After months of leaks, rumors, and anticipation, the Vivo NEX series is finally here.
The new Vivo NEX family comes from the company’s APEX concept smartphone, which back then was probably the most ambitious smartphone design to date. One of Vivo’s main objective in this project was to completely eliminate the screen bezels and the display notch.
Now, it’s no longer a concept with the introduction of the Vivo NEX S. This new line of devices actually comes in two flavors. The company came up with a high-end and cheaper version for the midrange market dubbed as the NEX A.
Going back, the main attraction of the Vivo NEX S is the display. This handset has a 91% screen-to-body ratio, which is a huge slap to the big fraud Lenovo Z5. The screen has a size 6.59-inches and it uses a Full HD+ Super AMOLED panel.
To make this happen, Vivo has to relocate other hardware that was supposed to be on the front of the device, and they were able to do it in a fantastic way. First, they used their under-display fingerprint scanner which we already saw working on their other smartphones like the X21. Next, the Vivo NEX S also emits micro-vibrations right from the screen which delivers audio which replaces the earpiece for calls.
And probably the most interesting one is the front camera placement. The Vivo NEX S features an 8-megapixel selfie camera which is hidden on the top part of the device and pops-up when needed. It looks and sounds pretty cool, but we’ll see if it’s actually intuitive to use when we get our hands on it. Since it has moving parts, we’re also curious if its durable enough to last for several years of usage.
Moving on, the Vivo NEX S also comes with other high-end hardware. It is equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chipset, the best choice for any flagship smartphone in this day and age. It’s also partnered with a generous 8GB of RAM and a really huge 128GB or 256GB of onboard storage.
Vivo NEX S is powered by a large 4,000mAh battery that comes with a 22.4W charger for fast charging purposes. It runs on Android 8.1 Oreo with FunTouch OS 4.0, plus tons of AI-powered features.
On the downside, the primary cameras on the back aren’t that impressive. This handset only has a 12-megapixel and 5-megapixel dual rear cameras.
Vivo NEX S Specs
- Android 8.1 Oreo, FunTouch OS 4
- Dual nano SIM, Dual standby
- 6.59-inch FHD+ Super AMOLED display, 2316 x 1080 pixel resolution, ~388ppi
- 2.8GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 octa-core processor
- Adreno 630 GPU
- 8GB RAM
- 128GB / 256GB non-expandable internal storage
- 8-megapixel pop-up front camera, f/2.0
- 12-megapixel (f/1.8, Dual Pixel, PDAF) + 5-megapixel (f/2.4) dual front camera, 4-axis OIS, PDAF, dual-tone flash
- In-display fingerprint scanner, Face Unlock
- HSPA+, 4G LTE
- WiFi 802.11 ab/g/n/ac, dual-band, WiFi hotspot
- Bluetooth v5.0
- USB Type-C, OTG compatible
- Dimensions: 162 x 77 x 8mm
- Weight: 199g
- Colors: Red, Black
- 4,000mAh non-removable battery
The Vivo NEX S price in China is CNY 4,498 (~Php37,300) for the 8GB/128GB variant, while the 8GB/256GB version costs CNY 4,998 (~Php41,500). It’s now available for pre-order and will hit the shelves on June 23. The official pricing and availability of the Vivo NEX S in the Philippines are yet to be announced.