Moon modes are old news, this flagship is coming for the sun

Chinese manufacturer vivo has made major strides in the last few years as far as cameras are concerned. Now, the company has revealed the vivo X100 and X100 Pro, and it looks like the brand is aiming to make the list of best camera phones again.

The two phones have several features in common, namely the brand-new MediaTek Dimensity 9300 flagship chipset, a 6.78-inch 2,800 x 1,260 LTPO OLED screen (up to 3,000 nits peak brightness), dual stereo speakers, an IR blaster, and an IP68 rating. But the Pro model is generally the superior device on paper.

vivo X100 Pro: The most flexible camera system?

The X100 Pro packs some impressive camera hardware. You’re looking at a triple rear camera system consisting of a 50MP one-inch main camera (IMX989, f/1.75), a 50MP ultrawide shooter (IMX866, f/1.57), and a 50MP 100mm periscope camera (~4.1x, f/2.5). The Pro phone’s camera system is also powered by a custom V3 imaging chip.

Vivo’s Pro phone also brings several new camera-related features. For starters, you’ve got an Apple-style 4K portrait video with automatic focus switching and the neat ability to adjust blur levels after the fact. There’s also a 35mm shooting option and a sun mode. The latter lets you take photos of the setting sun without blowing out the environment and the rest of the sky. Check out an official sample below. We hope there’s less fakery involved here than with vivo’s supermoon mode, which outright swaps the real moon for a giant, fake one.

Otherwise, the vivo X100 Pro also offers a 5,400mAh battery, 100W wired charging, and 50W wireless charging.

vivo X100: What does the standard model offer?

Meanwhile, the standard phone makes a few concessions to meet a lower price tag. Starting with the cameras, the vivo X100 sticks with the older V2 imaging chip. The phone also brings a smaller 50MP main camera (IMX920, f/1.57) along with a 64MP 3x tele lens (f/2.57) in lieu of the 50MP 4x periscope shooter.

Nevertheless, both phones also offer macro capabilities via their tele cameras, allowing you to take macro snaps from far away compared to taking macro images with an ultrawide camera. Speaking of the ultrawide lens, you’ve got a 50MP sensor here.

The cheaper phone also brings a 5,000mAh battery to keep the lights on. Expect 120W wired charging via the bundled charger, but there doesn’t seem to be any wireless charging support.

vivo X100 series pricing and availability

The vivo X100 range is only available in China for now, with no official word on wider availability. The brand typically launches some or all of these phones in a few countries outside China. However, the company has ceased sales in Germany following a patent dispute with Nokia.

Nevertheless, the vivo X100 starts at 3,999 yuan (~$549) for the base 12GB/256GB variant in its home market. Fancy the Pro model? Then you’ll need to pay a starting price of 4,999 yuan (~$686) in China, netting you a 12GB/256GB device.