After launching the Vivo V50 in India this February, Vivo followed up with the more affordable V50e in April. While both phones share a similar design language, the V50e features a smaller battery, a different chipset, and a scaled-down camera system. It still retains key features from the V50 like the quad-curved display, IP69 rating, and 90W fast charging. Compared to last year's V40e, however, the upgrades are minor. The Vivo V50e starts at Rs. 28,999 for the base variant with 8GB RAM and 128GB storage. Is it worth the upgrade? Read on to find out.
Vivo V50e Design
The Vivo V50e looks nearly identical to the V50, with the only noticeable difference being the colour options. Compared to its predecessor, the V40e, the V50e brings a redesigned rear camera module and a more refined look up front, thanks to its new quad-curved display, which is an upgrade from the standard curved screen on the older model.
We received the Sapphire Blue variant of the Vivo V50e, and it's definitely a head-turner. The rear panel features a shimmering wave pattern that catches the light beautifully. Vivo claims that each unit has a unique pattern on the rear panel; however, we can't confirm this, having only tested one device. There's also a Pearl White variant.
Vivo V50 Review: Fancy Design Backed by Big Battery Life
The rear panel also houses the keyhole-style camera module, which houses two cameras and the Aura ring light flash. You'll also find the Vivo branding towards the bottom left corner. The rear panel is made from polycarbonate, and so is the frame, which has a glossy finish. The Sapphire Blue variant is 7.6mm slim, whereas the Pearl White is slightly slimmer at 7.39mm. The phone weighs 186g and is therefore very comfortable to hold. The comfort is enhanced thanks to the curved edges.
You'll find the Power and volume buttons on the right edge, with the bottom housing featuring a USB Type-C port, a loudspeaker, a SIM card tray, and dual microphones. The top part of the phone also houses dual microphones. The Vivo V50e is claimed to meet the IP68 and IP69 ratings, which is nice to have.
Let's start with the display performance. The Vivo V50e offers a satisfying experience for streaming your favourite shows and movies, with punchy colours, HDR10+ support, and Widevine L1 certification. The quad-curved design also adds to the immersion, making it feel more premium than a flat display. Vivo claims a peak brightness of 1,800 nits, but in real-world use, the screen doesn't get exceptionally bright outdoors. However, it performs very well indoors.
The Vivo V50e is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 7300 SoC, which is the same chipset used in last year's V40e. It comes with 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and up to 256GB of UFS 2.2 storage. In synthetic benchmark tests, the V50e delivered results nearly identical to its predecessor, showing no significant performance gains. Compared to similarly priced phones like the Poco X7 Pro, the Vivo V50e falls noticeably short in performance.While day-to-day performance is generally smooth, I did encounter a bit of lag during extended BGMI gaming sessions and when taking burst photos in the camera app. On the plus side, the phone remains relatively cool under load. It runs Funtouch OS 15, based on Android 15, out of the box, and is promised three years of Android updates and four years of security patches. You also get a handful of AI features, including AI Image Expander, Photo Enhancer, and AI Eraser 2.0 – all of which work fairly well. Google's Circle to Search and Gemini are also on board.
Moving on to the cameras, the Vivo V50e features a dual rear setup, but unlike the standard V50, there's no Zeiss branding here. You get a 50-megapixel Sony IMX882 primary sensor with optical image stabilisation (OIS), paired with an 8-megapixel ultrawide camera. For selfies and video calls, there's a 50-megapixel Samsung JN1 sensor up front. Strangely, despite using the tagline “Portrait So Pro,” Vivo hasn't included a dedicated portrait lens on the V50e.
The image quality from the primary rear camera is pretty good in daylight conditions with plenty of details, natural-looking colours, a wide dynamic range, and decently balanced exposure. The ultrawide camera also performs well in well-lit environments. However, you will notice some noise around the edges. The portrait photos from the phone are good with decent edge detection, but don't offer the same natural colour tone as the standard shots. You can also use the Aura light to add some flair to portrait photos. The phone also allows you to shoot 2x photos and 4K videos at 30fps (both front and rear cameras).
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