What you need to know
- Vivo has announced the global launch of the X90 series.
- Both the Vivo X90 and X90 Pro include Mediatek’s Dimensity 9200 chipset, a 120Hz screen refresh rate, and 120W wired charging, among other flagship features.
- However, the X90 Pro Plus, along with its killer camera, isn’t launching internationally.
Last November, Vivo announced a trio of new flagship phones, with the X90 Pro Plus sitting at the top with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset and stunning camera hardware. The flagship series is now making its global debut, but without the Pro Plus model, which remains exclusive to the Chinese market.
The absence of the top-tier variant makes the Vivo X90 Pro the star of the show, with its headline feature being Sony’s 1-inch-type IMX989 camera sensor. Vivo claims the sensor size is thus far the largest in the industry, edging out many of the most ambitious Android camera phones to date.
The large sensor size on the Pro model allows for more light intake per pixel, resulting in brighter photos with reduced noise levels. This comes in handy, especially for low-light scenes or night shots, and Vivo rightfully touts the phone’s photography capabilities in these conditions. According to the company, the photosensitive area of the IMX989 sensor has increased by 77%, while the light intake capacity has increased by 43% compared to the sensor used in the Vivo X80 Pro.
The Pro model is joined by its smaller, regular sibling, though it doesn’t have the same camera sensor size. That said, both variants share a host of similar specs and features, such as Mediatek’s Dimensity 9200 chipset, a 6.78-inch AMOLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate, a 32MP selfie snapper, and 120W wired charging.
Both models offer a “balanced” and “fast charging” mode, depending on your requirements in certain circumstances. The former setting promises to completely juice up either model in 29 minutes, while the latter can charge the X90 Pro to 50% in 8 minutes and 10 seconds, and the regular X90 in only 8 minutes.
Where the two models differ from one another is primarily in the battery and camera departments. The Pro model has a 4,870mAh battery and supports 50W wireless charging, whereas the regular model has a 4,810mAh battery without wireless charging.
On the optics side of things, the X90 Pro rocks a 50MP main camera sensor, a 50MP 2x portrait shooter, and a 12MP IMX663 ultrawide lens. Meanwhile, the standard X90 comes equipped with a 50MP main sensor, a 12MP 2x portrait camera, and a 12MP ultrawide snapper. However, both models lack telephoto lenses, such as those found in the Samsung Galaxy S23 series.
There’s also a bunch of fancy Zeiss-branded camera features to boot, including a “Cine-flare Portrait,” which mimics a cinematic lens flare effect in portrait photos, and the Natural Color 2.0 feature, which provides more realistic and accurate colors. Meanwhile, a “Miniature Effect” selectively blurs certain portions of a photo while leaving the rest sharp to make specific objects like buildings appear miniaturized.
Vivo didn’t specify in its press release (opens in new tab) when exactly it will bring the duo to international markets. Nonetheless, the Pro variant is expected to hit store shelves in the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Poland, Czech Republic, Austria, Romania, Croatia, Slovenia, Greece, Serbia, India, and some Southeast Asian countries, according to The Verge (opens in new tab). The standard X90, on the other hand, may see a limited release in India and other Asian markets. Unfortunately for U.S. fans, the devices aren’t expected to arrive in the country.
