Yesterday, Vivo launched a new mid-range smartphone in the Philippines, the Vivo Y95. The device comes with a price tag of PHP 13,999. There is a high possibility that the Vivo Y95 might launch in India. If it launches in India, it will cost somewhere between INR 18,000 to INR 20,000. At a similar price point, there are two great smartphones available in India, the Poco F1 and the Realme 2 Pro. The Poco F1 starts at INR 20,999, whereas the Realme 2 Pro has a price tag of INR 16,000 for the 6GB RAM variant. So the question is if the Vivo Y95 launches in India, should you buy it? Or should you choose between the Poco F1 and the Realme 2 Pro? That is what we are going to discuss in this article today.
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Vivo Y95 Has the Weakest Processor Amongst Its Competitors
One of the most important aspects of a smartphone is the amount of processing power it packs. There was a time when the most powerful mobile processors in the market were only found in high-end smartphones. However, the smartphone market has now become much more competitive, thanks to Chinese smartphone manufacturers like Xiaomi, Honor, and Realme. At the present date, if you want to buy a smartphone with the flagship processor, you don’t have to buy a high-end smartphone. You can get it even in mid-range smartphones. The Poco F1 (review) is a great example. It starts at INR 20,999, and it packs the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor, which is the same chipset that you find in the costlier smartphones like the Oppo Find X (review) and the Google Pixel 3 XL (review). Therefore, as you can imagine, the Poco F1 is a powerful smartphone.
The Realme 2 Pro costs just INR 16,000. Therefore, it is not possible for it to have a Snapdragon 845 SoC as the Poco F1 does. It has a less powerful, Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 SoC. Although, by no means the processor is weak. The Snapdragon 660 just a notch below the Snapdragon 845. It has enough processing power to run even the heavy tasks with ease, and provide a smooth gaming experience. At a price tag of INR 16,000, no other smartphone packs a more powerful processor than the Realme 2 Pro.
Coming to the Vivo Y95, it is expected to cost around INR 18,000 to INR 20,000, which is higher than what the Realme 2 Pro costs. Hence, anyone with even a half brain would expect the Vivo Y95 to pack a more powerful chipset than the Realme 2 Pro, if not, a processor with similar performance. In the worst case scenario, I would expect the Y95 to have at least a mid-range processor such as the Snapdragon 625. Unfortunately, the Vivo Y95 packs an entry-level processor, the Snapdragon 439. The Snapdragon 439 is far behind the Snapdragon 660 or the Snapdragon 845. Therefore, you can expect the Y95 to have a lot slower performance than the Poco F1 or even the cheaper Realme 2 Pro. Vivo Y95’s weak processor alone is a big reason not to buy the smartphone.
Vivo Y95 Has a Lower Resolution Display
Even the entry-level smartphones nowadays have Full HD resolution displays. Take the Xiaomi Redmi 6 Pro for example. It costs just INR 9,999, but it still has a Full HD+ resolution display. Smartphones costing above INR 15,000 should pack an even better display. However, the Vivo Y95 even after being a device that costs around $260 (INR 19,000), has an HD+ resolution display. The display resolution is too low for the price of the device. The screen is large (6.22-inches), and it also has a nearly bezel-less design. Even the notch in it is a tiny, water drop one. Even though, these features won’t make up for the lower resolution of the display. Due to the lower resolution and large screen size, the pixel density of the display is just 270 PPI. Therefore, the content on the Y95’s screen will look pixelated.
On the other hand, the Realme 2 Pro and the Poco F1 have Full HD+ displays. The Realme 2 Pro has a 6.3-inch screen size and a similar water drop notch. There is even Gorilla Glass protection over it. The Poco F1 has a slightly smaller, but still a sizeable 6.18-inch display. Unlike the other two smartphones, which have a small notch, the Poco F1 has a large rectangular notch. The Realme 2 Pro’s display is the best, followed by the Poco F1. The Vivo Y95 stands last.
Camera Hardware of Vivo Y95 Is Less Impressive Compared to Xiaomi Poco F1 and Realme 2 Pro
The Vivo Y95 has a 13MP + 2MP dual-camera setup at the rear. The Realme 2 Pro also a similar dual-camera at the back; a 16MP + 2MP setup. On the other hand, the Poco F1 has a slightly higher resolution depth sensor; it comes with a 12MP + 5MP dual-camera setup. So here’s the thing, we can not judge the image quality of the camera based on its resolution. A 12MP camera might have a better picture quality than a 40MP camera. It all depends on the quality of the image sensor, the quality of the lens, and the post-processing.
We have tested the Poco F1 and found that it has the best camera in its price range. The Poco F1 is also the cheapest smartphone in the Indian market to have the 4K recording at 60 frames per second. The Realme 2 Pro also has a pretty good camera. Although, we have not tested the Vivo Y95. Hence, we can’t comment on its image quality. However, I think that the Vivo Y95 might have a lower image quality, mainly because the ISP in its SoC is not as good as that of the other two smartphones. The Vivo Y95 can’t even do 4K video recording. It can only record Full HD videos. The lack of 4K video recording alone makes it fall behind the cameras of the Poco F1 and the Realme 2 Pro.
Battery Life of the Vivo Y95 Is Better Than Realme 2 Pro, but Poco F1 Is Still Better
The Vivo Y95 packs a 4030mAh battery, which is significantly larger than the Realme 2 Pro’s 3500mAh battery, and slightly larger than Poco F1’s 4000mAh battery. The processor of the Vivo Y95 is also more power-efficient than the processors of the other two smartphones. Therefore, it might have a longer battery backup than the other two smartphones. However, the Poco F1 has fast battery charging, which the Vivo Y95 lacks. Having fast battery charging over a slightly better battery backup is always better. So the Vivo Y95 wins over the Realme 2 Pro in the battery backup department. However, the Poco F1 triumphs over the Vivo Y95 as it not only a similar battery backup but also faster battery charging.
Realme 2 Pro and Xiaomi Poco F1 Will Always Be a Better Choice Than the Vivo Y95
The Vivo Y95 has a weak processor as compared to the Realme 2 Pro and the Poco F1. Not only that, the processor is not even as good as that in the smartphone that cost half of what Vivo Y95 does. Same goes with the display. It has a lower resolution, and that is unacceptable for a smartphone that costs $260 (INR 19,000). Lastly, the camera hardware is not impressive, and it can not even record 4K videos.
It is clear that it does not makes sense buying the Vivo Y95 at its expected price of INR 18,000. It can’t even beat the smartphones that cost half of what the Y95 does. I am not even considering the other drawbacks of the device, such as the lack of USB Type-C port and Wi-Fi ac. If Vivo launches this smartphone in India, it should not cost more than INR 9,000, but at INR 18,000, you are better off with Realme 2 Pro or the Xiaomi Poco F1. If you have a tight budget, go with the Realme 2 Pro. Although, if you can afford the Poco F1, you should definitely not hold back buying it. It is the best smartphone under INR 25,000.
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