Vivo S1

Vivo has launched its S-series in India and the phones that shall release under the banner will lay special emphasis on style. The first S-series phone in India, Vivo S1, lies in the same segment where the company, not very long ago, launched the game-centric Z1 Pro.

The Vivo S1 has a glass-finish body, that’s not actually glass but plastic. The handset derives its charm from distinct gradient finishes – Skyline Blue and Diamond Black. We have the diamond black variant with us which has a diamond pattern etched on the rear complemented by gold accent around the vertically stacked triple-camera system. If you ask, it’s the skyline blue option that we are more fascinated by.

The Vivo S1 has a 6.38-inch AMOLED display (Full HD+) and that really spices things up. For one thing, you get characteristic deep blacks and high contrast. What we admired, even more, is that Vivo has added some useful color profile presets, and it’s now simpler to tweak the display to your liking.

The Vivo S1 has the same camera hardware as the Vivo Z1 Pro, and consequently, the camera performance on both phones is similar. The camera app is feature-rich and engaging, but it took us some time figuring out what goes where. There are options like AR stickers, AI beautification across all modes, portrait photography, Pro mode, Live photos and many more.

In daylight, the shots clicked on 16MP primary camera had punchy colors and wide dynamic range. When analyzed on a bigger monitor, the details felt scanty in a few clicks. In low light, the software tends to over sharpen images resulting in further loss of details.

The 8MP wide-angle camera works well outdoors in proper lighting. Anyways, consumers would be using it occasionally, mostly to capture broad landscapes.

The 2MP depth sensor assists with portrait mode. Edge detection works fairly well, but the quality of portraits isn’t outright impressive.

The 32MP camera does a fine job with selfies.

The in-display sensor on the Vivo S1 is fast and consistent. You also get to choose from a bunch of slick unlock animations. The IR face unlock is also extremely fast and convenient.

The Z1 Pro is a good affordable phone for consuming multimedia content. The overall practical experience is pretty decent. The MediaTek Helio P65 is consistent but not snappy and if you are primarily interested in gaming, you’d be better off with the Z1 Pro.read more →