vivo recently hosted its first-ever Tech Day event in India at the National Stadium, New Delhi, where it talked about 5G, the collaboration with ZEISS for the X80 series and the V1+ imaging chip. The company also showcased pattern-creating and two-tone changing design technologies that have not yet been launched on the market. While not entirely new, one of the devices at the vivo Tech Day was the vivo X Fold, which was unveiled in April and is still only available in China. We had the chance to attend the event and spend some time with the vivo X Fold, so here are some impressions of vivo’s first foldable smartphone, which is identical in design to the China-exclusive vivo X Fold+ released last month. launched.
The vivo X Fold has two screens: a 6.53-inch cover display with a resolution of 2,520 x 1,080 pixels and a foldable display with a resolution of 2,160 x 1,916 pixels that measures 8.03 inches diagonally and is surrounded by plastic. bezels. Both are 120Hz AMOLED panels, but the cover display can only switch between 60Hz and 120Hz refresh rates, while the folding screen can adjust the refresh rate between 1Hz and 120Hz as it is the LTPO type.
The outer screen of the X Fold has a center punch hole for the 16MP selfie camera, and you’ll find another one when you unfold the smartphone. While the selfie shooter on the inside isn’t the under-screen type as we’ve seen on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4, the X Fold 3D in-display gets us ultrasonic fingerprint scanners on each of its screens, making it the first foldable smartphone. is with a UD fingerprint reader, as even the Fold4 comes with a side-mounted sensor. We like the solution of vivo better because it is more convenient to unlock the smartphone.
Flipping the X Fold over gives you a faux leather back panel whether you’re holding the blue color model or the black version, except the latter has a vertical stripe running its length with the vivo branding on it. The blue version certainly looks cool, but if you want an unobtrusive, formal look, you can opt for the black model.
vivo X Fold has two color options
The faux leather makes the vivo X Fold feel premium and comfortable to hold, and the finish is very similar to the protective case that comes with the vivo X80 Pro. And based on our experience using the X80 Pro with the case since its launch in April, we’re confident the X Fold’s leatherette-wrapped panel will help with grip and not attract fingerprints.
The rear panel of the vivo X Fold features a quad camera system consisting of 50MP primary (with OIS), 48MP ultrawide, 12MP telephoto and 8MP periscope (with OIS) units. It is housed in a rectangular camera island that spans the width of the smartphone and comes with ZEISS branding and T* coating. The island’s design is reminiscent of the vivo X80 Pro.
While the rear panel is fingerprint resistant, the same can’t be said for the camera island, which wiped quickly. It’s not much of a deal breaker, but we’d like to see vivo address this with its future smartphones.
The vivo X Fold’s camera island is reminiscent of the X80 Pro and it’s a fingerprint magnet
One of the biggest highlights of the vivo X Fold is its foldable display, which vivo says has an “undetectable fold” achieved in conjunction with UTG (ultra-thin glass) and a custom unibody hinge from Aerospace- Grade, made from six aerospace-grade materials.
vivo X Fold’s hinge
The phone manufacturer also claims that the X Fold has been opened and closed (folded and unfolded) 300,000 times, and even after that, the depth and width of the fold remained within the acceptable range to provide a great user experience, making it TUV Rheinland’s “Reliable Folding” certification.
While that all sounds great, what does the vivo X Fold’s fold actually look like? Well, you feel the crease when using the smartphone, but you quickly get used to it as it is barely noticeable when viewing content.
The hinge also felt nice and sturdy as it managed to keep the folding screen open at various angles, making it easier for users to record videos, take photos, make video calls and maybe even use the smartphone as a miniature laptop. use if they are adventurous.
vivo X Fold partially expanded • vivo X Fold fully expanded
What’s also remarkable about the vivo X Fold’s hinge is that there is no gap when the smartphone is closed – that’s very impressive for a first-generation foldable smartphone. This is nicely complemented by the satisfying sound made when the phone is closed, which is also confidence inspiring.
vivo X Fold has no opening when closed
The overall build of the vivo X Fold is nice. It has a metal frame with antenna lines on all sides. The power button and volume rocker are on the right, and the alert slider is on the left.
vivo X Fold comes with an alert slider
At the bottom is the USB-C port with the SIM card slot, microphone and speaker grille. And at the top is another speaker with an IR blaster and a secondary microphone.
vivo X Fold has a USB-C port, two speakers and an IR blaster
Overall, we really liked the design of the vivo X Fold, and it’s safe to say the Fold+ is no different in design as it’s literally the X Fold with a different chipset, bigger battery (but same dimensions and weight), faster charging, and a third color option – red. You can check out the detailed specs of the vivo X Fold and X Fold Plus here.
The vivo X Fold units on display at the Tech Day event featured the Android 12-based OriginOS Ocean. That was to be expected as the X Fold is a China exclusive and vivo smartphones in China use OriginOS instead of the FuntouchOS we get on the global models.
It is unclear whether vivo will launch the X Fold or the X Fold+ outside of China, but vivo officials told me that the brand has not had any plans to launch a foldable smartphone in India for some time. That’s a bit of a shame, because vivo has done a really good job with the foldable screen for its first foldable smartphone, and it would be great to have some alternatives to Samsung’s foldable devices from the BBK group in India and other markets. We hope to see BBK brands launch their foldable smartphones outside of China soon.
