With retail business in over 30 countries, Vivo has become one of the largest mobile producers in the world. The company entered the Bangladeshi market in 2017 with its V7+. Since then, the company has made a reputation for providing affordable quality phones from budget to flagships. The brand recently launched the Vivo Y01 on 16th May 2022 with the device being already available in Bangladesh now. Here’s a detailed review of Vivo Y01 and see whether it’s worth the money.
Key Specifications of Vivo Y01
Design and Build Quality
The Vivo Y01 is an entry-level ultra-budget smartphone. This phone is an amalgamation of necessary features rather than filling the spec sheet with unnecessary gimmicks. The straightforward approach from Vivo created a simple design that doesn’t stand out in any way but definitely showcases its presence.
The device has a plastic back and frame. The back of the device has a vertical design with a color-shifting frosting. This type of design choice is pretty common among budget and mid-range devices. The design brings a certain sense of premium quality to an otherwise cheap build.
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The ports and buttons on the Y01 are all standards found on budget devices. There’s the 3.5 mm headphone jack and a speaker grill. The left side houses the sim tray along with the micro SDXC slot. The right side holds the power button and the volume buttons. Depending on the region and market, the power button will either have the fingerprint enabled or not.
However, one surprising choice here is the use of a microUSB charging port. It's unexpected to see microUSB in 2022 as most companies are using USB Type-C.
Overall, the design and build quality of the Vivo Y01 is just as expected from a budget device. It’s not revolutionary, but rather a subtle refinement of the previous offerings. The device also comes in two color variants – Sapphire Blue and Elegant Black.
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Display
The display of the Vivo Y01 is an IPS LCD panel. The HD+ resolution means the device isn’t exactly crammed with pixels. Instead, users will have to do with 270 ppi in the 6.51-inch display. It's commendable that Vivo didn’t go with a TFT or PLS LCD as is most common in the ultra-budget segment. Vivo calls it their Halo FullView Display. It saves the panel from being an eyesore and churns out a decent performance.
Even at HD+ resolution, the display performs relatively. It doesn’t get past the 400 nits mark but that still makes it visible in the glaring sunlight. There aren’t any weird color shifts or blue tints. Viewing angles aren’t excellent but it's nothing to make it a bad deal. Looking at the display from its price point, it's really hard to complain.
Camera
When we mentioned there are no gimmicks in this device, we mainly meant the camera system. Budget devices often come with a triple or even quad-camera setup. However, other than the main sensor, the accompanying lenses are pretty much useless anyway.
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Vivo was smart about their choices. Instead of cramming multiple sensors, the company went with a single sensor. The 8 MP f/2.2 shooter is the only camera lens on the back of the device, something which is incredibly rare these days.
Speaking of the performance of the camera, it does relatively well for an 8 MP shooter. It’s a basic point-and-shoot camera with no real pro mode options. The supposed AI helps to create portrait mode in post-processing. Beyond that, the camera also offers some degree of lossless zoom digitally, but that’s only so much.
The videography is rated at 1080P at 30 fps. The videos produced by the camera are passable at best. The front camera is a simple 5MP shooter.
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Processor and Performance
The processor for the Vivo Y01 sports an entry-level 12 Nm architecture. Vivo has gone with Mediatek MT6765 Helio P35 with octa-core 4 2.35 GHz Cortex-A53 and 4 1.8 GHz Cortex-A53 design.
The P35 is a very basic processor geared towards casual use. The processor does a good enough job while general browsing, using social media, or consuming media. It can also run lightweight 2D games without any hiccup. We tried running graphic-intensive games like PUBG and Asphalt 9. While PUBG ran relatively well in low settings, Asphalt 9 had a lot of frame drops here and there. The device also heats up easily after some time of gaming.
The device sports Android 11. Vivo has used the Go edition of Android. This helps to keep the device running smoothly with just the basic version of android.
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Overall, the performance of the device is on par with the price point. Vivo has kept the bare minimums in the device and the Y01 is a proper example that sometimes less is good.
Battery and Charge Time
The battery of the Vivo Y01 is 5000 mAh. Based on the power consumption of the processor, the device can last up to 7 to 8 hours of continuous usage. There is no fast charging here, however. On top of that, the basic Type-C is also not present. So expect long charging hours with the device.
Price of Vivo Y01 in Bangladesh
The Vivo Y01 comes with 2 GB RAM and 32 GB ROM. The official price of the device in Bangladesh is 9,990 BDT.
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Verdict
Vivo shares its roots in budget and mid-range devices. The brand has foraged into ultra-flagships over the years but it didn’t move away from the core offerings. The company still does a great job at producing budget devices and the Vivo Y01 is a testament to that.
From the display to the design to the processor, everything comes together to create a handy little device that delivers. The only noticeable issue here is the microUSB port. Other than that, the Vivo Y01 is a great device priced at a very competitive range.