vivo V23 Pro review

Competition

The vivo V23 and V23 Pro are officially out. The official retail price of the V23 Pro is INR38,990 ($520/€460) and INR43,990 ($590/€520) for the 128GB 8GB RAM and 256GB 12GB RAM versions, respectively.

While fair, arguably, that MSRP is a bit high for some of the devices the V23 Pro is going up against. Fresh off of Xiaomi's ever-churning smartphone machine, the Xiaomi 11i and 11i HyperCharge instantly spring to mind. These are now going international, although they are not entirely new, but rather renamed Redmi Note 11 Pro+ and Redmi Note 11 Pro, available in China since October 2021. The choice between the two literally comes down to a choice between faster 120W charging or a bigger 5,160 mAh battery, with a "mere" 67W charging. The latter is the easy choice for us, personally. Either way, for just over EUR 300, you get, among other things, Gorilla Glass 5 and an IP53 rating, a 120Hz AMOLED display and stereo speakers. That is on top of an otherwise very similar set of core specs to the vivo V23 Pro. Well, minus the selfie camera prowess.

Xiaomi 11i • Xiaomi Poco F3 • Realme GT2 • Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G

If these are unattainable where you live, the Redmi Note 10 Pro is still an excellent choice that actually offers a really similar overall specs sheet. You could, perhaps, get it for under EUR 300 as well.

Speaking of a good deal, you can also pick up a Poco F3 for around the same price. Its Snapdragon 870 chipset is a great choice for those who don't necessarily place too much value on the camera experience and would rather get as much raw power as possible for the money.

If you feel comfortable spending a bit more, closer to the $590/€520 MSRP of the higher-end V23 Pro, the Realme GT2 looks like a great option. Perhaps even the Realme GT2 Pro, though that one might be a bit of a stretch for the budget. The basic GT2 still offers some excellent specs like a 120HZ AMOLED, stereo speakers, a Snapdragon 888 5G chipset and a 50MP, OIS-enabled main camera.

We realize that most of the competitors we listed already can be hard to get, either because they are just as new as the V23 Pro or not exactly available internationally. That comes with the territory. Still, last but not least, we have to mention the Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G. It seems that the Korean giant's popular Galaxy A family has only been getting better and better lately, and the A52s 5G arguably represents one of the best value offers within the lineup yet. Not only do you get a "big brand" phone, complete with Samsung's relatively new extended software support, which is definitely available internationally, but you also get things like an IP67 rating, stereo speakers and OIS on the main camera.

Verdict

The vivo V23 Pro is a bit of an odd device when it comes to a final verdict. On the surface of it, its MSRP does seem a bit high for what it offers, making some omissions, like official ingress protection and OIS, to name just a couple, stick out that much more. As we outlined in the previous section, you can easily get a better overall "value", well-rounded mid-range device for the same price or less.

That being said, the vivo V23 has plenty of going for it, making it a truly unique device in more ways than one. Its design is modern and eye-catching, extra thin and with a pretty unique trick if you go for the UV-reactive Sunshine Gold color option. Then there is its other standout aspect - the potent selfie camera setup. It's not every day that we come across a device that truly shines for all kinds of selfie capture, as well as vlogging. Vivo really went all out in this department, and though they might sound like a gimmick at first, the pair of dual-tone LED "torches" on the front are actually quite nifty.

Like we said, when you put all of this together, you end up with a truly unique device, quite unlike most of its competitors. If this particular mix of features sounds appealing to you, then you can rest assured that the vivo V23 Pro is also well-rounded in most other aspects and will deliver an excellent experience.

However, if you don't necessarily prioritize selfies, you can probably find better value devices elsewhere.

Pros

• Very thin, light and modern design. UV-sensitive back panel is a nice party trick.
• The 90Hz, HDR10+ display has solid performance.
• Excellent battery life and very fast 44W charging.
• Funtouch OS 12 now with Android 12 underneath offers great performance and customization.
• Above average performance from the Dimensity 1200 5G chipset.
• Solid all-around performance from the 108MP main camera and truly great selfie and video experience from the 50MP selfie.
• The two dual-tone selfie LED "spotlights" are excellent in practice.
• A truly great vlogging experience.

Cons

• Plastic middle frame, though quite sturdy. No ingress protection.
• No SD card slot, no 3.5mm audio jack, no NFC.
• Poor automatic refresh rate switching and underwhelming color accuracy.
• Just a single, underwhelming bottom-firing speaker.
• Both the back and front ultrawide cameras are a bit inconsistent and lag behind the other cameras.