A lot of brands are coming out with selfie-centric phones, and while most take pride in having front-facing cameras with high megapixels, the catch is that high MP doesn’t promise clear photos and good color balance, especially in a mid-range device.
Enter the V5 Lite, one of the latest offerings from Vivo. It boasts of having 16 MP front camera, but does it deliver?
Table of Contents
VIVO V5 LITE
| Feature | Specification |
|---|---|
| OS | Funtouch OS 3.0 (Android 6.0 Marshmallow) |
| Processor | 1.5GHz MediaTek 6750 octa-core processor |
| Display | 5.5-Inch HD IPS 1280×720 resolution display, Corning Gorilla Glass |
| Wireless Connection/s: | 3G, LTE; WLAN; GPS, Bluetooth V4.0, A@DP; microUSB v.20, USB On-the-Go |
| Memory: | 32GB ROM (up to 256GB); 3GB RAM |
| Camera/s: | 16MP, f/2.0, 1080p front-facing camera with LED flash; 13MP, f/2.2 autofocus 1080p rear camera with LED flash |
| SIM Card Slots: | Dual SIM (micro) |
| Battery: | 3,000mAh |
| Price: | P 9,990.00 |
UNBOXING
The Vivo V5 Lite package includes the unit, a USB charger head and cable, earphones, a sim ejector, and a rubber protector. The phone itself already has its screen protector installed.
LOOK AND FEEL
I personally like the shape, weight, and size of the V5 Lite as it feels very solid. Its curves are all at the right places, and it doesn’t feel like it’ll slip off your hand even without the rubber protector. Of course, the review unit being in rose gold is an added plus.
Aside from its 16MP front-facing camera, you’ll also find its designated LED flash right beside the receiver. Not to get left behind, its 13MP rear camera also comes with its own flash.
Sim tray is on the left edge, power button and volume rocker are on the right. Audio jack, microUSB port, and speaker are at the bottom.
DISPLAY
The V5 Lite has a 5.5-Inch HD IPS display at 1280×720 resolution, which may not be the highest out there, but has something better: an eye protection mode that helps filter out blue light, which is the kind which is tiring to the eyes and messes up your sleeping pattern. This helps lessen eye strain lot, especially for people like me who live in front of computer and phone screens.
OPERATING SYSTEM
As with all Vivo phones, the V5 Lite run the Funtouch OS on top of Android Marshmallow, with a layout that’s obviously iOS-inspired. Regular Android users may need a bit of adjusting to it, but it’s actually fun to fiddle with something that gets the best of both systems. Just be prepared to download system updates as soon you unbox it.
CAMERAS
Now let’s go to its selling point: the front-facing camera. As with any self-respecting selfie phone, the V5 Lite’s high-MP front snapper comes with a beauty function, and even an option to correct and yes, whiten your skin should you want it to. If you wish to do without the bells and whistles, the selfie cam can also take your photo without automatic edits.
Selfies with the V5 Lite are indeed pretty detailed and sharp—but these come at the risk of having photos that have visible pixels once you zoom in. Plus, you can’t zoom in your selfies either before you take them, which would have been a great option.
The plus side is that you never have to worry about being in the wrong lighting, since not only will the V5 Lite’s camera adjust it for you, but it will also compensate with its LED flash if it need be.
As for the rear snapper, it offers crisp and vibrant daytime colors which you’ll definitely appreciate.
There may be loss of detail when it comes to bright hues or white objects (such as the flowers shown in our sample photo), but you’ll just have to make sure to take time to adjust the focus and balance or at most, your distance from the subject.
Night shots also capture impressive detail with apt lighting.
Dark shots may have pretty obvious noise depending on how much shadow there is.
STORAGE AND PERFORMANCE
With a 32GB internal memory that’s expandable up to 256GB, you really won’t have issues with storage. Add that to its 1.5GHz MediaTek 6750 octa-core processor, and multi-tasking is definitely a breeze. (I can play Hearthstone and jump to answering a FB Messenger with no lag.)
BATTERY
With moderate usage, you get an entire day to a day-and-a-half of juice without charging. If you’re always online running heavy apps, then you’ll probably get around eight to nine hours of battery life before you charge.
CONCLUSION
For the price of P9,990, the Vivo V5 Lite is definitely a good buy. While I do find its front-facing camera still a bit wanting as its selling point (a zoom function would really be awesome), it’s actually pretty snazzy if you’re paying for a little less than five figures. And I have to admit that I definitely enjoyed using the Vivo V5 Lite as it managed to keep up with me at work.
So will I recommend this phone to others? The answer is a resounding yes. It’s definitely a good buy not just for its 16MP front camera, but also for what the entire package has to offer.
