Vivo has released the V29, adding to the V27 Pro and V27, just a few months ago. This gives its V-Series a lot of attention. Any brand would generally put out something other than two or more models in the same year, but Vivo seems to think that putting them out more quickly will satisfy a market that wants them.
It’s becoming clearer that Vivo is still bringing camera features from its top-of-the-line X-Series phones to mid-range phones like the V29. Even though this is an unusual product and came out at an odd time, the phone has a lot of resources that make it a strong competitor in mid-range countries like North America. Many people might never see it work, which is too bad because output and success tell an exciting story.
ViVO V29 Full Specification
| LAUNCH | |
| Announced | July 31, 2023 |
| First Release | September, 2023 |
| NETWORK | GSM / CDMA / HSPA / LTE / 5G |
| BODY | |
| Dimensions | 164.2 x 74.4 x 7.5 mm |
| Weight | 186 g |
| Build | Glass front, glass back |
| SIM | Nano-SIM, eSIM (dual stand-by) |
| DISPLAY | |
| Type | AMOLED, 1B colors |
| Size | 6.78 inches, 111.0 cm2 (~90.8% screen-to-body ratio) |
| Resolution | 1260 x 2800 pixels |
| PLATFORM | |
| Operating System | Android 13, Funtouch 13 |
| Chipset | Qualcomm SM7325 Snapdragon 778G 5G (6 nm) |
| CPU | Octa-core |
| GPU | Adreno 642L |
| MEMORY | |
| Card Slot | No |
| Internal | 128GB/ 8GB RAM 256GB/ 8GB RAM 256GB/ 12GB RAM |
| MAIN CAMERA | |
| Triple | 50 MP, f/1.9, (wide) 8 MP, f/2.2, (ultrawide) 2 MP, f/2.4, (depth) |
| Features | Ring-LED flash, panorama, HDR |
| Video | 4K@30fps, 1080p@30fps |
| SELFIE CAMERA | |
| Single | 50 MP, f/2.0, 22mm (wide), AF |
| Features | HDR |
| Video | 1080p@30fps |
| SOUND | |
| Loudspeaker | Yes |
| 3.5mm jack | No |
| COMMS | |
| WLAN | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct |
| Bluetooth | 5.2, A2DP, LE, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive |
| Positioning | GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, BDS, QZSS |
| NFC | Yes, eSE, eSIM |
| Radio | No |
| USB | USB Type-C 2.0, OTG |
| FEATURES | |
| Sensors | Fingerprint (under display, optical), accelerometer, gyro |
| BATTERY | |
| Type | Li-Po 4600 mAh, non-removable |
| Charging | 80W wired, 1-50% in 17 min (advertised) |
| MISC | |
| Colors | Space Black, Himalayan Blue, Purple Fairy, Majestic Red |
| Models | V2250 |
| TESTS | |
| Display | Contrast ratio: Infinite (nominal) |
| Camera | Photo / Video |
| Loudspeaker | -28.7 LUFS (Average) |
| Battery life | Endurance rating 99h |
Box Contents Of ViVO V29
- Himalayan Blue vivo V29 Pro with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage available
- Crystal clear Silicon case
- USB-C Cable
- 80W FlashCharge wall charger
- SIM ejector blade
- Instructions for getting started quickly and information about the warranty
ViVO V29 Design And Build
It shouldn’t be a wonder that the V29 lineup looks a lot like the V27 lineup since there wasn’t much time between them. A 6.78-inch AMOLED screen with a higher 2,800 x 1,260 pixels resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate are two changes that stand out. The IP68 dust and water resistance is a first for a Vivo mid-ranger. The phone still has a panel with curved ends, which is a shame. It comes with a clear silicone sleeve case to protect it right away.
That’s not all—this phone has a different processor. It runs on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G processor, which is more of a small step up in speed than a big one. The review unit I got had 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, but there are also versions with 8GB/128GB and 12GB/256GB. With all of them, Vivo’s Extended RAM feature adds an extra 8GB of virtual memory from the phone’s idle storage.
The unique thing about it is that the back of it has two light sources. One is a normal LED flash, and the other is a ring aura light that can change colour temperature automatically based on the environment or by shifting it in the camera app. In some modes, you can find it by tapping the flash icon in the app and putting on the Aura Light, which keeps the light softer. Only the colour temperature can be changed, not the brightness.
Even though this is a 5G phone, the most reliable connection will be on 4G LTE bands in North America. This is because the 5G bands that are available work better in other markets. That does make it easier to move when you go to those places.
ViVO V29 Display
The Vivo V29 Pro has a curved 6.78-inch Full HD+ AMOLED screen. This screen has a resolution of 2800×1260 pixels, which means it shows clear images and bright colours. The 1300 nits peak brightness makes it easy to read text even when it’s bright outside, and the 120Hz refresh rate makes scrolling and everyday movement smooth. The V29 Pro’s screen is excellent whether you’re watching your favourite Netflix show or looking through Instagram.
Both phones have a curved 6.78-inch AMOLED screen on the front. The resolution is 2800 x 1260, and the frame rate is 120Hz. The phones look good because their edges are curved. They do, however, make them more likely to slip out of your hands. The two phones are about the same weight, don’t feel too heavy, and are easy to use with one hand.
When it comes to the screen, the V29 and V29 Pro both have bright, clear screens that make the material look great. The V29 Pro’s screen, on the other hand, is a little better. The screens on both phones are easy to see and use, even when they are in full sunlight. The punch-hole notch and thin borders give it a high-end look and make the screen area bigger, which improves your experience overall. A USB-C port, a SIM card slot, and a pair of speakers are on the bottom side of the phones. The power and volume buttons are on the right edge and work properly.
Vivo V29 Camera
Like all mid-range cameras, the V-Series has some flaws. The most clear is that Zeiss has nothing to do with the V29. Vivo’s X-Series is better because of what they said, but this is Vivo’s own idea of what makes a good camera, as shown in phones like the V27 Pro and V25 Pro.
It’s not a surprise that this phone takes a lot from them since their product cycles are so short. The 50-megapixel wide camera (23mm equivalent) and the V27 Pro have the exact resolution. The only difference is that the Samsung GN5 image sensor is used instead of the Sony IMX766. Even so, not much has changed. It still has the same Type 1/1.56 sensor and optics, such as the set f/1.9 aperture. You can shoot at full resolution in the High-Resolution mode, or the photos will only have 12.5 megapixels.
The 8-megapixel ultra-wide (16mm equivalent) camera has the same OmniVision OM8D1 picture sensor with an aperture of f/2.2 and a field of view of 120 degrees. Vivo got rid of the 2MP closeup camera and put in a 2MP black-and-white depth sensor in its place. We still don’t have a telephoto lens, so we can only use a computer crop of 2x. There is the same Samsung Isocell JN1 image sensor on the front camera, which has an aperture of f/2.5 and phase detection autofocus.
Vivo V29 Software, UI And Apps
Regarding software, the phone has Funtouch OS 13 on top of Android 13. There is an Android security patch for September 2023 on it. Just like the last vivo V series phone, the V29 Pro should get two years of Android updates and three years of security patches every month.
Funtouch OS 13 adds new ways to customize, protect your privacy and safety, and manage your device so that your experience runs smoothly without any problems.
Only 11.17GB of the 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM can be used. Of that amount, 7GB is left when the default apps run in the background. It is possible to add an extra 8GB of RAM. When you first get UFS 3.1, you get 225GB of free space. It took 1837.17MBps to read everything in a row.
Vivo V29 has a lot of apps already installed, like Facebook, Spotify, Amazon, Netflix, LinkedIn, PhonePe, and Snapchat. It also has the normal set of utility and Google apps. You can eliminate these apps, but they come back after a restart.
Vivo V29 Battery Life
The Vivo V29 series phones have batteries that will last a day if you call, use social media, and listen to music all day. The battery dies faster when you play games or do other demanding jobs like OTT streaming.
When I only called people and looked at social media on them, the phones lasted more than a day. Things were different when I used the phones to play games and watch OTT shows.
The Vivo V29’s battery went from 79% to 72% after about 20 minutes of playing BGMI, which isn’t much.
The charge on the Vivo V29 Pro dropped from 31% to 5% while Genshin Impact was being played for almost two hours. The game also made the phone warm, but it wasn’t too hot to hold.
The V29 Pro’s battery dropped from 74% to 59% after I watched an hour-long gameplay movie on YouTube. Once more, the phone got warm but not too hot.
The battery in the phone also charges quickly. It only took 17 minutes to charge the Vivo 29 Pro from 0% to 56%, And It took more than 45 minutes to charge fully. It took about the same amount of time to charge the V29.
Vivo V29 Fingerprint Sensor And Face Unlock
The phone has a fingerprint reader built into the screen. By keeping your finger on the sensor, you can instantly unlock the phone. You can turn off the different animation styles when you open it. Face unlock on the phone can also open it quickly, but fingerprint unlock is more safe.
Vivo V29 Performance
The MediaTek Dimensity 8200 SoC is what goes inside the Vivo V29 Pro. With 8GB or 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, this smartphone lets you do many things simultaneously and has plenty of room for all your apps and files. The V29 Pro works well for browsing the web, playing simple games, and using programs that use many resources. The benchmarks show that the Vivo V29 Pro works slightly better than the Vivo V27 Pro, which it replaced.
There are some good and bad things about the software on the Vivo V29 Pro. The FuntouchOS 13 has a light look and smooth movements, but there are a lot of apps that come with it, which can be annoying. Vivo has promised security updates for three years and updates for the Android OS for two years. This is a good offer. On the other hand, it would be great if Vivo made OS updates last longer like other brands do in the business.
Vivo V29 Music And Multimedia
There is also an equalizer and DeepField sound effects in the essential Music Player. It doesn’t work with FM radio. The sound from the single speaker is okay but could be better. The sound from the headphones is also good.
This has Widevine L1, which lets you watch HD videos on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and other streaming services. It also works with Netflix and YouTube HDR video.
Vivo V29 Dual SIM And Connectivity
The usual set of connection features is there, like 5G, that works with the n1/n3/n5/n8/n28A/n41/n77/n78 bands. Jio and Airtel’s 5G works right away. It also has Bluetooth 5.3, GPS + GLONASS, double 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 ac (2.4 + 5GHz), but not NFC. It also works with USB OTG. There is also carrier bundling on the phone. There were no dropped calls, and the volume on the earpiece is good, even though it’s on the top edge.
The vivo V29 Pro has a body SAR of 0.77 W/Kg and a head SAR of 1.17 W/Kg. This is less than the iQOO Neo 7, which has the same chip and is well below the limit in India, which is 1.6 W/kg (over 1 g).
Vivo V29 Pricing And Availability
For Rs. 39,999, you can get the 8GB + 256GB model of the vivo V29 Pro. For Rs. 42,999, you can get the 12GB + 256GB model. For now, you can pre-order it from vivo.com and Flipkart. It will be in shops from October 10th.
Vivo V29 Should You Buy?
Are you sure you want to buy the V29 series? Yes is the short answer. The Vivo V29 and Vivo V29 Pro are powerful mid-range phones with great cameras and speed.
You’re in for a treat if you like photos. And if you want to buy a smartphone that lets you play games and watch OTT material without worrying about the battery, this is it.
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