vivo X100 Pro review

Design, build quality, handling

Continuity walks hand in hand with adapting to current trends when it comes to the vivo X100 Pro's design language. The sparkly anti-glare finish returns, the huge camera bump has gotten huger still, the 'Xtreme Imagination' signature reaffirms the collaboration with the German optics specialists from Zeiss.

Our review unit is in the black colorway - Asteroid Black in vivo marketing speak. It's one of a total of four options that have distinct finishes in addition to being different colors. This one in particular brings back the shimmery glitter-like effect on its glass panel that we got on the X80 and X70 generation flagships - the X90 only featured that on the non-Pros, while the X90 Pro and Pro+ were only available with vegan leather backs.

It's a nicely looking finish and it's not too welcoming of fingerprints, but grip isn't its forte - it's quite slippery.

vivo X100 Pro (left) next to vivo X90 Pro

The next color option is the Startrail Blue (also known as Stargaze Blue on the Indian market). This one is glass-backed too, but the patterns on its rear panel mimic the light trails of the stars in the night sky.

Global colorways: Asteroid Black • Startrail Blue

Two more colorways exist, but they're either limited to the Chinese market or aren't being released globally yet. One of them is a third glass option that comes in white, and there's also a leatherette-clad version after all - an orange-colored one with a ripple pattern that's meant to simulate see waves at sunset.

China-exclusive colorways

The huge camera bump is an integral part of the styling of the X100 Pro and it's done in a two-step fashion, with the lower level being offset towards the bottom. There are different allusions to celestial phenomena that vivo has come up for the different colorways.

In any case, a Zeiss logo sits in the center of the camera assembly, the blue badge complemented by a red T* marking that indicates the special coatings used on the lenses to minimize glare. There's not a shortage of markings, in fact - there's the lens specs in the offset bottom ring, plus a cursive 'Xtreme Imagination' below the camera bump, and then a larger vivo logo towards the bottom, complete with regulatory inscriptions. A bit much.

vivo does enjoy sprinkling test around, indeed - a rather pointless 'professional photography' sign has been a staple of the X-series since their very inception, and it's to be found on the X100 Pro's plastic top plate inlay as well. In here, you'll also find the IR emitter and a secondary mic.

On the bottom, there's the USB-C port, primary mic and main loudspeaker. The SIM slot is over here as well and the blue gasket on the card tray hints at the phone having dust and water sealing. Indeed, it's IP68 rated so it should be able to survive for as long as 30minutes under up to 1.5m of water.

Bottom bits • SIM card tray

The two physical controls on the X100 Pro are located on its right side - a power key and a volume rocker. Relatively smallish and slightly recessed into the glossy aluminum frame, the buttons have a very reassuring click action.

Buttons are on the right, but also check out that camera bump

Over on the front of the X100 Pro, the superb OLED display shines bright (or dims down to 1.9nits, it's up to you). It's surrounded by slim bezels - the gently sloping sides of the display make the black strips on the left and right look slimmer than the top and bottom ones, but there does appear to be symmetry left to right and top to bottom.

Until the selfie camera punch-hole gets in the way, that is. Speaking of, we're not ones to complain about these things anymore, but while shooting the side-by-side photos with the X90 Pro, it did become obvious that the new cutout is actually larger than the one on last year's model - some progress.

vivo X100 Pro (left) next to vivo X90 Pro

While we're in comparison mode, lets mention that the X100 Pro has gained a few grams of weight. The glass-covered versions weigh in at 225g, 10 more than the X90 Pro. The orange X100 Pro is a smidge lighter though, at 221g.

Anything but compact, objectively speaking, the X100 Pro feels very reasonably-sized in the hand. The curvatures on both panels help minimize the perceived thickness of the phone while the bulky camera bump can aid with weight distribution by allowing you to push up your index finger against it.

That said, on a relatively large handset like this, we would have liked to see the fingerprint reader sit a little higher than the placement vivo went with. The optical sensor is speedy and reliable - no complaints in those regards, but it's a bit too close to the bottom edge of the X100 Pro.

Overall, we're liking the build and styling of the vivo X100 Pro. The designers have managed to tell a story with the combination of the camera bump and back panel, there's dust and water protection, and the phone is comfortable to live with, once you get used to its couple of quirks.