Vivo X51 - first impressions

Vivo X51 is a close relative of the well-known Chinese model Vivo X50 . Devices share the appearance and most of the hardware specifications. "Our" new model received software prepared especially according to the requirements and expectations of customers from the Old Continent. Vivo X51 belongs to the category of top middle-class or - if you prefer - semi-flagship. Is it impressive?

Vivo X51 - first impressions video: GSMchoice.com via YouTube

Vivo X51 has an interesting style

As I mentioned, Vivo X51 shares styling with the older relative. And it’s good, because I consider the appearance of the phone to be a strong point in this case. The front - this is of course a narrow-frame display with a hole for a selfie camera. It is much more interesting at the rear. The phone has a "two-layer", original camera frame with a clearly accentuated main lens. The frame sticks out, but putting the cover on eliminates this problem. Unfortunately, the cover will also cover one of the styling advantages, namely the matte finish of the AG Frosting back, making the phone not only good looking, but also not getting dirty too fast. An interesting detail is also a flat plate with a decorative print, integrated into the top panel. The phone fits well in the hand, it is not too heavy, and also slim - 8.04 mm. The buttons are conveniently placed. It is a pity that the housing is not waterproof.

Vivo X51 screen pleases the eyes

Vivo X51 is equipped with an AMOLED display from Samsung, 6.65 inch diagonal and Full HD+ resolution, with HDR10+ support. The matrix can refresh the image at a frequency of 90 Hz, but there is also an automatic adjustment of this parameter to save the battery. The screen has vivid, strong colours (the intensity of which can be adjusted), of course, the eye protection options have also been not forgotten - yellowing of the image or greys. I assess the display positively - it works in bright lighting, does not tire your eyes at night, it is clear and does not distort the colours. The touch panel works as it should. The screen is protected by Schott glass.

Vivo is a pioneer of underscreen readers - and you can feel it

Vivo is one of the pioneers of on-screen fingerprint readers. So it's no surprise that in X51 we have just such a reader and - most importantly - it works really well. It's a rare case when the screen reader is almost right and works fast enough for me to stop paying attention to it. It just does its job - and it should be. The manufacturer also added face recognition. I have no objections to the operation of this module.

Vivo gives you great headphones!

Vivo X51 is prepared to work with Polish 5G networks, it also has, of course, NFC, dual-band Wi-Fi or Bluetooth 5.0. Nothing is missing, everything works as it should. Due to the pandemic, I was not able to fully try out GPS and see how the phone behaves in places with poor coverage - but I will complete it in the full review. For now, I know that the device works without any problems with various routers, repeaters and Bluetooth accessories. Call quality is very good. The multimedia speaker is a bit worse. Not because it is playing badly - but because there is only one. It's a pity, because it plays decently and it could use a similar companion. I complain a bit about the lack of a minijack, but... I praise the factory headphones. These inconspicuous earbuds not only sound pretty decent, they are also incredibly comfortable. I love them - because they fit my ear perfectly. They do not fall out, do not pinch... I do not remember the last time I had such comfortable earphones. Importantly - I can disconnect the USB-C adapter from them - and connect it to another smartphone with a minijack. I will probably do it anyway, because I really like them. How does our Vivo sound? Very well. It has an AK4377A chip and quite an extensive audio settings section. You can even adjust the sound correction to the capabilities of our ears, as in Samsung. Bravo, it will be listened to! I recommend combining Tidal in the Master version with Hi-Fi in X51.

What is the Vivo X51's performance?

Inside the smartphone in question, the Snapdragon 765G works with Adreno 620 graphics and LPDDR4x and UFS 2.1 memories with a capacity of 8 and 256 GB. There is plenty of power, but remember that Vivo X51 is not a flagship, but a model from the shelf slightly below. For now, I have no serious objections to the smoothness of our premiere Vivo, I haven't noticed any cuts, everything works as it should. The smartphone does not heat up too much. It is true that we will not use numbers from the benchmark - but compared to similar models, this class will not be ashamed. As always, I have to complain about the lack of a microSD card slot. 228 GB of memory to start is a lot - but I fill that much in 2 months, and at the same time using the cloud.

An interface especially for us

Vivo X51 works based on the Funtouch OS10 interface, based on Android 10. According to the manufacturer, this interface has been tailored specifically to our European tastes. I think it worked, because I liked it. I remember that when I tested Vivo iQOO 3 5G from the Chinese market, I was stunned by a multitude of interface options, extremely extensive personalization options, lots of colours and additional applications. In the European version, which can be found in all Vivos entering our market, the interface has been significantly slimmed down and toned down. And it did it good.

It is simple and legible, close to the pure form of the system. There is no sign of unnecessary applications, Vivo actually only adds two. One for system maintenance and the other for presenting company news and providing feedback. There is also not much left of the plethora of Chinese personalization extras. In addition to the options typical for android, we only have the option to modify the animation of the reader or loading, as well as themes or the wallpapers themselves. However, the player mode and the ability to navigate the interface with gestures, hidden in the "System" submenu, have not been forgotten. We also have, of course, the dark mode, as well as the Always-on-Display with a fairly wide range of modifications. I will boldly risk the claim that the interface will surely be liked by lovers of raw Android.

How fast charging does the Vivo offer?

Vivo X51 has only been testing for a few days, so my battery rating isn't final yet... But it's good. I use the phone intensively, and it can easily be used for over a day. I am confident that it will withstand two days of normal use. Vivo took care of fast charging and, contrary to the emerging fashion, adds a 33W power adapter to the set. The battery with a capacity of 4315 mAh is filled in an hour, but after 30 minutes we have over 60% charged. So it looks good.

What kind of photos does Vivo X51 take?

Vivo X51 has a nice photo kit. The selfie is taken care of by a 32-megapixel camera from a screen hole, while the rear camera consists of four matrices with a slightly unusual layout. The main one has 48 megapixels, a lens with a good f/1.6 aperture and a gimbal stabilization mechanism that offers more possibilities than the typical OIS stabilization. The entire camera module also moves here, in addition to a 3x wider range than with a typical optical stabilization. Another rear module, 12 Mpx, has a portrait lens with f/2.46 aperture, 2x zoom and the equivalent focal length of 50 mm. The set includes two 8 Mpx matrices. One works with a wide-angle lens with a field of view of 120 degrees and an aperture of f/2.2, and the other - a periscope telephoto lens f/3.4, with optical stabilization and lossless 5x zoom and a digital 60x. What are the shooting results? Daytime photos - in short, excellent. Pictures from the wide-angle and telephoto lens - they are also very good, but in my opinion the useful magnification of the telephoto lens does not exceed 10-12x. Then the digital zoom is decent, but we will not avoid the decrease in image quality. In night photography, I like not only the effects visible in the photos, but also the way they are "produced". You can clearly see the benefits of gimbal camera suspension and a bright lens. The system neatly compensates for even quite significant hand vibrations. The same for video recording, although for now I only have a taste of this stabilization. My first encounter with Vivo X51 was unlucky with the Covid quarantine, and I had barely 24 hours to test the camera outdoors. Still, I was able to take some photos that you can see on the phone's datasheet. Selfies are also at a good level, although in extremely low light they are not as pleasing to the eye as photos from the rear camera.

The camera has a lot of additional modes and filters. Due to the presence of a portrait lens, there are many options for blurring the background and styling the photo. We even have special portrait templates that tell you how to optimally position your model. There are also filters for night photos (e.g. golden glow or cyberpunk) and very extensive functions related to beautification. We have a "cinema" mode, which allows you to track the subject in the frame through a gimbal lens, there are also, for example, programs for photographing the moon (the weather prevents the test so far) or for scanning documents with brilliant correction of the scan geometry using AI. I will try to tell you about everything in the full review.

How do I rate the Vivo X51?

I am not surprised by the Polish branch of Vivo that they made this model available for testing in the first place. Vivo X51 is an interesting and distinctive design on the market. It has a fairly original and, above all, nice appearance, good performance and fast charging. In its price segment, this design stands out due to a unique camera, equipped with functions that you will not find from direct competitors. This smartphone is also a preview of the interface that we will see in other models.

At a price of £ 749, Vivo X51 I consider a proposition worthy of attention - especially for those who like original solutions and fun with photography. A formidable competitor will arrive for Xiaomi or Honor fighting for their place on the UK market. And we, the consumers, can only benefit from this competition.