Introduction

The vivo V20 is the company’s most recent attempt at making a sensible mid-range smartphone. In the past, it was the higher pricing that kept us from recommending vivo’s previous budget phones. But this time around, the V20 seems to be adequately priced while going for a different market positioning that helps it stand out.

The vivo V20 doesn’t particularly impress with over-the-top specs, except that it has an AMOLED display, fast charging, and a good chipset. Its true strength, however, comes when you hold the phone. The handset is a true fashion statement with an unusual yet clean and premium design. Even the camera bump looks a lot different from most phones out there.

vivo V20 specs at a glance:

Body: 161.3×74.2×7.4mm, 171g; glass front and glass back.
Display: 6.44″ AMOLED , 1080x2400px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 409ppi.
Chipset: Qualcomm SM7125 Snapdragon 720G (8 nm): Octa-core (2×2.3 GHz Kryo 465 Gold & 6×1.8 GHz Kryo 465 Silver); Adreno 618.
Memory: 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM; microSDXC (dedicated slot).
OS/Software: Android 11, Funtouch 11.
Rear camera: Wide (main): 64 MP, f/1.9, 26mm, 1/1.72″, 0.8µm, PDAF; Ultra wide angle: 8 MP, f/2.2, 120˚, 16mm, 1/4.0″, 1.12µm, AF; Depth: 2 MP, f/2.4; Dual-LED dual-tone flash, HDR, panorama.
Front camera: 44 MP, f/2.0, (wide), AF; HDR.
Video capture: Rear camera: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60fps, gyro-EIS; Front camera: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30fps, gyro-EIS.
Battery and charging: 4000mAh; 33W FlashCharge.
Misc: Fingerprint (under display, optical), NFC.

But if you are not in for the fashion, the vivo V20 will have a hard time convincing you when you have similarly-priced alternatives from the likes of Xiaomi, Realme, and even Samsung. The former two are usually the ones you’d expect to offer the best bang for the buck, especially in India, where the vivo V20 is aimed at.

Still, in times where Android smartphones are constantly getting bigger, the lightweight, thin and compact vivo V20 might win those of you who are after a more compact device. Has vivo really found a niche in this particular price segment, and is the design its primary selling point? We’ll try to find out in this review.

Unboxing the vivo V20

The device comes in a full retail box carrying not only the usual user manuals but also a protective, transparent silicone case to show off that good-looking chassis. There’s also a pair of 3.5mm earphones as a bonus, and they look strikingly similar to Apple’s good old EarPods. And, of course, there’s the bundled 33W FlashCharge charger and the USB-A to USB-C cable for charging and data transfer.