The company recently launched the handsets Vivo V3 and V3Max. Their price is Rs 17,980 and Rs 23,980 respectively. It would not be wrong to consider V3 as a part of the ‘value for money’ segment. At the same time, the expensive V3Max is great in terms of performance and specifications. Today we will review Vivo V3Max. Most of its features are like those of a mid-range smartphone, but it is equipped with a powerful chipset. Let’s know about Vivo V3Max in detail.
Look and design
The Vivo V3Max is not a small phone by any means. It has a 5.5-inch screen and weighs 168 grams. Calling it a phablet would not be wrong, but it is definitely not for those who want an easy to handle phone. Its body is made of metal. However, the finish is a bit dull.
On the front of the phone, a small Vivo logo can be seen at the top. Apart from this, the front camera and proximity sensor are also at the top. The capacitive buttons are at the bottom. Unfortunately, they are not backlit. So, it is not that easy to use them in the dark.
The power and volume buttons are on the right side of the phone and the hybrid SIM tray is on the left. There is a 3.5mm socket on the top and a micro-USB port, microphone and speaker at the bottom.
The camera, flash, Vivo logo and fingerprint sensor are present on the back of the phone. The sensor does its job well. You will be able to store up to 5 fingerprints in the sensor. It is possible to unlock the phone without activating it.
The screen of the phone is full-HD. It is very sharp and there is no problem in reading anything on the screen even in bright light. The colors are vibrant and appropriate.
Specifications and software
Vivo V3 Max uses the new octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 chipset. Snapdragon 652 is a very capable mid-range chipset. Qualcomm claims that its performance is flagship grade. It has 4 GB RAM which will work to further strengthen the performance. The inbuilt storage is 32 GB which can be expanded via microSD card (up to 128 GB).
The phone has a 3000mAh battery and also has support for USB OTG. Unfortunately, you will be able to use only two SIM cards or one SIM card and a microSD card at a time. The phone has a dual-engine charging feature to charge the battery quickly.
The V3 Max smartphone runs on Android 5.1 with Vivo’s custom Funtouch OS 2.5 on top. This is very different from other Android smartphones. Because Funtouch is designed to give an iOS feel. Especially the settings app is very different from other Android phones.
There is no doubt that this is an Android phone. But most of the times it seems like an attempt has been made to copy iOS. If you are used to using Android then it will take time for you to get used to the OS of Vivo V3 Max.
Camera
Vivo V3 Max has a 13-megapixel primary camera with single tone LED flash. There is also an 8-megapixel front camera with this. With both the cameras, you will be able to record 1080 pixel videos. Apart from this, they are also equipped with popular video and photo modes like panorama, slow motion and HDR.
Simplicity has been kept in mind in the camera app. Apart from this, it feels refreshing to use it. There is no problem in accessing the important controls. There is no settings menu in it. Manual mode is also present, which gives you more control over photography.
Photos taken with Vivo V3 Max were very sharp and bright. But the colours seemed a bit dull and not exciting. There was no lack of detail in the photos. They do not break even when zoomed in too much.
The camera has trouble capturing moving objects. It gets blurred most of the times. Videos were recorded okay. Overall, the pictures were sharp most of the times, but they cannot be called great.
Performance
In terms of performance, Vivo V3 Max manages to win hearts. It is far ahead of most phones in this price range. This phone easily completes difficult tasks. Playing games on it is even more fun. This is possible due to the presence of 4 GB RAM. With its help, many apps keep running at a time but the performance is not affected. The benchmark test results of the handset are also excellent. The interesting thing is that this type of midrange smartphones easily manage to beat flagship phones in terms of performance.
The phone’s battery lasted 11 hours and 36 minutes in the video loop test. It will easily last for a day on normal use.
This phone does get a little hot while playing games and charging. The 4G and Wi-Fi connectivity features work great. The phone has no problem staying connected to the network.
Our decision
The Vivo V3Max is a very capable mid-range smartphone that manages to excel in every department. The build quality is good. The fingerprint sensor is fast and accurate. The screen is good and the performance is also excellent. Battery life is also satisfactory. Ignoring a few shortcomings in the camera department, this phone passes with flying colours in every department. The only complaint we have is the price of the Vivo V3Max. It does not match the product at all.
The best comparison for the V3 Max would be the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3, which is available for half the price. If you are willing to spend Rs 25,000 on a phone, the Xiaomi Mi 5 (Review) is a much better package.
Apart from this, there are many phones in the market that offer a similar experience at a lesser price, such as Lenovo Vibe X3, Google Nexus 5X and OnePlus 2. However, if you are looking for an Android phone that gives the feel of using iOS and its performance is also good, then it would not be wrong to consider Vivo V3 Max.