vivo X500 Pro review

Pricing These are the best offers from our affiliate partners. We may get a commission from qualifying sales.
256GB 12GB RAM	€ 1,399.00
Show all prices

Vivo is reshuffling its X series this year, and the X500 Pro marks a significant departure from last year's X300 Pro.

Instead of directly succeeding the X300 Pro, the new model takes the Pro branding into compact flagship territory. The role of the larger, camera-centric flagship now falls to the X500 Pro Max, which we've already reviewed. It's a notable change in strategy, but one that makes sense when you consider that the X500 Pro is now competing more directly with the likes of the Apple iPhone 18 Pro.

The 6.36-inch display puts the X500 Pro firmly in compact flagship territory, at least by modern standards. The conventional aspect ratio also means you're getting a familiar form factor rather than an unusually tall or narrow device.

The body measures 151.8 x 71.9 x 8.1 mm and weighs either 192 or 197 grams, depending on the back material. So while the X500 Pro is certainly on the smaller side for a modern flagship, it's not particularly lightweight. There's still some heft to it, and it feels substantial in the hand.

One of the X500 Pro's most impressive features on paper is its 6,510mAh silicon-carbon battery. That's a lot of capacity to squeeze into a phone of this size. Better still, unlike last year, vivo is offering the full battery capacity in most European markets. Unfortunately, some EU countries such as Germany and Austria remain exceptions, with smaller batteries for those markets.

The camera setup also reflects the X500 Pro's new positioning. The Pro Max has the more ambitious telephoto hardware, with a 200MP sensor compared to the X500 Pro's 64MP unit. However, the two share the same 50MP LYT-910 LOFIC main camera sensor, and the smaller Pro retains the advanced video recording capabilities of its bigger sibling.

Powering the X500 Pro is MediaTek's Dimensity 9600 Pro, a top-of-the-line 2nm chipset. There's no obvious compromise in processing power here, at least on paper. The more interesting question is how well vivo can manage the thermals of such a powerful chip inside a relatively compact body. That's something we'll be paying close attention to in our testing.

We also get other flagship essentials like wireless charging, stereo speakers and an ultrasonic under-display fingerprint reader.

On paper, then, the X500 Pro promises much of the Pro Max experience in a more manageable package. The question is whether vivo has struck the right balance between compact dimensions and flagship capabilities, or whether the compromises become more apparent once we put it through our tests.

Our review unit is one of the European versions of the device (V2621), equipped with the full 6,510mAh battery.

Inside the box, we found a nice, thick, semi-soft TPU case and a USB Type-A to Type-C cable. The included case is always a welcome addition, and you'll want to hold on to the cable since it's required to get the high-current output of vivo's proprietary charger.

Speaking of chargers, there isn't one included in our box. The standard EU markings indicate that a USB PD charger rated between 10W and 55W will do the job, though you won't get the fastest charging speeds that way. At the time of writing, most European vivo online stores we checked were offering a free 90W charger with the phone, and that's what you'll need to take full advantage of its charging capabilities.

Source: Read original article