vivo V20 review

Alternatives

Since the vivo V20 still has limited regional availability, we only have limited pricing info. In India, for instance, the V20 goes for INR 24,990 and meets competitors from Realme, Samsung, and even OnePlus.

The first phone to spring to mind for around the INR 25,000 is the OnePlus Nord. The handset offers similar specs at first glance, but the devil is in the details. The Nord gets you a 90Hz refresh rate on the same 6.44-inch OLED screen. It also has a glass build but boasts Gorilla Glass 5 on the front and back. Battery life is good, but the V20 edges out with a slightly better overall battery score while falling behind in charging speed. The V20 will offer more RAM and more storage for the same price. But what would tip the scales more decisively is Nord's superior chipset - Snapdragon 765G.

OnePlus Nord • Samsung Galaxy A51 • Realme X3 SuperZoom

Samsung's Galaxy A51 is another similarly-priced option that is currently discounted in India. As always, Samsung's mid-rangers are often standing out from the competition with Super AMOLED screens, but the V20 seems to have matched Samsung on this one. Moreover, the vivo's contender has the better chipset, twice the RAM, twice the storage, faster charging, and superior battery endurance. However, the more mature One UI 2.5, the better overall camera performance, and the brand recognition factor are what may sway some buyers. It's also a bit less expensive, currently asking INR 22,999.

The Realme X3 SuperZoom is a rare find in the INR 25,000 segment, mainly because of its powerful Snapdragon 855+ chipset. It was last year's Qualcomm flagship SoC, after all. The camera quality might not be as convincing, but it sure is versatile. Telephoto cameras are a rarity in this segment, let alone 5x telephoto snappers. Battery life and charging are impressive but don't deliver the same image quality as the vivo V20. The latter has a superior OLED panel with higher brightness too, so don't be fooled by the rather quirky, as we found in our review, high-refresh-rate behavior.

Verdict

As you can see, specs-wise, the V20 falls short of matching some of its competitors. Yet, it's not a bad phone either. Putting together a well-performing chipset with an excellent display, big enough battery, and a stylish, compact chassis is no easy task. Vivo was able to do that with the V20, it's just that mid-range competition is cut-throat.

For what it was made for, the vivo V20 fills a nice niche. It impresses with sleek design, compactness and comes with twice the storage and RAM of its competitors. And it doesn't skip the microSD card slot and the 3.5mm jack too. Still, there's no denying the fact that this phone isn't the best value out there. It's close, but no cigar.

Pros

• Sleek and stylish design, compact dimensions
• Bright and well-calibrated OLED display
• Good battery life and competitive fast charging
• 8GB/128GB base memory configuration
• Mostly dependable main camera performance
• Funtouch 11 based on Android 11 feels a lot better than previous iterations

Cons

• Disappointing ultra-wide camera performance
• Performance is lower than competitors in this price segment