivo X300 in a few interesting colors, like Blue, Purple, Pink (which has an interesting hue), and Red.

vivo X300 specs at a glance:

• Body: 150.6×71.9×8.0mm, 190g; Glass front, aluminum alloy frame, glass back; IP68/IP69 dust tight and water resistant (high pressure water jets; immersible up to 1.5m for 30 min).
• Display: 6.31″ LTPO AMOLED, 1B colors, 120Hz, 2160Hz PWM, HDR10+, HDR Vivid, 4500 nits (peak), 1216x2640px resolution, 19.54:9 aspect ratio, 460ppi; Ultra HDR image support.
• Chipset: Mediatek Dimensity 9500 (3 nm): Octa-core (1×4.21 GHz C1-Ultra & 3×3.5 GHz C1-Premium & 4×2.7 GHz C1-Pro); Arm G1-Ultra.
• Memory: 256GB 12GB RAM, 256GB 16GB RAM, 512GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 16GB RAM, 1TB 16GB RAM; UFS 4.1.
• OS/Software: Android 16, up to 4 major Android upgrades, Funtouch 16 (International), OriginOS 6 (China).
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 200 MP, f/1.7, 23mm, 1/1.4″, 0.56µm, PDAF, OIS; Telephoto: 50 MP, f/2.6, 70mm, 1/1.95″, PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom; Ultra wide angle: 50 MP, f/2.0, 15mm, 119˚, 1/2.76″, 0.64µm, AF.
• Front camera: 50 MP, f/2.0, (wide), 1/2.76″, 0.64µm, AF.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 4K@30/60/120fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240fps, gyro-EIS, 4K@120fps HDR; Front camera: 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60fps.
• Battery: 6040mAh; 90W wired, 40W wireless, Reverse wired.
• Connectivity: 5G; eSIM; Wi-Fi 7; BT 5.4, aptX HD, LHDC 5; NFC; Infrared port.
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, ultrasonic); stereo speakers.

The vivo X300 Pro is more of a direct upgrade to its predecessor. You get a yearly chipset upgrade and a more refined body. The phone is a bit thinner at 8mm. The X300 Pro is just as flat on the front and back as the X300 but unlike the smaller phone, it has an ever so slightly curved 3D glass edge where the glass meets the frame. The frame no longer has a glossy finish, but a matte one.

The camera system has also been refined, though on the surface, it sounds the same. Vivo says that the 85mm f/2.67 Zeiss APO telephoto camera is all new. On the surface, an 85mm f/2.67 is exactly what the X200 Pro had, but the zoom on the X300 Pro uses an ISOCELL HPB, a customized HP9 variant co-developed between vivo and Samsung. It’s the result of a two-year collaboration between the two giants. The HPB moniker stands for ‘HP9 Blue”, but it was not super clear how it differs from the regular HP9, found in the vivo X200 Pro.

vivo X300 Pro specs at a glance:

• Body: 161.2×75.5×8.0mm, 226g; Glass front, aluminum alloy frame, glass back; IP68/IP69 dust tight and water resistant (high pressure water jets; immersible up to 1.5m for 30 min).
• Display: 6.78″ LTPO AMOLED, 1B colors, 120Hz, 2160Hz PWM, HDR10+, HDR Vivid, Dolby Vision, 4500 nits (peak), 1260x2800px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 452ppi; Ultra HDR image support.
• Chipset: Mediatek Dimensity 9500 (3 nm): Octa-core (1×4.21 GHz C1-Ultra & 3×3.5 GHz C1-Premium & 4×2.7 GHz C1-Pro); Arm G1-Ultra.
• Memory: 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 16GB RAM, 1TB 16GB RAM; UFS 4.1.
• OS/Software: Android 16, up to 4 major Android upgrades, Funtouch 16 (International), OriginOS 6 (China).
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 50 MP, f/1.6, 24mm, 1/1.28″, 1.22µm, PDAF, OIS; Telephoto: 200 MP, f/2.7, 85mm, 1/1.4″, 0.56µm, multi-directional PDAF, OIS, 3.7x optical zoom, macro 2.7:1; Ultra wide angle: 50 MP, f/2.0, 15mm, 119˚, 1/2.76″, 0.64µm, AF.
• Front camera: 50 MP, f/2.0, (wide), 1/2.76″, 0.64µm, AF.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 8K@30fps, 4K@30/60/120fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240fps, gyro-EIS, 4K@120fps 10-bit Log, Dolby Vision HDR; Front camera: 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60fps.
• Battery: 6510mAh; 90W wired, 40W wireless, Reverse wireless, Reverse wired.
• Connectivity: 5G; eSIM; Wi-Fi 7; BT 5.4, aptX HD, LHDC 5; NFC; Infrared port.
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, ultrasonic); stereo speakers; Satellite connectivity support (optional, market/region dependent).

Both phones make use of new Silicon Anode tech batteries – it’s their 4th gen tech and 2nd gen semi-solid-state battery. The bigger X300 Pro has a 6,510mAh cell, while the X300 has a 6,040mAh unit. Vivo says that software and hardware advancements combine to deliver battery endurance equivalent to 7,500mAh and 7,000mAh batteries on other phones. Their performance in the cold is impressive too and one of the demos we saw was one of the phones sitting in an ice block and operating without an issue for hours on end.

Finally, vivo’s OriginOS 6 sits at the helm of the new series. It has a new translucent design, a new engine, and is tasked with getting the best out of the new Dimensity 9500. vivo says they’ve reworked Android from the ground up for better battery efficiency and performance. Innovations such as Ultra-Core Computing, Dual Rendering, and Memory Fusion ensure the all-big-core chip offers the best possible sustained performance.