Vivo X Note Review: Giant smartphone with all the zips and zaps

The Vivo X Note looks really big, but it is lighter than expected at 221 g and features a 5,000 mAh battery. It is certainly not a lightweight device, though. Our blue test model has a matte aluminum frame and a leather-like back texture.

It looks quite chic and offers a good grip that is insensitive to fingerprints. Black and a gray versions are also available. The workmanship is very good.

Tight and even gaps with high torsional stiffness characterize the Vivo X Note smartphone. However, there is some audible crackling that is perceivable when the smartphone is bent back and forth a bit. The casing is protected against dust and water ingress thanks to the IP68 rating.

The features hardly leave anything to be desired. The USB 3. 2 port not only allows fast data transfers and OTG but also wired image output.

The display content, however, is only mirrored on the external display, which does not work very smoothly. In addition, there is an IR blaster for controlling multimedia devices, cameras, and air conditioners. The lack of memory expansion can certainly be coped with due to the huge internal memory.

A physical mute button is also located on the left long side. The Vivo X Note’s communication equipment is largely full-fledged. The Wi-Fi module supports Wi-Fi 6 with VHT80, but it weakens slightly when sending data in combination with our reference Asus ROG Rapture AXE11000 router.

However, this will not be noticed in everyday use since the transmission speed is still very high. A wide range of frequencies is available for mobile Internet, which does not leave anything to be desired even though our test device is an import from China. This applies to both LTE and 5G.

If a German SIM is inserted, the system complains that it is not from “mainland China” and that there might be restrictions with 5G. We could not determine these. The smartphone connected to the 5G network without problems in the test and the transmission rates were also on the expected level.

The telephony features are convincing too. VoLTE and Wi-Fi calls are supported. The Vivo X Note also accommodates two nano-SIM cards.

When held to the ear, the X Note delivers a good voice quality and also suppresses most ambient noise; it reverberates a bit in speaker mode. Phone calls can also be recorded directly via the call app. The operating system is Android 12, which is covered by Vivo’s own Origin OS.

The security patches were up to date on June 1, 2022, at the time of the review. However, it is not clear as to how long the Vivo X Note will be supported with updates. Although it is an imported device, German can also be selected as the system language.

The translation is a bit bumpy in some places but is largely successful. The capacitive touchscreen of the Vivo X Note works very reliably in all areas and implements inputs precisely. A matching screen protector is already applied ex-factory, which offers decent gliding properties.

Biometric security is ensured by a large 3D ultrasonic fingerprint sensor. Setup is lightning fast with just one touch and is very reliable. The recognition area is much larger than conventional smartphones.

Individual apps can even be protected with two-finger authentication, in which case two different fingers are checked by the sensor at the same time. In addition, facial recognition via the front-facing camera can also be used. The Vivo X Note takes impressive selfies.

A wide range of filters and a beauty mode can be used for this. However, the front-facing camera only records videos in Full HD 30 fps. The quad camera on the back offers a wide range of applications.

Besides the 50 MP main sensor, an ultra-wide-angle, and two zoom lenses are installed. Vivo calls the 2x optical magnification a portrait lens, and the periscope camera even allows a 5x optical magnification. Digitally, a 60x zoom is possible.

The pictures have a respectable dynamic range and present themselves with high contrasts. Only in low light do quite a few details get lost. Furthermore, slight aberrations can be seen at the ultra-wide angle.

Videos can be recorded in 8K, but stabilization will not be available in this mode. The situation is different up to Ultra HD 60 fps, and those who are satisfied with Full HD 30 fps can make use of an even more powerful Ultra and 360-degree stabilization. The 7.

0-inch LTPO OLED panel of the Vivo X Note works with a QHD+ resolution, which can also be reduced. The refresh rate can be adjusted automatically by the system and works between 1 and 120 Hz. A fixed 60 Hz or 120 Hz refresh rate can be set manually.

The brightness is very high with the ambient light sensor enabled and even reaches a peak of 1,360 cd/m² in the APL18 measurement. Those who prefer to adjust the brightness manually have 497 cd/m² at their disposal. Like most OLEDs, the Vivo smartphone’s also flickers.

We measured a frequency between 182. 3 Hz and 359. 1 Hz in minimum display brightness.

Although a DC dimming mode can be enabled via the developer options, it does not show any effect in a control measurement. Thus, users sensitive to PWM may experience some inconvenience due to prolonged viewing. Measurement series with fixed zoom level and different brightness settings The Vivo X Note is powered by a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 with 12 GB LPDDR5 working memory.

Graphics calculations are handled by the integrated Adreno 730 . Thus, the smartphone relies on a cutting-edge and powerful platform, which is also ideally suited for gaming. The Vivo smartphone delivers well in the benchmarks and positions itself in the expected range.

The installed cooling solution is also comparatively good because the X Note achieves higher frame rates than other rivals in long-term performance and does not throttle the SoC as much. Despite all that, it does not even get warm to the touch. The two speakers can be very powerful, but they are not optimally tuned.

The sound is quite appealing in the medium volume range, although the low and super-high tones are somewhat lacking. This can be reflected negatively especially in the latter. The sound can be output via USB-C and Bluetooth — most important audio codecs (SBC, AAC, aptX, aptX HD, LDAC) are available wirelessly.

In terms of battery runtimes, the Vivo X Note is just at the top of the comparison field with its 5,000 mAh battery. With a runtime of over 14 hours, there should be enough power for a day. Otherwise, the smartphone can be recharged quickly with the included 80 W charger.

The Vivo X Note is a strong high-end smartphone that has much more to offer than just a large screen. We especially liked the screen in the test because it is very bright, can work between 1 and 120 Hz, has an enormously high pixel density, and offers an accurate color reproduction. Additionally, the Vivo smartphone also offers almost everything else that we would want from such a flagship-class device.

The storage is ample, all current mobile standards are supported, wireless charging, IP certification, and a versatile camera are on board. The Vivo X Note is a powerful high-end smartphone with many advantages A very good rating is ultimately prevented due to the B grade in the camera. The setup is really strong in daylight but rather mediocre in low-light.

Furthermore, many features are only available in Full HD in video mode. The uncertain update supply is also a factor that should be considered in this price range. Alternatives usually cost more money in this country, but the Galaxy S22 Ultra , Honor Magic4 Pro or Oppo Find X5 Pro are worth mentioning at this point.

In a similar price range, the Pixel 6 Pro can be an enticing prospect. The Vivo X Note is only available in Europe as a direct import from China from our loaner TradingShenzhen , for example. .