He vivo X90 Pro is a smartphone that reaches the Spanish market as the most advanced of vivo and gets on the bandwagon of smartphones with a greater focus on photography.
Last year, its predecessor, the X80 Pro mobile convinced us given its versatility and the quality offered by its main sensors and that 5x telephoto that it mounted.
This year the company has decided on a different configuration and has opted for a large 1-inch Sony sensor. Well, it’s not really a 1-inch diagonal sensor but inherits the sensor size nomenclature from the original video cameras that had a one-inch diameter tube and inside was the sensor, with a smaller diagonal. But it is noticeably larger.
The Sony IMX 989 is the chosen one, type 1.0, the same one we saw in the Xiaomi 13 model, but in this case the difference lies in the image processor, since the X90 Pro uses its own chip.
Also here is the Zeiss expertise Since for a sensor with larger dimensions than normal, they have been able to integrate a lens that allows an aperture of up to f/1.75 and a T* finish, Tessarwith clear anti-glare focus.
vivo X90 Pro photo setup
Let’s talk in detail about the camera configuration of this mobile, and it is clear that we are dealing with a top model just by taking a look at its specifications.
Obviously in the world of mobile photography not everything is in the hardware and there is a lot of bet on software treatmentIf not, take a look at the photography results of the Pixel 6a, for example.
| i live x90 pro | Sensors – Photography |
|---|---|
| Major | 50.3 Mpx Sony IMX 989 Type 1.0″ Photosites 1.6 µm Quad-Bayer RGB 23mm(eq) f/1.75 ois Glass lens + 7 plastic with ZeissT* treatment |
| 2x telephoto | 50 Mpx Sony IMX758 1/2.4″ Photosites 0.8 µm Quad-Bayer RGB eq50mm f/1.6 ois |
| wide angle | 12 Mpx Sony IMX663 1/2.93″ Photosites 1.22 µm dual pixel autofocus eq 16mm f/2.0 |
| Frontal – Selfie | 32 Mpx Samsung S5KGD2 1/2.8″ Photosites 0.8 µm tetracell filter eq24mm f/2.45 fixed focus |
Compared to the previous model, we see how the use of a long-range and telescope-type telephoto is abandoned in favor of a triple rear camera configuration with large photosites and wide-aperture lenses. The natural zoom becomes 2X compared to the 5X of the X80 Pro.
Vivo X90 Pro video setup
If we take a look at the recording possibilities of the new terminal, we find surprises such as the recording support for 8K 24fps video or 60 fps recording at lower resolutions.
In addition, we have a cinematic recording style that moves the focus very smoothly and gives that extra touch to the recordings, which are not normally achieved with a mobile.
| i live x90 pro | Resolution – Video |
|---|---|
| Major | 8K 24fps EIS 4K30 | 60fps OIS 1080p 30 | 60fps OIS HDR10+ 720p 30 | 60fps OIS HDR10+ |
| 2x telephoto | 8K 24fps EIS 4K30 | 60fps OIS 1080p 30 | 60fps OIS HDR10+ 720p 30 | 60fps OIS HDR10+ |
| wide angle | 4K 30fps 1080p 30 | 60fps OIS 720p 30 | 60fps OIS |
| Frontal – Selfie | 1080p 30 | 60fps OIS HDR10+ 720p 30 | 60fps OIS HDR10+ |
Here we find the case that HDR video It only records with the main and telephoto sensors and in resolutions that go up to FullHD 60 fps, 4K and 8K are left out.
It has two separate ways of slow motion recording in which it reaches up to 120 fps and 240 fps in 720p and 1080p resolutions. In other words, you can slow down the action up to 8 times.
Camera application: extras for all tastes
Let’s see what the camera application is like and the photography and video options that we can configure and the integration of Zeiss into the equation of this Vivo X90 Pro.
We have to make it clear that this is not a complete remodeling of the good work we saw in previous models, but a refinement of what they already showed in the X80 Pro.
Once you open the camera app we find the default photo mode. The interface is the traditional one of a carousel of modes and next to which we have the shot button and direct access to the gallery and in the opposite part a strip of options for that photo/video mode that we are using.
We see how we have photo and video modes for all tastes, but where is the relationship with Zeiss? How far does this partnership go at the software level? At the hardware level it is clear that from Zeiss they advise live and recommend lens configurations, but, what about the software?
Zeiss and its contribution to the vivo X90 camera app
The German company has a presence in the application of the new live mobile within the Portrait and Photography Styles section.
Have 6 Zeiss Photography Styles that mimic the blur aesthetics of mythical targets like Biotar, Sonnar, Planar, or Distagon. And then you have a mode that enhances reflections that smooths out the T* coating very well and a cinematic mode that softens textures.
Here you can see the difference in bokeh in the same scene and the difference in character it gives to the photos:
One of the functions that we miss is being able to make this adjustment afterwards, but we can simply readjust the amount of blur and refocus, which is not a small thing, but it would be nice to be able to play with these styles and not think about which one you want before capturing the shot. scene.
In the normal photo mode we have a clear button at the top that says Zeiss and that allows us to choose the natural color mode or an improved color mode:
Certainly the naked eye scene was more like the second shot, by default the mobile oversaturates a bit, making the shot more eye-catching, but less true to life.
Zeiss also has a small cameo in the video section and it is that we have an ultra-panoramic recording mode in which a smoother change of focus between subjects and objects is also noticed:
How effective is T* Tessar coating?
Normally when you take pictures and there are light sources in the scene or the light comes very tangentially there is usually reflexes.
Something that can be aesthetic or artistic can sometimes ruin a photograph. In full sunlight we find very well contained reflections. With a mobile without this coating, we would find more marked reflections on the diagonal from the sun to the reflection that reaches the X90 Pro.
In fact, if the lens is clean when taking the picture, we will find good quality night photos in most situations, too.
Selfies: bokeh software you have to nail when you take the photo
If you are a person who likes to take selfies, here we are before a camera that has a great image resolution and can even have a HD portrait with full sensor resolution.
However, we are dealing with a set with fixed focus and it is something that leaves 100% up to the software to achieve that bokeh or background blur that gives the photographs such a good appearance.
What problem do we have with this front camera? That if we choose the portrait mode we can vary the amount of blur that is applied, but then from the gallery we will not be able to vary it, change it or choose another focus area as it can be done with the portrait mode from the rear camera.
Conclusions and margins for improvement of the Vivo X90 Pro camera
Speaking in terms of versatility and photography options, with this mobile you will not get bored. You have many features to investigate and test.
The 1-inch main sensor already achieves a natural background blur without having to jump to portrait modes with that software cropping and blurring, which is appreciated.
The selfie camera is fine, it has a wide angle and can even take selfies of a group of 3-4 people. Of course, the video you record is limited to FullHD and without HDR support.
I miss that you can record HDR video with the rear camera at higher video resolutions than FullHDI don’t know if it is a limitation of the Dimensity 9200 or just a limitation of the current software, which could be solved with future updates.
The previous generation had a native 5X telephoto and here we stayed in a telephoto 2X that, with the resolution of the main sensor, a crop could have been taken advantage of and put a minimum 3X combo on the telephoto sensor.
Having said that, my conclusion is that vivo has made a commitment to hit the majority of the general public. The integrated telephoto offers aesthetics and compression similar to 50mm lenses which is like the portrait standard in traditional photography.
The main sensor marks a before and after, it is clear that the one-inch sensors are here to stay, the amount of light they are capable of receiving and, above all, that they are already beginning to achieve a blur natural background between shots at shorter distances are a gift for a device you carry in your pocket and not a camera.
The Zeiss integration seems good to me at the software level, but, if it is at the software level, I would like to be able to get a readjustment afterwards. He V2 chip does all the processingand it would be nice if the company saved a copy of the RAW data so that you could edit and fine-tune from the gallery after the photo was taken.
I understand that it is a matter of storage capacity, but, at least, let the user decide if I want to touch this photograph afterwards, and save the complete information, or not, and save the processed result.
We are facing a mobile with very complete camera options, photographs with great detail and quality in most situations and although one could not expect less from a top mobile above 1,000 euros, it has some differential features signed by Zeissthat make you stand out from the competition.