Vivo V7 First Impressions: Looks good and clicks excellent selfies

24MP front-facing camera that captures excellent selfies

Like the Vivo V7 Plus, the new smartphone is also aimed at selfie lovers and features a 24MP front-facing camera. The camera has f/2.0 aperture and comes with a Portrait mode that can create Bokeh effects in the selfies you capture based on software algorithms.

The front camera is also accompanied with a flashlight, which Vivo calls ‘Moonlight Glow'. We have tested the similar set of optics on Vivo V7 Plus in September, 2017 and the new smartphone matches the performance and image output. Some selfies do look artificial but that is something you can control with the built-in camera controls.

Self portraits come out really well from the 24MP front camera where colors look vivid and images have ample detailing with good contrast levels. The camera also offers Face Beauty 7.0 that removes unwanted blemishes to deliver crisp and appealing selfies.

You can also capture group selfies with a dedicated mode built right into the front camera interface. It is worth mentioning that Vivo V7 also comes equipped with Face recognition technology that can be used to unlock the handset.

16MP rear camera with f/2.0 aperture

The company has also maintained the same set of camera optics with the rear sensor. Vivo V7 sports a 16MP rear camera with the same f/2.0 aperture value and PDAF. During my brief stint with Vivo V7, the rear camera seemed good for daylight photography and images show vibrant colors and acceptable detailing. We will evaluate the camera's complete potential in the coming week during our comprehensive review. For now, I can say that if you really want a handset with amazing selfie camera, Vivo V7 will not disappoint you.

5.7- inch 18:9 aspect ratio Full View IPS LCD display

Like the Vivo V7+, the Vivo V7 also stands out for its edge-to-edge display. The smartphone flaunts a 5.7-inch HD+ IPS FullView display with an aspect ratio of 18:9. While the screen is bright and very responsive, the 720p resolution might disappoint you at times when you are streaming movies and playing games on your smartphone.

A 1080p panels would have made Vivo V7 a better overall package at this price-point. The HD screen seems good for reading and browsing but at times fails to match the sharpness of a 1080p panel which has become standard in today's time.

Appealing design and perfect for one-hand use

Vivo V7 looks quite premium, especially the matte Black variant and is also very ergonomic. The smartphone has a screen-to-body ratio of 83.6% that makes it reasonably compact and yet it offers a screen, which is big enough to comfortably watch videos and read books or browse web pages.

With round edges and correct placement of hardware buttons and fingerprint scanner, Vivo V7 snuggly fits in your palm and can be used with one hand without any struggle. It's also very light weight and the matte finish gives the handset a good feel in hands.

Entry-level Snapdragon CPU but with ample amount of RAM for multitasking

Vivo V7 Plus was the first Android handset in the Indian market to be powered by Qualcomm's latest 400-series chipset- Snapdragon 450 CPU. Built on 14nm FinFet process technology with eight cores driving the engine, Vivo V7 is also backed by the same chipset to handle processing tasks. The CPU is paired with 4GB RAM that will be enough to take care of your multitasking requirements.

And while the amount of RAM seems quite adequate, the choice of CPU might not please smartphone enthusiasts who use their handsets to extreme limits. We will test the handsets' processing and multitasking capabilities in our detailed review to give you a final verdict on its everyday performance during basic and strenuous tasks.

For storage, Vivo V7 offers 32GB internal storage, out of which Android and custom skin takes a good chunk of memory and you are only provided with 22GB of usable space. Thankfully, internal storage can be expanded further via Hybrid SIM card slot.

Android 7.1 Nougat with Funtouch OS 3.2

Vivo is sticking with company's customized skin- Funtouch OS 3.2, which is deployed on Android 7.1 Nougat. The UI is clean and offers some useful software tweaks to enhance everyday mobile user experience. These include app clone that allows you to use two separate accounts to log into various applications.

You also get Nougat backed Split screen mode to run two apps simultaneously side by side for better multitasking. The customized skin also features a Night mode, Game mode to accelerate graphics performance during gameplay and a variety of themes to change the look and feel of the handset. Vivo V7 worked just fine in our brief usage and did not stutter while using camera, browser, casual games and other applications.

Battery and Connectivity

Vivo V7 is backed by a 3,000 mAh battery unit that would be sufficient to last a day on a single charge as it has to provide juice to a 720p screen and the entry-level Snapdragon 450 SoC, which will not be very harsh on resources.

As far as connectivity is concerned, Vivo V7 comes equipped with Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, USB OTG, FM, micro USB 2.0 port, GPS and a hybrid SIM card tray.

Conclusion

Vivo V7 is engineered to please selfie lovers and it largely gets the job done. The 24MP front-facing camera delivers appealing selfies that only few smartphones will manage to match. However, the mediocre CPU and a 720p screen at Rs. 19,000 price-point makes the overall package an expensive affair.

Going purely by the on-paper specifications, we can say that Vivo V7 makes sense for consumers who click selfies day and night to post on Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook and other social platforms. For those who like to play graphical intensive games and stream high resolution videos, the handset might not do the justice.

However, it's too early to give a verdict on smartphones' real performance. Stay tuned on GIZBOT for our comprehensive review of the handset where we will unfold the true potential of the Vivo V7 Selfie smartphone.