In less than a year, Vivo has refreshed its camera-focused V series with the new Vivo V40 and the V40 Pro. Vivo continues the streak of including the ZEISS cameras in a V-series phone and this has now been extended to the younger model, the V40. This piqued my interest and I am sure you are equally keen to know how the phone’s cameras perform and more importantly, how the overall package is. Here’s what I found out and let’s see if the phone is just as good as its elder sibling or competitors like the Realme 13 Pro+ and the Motorola Edge 50 Pro.
Vivo V40
Rs 34,999
What Is Good?
- Lightweight, good design
- Fast, bright curved display
- The cameras are brilliant for the price
- Battery life is dependable
What Is Bad?
- Not-so-clean UI
- The top variant is expensive
Vivo V40 Review: Pricing and Availability in India
The Vivo V40 comes with up to 12GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, which is more than sufficient. It will be available via Flipkart and Vivo’s e-store. Here’s a look at the pricing,
| Variant | Price |
| 8GB+128GB | Rs 34,999 |
| 8GB+256GB | Rs 36,999 |
| 12GB+512GB | Rs 41,999 |
Vivo V40 Review: Design and Build
It’s a new phone and Vivo ought to introduce a new design, different from the V30 phones. It’s interesting to see how Vivo switches to new design templates for every new phone and this one is a looker too. There’s a huge pill-shaped camera hump, which blends in perfectly and doesn’t feel hideous.
| Design | Specifications |
| Weight | 190 grams |
| Thickness | 7.5mm |
| IP Rating | IP68 |
| Port and button placements | Bottom: USB Type-C port, microphone, SIM tray, and speaker grille
Top: Secondary microphone, and secondary speaker grille |
The back panel is quite premium to the touch, so much so that I almost forgot it’s an infusion of glass and plastic. I was super impressed with the lightweight nature of the phone. There are three available colour choices: Titanium Grey, Lotus Purple, and Ganges Blue. I used the blue one, which has a wavy pattern at the back. This adds a nice and subtle touch to the overall package.
The phone also gets an IP68 rating, an impressive addition, given that competitors like the Realme 13 Pro+ feature an IP65 rating.
Vivo V40 Review: Display and Audio
The V40’s 3D curved display (coupled with the slightly curved back panel) feels quite premium and it’s not just that; the display is an excellent companion for streaming content. The colours and brightness levels are quite balanced and be it rewatching Stree on Netflix (most of the dark scenes were easy to watch without me squinting my eyes) or numerous videos on YouTube, my experience was good.
| Display | Specifications |
| Size | 6.78-inch 3D curved |
| Type | AMOLED |
| Resolution | 1260×2800 pixels |
| Refresh rate | 120Hz |
| Peak brightness | Claimed: 4500 nits, Tested: 1697 nits |
| Minimum brightness | 17 nits |
The brightness levels are adequate both indoors and outdoors. There’s an in-display fingerprint scanner, which is snappy but its placement is too low for me. The dual stereo speakers are loud and clear but up to 70%. Anything above that, and the audio feels slightly distorted.
Vivo V40 Review: Cameras
Let’s chat about the cameras, something you must be waiting for. And I must say, it doesn’t fail to impress. The images shot with the V40 are remarkable. Daylight photos are bright and colourful and you would enjoy capturing a nice scenic view. The ultra-wide-angle photos, however, feel a little stretched. That said, the colours are close to natural. The 2x zoom makes the pictures brighter and in the case of human subjects, results in some colour shifting. It continues to retain the details, which is nice.
| Cameras | Specifications |
| Primary camera | 50-megapixel 1/1.56-inch, f/1.88, with OIS |
| Secondary camera | 50-megapixel (ultra-lens), f/2.0, with autofocus, 119-degree field of view |
| Selfie camera | 50-megapixel with f/2.0, 92-degree field of view |
| Video recording capabilities | Up to 4K at 30fps |
Portraits are quite likeable and the subject doesn’t stick out like a sore thumb. The colour reproduction is fairly accurate here but the skin tones appear slightly smoothened. However, shots taken against the sunlight feel hazy. In low light, the details are lost but the Aura Light comes to the rescue and restores them for better portrait captures. This is also helpful for selfies and primary camera photos in low light. These shots are good too but will showcase some grains.
Selfies are exceptionally good and quite detailed. Any blemish on your face will be highlighted but if you don’t want that, there are filters to play around with. Not to forget, there are several AI camera features for enhancements and object removal and while these aren’t exceptional, they aren’t bad either.
Vivo V40 Review: Performance and Software
The Vivo V40 has the same chipset as the V30 — the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 but this doesn’t mean it exhibits poor performance. The phone scores quite well in Geekbench and AnTuTu, better than the Realme 13 Pro+. It stands neck-to-neck with the Honor 200 in Geekbench scores.
| Hardware | Specifications |
| Processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 |
| RAM | Up to 12GB |
| Storage | Up to 512GB |
| Geekbench 6 | Multi-core – 3172, Single core – 1173 |
| Software version | FunTouch OS 14 based on Android 14
3 years of Android updates and 4 years of security patches |
| Connectivity details | Dual SIM, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.4, GPS |
As for a layman’s usage, the phone hardly faced any issues. Routine tasks were smooth as expected and there weren’t problems with gaming. Call of Duty: Mobile could go up to very high graphics quality with high fps and there weren’t lags. This was the case with BGMI too. So, if you want an experience beyond cameras, the Vivo V40 should suffice.
Sadly, the area where you may feel some inconvenience is the software. FunTouch OS 14 on the V40 is easy to use but the pre-loaded apps will be an eyesore. There are several useful features like dynamic effects and the quick bar to access the most-used apps that can overshadow the bloatware apps, but it’s still an issue that persists. The phone also supports three years of major updates, which will keep you sorted for a good amount of time.
Vivo V40 Review: Battery and Charging
The large battery packed in a slim chassis is not only great from the design perspective but also shows usability. This can last easily for about two to three days with me taking pictures, using some social media apps, surfing the internet, or keeping the phone on standby. It also does well in the PCMark test with a result of over 19 hours, which is superior to the V40 Pro’s performance in the test.
| Battery | Specifications |
| Battery | 5,500mAh |
| Charging Adapter | 80W support, charger in the box |
| Charging Time | 51 minutes |
| PCMark Battery Test | 19 hours 21 minutes |
The phone is accompanied by an 80W power adaptor in the box and it can fully charge in about 51 minutes, which is good. However, in this regard, it falls short of the iQOO Neo 9 Pro, which supports 120W fast charging.
Vivo V40 Review: Verdict
The Vivo V40 is another addition to the overflowing upper mid-range segment but this doesn’t mean it’s average. While it greatly focuses on the cameras, it is more like an all-rounder phone, doing a good job in most areas. If this kind of package interests you, the Vivo V40 is an ideal choice, especially for the reliable battery it possesses.
However, the not-so-clean UI and the top variant going upwards of 40K can pose a challenge. If you can look past this, the phone is quite good. If this doesn’t fit your bill, the Motorola Edge 50 Pro is a great choice for its clean UI, 125W fast charging, good performance, and interesting colour options. The Realme 13 Pro+ is also a fair option if you want something that goes big on AI camera features.
CTT Data by Shubh Bhushan
