Tag Archives: vivo

Vivo X80 Pro design highlights the cameras in an awkward way

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There are many ways to put the visual focus on a smartphone’s camera, and some designs stand out in less than pleasing ways.

While Samsung seems to be focused on making its foldable phones more acceptable and sellable in mainstream markets, other brands continue to play the mobile photography card that has never lost its luster in the past few years. Hardware for these cameras continues to impress with new technologies and features that try to outdo or at least match those on professional cameras. In order to emphasize the role these cameras play, some phone makers have embraced designs that make the lenses the visual focus of a phone’s back. In some cases, the strategy works, but there are also instances like the Vivo X80 Pro that does have you staring at that camera bump, but probably not in a good way.

Designer: Vivo

In general, there are two ways to call attention to something. You either make it so beautiful that people can’t help but marvel at it, or you make it so perplexing that people are left scratching their heads. To be fair, the Vivo X80 Pro’s camera design isn’t on either extreme, but its “circle in a box” takes its oddest turn here. Fortunately, the phone isn’t all talk.

Vivo likens this motif as resembling traditional cameras, where the lens is enclosed in a circle that’s a bit off-center of a larger rectangular box. Of course, a camera’s lens and sensor are more in the middle, and the entire camera design is well-balanced despite how some parts look larger and longer than others. There’s really not much choice there since the camera has to be ergonomically balanced, or else it will be difficult to hold up and use, especially with just one hand.

In contrast, the Vivo X80 Pro’s camera design seems to revolve around the idea of asymmetry and imbalance. Although it has used this motif in other models, like the Vivo X Note, the Vivo X Fold, and the non-Pro Vivo X80, it looks more awkward and almost cluttered here with more elements to accommodate. In order to keep the design consistent between those four 2022 models, Vivo opted to keep the “extra” 8MP periscope telephoto camera out of that circle. The result is that the rectangular island extends well below the circle to accommodate that square lens on its own row, unlike the others that have a tight fit on the top and bottom edges of the circular enclosure.

Even the position of that periscope camera itself is awkward and could trigger some people with OCD tendencies. It sits on its own, not aligned with any other visual object horizontally or vertically. It’s almost as if the designers couldn’t really decide where to place the camera best and just used an empty space there. For the record, the right side of the camera array is nearly empty save for the LED flash and branding. There is a case to be said for the proper use of white space, but there’s also a matter of wasted space.

To its credit, the Vivo X80 Pro seems to at least deliver all the photography prowess it promises, and owners will be more focused on taking photos and recording videos rather than staring at the cameras on the phone’s back. That said, Vivo could have probably done better, especially to maximize the space it can use, even if it meant deviating a bit from the Vivo X80 and their cousins. Then again, Vivo could have also done worse, like the Honor Magic 4 Ultimate and the upcoming Xiaomi 12 Ultra, both of which put a large wart with many holes in the middle of the phone’s back face.

Designer: Honor

Designer: Xiaomi (via /LEAKS)

The post Vivo X80 Pro design highlights the cameras in an awkward way first appeared on Yanko Design.

Vivo X Fold tries to validate Samsung with a few tricks of its own

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Foldable phones are on their way to becoming more prevalent and more mainstream, especially now that more brands are trying to jump on the bandwagon. Although Samsung, Huawei, and Xiaomi have long been playing that game, other companies need to join in to increase the visibility and accessibility of this new type of mobile device. A few more competitors also mean that there could be new ideas being tried, not to mention new pricing schemes that could make foldable phones more approachable. That’s what the OPPO Find N tried when it changed the design a bit, earning some positive responses. The Vivo X Fold, on the other hand, isn’t straying that far from Samsung’s design, but it is making improvements in where it matters the most.

Designer: Vivo

Old Design, New Perspective

After a brief period of experimentation, it seems that Samsung’s “innie” design has won the battle. Huawei eventually switched away from its outward folding or “outie” mechanism to something that resembles the Galaxy Z Fold. Of course, there are important differences that both OPPO and Vivo are also embracing, but the general consensus seems to be that foldable phones of this nature open and close like a book.

What some don’t agree on yet is how big these phones should be. The OPPO Find N challenged the status quo with a phone that is shorter than most foldable phones and wider when unfolded. This created a tablet-like experience where the full screen is laid out in landscape orientation, while the external screen remained useful when the phone was folded, unlike most of the complaints with the Galaxy Z Fold 3.

In contrast, the Vivo X Fold nearly matches Samsung’s foldable in size and design and is actually taller than it. Although it seems like a Samsung knock-off on the surface, the devil is in the details inside. Specifically, the Flexion hinge it uses is similar to the one that the OPPO Find N and the Huawei Mate X2 use, which would allow the phone to fold shut completely without any gap. It also reduces the visibility of the crease in the middle of the screen, though that can only be confirmed in real-world testing.

Specs Sometimes Matter

Vivo also does a few things that Samsung doesn’t seem to be interested in just yet, particularly when it comes to the cameras. The Vivo X Fold comes with a better set of four sensors, at least on paper, though some Samsung fans are hoping that the Galaxy Z Fold 4 will correct the flaws of its predecessor in this regard. If you are paying a high price for a smartphone, it’s understandable you’ll want to get the best out of it.

That said, those cameras do come with a bit of a cost, at least in terms of design. The Vivo X Fold’s camera bump is a large circle enclosed in an even larger reflective rectangle on the back of the phone. It is as “in your face” as it can get, though thankfully not in the same ridiculous proportions as the Honor Magic 4 Ultimate.

There’s also the presence of under-display fingerprint sensors, something that is common in most smartphones today except the foldable ones. Although Vivo could be lauded for taking the initiative, it also shows how wasteful such an implementation might be since you need to have two such fingerprint scanners, one underneath the main, foldable display and another on the secondary external screen. There are concepts and patents on how that can be reduced to a single “back-to-back” sensor, but the technology just isn’t there yet.

The Price is Right

One of the biggest reasons why people stay away from these foldable phones, aside from concerns over durability, is their exorbitantly high costs. Samsung tried to push down the figure last year, but it’s still beyond most people’s means. The OPPO Find N tried to offer a more reasonable price tag, and Vivo is doing the same, though with a bump that is justified by the features.

The Vivo X Fold is going for around $1,400, but its availability is limited to China, at least for now. That, unfortunately, means that Samsung still has almost no competition in the global market. With rumors about the Galaxy Z Fold 4 shaping up to be quite interesting, the company will undoubtedly still hold the top position in that niche. Still, it’s reassuring to see that there are other brands willing to challenge the giant in order to help diversify foldable phones.

The post Vivo X Fold tries to validate Samsung with a few tricks of its own first appeared on Yanko Design.

New Vivo patent uncovers a futuristic tri-fold folding smartphone with a built-in projector keyboard

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On the one hand, you’ve got companies like Apple, still selling smartphones with notches in 2021… and on the other, you’ve got Vivo, a company that’s working on a foldable smartphone with 3 folding elements as well as 2 projector lenses that cast a virtual keyboard on your table.

Simply called the Vivo Tri-fold, this concept was brought to life by Technizo Concept, based on a patent discovered by LetsGoDigital. The 9-page patent document, filed by Vivo at the USPTO in June this year, shows a wild 3-fold smartphone that the Chinese smartphone giant is allegedly working on. What’s crazy about the patented design isn’t just that it comes with a massive flexible display that folds with 2 crease lines… it also somehow manages to pack not one, but TWO projectors in its lower corners, allowing the phone to cast a virtual keyboard on any surface when propped vertically upwards. The phone comes with a massive 16:9 screen, dual front-facing cameras, and miraculously enough, no sign of a notch.

What’s remarkable about this Vivo phone concept is that it’s nothing like the smartphone you’ve got in your pocket right now (or in your hand, if you’re reading this on your phone). The Vivo Tri-fold is basically a tablet that folds twice in a Z-shape (much like this Samsung concept), but somehow still manages to retain an incredibly slim profile, measuring no more than a marginally thick smartphone from roughly a decade ago. The Z-shaped folding technique gives you a screen on the front that lets you use the Vivo Tri-Fold like a regular phone, while its complex hinge system allows you to open it up into a tablet that can either be used in-hand, or kept standing upright on a tabletop surface (probably using a pop-out stand) while the projectors at the lower corners kick in to give you a virtual keyboard to type on.

It’s a technology that’s a leap forward from Samsung’s SelfieType concept, which used the front-facing camera to let you basically type on a blank surface while the smartphone’s AI translated your finger motions into actual keystrokes. Instead, the Vivo phone concept literally projects a virtual keyboard on your table, giving you a large array of keys to comfortably type on. While the concept doesn’t really apply well to regular use (I’m honestly fine with using my thumbs to type messages on Slack or IG on my phone), it makes a world of sense for the WFH crowd, giving them a gadget that’s a phone, a tablet, and also a makeshift laptop… all in one device.

How Vivo would pull this off in real life isn’t really the question here. It’s a common practice for companies to pre-emptively file patents for concepts/technologies, even though they may not intend to launch them in the future. Rather, the idea here is to protect intellectual property, rather than inform customers of future launches. That being said, companies can’t file frivolous patents on concepts/technologies that don’t exist yet… which means somewhere in Vivo’s headquarters is a small R&D chamber with an actual 3-fold phone that has built-in projector lenses. Pretty cool, no?

Designer: Technizo Concept for LetsGoDigital

Images via LetsGoDigital and Technizo Concept

The post New Vivo patent uncovers a futuristic tri-fold folding smartphone with a built-in projector keyboard first appeared on Yanko Design.

Completely absurd patent by Vivo shows a smartphone with its own built-in tiny drone camera

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What will they think of next? A smartphone that can 3D print?? (Okay scratch that, that would actually be pretty awesome)

Just last week (Friday to be specific), LetsGoDigital uncovered this rather outrageous patent filed by Chinese phone manufacturer Vivo at the World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO) showcasing a phone with its own drone camera. Sort of like how Marvel superhero Falcon had his own flying sidekick ‘Redwing’, Vivo’s phone had its own mini-drone that could pop out on command and click photos at you from any vantage point.

Sliding cameras on smartphones aren’t new, although Vivo’s concept takes it a couple of notches ahead. The patent shows a phone with a massive pop-out tray on the front. Within it, sits a tiny drone (sort of like the Air Selfie Drone from AirPix but smaller) with four propellers and a bunch of cameras and sensors. Fire your camera app and the tray instantly pops out and the drone takes off. A front-facing camera on the drone’s body lets you click photos (either of yourself or of landscapes) from a variety of vantage points, going above and beyond what your smartphone camera and your outstretched hand can do. Given how small drones, it isn’t entirely an idea I can actually dismiss… although what would Vivo’s marketing team call it? A Dronephone? A Smartdrone? A Phdrone?!

Practicality aside, the tech isn’t too far-fetched. The drone fits right into the phone’s slightly thick body, and comes with dual portrait-mode cameras on the top (that directly face you when the tray pops out), a main camera on the front (that works as the drone’s eyes), and IR sensors on the left and right that help the drone detect and avoid objects. The presence of cameras on the drone mean Vivo’s smartphone doesn’t need any cameras at all. This means no front-facing camera and a clean notch-less hole-punch-less display, as well as no massive camera bump on the back. The smartphone is a complete monolith of glass, metal, and screen, punctuated by a charging port and a set of buttons. The drone tray sits flush against the phone when closed, and pops up only when you fire up the camera app. (I’m assuming the app has drone controllers built in too)

Now let’s argue practicality from both sides of the argument. There’s a fair amount of evidence to say that this is a terrible idea. Moving components on a smartphone are historically the first to fail – Dust gets stuck in it, components wear out, parts accidentally break. The presence of a drone would mean saying goodbye to water-resistance, and there’s also a high chance your drone can get lost or stolen, leaving you with absolutely no camera (that’s if Vivo implements something exactly like this). Not to mention the fact that it practically means the end of privacy as we know it. (Imagine hundreds and thousands of drones flying around in every public space, or worse, or a drone entering a private space).

That being said, drone photography is truly the final frontier in consumer photography. The smartphone camera is already comparable to a DSLR, so now imagine being able to point that camera from any vantage point. You could take distant selfies without selfie sticks, sunsets from inside your house, and get better photos at concerts. It’s safe to assume that the drone would have a rather small battery (given its size), but one could easily make the argument that the drone could also wirelessly charge while docked inside the phone). As far as safety and privacy go, companies could build safeguards and throttles into the drone, preventing it from flying too far from its smartphone. There’s a lot to discuss and unpack here, although at the end of the day, fair reminder – this is just a patent and it’s likely that we won’t see anything like this for at least a couple of years. It’s fun to dream though…

Designer/Visualizer: Sarang Sheth for LetsGoDigital

This concept was first published on LetsGoDigital. Click here to view the original piece.

Vivo’s detachable pop-up camera concept is the evolution smartphone photography needs!

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Vivo is not new to innovation in mobile camera technology. After having surprised the industry with the pop-up selfie camera, and a phone with dual elevating front cameras; the Chinese OEM has gone a step further to introduce a concept phone with a pop-up selfie camera module that can be removed from the body of the smartphone. This conceptual, interactive, and intuitive camera opens up a whole new range of multi-angle photography previously unseen with smartphone cameras.

IFEA Camera Mobilephone, as Vivo calls its concept smartphone, comes with a detachable front camera module called the IFEA. A user can detach the rectangular camera from the phone once it has completely popped out of its housing. IFEA can then be used wirelessly in any setting while being controlled with the smartphone from a distance. Vivo says the camera can also be voice-controlled to click and record. Furthermore, it can be attached to objects – as demonstrated in the video – to even a dog collar for your pooch’s first-person Instagram-worthy shots. From how it appears, the IFEA concept has a built-in battery and probably connects to the smartphone via Bluetooth. This we believe since the phone receives instant notification in case the user walks beyond a stipulated distance from the detached camera module. And the possibilities? Those are limited only by your imagination! While we agree smartphone photography is reaching all new heights, this detachable design lets you literally redefine your relationship with your phone and your camera. Place it on a table for a selfie, attach it to a holder and use it as an action camera, or make it a point of view camera from your pet’s collar – as we said, the only limitation is your imagination!

IFEA Camera Mobilephone is the brainchild of designer Dai Nairen. For its endless possibilities and out-of-the-box design, this concept for Vivo has won the Red Dot Design Award 2020. This is definitely an interesting idea any mobile photography aficionado would want to lay their hands-on, but will it see the light of the day is just anybody’s guess at this moment. Vivo is however hopeful of evolving the potential use of the IFEA in commercial phones, changing the way we capture the world around us!

Designer: Dai Nairen/Vivo

Vivo X50 Pro’s micro gimbal camera outperforms the S20 Ultra at night

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Ever since Vivo started preaching the virtues of its micro gimbal camera on its APEX 2020 concept phone, I had been keen to try it out myself. In a nutshell, this is OIS (optical image stabilization) on steroids, with the X- and Y-axis tilt angles be...