vivo V11 Hands On, Quick Review: A Major Leap

vivo V11 Hands On, Quick Review: A Major Leap

We check out vivo’s latest mid-range phone!

While vivo’s X21 didn’t exactly fly off shelves, the device was a powerful statement from the company. It was the first production phone that had an in-display fingerprint scanner to be sold in the Philippines, something that’s only now rolling out on high-end phones.

As innovative as the X21 was, the in-display fingerprint tech had its fair share of issues. vivo on their part listened and improved its in-display fingerprint tech. It’s obvious how much work the company put into improving the new technology after handling the V11. The introduction of an in-display fingerprint scanner, along with beefed up internals, makes the V11 the most advanced V-series model to date.

Despite only six months apart, the V11 is a large technological leap from the V9, and is worthy of consideration if you’re looking for a decent mid-range phone.

 

What’s in the box?

Like any V-series phone, the V11 comes in a white box with the photo of the phone on the front. Inside you’ll seethe V11, pre-installed screen protector, 18W fast charger, MicroUSB cable, TPU case, headset, SIM ejector pin, and documentation.

It looks similar to the X21.

Yes—to an extent. They share the same design language from the back, but the main difference comes with the build: while the X21 has a slender body and glass back, the V11 is slightly thicker and sports an acrylic gradient back in Starry Night or Nebula (our review unit is the former).

Also distinguishing the V11 from the X21 is the use of gold trimming. You’ll find it in the camera module and in the vivo branding at the back.

The V11 has the same port and button layout with the V9: power and volume control on the right side, MicroSIM and MicroSD tray on the left, and a headphone jack, loudspeaker, and MicroUSB port at the bottom. Our biggest gripe with the V11 is the latter; it would have been better if it used USB-C instead, especially since most phones in its price range are using the modern Type C port.

 

The notch has shrunk significantly.

Yup, and it looks less annoying compared to the V9’s notch but not as clean as the notch-free design of the NEX. It is slightly bigger than the V9’s display at 6.41 inches and gets an upgrade by shifting to an AMOLED display—a necessary change in order for the in-display fingerprint scanner to work.

Colors are bright and punchy—typical of an AMOLED display, and viewing angles are superb. The colors can be adjusted further via the settings to suit your liking.

Since the “Halo” notch only houses a 25-megapixel f/2.0 camera (another upgrade from its predecessor), vivo tucked the earpiece on top of the notch. You won’t notice that its there until you look at it up close.

What’s powering the V11?

Basically, you are getting the same Snapdragon 660 processor and 6GB RAM found on the X21. As expected from a Snapdragon 660 processor, performance is as good as expected, with slight improvements from vivo’s Jovi assistant—the brand’s own AI system.

We played a few games with it, and the Jovi-assisted gaming performance helped in pushing the V11’s internals to deliver the best possible gaming experience.

For storage, you have the same 64GB found on the V9. If that’s not enough, you can add a MicroSD card to cater to your growing storage needs.

And the cameras?

Like the internals, you are getting the same camera setup found on the X21: 12-megapixel f/1.8 for the primary camera, and 5-megapixel f/2.4 for the secondary camera. The V11 is capable of shooting 4K video, though it comes with EIS only at Full HD. Here are a few sample shots we took using the V11, along with a sample video showing Full HD, 4K, and HD Slo-mo shooting.

In the first shots we took with the V11, the results are promising. AI scene detection is snappy and does not produce over-saturated images. We will take more photos with the V11 and talk more about it in our comprehensive review.

How much does it cost?

Unlike its predecessors, the V11 is pricier at Php 19,999. Many would argue that the V11 would lose in the Php 15-20k segment. However, one should consider that the V11 is the most affordable phone to have an in-display fingerprint scanner. In addition, its internals and features are well-suited for the mid-range territory.

We are reserving our judgment for now, but we can say that the V11 is one of the best V-series phone vivo released in recent memory.

vivo V11 Specs

  • Qualcomm Snapdragon 660AIE octa-core processor
  • 6GB RAM
  • 6.41-inch Full HD+ AMOLED Halo FullView display, 2340×1080 resolution
  • 64GB of expandable storage (up to 256GB)
  • 12-megapixel f/1.8 and 5-megapixel f/2.4 rear cameras with PDAF, Dual Tone LED flash, AI Scene Recognition
  • 25-megapixel f/2.0 front camera with 3D Portrait Lighting
  • Dual SIM
  • 4G, LTE, VoLTE
  • WiFi, Bluetooth, NFC
  • GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS
  • In-display fingerprint sensor, Jovi assistant
  • 3400mAh battery with 18W fast charging
  •  Android 8.1, FunTouch OS 4.5

 

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