Vivo announced the vivo X80 series earlier last month in China. Today, the company revealed that the devices would gradually roll out in Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, Latin America and Europe soon. The device comes with the latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC and the latest MediaTek 9000 chipset; both chips are made on the 4nm process. Here’s how the new vivo X80 series stack up against the competition.

Before we get into details, it’s important that we know the specifications for both the vivo X80 and the X80 Pro. The Pro variant comes with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC, while the standard vivo X80 arrives with a MediaTek Dimensity 9000 chipset. Both models have 12GB of RAM and 256GB storage configurations, and they feature 80W FlashCharge fast wired charging, and the X80 Pro also supports 50W fast Wireless FlashCharge. The Pro has a 4,700 mAh cell, while the smaller sibling packs a 4,500 mAh battery.

MediaTek developed a very competitive SoC, and we’re glad to see in more flagship smartphones. The charging is also impressive and certainly, class-leading, especially when compared to other non-Chinese OEMs, who still stick to using 18-40W fast charging. Most devices from OPPO, HUAWEI, Xiaomi, OnePlus and other manufacturers support 60W and faster-charging technologies.

vivo X80 Pro display

vivo X80 Pro

Source: vivo

Both devices have come equipped with a large 6.78-inch AMOLED display, but only the pro variant has an LTPO2 panel, which supports variable refresh rates in the range of 1-120Hz. The standard model still supports 120Hz, but it’s not an LTPO2 panel. The Pro has a 3,200 x 1,440 resolution, whereas the vivo X80 has 2,400 x 1,080. Both devices pack an in-display fingerprint scanner.

This is roughly what we would expect to see in standard flagship devices that carry the Pro and non-Pro branding, although we would have loved to see the same LTPO2 panel with variable refresh rate on the standard model. Both have impressive, and color-accurate display, and the fact that the X80 still has a 120Hz panel makes up in our mind for the missing feature.

For instance, the Galaxy S22 series (the S22 and S22 Plus) only have a 48-120Hz display, and only the Galaxy S22 Ultra packs the LTPO 2.0 panel that has variable refresh rate between 1-120Hz, and it costs significantly more than the other two flagships in the series.

Vivo X80 Pro camera

Vivo X80 Pro

Source: Vivo

There are a lot of differences between the camera setup on each devices, so we’ll handle them separately. The vivo X80 Pro has an impressive setup. It packs a 50MP primary sensor with f/1.57, and it’s a large 1/1.3” sensor made by Samsung. It also has laser AF and Pixel Shift to improve the image quality and capabilities. There’s also a 48MP Sony IMX598 ultrawide sensor with f/2.2, a 12MP Sony IMX663 f/1.85 telephoto with 2x optical zoom, and an additional 8MP telephoto capable of 5x optical zoom. The lens have a Zeiss T* Coating decreasing the reflections, camera flare and ghosting.

The vivo X80 and X80 Pro also pack the same front selfie camera, which is a 32MP sensor with f/2.45. The standard vivo X80 has a less impressive camera setup, but it comes with most of the same functionality, although some are exclusive to the Pro due to the more versatile sensors. The X80 has a 50MP Sony IMX866 primary 1/1.49” sensor with f/1.75 and Optical Image Stabilization (OIS). It also has a 12MP f/1.98 telephoto sensor capable of 2x zoom, and there’s an additional 12MP f/2.0 ultrawide sensor.

Vivo X80 back

Vivo X80

Source: Vivo

When we compare the two devices side-by-side, there are a few major differences, especially in the camera department, but it’s nothing major, and they stack up well against each other. When it comes to other devices on the market, they also prove to be a great contender, and they can easily compete with Samsung’s Galaxy series and the iPhones. Both devices feature advanced features in the camera department, and vivo is known to have a great camera performance both day and night, although they usually lack behind companies such as HUAWEI, OPPO, Samsung, Apple, and Google, but they are still very capable.

Both devices have all of the connectivity features that you would expect to see in flagships, including Wi-Fi 6, 5G, Bluetooth 5.2 (5.3 in non-Pro), NFC and OTG support. The X80 Pro also features an IP68 certificate against water and dust.

The vivo X80 is available in Cosmic Black and Urban Blue colors, while the X80 Pro is available in a single color, Cosmic Black. Vivo didn’t share the pricing, but the X80 costs CNY 4,399 in China, or about ~$650 for the 12/256GB model. The vivo X80 Pro retails for CNY 5,999 (~$900) for the same configuration.

The vivo X80 and the X80 Pro are both excellent devices, and while they run the Funtouch OS 12, based on Android 12, they are undoubtedly competitive when compared to other flagship smartphones at similar prices in Europe and other markets.