Vivo's newest flagship phone line arrived on the heels of the company's biggest Android rival. The Chinese phone maker announced the new X90 and X90 Pro on Friday, just days after Samsung's Galaxy S23 launch. The X90 Pro's standout features are its 120-watt charger and the 1-inch Sony IMX 989 sensor, which is used in the main camera. 

I had a chance to test the Vivo X90 Pro out for a short time before the launch, where I focused my attention on testing the camera. In my limited time with the phone, I found that it serves up a versatile range of shots with clarity during the day and night, and it has a lovely depth of field. Sometimes however, photos didn't turn out as bright as I'd expected, even in the daytime, which surprised me because this phone is equipped with a 1-inch Sony IMX 989 sensor. Larger sensors are designed to allow more light in, and therefore are meant to allow for the production of brighter, clearer images.

Apart from the camera, the Vivo X90 Pro has all the hallmark features of a high-end flagship in 2023. There's a 6.78-inch AMOLED display, three cameras headlined by two 50-megapixel cameras, a large battery and zippy 120-watt charging. Xiaomi's 12T Pro has 120-watt fast charging too and it was my favorite feature on that phone despite the fact that it also has a 200-megapixel camera. 

It's worth pointing out that the Vivo X90 Pro runs on the Mediatek Dimensity 9200 chip. That's a divergence from Samsung's latest lineup of Galaxy S23 phones, which run on Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Ge 2. There's also just one variant coming with 12GB RAM and 256GB internal storage.

Pricing information wasn't available at the time of this writing. But expect an international release in parts of Europe and Asia for the X90 series. There is no US release planned currently.

X90 Pro's odd design choice on the back

For a phone in 2023, the X90 Pro's design appears relatively ordinary from the front. The rectangular display has curved edges and features a a punch-hole cutout in the center housing the selfie camera. But flip it over, and you'll see a narrow bar running through the width of the chassis (below the camera module). 

No, it's not a camera bar as seen on Google's Pixel 7 lineup, it's simply a flat bar emblazoned with the words "Xtreme Imagination" running across the rear of the phone. Frankly, it makes for a bizarre choice that undermines the overall design of an otherwise sleek phone. Above this perplexing bar, is the circular camera bump housing three lenses. There's also bold vivo branding at the bottom, which I don't particularly take to but I can understand why its there.

X90 Pro's Zeiss lenses

Vivo says this phone gives you a piece of pro photography equipment in your pocket. That's why it makes sense that the company has flexed its camera partnership with Zeiss, a 176-year old company considered a pioneer in optical photography. There are three cameras on the X90 Pro: a 50-megapixel main camera, a 50-megapixel portrait camera and a 12-megapixel wide-angle lens. 

The photos I shot using the phone were respectable, and I love how portrait photos come out with a dramatic bokeh effect. However, as I said earlier, some photos turned out to be more shadowy than I'd expected, given the sensor size. You can see the cameras in action below.

Vivo X90 Pro battery

The X90 Pro has a 4,780-mAh battery, which can be replenished with a bundled 120-watt charger or a 50-watt wireless charger (sold separetly). The phone offers two charging modes, fast charging and balanced mode. Vivo says the X90 Pro can be charged to 50% in 8 minutes and 10 seconds using the former mode. Balanced mode is apparently ideal for everyday charging, and takes 29 minutes to revitalize the battery to a full charge, according to Vivo. I didn't get a chance to test this feature out, but be sure to check back on this page as I'll plan to update it once I have more insights.

New Vivo X90 Pro features

Vivo changed an array of features from the phone's predecessor, the V80 Pro. Apart from swapping out the chip from Qualcomm to a Mediatek one, it ditched the ultrasonic fingerprint reader, telephoto camera and reduced display resolution. The 3D Sonic Max feature was one that set the X80 Pro apart from a number of Android flagships, so it's disappointing to see it go.