The vivo V27 series is the latest photography-centric midrange offering from the Chinese tech giant. vivo created a lot of hype on this device, but does it hold up?
Dubbed the “Aura Portrait Master”, the vivo V27 5G has a few unique camera features that make shooting — especially at night — more worthwhile. What’s more, the device also comes with a sleek design and other interesting specs. We’ll test all of them out in our vivo V27 5G review and see if it’s a device actually worth getting. Let’s start.
vivo V27 5G Specs
- Android 13, Funtouch OS 13
- Dual SIM, Dual standby
- 6.78-inch FHD+ AMOLED display, 2400 x 1080 pixel resolution, 388ppi
- 2.8GHz MediaTek Dimensity 7200 octa-core processor
- Mali-G610 MC4 GPU
- 12GB RAM
- 256GB internal storage, non-expandable
- 50-megapixel front camera, AF
- 50-megapixel (IMX766V, OIS, PDAF) + 8-megapixel (ultra-wide, f/2.2) + 2-megapixel (macro) rear cameras, Ring LED flash
- Under-display fingerprint scanner, Face unlock
- Loudspeaker
- No headphone jack
- HSPA+, 4G LTE, 5G
- WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band
- Bluetooth 5.3
- GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, NavIC, BDS
- NFC
- USB Type-C
- Dimensions: 164.1 x 74.8 x 7.4mm
- Weight: 180g
- Colors: Noble Black, Magic Blue, Emerald Green, Flowing Gold
- 4,600mAh non-removable battery, 66W wired charging
Design and Build Quality
The new vivo V27 is the thinnest smartphone in the series’ history. What made it more comfortable is the 3D curved glass on the front and back, making it really nice in the hands.
It sure feels really thin and light — which could be a bit much for some people. If you want extra grip, you can use the free clear case in the box, which also provides enough protection for the device from basic scratches and bumps.
The color that we have is the Jade Green option with Flourite AG Glass. It has a Jade-like design accent and of course, vivo’s 2nd-gen Photochromic technology that’s now more reactive to light, so it changes color faster.
Also adding to the appeal is the clean camera layout with a sleek and barely-protruded camera island. The unique and special Aura Light flash also gives it a distinct look.
On the front, we have the large 6.78-inch AMOLED screen with ultra-thin bezels, curved sides, and a punch hole for the selfie camera.
Curved screens never fail to give a premium appeal to any device. Plus, thanks to the thin bezels, the device felt smaller than other phones with the same screen size.
Overall, I’m a big fan of the V27’s design as vivo was able to combine comfort, portability, and elegance. The only main thing that’s missing here is any IP rating for more protection.
Taking a tour, the left side is clean while on the right, we have the volume controls and the lock/power switch. The buttons are tactile and clicky, although they wobble a little, which feels a bit cheap.
Made to take portraits, the top has the words “Professional Portrait”.
At the bottom, we have the USB Type-C port, the only loudspeaker, and the SIM tray that can hold two nano SIM cards — no microSD card slot for storage expansion.
Display and Sound Quality
The vivo V27 comes with a large 6.78-inch FHD+ AMOLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate — display features we all expect from a smartphone at this price point.
Is it the best AMOLED screen around? Obviously not. Still, it has all the things you’d expect from an OLED screen: vibrant colors, deep blacks, and ample brightness for outdoor visibility.
There’s a Visual Enhancement feature that you can enable in the settings that optimizes the color and contrast on some images. However, the difference is barely noticeable and not worth the battery life you’re giving up.
What we’re really disappointed about is the lack of a stereo speaker setup — which is a shame for the device at this price tag. It also lacks a headphone jack or any USB-C to 3.5mm adapter in the box.
That said, the single loudspeaker was able to provide decent performance with its large volume and ample clarity and balance.
Hardware and Performance
The vivo V27 is powered by a 2.8GHz MediaTek Dimensity 7200 octa-core processor, generous 12GB of RAM, and 256GB of non-expandable storage.
vivo V27 5G benchmark scores
Performance in day-to-day tasks is really smooth, especially with the high screen refresh rate. Scrolling on Facebook and Instagram feeds, taking pictures, browsing in Google Chrome, and other tasks ran like butter on this device.
What’s bizarre is the gaming performance. Call of Duty Mobile, even in low settings, had occasional freezing and stutters — this could be an optimization problem with the game and the Dimensity 7200 chip since we tried another popular game, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, and it ran smoothly even under high graphics settings. Perhaps it’s just CoD Mobile, because every other AAA mobile game we tried ran well without any issues.
Software and User Interface
Being one of vivo’s premium offerings, the V27 runs on the latest Android 13-based Funtouch OS 13. The interface looks really clean to match the device’s sleek design. You can check some of the key features below.
The device comes with wireless smart mirroring, wireless printing, Nearby Share for other devices, Android Auto support, and a Chromebook link.
It also allows you to play with different display settings like Adaptive screen brightness to match and automatically adjust based on your ambient lighting. Plus, choose between 60Hz, and 120Hz or let the device pick the right refresh rate based on the task at hand.
Like all Android phones, it has different customization settings that let you adjust themes, UI color, and even the Always-On Display design.
Also onboard are Enhanced Dynamic Effects settings, Ambient light effects that can light up portions of the screen on idle, home screen animations, fingerprint and face unlock animations, and more.
The on-screen fingerprint scanner and face unlock worked really well during our time with it. You can store up to five fingerprints and two face data for protection.
There’s also the Ultra Game Mode feature that optimizes the game every time you start to play. It also has a side window that lets you switch between Balanced mode, Battery Saver, or BOOST. Plus, it shows the CPU and GPU performance, battery left, and quick toggles like voice changer, Esports mode, block notifications, and more.
Like most Android manufacturers, vivo used Google Keyboard for the V27 5G and we liked it. The camera app is also intuitive and easy to use.
Cameras
As said earlier, the vivo V27’s main feature is its photography prowess. Mainly, it comes with “Aura Light” which is what vivo calls the ring light on the back that replaces the traditional LED flash.
The device also boasts a 50-megapixel Sony IMX766V sensor, which was developed specifically for the company. There’s also the OIS+EIS dual stabilization, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide, and a 2-megapixel macro lens.
For daylight shots, the main camera takes clean images with fine detail and passable dynamic range. But where the v27 really shines is in low-light environments.
Even without the Aura Light, images just pop with balanced colors and even better contrast and dynamic range, especially with the Night mode enabled.
We also did an in-depth test on the Aura Light Portrait System. The special sensor, paired with the Aura ring light and software algorithms, creates really nice-looking night portraits. The light has a warm tone that also has good coverage so the subject is evenly lit — sparing you from overexposure that regular flashes have.
The V27 uses the same 8-megapixel camera that almost everyone has. Images are decent, but with pale colors. vivo’s night algorithms seem to have also worked here, hence the bright night shots that we really appreciate.
Finally, we have the sharp 50-megapixel front-facing camera. As expected, it can take detailed selfies, even in low light. You can also play with different styles (Fresh, Texture, Motion blur, etc.), face beauty modes, and of course portrait mode with adjustable background blur.
Without a doubt, the camera department is the V27 5G’s best feature, especially with its Aura Light flash.
Battery
vivo equipped a 4,600mAh battery on the V27 5G. Definitely not the biggest, but it was necessary to achieve its thin design. It is partnered with a 66W USB Type-C charger.
Despite the small battery, we managed to get one of our best scores on this device. It was able to last for 18 hours and 4 minutes. Those numbers were from the PCMark battery test that loops synthetic workload until the battery drops to 20%. We ran it with the WiFi and Bluetooth off, and the screen brightness and volume were set to 50%.
In real-world usage, this means that the V27 5G can easily last you for two days of light to moderate use. But if you browse on 5G a lot, play games, or watch movies most of the day, then you might run out of juice as the day ends.
The 66W fast charging also worked well. From 20%, it reached 80% with just a 30-minute charge. For another 15 minutes, we got it to 98%. A full charge took under 55 minutes.
Verdict
The vivo V27 is more than just your average daily driver — it better be, considering its price tag. Other than the design that’s both good in the eyes and the hands, it also features a large and colorful screen, long battery life, fast charging, and good performance.
Of course, there’s the Aura Light feature, which is unique to the V27 series. So if you’re an influencer or just like taking portraits at night, this is easily your best option out there.
Still, it has a few misses, especially when you consider the price. The lack of a stereo speaker is really disappointing, the omission of official ingress protection is worrying, and while it did provide a satisfying performance, we wish vivo could’ve gone with a more powerful processor for this one.
But if you’re really hooked and impressed by its Aura Light feature, the vivo V27 is definitely worth the money.
vivo V27 price and availability in the Philippines
The vivo V27 5G with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage has a price of Php24,999 in the Philippines. On the other hand, the V27e is much cheaper at Php16,999. You can get them at official vivo online and offline stores around the country.
Pros
- Sleek, lightweight, and cool color-changing design
- Great main camera, better at night
- Long battery life with fast charging
Cons
- No stereo speakers
- CPU not optimized for some games