Vivo X21 Unboxing and Review: Cool In-Display Fingerprint Technology
The vivo X21 is another innovative device from Vivo, with its under-glass fingerprint sensor technology, gone are the days when a user needs to look for the fingerprint scanner that is normally located at the back or at the home button. Now simply touch the part of the display where the fingerprint sensor is to unlock the phone.
Vivo X21 Specs
Funtouch OS 4 based on Android 8.1 Oreo
6.28-inch Full HD+ (2280 x 1080 pixels) Super AMOLED display (19:9 aspect ratio, 402 ppi)
2.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 Octa-core processor
Adreno 512 GPU
6GB RAM DDR4
128GB storage, expandable up to 256GB via microSD card
12MP (f/1.8, 1/2.5", 1.4µm, Dual Pixel PDAF) + 5MP depth-sensing (f/2.4), main camera with phase detection autofocus, LED flash
12MP selfie camera, f2.0 aperture
Dual SIM, Dual Standby (Hybrid)
4G LTE
WiFi 802.11ac, dual-band, WiFi Direct, hotspot
Bluetooth 4.2
In-display fingerprint sensor
AK4376A Audio Chipset with Deep Field Technology
Micro USB
OTG support
3,200 mAh with fast charging
156.2g
Unboxing
The X21 retail box comes in a simple blue box featuring the FIFA World Cup Russia 2018 logo. At the back of the box are some of the features of the X21 and other technical details.
Inside the box are the Vivo X21 device, a 2A charger, a USB cable, earbuds, an ejector pin, paper materials, and a free clear soft case that looks really nice.
Vivo X21 Build and Design
The X21 looks a lot like the Vivo V9 but with a more premium look thanks to its metal frame and the glass back cover, but we notice that the back does pick up fingerprints easily. Good thing it comes with a nice protective case. At the front, it has a thin bezel at the side and a slim chin at the bottom, It's also easy to hold thanks to its 3D curved design.
At the front is a 6.28-inch Full HD+ AMOLED display with a 19:9 aspect ratio. It already comes with a pre-installed screen protector, which is good; no need to buy extra. The display looks really awesome, with nice colors and a high-contrast level.
Just like any flagship device, it also has a notch that houses the selfie camera and other sensors. While the In-Display fingerprint sensor will illuminate when used,
With the fingerprint scanner now hidden under the screen, the back of the X21 looks clean, and the dual cameras are vertically aligned with the LED flash below. The company logo is printed at the center, and there's a "Designed by Vivo" label at the bottom.
Fullview Display
As we mentioned, the X21 sports a beautiful 6.28-inch Full HD+ display with a 19:9 aspect ratio and a 2280 x 1080 pixel resolution at 402 ppi. It has vibrant colors, and it's really clear and nice to look at. The brightness level is good enough for indoor use, but it's a bit hard when used in direct sunlight.
Just like any current flagship smartphone, it also has a notch at the top. It's not really distracting, users will get used to it since there is no feature to turn off the notch via software, just like the Huawei P20 can.
It features an always-on display just like Samsung smartphones, can be customized in the settings area, it can include phone and message notifications. This feature will increase power consumption, and it will be deactivated once the battery has less than 10% capacity.
In-Display Fingerprint
Vivo X21 is the first brand to offer an In-Display fingerprint scanner feature, and for sure, other brands will follow later on.
The in-display fingerprint sensor works great, but it needs a bit of pressure for it to work properly. Configuring the fingerprint is easy, the only difference is that the sensors are now under the display. Using it to unlock the X21 works in just a matter of seconds.
We did experience that the sensor sometimes does not recognize our fingerprint, so we need to press it again until it unlocks the device. Keep in mind that this is first-generation technology, and there are times that it might not work, and you need to put a little pressure on the display to get it to unlock. Good thing it also supports PIN, Face unlocks, and passwords. But for sure, Vivo will patch this with software updates to make it work flawlessly.
Vivo X21 Cameras
The X21 sports a dual vertically aligned rear camera with a 12-megapixel f/1.8 main camera sensor with phase detection autofocus and a 5-megapixel f/2.4 secondary camera. For selfies, it has a 12-megapixel camera sensor with a f/2.0 lens.
Also read: VIVO V21 CAMERA SAMPLE PHOTOS
Vivo X21 Performance
The X21 is powered by the Snapdragon 660 clocked at 2.2GHz, a Qualcomm chip designed for upper midrange devices. It comes with 6GB of RAM and 128GB internal storage, with support for up to 256GB via a microSD card slot.
Out of the box, it runs on Android 8.1 Oreo with Funtouch OS 4.0, Using it as our daily driver was great, there was no performance slowdown, it was responsive to the touch command, and multi-tasking was also not an issue, it's easy to switch from one game to another. This maybe because it has more RAM to use compared to other devices that only have 4GB installed.
The X21 features the AK4376A Audio Chipset with Deep Field Technology. The speaker on this device is loud and has a nice, clear sound.
It comes with pre-installed apps just like any Vivo device. It includes V-Appstore (Vivo's custom apps store), i Music, i Theme, i Manager, EasyShare, the vivo.com app, Amazon, and popular social media apps like Facebook, PhonePe, and WhatsApp.
Playing MMORPG games on this device is great, the Adreno 512 GPU can handle most graphics-intensive games that you might think of, such as NBA 2K18 or TEKKEN.
Below are the Vivo X21 benchmark scores.
The X21 comes with plenty of storage, that's 128GB (106GB available to use), and it's also expandable via microSD card up to 256GB capacity now, which is a lot of storage space for such a device.
Vivo X21 Battery Power
Vivo was generous enough to equip this device with a 3200mAh battery, which is more than enough to last for a day of use. With medium to heavy usage, using it starting at 7AM with 100% battery capacity, it was down to 15% by 6pm. The X21 supports fast charging using the supplied 2A charger.
Verdict
We love the Vivo X21, it's a solid device packed with cool features and great hardware. The in-display fingerprint makes this device one step ahead of its competitor and could make this feature the next standard way of unlocking smartphones. Sure, it's not perfect, and a lot of improvements can be made in the next version.
The X21 offers fast and reliable processing power with a huge 6 GB of RAM and plenty of storage for all media files. The dual camera setup at the back is great for taking high-quality pictures, and it can even record 4K videos. While the selfie camera is fun to use, its built-in stickers make taking selfies more fun. The new vivo X21's price of ₱29,999 SRP is its only drawback, vivo should consider taking the price a notch down.
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