vivo V21 Review: Impressive Cameras and Stylish Design

vivo V21 is the vanilla edition in vivo’s V lineup for 2021. And, it is the non-5G variant that makes it into Nepal.

vivo V21 brings some changes in terms of hardware including OIS on the front and rear camera. But, it looks similar to V20 from the exterior.

So, is the dual OIS camera phone worth the price? I’ll tell you all about it in this review of the vivo V21.

vivo V21 Review

Design

• 159.7 x 73.9 x 7.3 mm, 176 g
• Dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by)

It is fair to say that the vivo V21 is almost identical to the vivo V20 when it comes to design and build quality. The only noticeable change is the slightly reworked camera module.

Along with the same buttons and ports layout, V21 also keeps the impressive AG Matte Glass finish on the rear panel. And, it is even thinner than before at just 7.3mm.

I have to say that V21 is the most beautiful looking mid-range phone in the market right now.

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But, it could have been better. The drop notch on the front isn’t exactly modern for a 2021 phone. A hole punch would have surely improved V21’s front aesthetics.

On the front, it also has an in-display fingerprint scanner. The in-display fingerprint scanner works as well as any phone out there. It is quick and consistent.

Display

• 6.44 inches AMOLED
• 1080 x 2400 pixels
• 90Hz
• HDR10+

V21 improves upon the V20 with a 90Hz AMOLED panel. The display quality feels similar to the older V20 but the brightness feels improved.

Colors and viewing angles are good but its display is not the best for the price.

V21 definitely feels smoother with the 90Hz refresh rate but the HRR (high refresh rate) implementation is far from perfect. The display didn’t feel smooth at times and there were occasional stutters.

At a similar price range, Samsung and Xiaomi phones have much better HRR displays.

Performance

• MediaTek MT6853 Dimensity 800U 5G (7 nm)
• Octa-core (2×2.4 GHz Cortex-A76 & 6×2.0 GHz Cortex-A55)
• Mali-G57 MC3
• 128GB 8GB RAM

The other change comes in the processing department with the use of MediaTek’s Dimensity 800U chipset. The chipset is paired with 8GB RAM and 128GB UFS 2.2 storage.

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The Dimensity 800U does just fine with daily use cases such as navigating UI, running apps, and multi-tasking.

Plus, it can play games at medium settings with good frame rates. I tested COD mobile on medium graphics and high frame rate settings. And, it was pretty stable. Likewise, PUBG ran smoothly on smooth graphics and ultra-frame-rate settings. But, it is definitely not the best phone for gaming at this price segment.

Camera

• Rear Camera: 64 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/1.72″, 0.8µm, PDAF, OIS
  • 8 MP, f/2.2, 120˚, 16mm (ultrawide), 1/4.0″, 1.12µm, AF
  • 2 MP, f/2.4, (macro)
  • Video: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60fps, gyro-EIS
• Front Camera: 44 MP, f/2.0, (wide), AF, OIS
  • Video: 4K@30fps (no OIS), 1080p@30fps

NORMAL PHOTOS

The main sensor captures some good photos in daylight with good details and vibrant colors. The noise is also on the lower side but the dynamic range is only average.

If you want more detail then you can also capture photos with the 64MP mode but I prefer the normal mode to the 64MP mode.

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ULTRAWIDE PHOTOS

The 8MP ultrawide camera on the vivo V21 does a decent job with decent detail and sharpness.

But the colors look a bit washed out compared to the main sensor.

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LOW LIGHT

As for the low-light images, the main camera captures good photos in low light too. The noise is on the lower side and the photos have good enough details.

The night mode also helps in exposure and lifts the detail in shadows. But the ultrawide photos are not as good.

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PORTRAIT AND MACRO MODE

Portraits from the vivo V21 are nice with good background blur. The edge detection is also nice and the background blur is convincing too.

The macro images are decent for a 2MP sensor. But it is definitely not worth it.

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FRONT CAMERA

The 44MP front camera of the vivo V21 captures 40MP photos and it comes with auto-focus and OIS.

In daylight, images look sharp and the colors look good as well. The selfie portrait looks good but the subject separation could have been better.

It manages to capture decent selfies at night as well. Sometimes, the images may get blur in dark conditions. As for the dual flashlight function, the photos do not get vast improvement.

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Video

V21 can capture videos up to 4k 30 fps from the main sensor and up to 1080p 30fps from the ultra-wide-angle sensor.

The 4k videos are sharp with plenty of detail and a good dynamic range. The stabilization is also good on 4k videos. The 1080p videos from the main sensor are not as impressive in terms of detail. But, the OIS works really well at 1080p.

I was not impressed with the ultrawide videos though. The dynamic range is not impressive and the detail is only average.

Battery

• Non-removable Li-Po 4000mAh battery
• Fast charging 33W

V21’s 4000mAh battery can surprisingly last for a day even with heavy usage.

On average I was getting around 7 hours of screen on time.

As for charging, it can go up to 64% in just 30 mins and takes around 65 mins for a full charge.

Software

vivo V21 is running on Funtouch OS on top of Android 11.

There are lots of bloatware along with a host of customization. You can also customize the charging animation, fingerprint unlocks animation, and face unlocks animation. Likewise, it also has ultra game mode and an option to enable 4d game vibration.

Conclusion

vivo V21 is a stylish phone with decent performance, good display, and good battery life.

ALSO READ: vivo Mobiles Price in Nepal: Features and Specs

It excels in camera performance with really good selfies and impressive videos. However, it is not the best performing phone and the display quality is not as good as some of the top phones in this segment.

Overall, it’s a good phone for consumers looking to buy a stylish phone with a very good selfie camera.

What do you think about the vivo V21? Let us know in the comments.