vivo X500 Pro Max review

Competition

The vivo X500 Pro Max launches at €1,499/$1500 for the base 12/256GB version, and each step up in storage costs an extra €300. That's a higher price than some of the current Ultras on the market and sits alongside some more well-recognized brands in the Western markets like Samsung and Apple. The price hike over the vivo X300 Pro last year is about €100.

Perhaps the most direct competitor from this year is the recently launched Oppo Find X10 Pro Max. The two devices trade blows - the vivo has nicer speakers, a brighter display and faster charging, while Oppo's offering boasts longer battery life and edges out the vivo in some camera scenarios. Processing preferences aside, the Find X10 Pro Max seems to do a slightly better job at night, especially when it comes to video recording and selfies. We also tend to like the Find X10 Pro Max's design better, but we will leave that to you to decide as it's strongly subjective.

Oppo Find X10 Pro Max • vivo X300 Ultra • vivo X300 Pro

If you are aiming for a vivo in general, because you like OriginOS or the camera processing, then you might want to consider the vivo X300 Ultra as well. It holds bigger guns in the camera department, charges faster, has better speakers and employs roughly the same display. The X500 Pro Max's battery life is hard to ignore, but so is the lower price tag of the Ultra.

Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra • Google Pixel 11 Pro XL • Xiaomi 17 Ultra

While we are still on the vivo page, consider last year's X300 Pro as well, as it's a lower-priced vivo alternative offering much of the same user experience and the same camera hardware, but lacking in the battery department. It's up to you to decide whether the massive price gap is worth it.

Looking outside the vivo portfolio, we find the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra, the Google Pixel 11 Pro XL and the Xiaomi 17 Ultra as adequate alternatives in the ultra-premium segment. The Galaxy and the Pixel are almost half the price of the X500 Pro Max, while the Xiaomi 17 Ultra is a few hundred bucks cheaper. But only the Xiaomi gets close to the vivo in terms of battery life, and it's the only one from the bunch that offers a comparable camera experience. So in a way, paying almost 50% more than you'd pay for a Galaxy or a Pixel gives you twice the better phone.

Verdict

The vivo X500 Pro Max is hard not to love. It's one of the most complete flagships we've tested this year, leaving very little room for criticism. You get a superb display, outstanding battery life, a feature-rich and responsive OS with long-term software support, and exceptional camera performance across the board. Video recording is a particular highlight, with stabilization that stands in a league of its own.

Of course, there's still room for improvement. We would have appreciated better speakers and at least a tad faster charging, especially given that previous vivo generations managed considerably better charging times. And then there's the €1,499/$1,499 launch price (even higher in some regions), which puts the X500 Pro Max in a difficult position against more established and recognizable brands. That's a steep asking price, no doubt, and arguably the phone's biggest drawback.

But when you look past the price tag, there's very little to hold against the vivo X500 Pro Max. It excels in almost every area that matters and goes above and beyond in some, particularly battery endurance and camera performance. Few flagships manage to deliver such a complete and refined package, and the X500 Pro Max has more than enough going for it to stand proudly among the very best. That's why we're giving it our Editors' Choice award.

Pros

• Premium and durable design.
• Bright and feature-packed LTPO OLED display.
• Exceptional battery life.
• Fresh and feature-rich OriginOS 7 with long software support.
• Excellent camera performance all-around, unrivaled video stabilization.
• The optional teleconverter kit adds value to the camera.

Cons

• Pricey at launch.
• Charging speed could be faster.
• European units ship with a 13.5% smaller battery capacity.
• The speakers' sound quality is unimpressive.