The Vivo V7 is a much-awaited selfie smartphone from the Vivo brand, and the younger sibling to the V7 Plus that released before it. At first glance, this device is a low-cost counterpart to the V7 Plus. Today, we’ll find out if the Vivo V7 is worth buying over its more powerful big brother, especially with the lower price point.
A brand new Vivo V7 will come with:
- Vivo V7 (1 unit)
- Clear jelly case (1 pc.)
- SIM card tray opener (1 pc.)
- micro-USB cable (1 pc.)
- Travel charger (1 pc.)
- Earphones (1 pair)
The V7 looks exactly like the V7 Plus, and this includes the thin bezels, the nearly all-screen display, and the overall design mantra taken by the brand. Besides certain factors, they are virtually twins. On that note, this means that I like this design, as I enjoyed the V7 Plus’ look as well.
For the display, expect a 5.7-incher with very slim bezels and curved glass. On the top, we can see the 24-megapixel selfie shooter, flanked by the earpiece, LED flash, and the sensors. Meanwhile, the navigation buttons can be found on-screen, which makes sense. After all, it allows for the bezels to remain as thin as possible.
Moving on, the left side contains the card slot which takes two nano-SIM cards and a microSD card. Inversely, the right side holds the volume and lock buttons. At the very top, one can find the secondary microphone, while the bottom sports the audio jack port, primary microphone, loudspeaker, and the micro-USB charging port. On the back part, we will find the raised 16-megapixel main camera, flanked by its LED flash. Right under it, on the other hand, is the fingerprint scanner.
As a whole, I liked the physical setup of the device, especially with its smooth, curved edges. Honestly, very few devices can pull off the curved edge look without seeming like they’re copying everyone else. Plus, the phone feels solid, although it’s one of the lighter smartphones I’ve held as of late. Also, expect this device to gather less smudges thanks to its matte finish that prevents this from happening. Lastly, I thought the complementary screen protector and jelly case were a great add-on! It helps make a user feel like they got the most value for their money, especially with the V7 lacking Gorilla Glass protection.
As with all Vivo phones, this runs on the Funtouch OS system, particularly the 3.2 version. Technically, this means that the device runs on Android 7.1.2 Nougat. To keep things concise, the UI itself tries to be unique by employing multiple home screens for its apps and features. As a whole, it works since everything looks pretty clean. I am also a fan of features like the Smart Split, Smart Motion, App Clone, and Smart Click. All in all, these additional functions help make the entire Vivo experience convenient and easy.
If you’re worried about pre-installed apps, the big ones include Facebook, WPS Office, UC Browser, and the Lazada app. As usual, it will also get the native Google apps, plus some Vivo-branded apps. The end result of this involves cutting the original 32GB storage to just 23GB. That measures at about a 9GB difference. Unfortunately, if you want more, you will need to buy a micro-SD card someday.
Your enjoyment of the Vivo V7 camera setup depends on whether or not you liked the one on the V7+ version, especially considering that they’re virtually the same. I took a few test shots so I could get my impressions of the cameras, and as I thought, they were identical to its Plus sibling.
But what does that mean? Well, basically it means that the pictures will come out beautifully in good lighting conditions. For the rear setup, we can thank the 16-megapixel rear shooter. Meanwhile, the front selfie cam gets a powerful 24-megapixel front. Buyers and longtime Vivo fans can expect the same features like HDR and Portrait Bokeh to be present. Specific modes also include Live Photo, HD, PPT, Professional, and Face Beauty 7.0. Since this is a first impressions though, we’ll deal with some of the more prominent modes at the full review.
Tune in next time to see what we think of the Vivo V7 as a whole! Will this device be a worthy part of the Vivo selfie phone franchise?
