After an X80 Pro which met with great critical success, its successor does not intend to rest on its laurels. Thus, the Vivo X90 Pro benefits from a new design, a new processor, but also and above all a new camera block equipped with a module with a 1-inch sensor.
Data sheet, price and availability
Do not wait for the “Pro+” version of the Vivo X90, which should not see the light of day here and will remain exclusive to the Chinese market. Unlike this “Plus” version, the Vivo X90 Pro is not equipped with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip, but with another high-end SoC, the MediaTek Dimensity 9200, also engraved in 4 nm.
But without mastery, power is nothing. Vivo knows this as the brand has placed great emphasis on the vapor chamber liquid cooling system that equips its X90 Pro. Enough to allow him to keep a cool head when he is strongly solicited.
The Chinese brand does not mess with fast charging either: it is compatible with 120 W charging. Enough to allow its 4870 mAh battery to go from 0 to 50% in just 8 minutes and to reach 100% in 25 minutes. Figures that we will not fail to measure in our 01Lab.
On the screen side, the Vivo X90 Pro is equipped with a 6.78-inch AMOLED panel with a definition of 1260 × 2800 pixels (452 ppi), a refresh rate of 120 Hz and a peak brightness announced at 1300 nits.
Vivo’s X-series has always been synonymous with photography. The X90 Pro thus benefits from a muscular camera block, with the “star” of a 50 Mpx wide-angle module with a 1-inch sensor, an f / 1.75 aperture and optical stabilization (OIS). This Sony IMX 989 sensor is also the one that equips the Xiaomi 12S Ultra.
The second module is a 50MP telephoto lens (Sony IMX 758) with 2x optical zoom (50mm equivalent) that provides optical bokeh for capturing portraits. The third module is a 12 Mpx ultra-wide-angle (Sony IMX 663) with f/2.0 aperture and an angle of 108 degrees. It’s all backed by ZEISS optics and Vivo’s latest X2 image processing chip.
In France, we will be entitled to the version equipped with 12 GB of LPDDR5X RAM and 256 of storage in UFS 4.0. Thanks to the virtual RAM, it will be possible to add 8 GB of RAM. Enough to install, launch and leave dozens of applications in the background. This unique configuration will be offered at a price of 1199 €, in a single black color.
Vivo X90 Pro: a “premium” smartphone
In the box, alongside the Vivo X90 Pro, there is a USB cable, a 120W charging block, a transparent silicone protective shell, the pin to open the SIM hatch and the various getting started booklets. A protective film is also already applied to the screen of the smartphone.
A very complete packaging compared to those of certain competitors such as the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra or the iPhone 14 Pro Max which, despite their prohibitive prices, do not include a charger or a shell (for ecological reasons, etc.).
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The Vivo X90 Pro does not hesitate to change its design quite radically compared to its predecessor. This results in a very thick, circular camera block offset to the left of the phone. This unfortunately makes the phone wobbly when used flat. To its right is the LED flash and the ZEISS logo. Below the camera block is a silver band that overflows on each side to fit the frame of the phone.
On this new model, the back is no longer in glass and ceramic, but in imitation leather. A fairly “luxurious” coating which has the advantage of not marking fingerprints, but also of offering a good grip once in hand, which is important for a “photophone”. Whether you like the design of the Vivo X90 Pro or not, it has the merit of standing out and therefore not leaving anyone indifferent.
The Vivo X90 Pro is a big smartphone, but it’s not oversized. It is as high as a Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, but it is narrower and lighter (215 g against 234 g). Like its competitor, the Vivo X90 Pro is IP68 certified for water and dust resistance, which is an important selection criterion at this price level.
The front and back of the phone are slightly curved, which thins out the frame of the phone. The latter could annoy people who tend to squeeze their smartphone tightly while using it. The silicone shell greatly improves this little problem.
The 6.78-inch screen, which is quite bright at first glance, takes up most of the front panel. The slab is curved on the sides and perforated at the top to accommodate the 32 Mpx selfie camera module.
The phone benefits from stereo speakers. The first, very discreet, hides behind the slot that is just above the screen. The second at the level of the grid which is on the lower edge of the product. Right next to it, we find the USB-C connector and the SIM hatch. No mini-jack connector in sight.
The fingerprint reader is located on the lower part of the screen. It is easily accessible and very responsive to use. You won’t find any buttons on the left side of the phone. These are on the right, with the power button and the one to adjust the volume.
We also note the presence of an infrared port which allows, thanks to the remote control application, to control your television, among other devices.
And the interface?
The X90 Pro runs Android 13 with Vivo’s in-house overlay, Funtouch 13. A fluid, uncluttered interface, with round icons and a good level of customization. For example, it is possible to change the interface of recent applications so that they are displayed in the form of a carousel or horizontally, without having to look in the phone settings.
The notification panel does not adopt large widgets as can be found on some smartphones like the Google Pixel 7 Pro. Funtouch 13 prefers small round widgets whose color is customizable by going to the Android 13 theme settings.
From the animations of the fingerprint reader to the elements displayed on the lock screen, the customization of the interface of the Vivo X90 Pro can go a long way.
On the other hand, we regret the presence of many preinstalled applications such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Booking, TikTok, Netflix or Spotify. Fortunately, it is possible to uninstall them, but we would have done without this step.
So much for our first impressions of the Vivo X90 Pro. We’ll meet you very soon on 01net for a complete test of the smartphone. This will be an opportunity to go into more detail on its screen, its performance, its autonomy and of course its very promising camera module.
