zedfighter.com Introduction
The Vivo X100 Ultra is Vivo’s first Ultra device and the best Flagship smartphone they have ever put together.
In the box you’ll find the device itself as well as a soft-shell rubber case which matches the colour of the phone, an 8 Amp charging cable and an 80W charging block.
Vivo X100 Ultra Review Pricing & Availability
Unfortunately, the Vivo X100 Ultra is a Chinese exclusive and there are no plans for it to launch in the global market.
That said, it is relatively well priced in China starting at just 6,499 Chinese Yuan which works out to roughly $900.
So, you might be very tempted to import one, especially since Vivo stated that the Vivo X100 Ultra is a professional camera that can also make calls.
Vivo X100 Ultra Review Back Camera
With a statement like that we just have to Kickstart things off straight away with its camera capabilities.
The module looks fairly similar to the Vivo X100 Pro, but its sensor Arrangement is slightly different.
Its camera island is noticeably larger, and it sticks out the back plat quite a bit more.
There’s now improved ZEISS T* coating, a new Vivo V3 plus Imaging chip and the Vivo X100 Ultra is Vivo’s first device to use their in-house blue image algorithm which has been in development for 8 years and fixes many issues when taking Snaps in low lit environments.
The most intriguing sensor here has to be the new Periscope camera which is now a floating telephoto sensor with a minimum focusing distance of just 15 cm and has an 85 mm focal length for a 3.7-time optical zoom.
But the most impressive thing about it is that it’s using Samsung’s large 1/1.4” sized 200-megapixel ISOCELL HP9 sensor making it the largest telephoto sensor ever fitted into a smartphone.
It’s also backed by a wide f/2.67 aperture and offers 4.5 level Optical image stabilization.
The main camera has also seen quite a large upgrade over the X100 Pro as the ultra now uses the newer stacked 23 mm 50-megapixel 1-inch type Sony LYT-900 sensor with a new lens design, an f/1.75 aperture and gets gimbal stabilization that provides 1.5° Hardware stabilization and OIS.
Lastly the ultrawide camera has also been upgraded. It’s a half inch sized 50-megapixel Sony LYT-600 sensor with an f/2.2 aperture and a 14 mm focal length for a 116° field of view.
And all three of these cameras are treated to 3 different colour profiles thanks to their partnership with ZEISS.
There’s Vivid which makes colours pop, textured which adds more detail in Shadows and natural which is truer to life.
Since natural is the only mode here developed by ZEISS and offers a very good Natural Balance that’s what we’ll be sticking to for the rest of these photos.
Snapshot mode can be used with the main or Periscope and offers incredible zero shutter lag photos.
Portrait mode looks absolutely insane whether using the main or Periscope with near perfect Edge detection.
Super macro mode has been taken to another level when using the Periscope sensor thanks to its 15 cm minimum focusing distance and 30 times Max macro-Zoom.
Macro mode can also be used with the ultra-wide and Main cameras but there is a bit of a cropping factor, and the main sensor struggles when getting too close to a subject.
The ultrawide sensor takes very good shots whether using the 50-megapixel high-res mode or when bending things down to 12.5 megapixel.
The same can be said when using the main though colours are more muted when using pixel binning which is also the case when using the Periscope for a 3.7 times optical zoom snap.
You can shoot at Native 200 megapixels here bend down at 50 megapixels or further bend down at 12.5 Maps which offers the truest to life colours.
It’s insane how much detail is retained when zooming in by five times or even 10 times and very small objects which you probably don’t even notice when using the main camera comes out extremely visible when zooming in all the way up to 100 times.
Just like the X100 Pro the ultra can also shoot continuous 4K 60 FPS video which lets you seamlessly switch from the ultra-wide to the main to the Periscope in a single video but the ultra takes things a step further by allowing you to keep zooming in all the way up to 20 times Zoom which is double that of the pro variant.
There’s now also an option for silky smooth 4K 120 FPS video which you don’t see very often in smartphones, and this leads to extremely clear 4K 120 FPS slow motion video with when using the main or Periscope cameras, both of which can record at even higher frame rates when dropping the resolution.
Vivo have now improved their stabilization mode which can now be shot at 2.8k 60fps across all three sensors and it’s no surprise to see that all three cameras can record very stable 4K 60fps regular video.
What is a treat though is that all the cameras can record Dolby Vision Video at 4K 60 FPS.
But just like the pro variant 8K video is still limited to just the main camera.
Thankfully there’s still 4K cinematic portrait video options when using the main or Periscope cameras and those large sensors certainly keep things looking incredible when recording video of a human subject at night.
When recording regular 4K video at night the main sensor certainly takes the lead in terms of exposure, detail and stability, but all three sensors take phenomenal photos after the sun goes down.
The Periscope struggles a bit with noise grain when it starts to zoom in and contrast is a bit lacklustre but it’s crazy how much lights is led into the lens when zooming all the way up to a 100 times range.
Super Moon mode is still around and can only be used with the main and Periscope cameras and of course you can still Zoom all the way up to 100 times.
Astro mode is sticking around too which makes for some fun snaps of the night sky and it’s unreal how much gets lit up.
The X100 Ultra takes arguably the best nighttime photos of a human subject, especially when it comes to detail and portrait mode shots come out very warm and polished at night with both the main and Periscope offering insanely good Edge detection.
It’s hard to fault the Vivo X100 ultra’s back camera capabilities and I was extremely impressed with the results that came from all three sensors in different lighting conditions.
So, I am extremely excited to see how it Stacks up against other top end camera smartphones.
Vivo X100 Ultra Review Design
The device comes in three different colours that being white, dark grey or titanium. I have the titanium colour variant which has an AG glass back material and it looks extremely premium with nice silver trims all around.
But don’t be fooled the titanium colour is just the colour as the side frames are still made from aluminium.
It’s quite a bit thicker and heavier than its Pro counterpart coming in at 9.23 mm and 229 grams respectively.
But it’s seen an upgrade in terms of waterproofing as it now offers an IP68 and IP69 certification, meaning it can still be submerged at 1.5 meter deep for 30 minutes but can now also withstand close range high pressure, high temperature water jets.
Just like with the back glass, the front glass protection is also unspecified.
However, the fingerprint sensor is now ultrasonic unlike the optical one we see in the pro model which means it’s more accurate, a lot faster and requires just a tap to get into the action.
The bezels wrapping around the display seem a bit thicker than the pro variant but the punch hole for the selfie camera is now smaller.
Vivo X100 Ultra Review Selfie Camera
The main reason for this is because the upgraded selfie camera has a narrower 24 mm focal length.
But overall, it’s seen quite a nice upgrade as it’s now a Samsung made 1/2.76” size 50-megapixel ISOCELL JN1 sensor with an aperture of f/2.45 and makes use of autofocus.
So, naturally selfies come out looking a lot better than any other Vivo Flagship I have ever tested.
This makes for more natural colours, a lot more detail and much better Edge detection when shooting in portrait mode.
It’s good to see 4K 60fps selfie video out the box, but unfortunately cinematic portrait video is still limited to 1080p resolution when using the selfie camera.
Though I can’t really complain since 4K video and 1080p cinematic video come out looking great even at night with superb lighting and very minimal noise grain.
Selfie photos at night look better than any other flagship I tested, and the flash does a nice job of eliminating Shadows on my face and provides a more natural skin tone.
I’m very happy to see Vivo finally upgrade the selfie camera on their latest Flagship entry.
I can’t really complain about the results other than the lack of 4K cinematic portrait video.
Vivo X100 Ultra Review Display
That said it’s time for us to Deep dive into that new display. The display is certainly an upgrade over the X100 Pro, but it seems identical when compared to the Vivo X90 Pro Plus which was also a China exclusive.
That being a curved 6.78 in E7 AMOLED screen with a QHD resolution that boasts 517 pixels per inch and since it’s a 10bit panel it can display over a billion colours and supports Dolby Vision, HDR10, HDR10+ and Widevine L1 content.
It still uses LTPO technology for a 1Hz to 120Hz screen refresh rate, has the same 300Hz touch sampling rate as well as 1440Hz PWM dimming which is the same as the X90 Pro Plus but less than the X100 Pro.
And just like the pro variant, the ultra-also has 3,000 nits of peak brightness which is almost double that of the X90 Pro Plus.
Vivo X100 Ultra Review Software
Since the X100 Ultra is a Chinese exclusive it comes with Vivo’s Chinese software known as Origin OS 4 which is skinned over Android 14.
It may only come with Chinese ROM, but Google services are rooted into the device, so you’ll be happy to hear that all of Google’s apps including the Play Store work with no issues.
But since the main market for this software is China it’s very Chinese driven, the side splash screen is rather Chinese and even though there’s a lot more to customize with origin OS when compared to Vivo’s FunTouch OS we see in the global market.
It can be a bit overwhelming at times and there are certain features that Global users just wouldn’t find useful.
I can’t really complain though since FunTouch OS is starting to look very outdated so it’s certainly nice to try something different.
But I would absolutely love it if Vivo took the best from origin OS and the best from FunTouch OS and created something unique for their Global devices.
Vivo X100 Ultra Review Battery
Vivo have opted for a second-generation silicon carbon battery this year, so it’s no surprise to see its battery capacity be increased all the way up to 5,500 mAh, though its charging has taken a bit of a knock since it’s now limited to 80W wired and 30W wireless charging speeds.
To keep things cool while charging is a new 3D Vapor chamber cooling system with dual layer Cooling and Rapid freezing mechanisms.
Vivo X100 Ultra Review Hardware
This will no doubt also keep other components from getting too hot which includes up to 1TB of UFS 4.0 storage, up to 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM and of course the 4nm run Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 CPU which is on par if not better than the Dimensity 9300 seen in the X100 Pro.
That said it received the highest AnTuTu score I have ever seen produced from a smartphone.
While its single core performance outdoes the Dimensity chip, it’s multi core lag slightly behind.
GPU benchmarking is much of a muchness between the two chipsets.
So naturally we were able to maintain an average of 60 FPS while playing Genshin Impact on maxed out settings which is a very demanding game to play and we were able to do this without any frame stutters or overheating thanks to that new cooling system.
Next, I fired up Real Racing 3 and was a bit disappointed to see the X100 Ultra kept the game’s frame rates at 60 FPS even though the game doesn’t limit its frame rates.
Nevertheless, we managed another solid 60 FPS on average but we all know that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 can easily play this game at 120 FPS, so I really hope that Vivo address this issue with a future software update.
But I was very happy to see that we were able to reach 120 FPS while playing Call of Duty mobile without any frame limitations and barely any frame drops.
Vivo X100 Ultra Review Connectivity
Vivo’s Ultra smartphone is also packed to the brim in terms of connectivity.
There’s of course Bluetooth 5.4, NFC and an IR blaster but it also features a 25-antenna signal amplification system for 5.5G in China or 5G around the rest of the world.
There’s also now satellite connectivity though it’s limited to China users only and Vivo have also introduced a long range Wi-Fi 7 mode for stable connections up to 150 meters.
We are also treated to a USB 3.2 type- C Port, an X-axis linear vibration motor, an upgraded high-performance microphone and of course dual stereo speakers with super audio effect support.
Final Thoughts
The Vivo X100 Ultra is exactly what you would expect from the best Vivo Flagship smartphone ever made.
It has Rock Solid performance for gaming and day-to-day tasks, an impressive cooling system, a large silicon carbon battery, a pixel popping display, an upgraded selfie camera with 4K capabilities, a back camera setup which is almost unrivalled and a stunning design with a solid build and impressive waterproofing.
But unfortunately, it’s a China exclusive meaning that its software is not quite Global ready and certain features such as satellite connectivity is limited to just China.
That said this is probably the best camera smartphone I’ve ever had the privilege of testing, so Vivo weren’t lying when they said it’s a professional camera that can also make calls and if that’s what you’re after then it might just be worth importing one.
Let me know your thoughts of Vivo’s first Ultra device in the comment section down below.
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