vivo X70 Pro+ review

Quad camera with a couple of teles

The X70 Pro+ has a quad-camera setup that's in principle the same as on the X60 Pro+, and the X70 Pro - vivo is taking dual teles seriously. The latest Pro+ is a step up from the Pro, as logic dictates, but it's also a slight downgrade from the X60 Pro+, which is a little surprising.

The X70 Pro+ is equipped with the same primary camera as the model it replaces. Samsung's contributing the GN1 sensor, a Type 1/1.31" imager with 1.2µm pixels and a Tetrapixel color filter array (Quad Bayer, if you're into Sony's lingo). The stabilized lens in front of it has a 23mm equivalent focal length and an f/1.6 aperture. This main camera is better than the X70 Pro's - that phone uses a smaller sensor with a dimmer lens (1/1.56", f/1.8).

The ultrawide camera on the X70 Pro+ is the same as on the X60 Pro, as well. That means a Type 1/2.0" 48MP Sony IMX598 sensor with a Quad Bayer filter mated with an f/2.2 aperture lens that should be around a 14mm equivalent. Like the old model, this entire sensor-lens assembly is mounted on a small gimbal for stabilization. Compared against the X70 Pro, the Plus's ultrawide wins all around (48MP 1/2.0" vs. 12MP 1/3.1").

When it comes to the teles, things are starting to look a little weird. For the 2x zoom camera, the new generation gets the Sony IMX663 sensor, a conventional (as in not Quad Bayer) 12MP unit with a 1.22µm pixel pitch and a 1/2.9" optical format. That's not too shabby, but reads like a downgrade from the 32MP 1/2.8" sensor on the X60 Pro+. On the flipside, the X70 Pro+'s lens is brighter with an aperture of f/1.6, compared to the f/2.1 on the old model. The X70 Pro non-plus uses the same sensor as the plus, but with an f/2.0 aperture lens.

The 5x zoom tele remains the same - an OmniVision OV08A10 sensor captures an 8MP image with its 1.0µm pixels through a 125mm equivalent periscope lens with an f/3.4 aperture. That's also on the X70 Pro non-plus.

Last but not least, all camera lenses are Zeiss branded and have that special Zeiss T* rated coating that eliminates glare and improves overall photo clarity. Nighttime images should look better, especially the ones with light sources.

For selfies, it's a familiar setup too. The 32MP S5KGD1 Samsung sensor (1/2.8", 0.8µm, Tetrapixel) was found on the X60 Pro and Pro+ and is now being used on the new models as well. The lens has a 24mm focal length and an f/2.5 aperture, focus is fixed.

No changes (or at least no major ones) were made to the default camera app coming from the X60 series, but that one was already thoroughly improved from previous iterations, so all is well.

There's a straightforward zoom selector which gives you direct access to each of the four cameras. Accessing the Super Macro mode is done from the flower icon next to the hamburger menu, but it has an auto-on option too that kicks in when you get very close to a subject.

The main modes are arranged in carousel formation, and you can switch between them by swiping. The More tab lists the rest of the modes, and from there, you can also customize the modes you have available in the viewfinder.

The Pro mode gives you all the freedom to adjust the autofocus, white balance, shutter speed, ISO and exposure. You can do so on all of the four cameras too. There's helpful information explaining all of the options above in case you are just getting into photography. Shooting in RAW is also an option.

Camera UI

Daylight image quality

The vivo X70 Pro+ takes some great-looking photos that are immediately and easily likable. The color saturation really jumps right at you but in a good way - these shots are super vivid and expressive, yet we wouldn't say it's too much, more like just right. Dynamic range is also excellent with well-developed shadows and highlights but great overall contrast as well.

On a pixel level, we're seeing a familiar amount of detail - 12.5MP or 12MP, it makes no difference, and this phone captures as much texture as any other good one of similar resolution. The level of noise is such that there's a fine-grain character to some uniformly colored areas, but it's not something you'd see unless you're looking for it. Random textures like grass are rendered in a relatively natural way without excessive processing.

Daylight samples, main camera (1x)

We also shot the same scenes with the Zeiss Natural Color toggle enabled. We looked, and then we looked some more, and we couldn't see a hint of a difference.

Daylight samples, main camera (1x), Zeiss Natural Color

There is a difference in color if you shoot in the full-res 50MP, with images adopting a faint green cast. We did see a small improvement in resolved detail in our studio scene, but we wouldn't say it translates into any real-world gains. Dynamic range remains unchanged, which is a good thing, and other than the slight color shift, colors retain their pop too.

Daylight samples, main camera (1x), 50MP

The 2x zoom camera doesn't quite match the main unit's color reproduction and captures cooler, less enthusiastic images - greens are less warm, yellows are less orange. The dynamic range is still nicely wide, though. Zooming in to 1:1, we're getting good detail and decent noise performance.

Daylight samples, telephoto camera (2x)

The 5x telephoto stays closer to the main camera's lively color output. These photos are sharp and detailed, and essentially noise-free.

Daylight samples, telephoto camera (5x)

The ultrawide camera, too, enjoys vibrant colors, leaving the 2x the sole defector from that look. The dynamic range is nicely wide. Looking from up close, the images are among the better ones we've seen from an ultrawide, but we still wouldn't really call them pin-sharp. Noise is minimal.

Daylight samples, ultrawide camera (0.6x)

The nominal 48MP mode, again, brings a slight greenish tint. A bump in noise can be observed but hardly any extra detail.

Daylight samples, ultrawide camera (0.6x), 48MP

Macro

The X70 Pro+ has a macro mode, which can be turned on manually or left in the auto position to engage when you get very close to a subject. It uses the ultrawide camera, but crops in to roughly match the main camera's field of view. For such an approach, the resulting images are actually respectably sharp and detailed.

Close-up samples

Low-light image quality

In low light, the X70 Pro+ applies some Night mode processing by default but does so in a fraction of a second, so it doesn't get in the way. Not only that, but it also helps capture some wonderful images.

You get nicely exposed photos with excellent dynamic range and well-developed shadows and highlights alike. The high saturation of daylight images remains a thing at night, and we don't mind. Perhaps the overly orange rendition of warm street lights isn't so great, though.

On a pixel level, we're getting very good detail, though it does have a moderate 'Night mode' rendition in terms of sharpening.

Low-light samples, main camera (1x)

The actual 'Night mode' takes a bit more to capture, but it's still one of the fastest we've seen. It has little to show for even that minor increase in capture time, and we're struggling to tell the difference between these shots and the ones above.

Low-light samples, main camera (1x), Night mode

Zooming in a bit, the auto Night mode behavior continues on the 2x telephoto. Again, we see very good photos with well-developed tonal extremes and sharp detail. The orange cast is also present here.

Low-light samples, telephoto camera (2x)

That disappears in the dedicated Night mode, producing more accurate colors under warm lighting. That's about the only significant difference between photos shot in the two modes at this zoom level.

Low-light samples, telephoto camera (2x), Night mode

There's more of a difference between modes on the 5x telephoto. While both will do a similarly great job with global properties like exposure, dynamic range, and colors, Photo mode (with whatever magic might be going on behind the scenes) will get you noticeably sharper images, albeit marginally noisier.

Low-light samples, telephoto camera (5x)

Low-light samples, telephoto camera (5x), Night mode

On the opposite end of the zoom range, the ultrawide continues with a similarly positive impression. Even very dark scenes are exposed brightly enough and get good shadow detail, while light sources remain well contained. Already used to the overly warm street light rendition, we're all the more inclined to forgive it on the ultrawide and actually appreciate the vibrant colors. Again, there's little to no difference between Photo and Night mode.

Low-light samples, ultrawide camera (0.6x)

Low-light samples, ultrawide camera (0.6x), Night mode

Once you're done with the real-world samples, head over to our Photo compare tool to see how the vivo X70 Pro+ stacks up against the competition.

vivo X70 Pro+ against the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G and the Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra in our Photo compare tool

Portrait mode

Portrait mode on the X70 Pro+ might as well be a standalone camera app - at least going by the sheer number of features it provides. It offers you three magnifications - 1x, 2x, 5x, each sourced from the respective camera. Then there are styles and filters, four Zeiss branded ones in the first category. Beautification enhancements are also at your disposal with no less than 17 different settings. Finally, you can control the level of bokeh to match a simulated aperture between f/0.95 and f/16, f/2.0 being the 'default'.

The 1x zoom level with its 23mm equivalent focal length means you must get pretty close to your subject for head-and-shoulders type of framing. Conversely, this being the main camera, you'd be looking at the best possible quality, particularly in low light.

Indeed, portraits shot at 1x have great detail on your subject, even indoors. Subject separation is superb, and the background blur is very pleasingly smooth. Colors are very likable too, both skin tones and overall. Dynamic range is also excellent.

Portrait mode samples, 1x

The 2x zoom is perhaps the best compromise between image quality and subject distance. While it can't quite match the main camera's per-pixel detail, it remains very good in this respect. Subject separation and blur characteristics are as good as on the main camera, and the perspective of the 50mm-equivalent lens is way better.

Portrait mode samples, 2x

The 5x zoom level might actually be pushing you a bit too far from your subject, certainly so if you're used to smartphone portraits. The subject is still great in this mode, but the detail quality is nowhere as good as the other two. Dynamic range is noticeably narrower, too.

Portrait mode samples, 5x

The Zeiss lens simulation modes, found in the Styles section, aim to reproduce the characteristics of specific lens ranges by the German optics specialists. They're most noticeable in the way out-of-focus specular highlights are rendered but also in the smoothness of the bokeh.

Portrait mode samples, 1x, Zeiss styles: Biotar • Sonnar • Planar • Distagon

Selfies

Selfies from the X70 Pro+ come out at 32MP, and there's no way around it - full resolution is your only option. They don't quite have 32MP worth of detail, but they are very detailed still. Colors are likable if not quite as saturated as from the main camera on the back, and dynamic is very good too.

Selfie samples

Once again, as we've experienced with previous vivos recently, we couldn't quite get the X70 Pro+ to always give us a Portrait mode shot with a blurry background - sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't. When it does, it's usually pretty good in terms of subject isolation with only the occasional flaw around shoulders and clothes lines. When it doesn't, it's just a regular selfie.

Selfie samples, Portrait mode