vivo X Fold3 Pro review

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Introduction

Moar foldables, moar better, right? The vivo X Fold3 Pro joins the ranks of large bendy devices sold outside of China, challenging the Galaxy Z Fold6 and other, less popular alternatives. The vivo's key selling points are its unusually competent camera setup, excellently-specced displays, and largest battery capacity in the form factor.

The X Fold3 Pro's triple camera features one of the more capable telephotos (high-res sensor, close focusing), an ultrawide with a large sensor and autofocus lens, and what's apparently the largest-sensor main camera on a foldable - it's a configuration that's hard to beat. The hardware at hand is obviously superior to the Z Fold6.

The display specsheets won't leave you wanting either. The well-proportioned and reasonably-sized cover screen and the large foldable panel have adaptive high refresh rate and Dolby Vision support, and they make lofty promises for maximum brightness.

On the inside, the top-tier Snapdragon goes without saying. What's unseen in competitors is the 5,700mAh battery capacity - the next highest number on a phone-turns-tablet device from other makers is 5,150mAh. Charging is plenty fast too and it's not like the X Fold3 Pro is sacrificing pocketability to give you all that - at 236g, it weighs less than the Z Fold6.

There are a few other niceties, like an under-display fingerprint sensor (two of them, even) - most other foldables tend to stick to a side-mounted capacity one, which is so 2016. The X Fold3 Pro is also IPX8 rated, so there are no guarantees of dust resistance, but water should be reliably kept outside. Are we still mentioning the IR emitter? Well, there is one.

vivo X Fold3 Pro specs at a glance:

• Body: 160.0x142.4x5.2mm, 236g; Carbon fiber hinge; IPX8 dust/water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 min).
• Display: Main: 8.03" Foldable LTPO AMOLED, 1B colors, 120Hz, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, 4500 nits (peak), 2200x2480px resolution, 10.1:9 aspect ratio, 413ppi; Cover: 6.53" AMOLED, 120Hz, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, Armor Glass, 4500 nits (peak), 1172x2748px, 21:9 ratio.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM8650-AB Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (4 nm): Octa-core (1x3.3 GHz Cortex-X4 & 3x3.2 GHz Cortex-A720 & 2x3.0 GHz Cortex-A720 & 2x2.3 GHz Cortex-A520); Adreno 750.
• Memory: 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 16GB RAM, 1TB 16GB RAM; UFS 4.0.
• OS/Software: Android 14, Funtouch 14 (International), OriginOS 4 (China).
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 50 MP, f/1.7, 23mm, 1/1.3", PDAF, Laser AF, OIS; Ultra wide angle: 50 MP, f/2.0, 119˚, 1/2.76", PDAF; Telephoto: 64 MP, f/2.6, 70mm, 1/2.0", PDAF (15cm - ∞), OIS, 3x optical zoom.
• Front camera: Wide (main): 32 MP, f/2.4; Wide (main): 32 MP, f/2.4; Wide (main): 32 MP, f/2.4.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 8K@30fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60fps, gyro-EIS, Cinematic mode (4K); Front camera: 1080p@30fps.
• Battery: 5700mAh; 100W wired, 100% in 31 min (advertised), 50W wireless, Reverse wireless.
• Connectivity: 5G; Dual SIM; Wi-Fi 7; BT 5.4, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive, LHDC (market/region dependent); NFC; Infrared port.
• Misc: fingerprint reader (under display, ultrasonic); stereo speakers.

vivo X Fold3 Pro unboxing

The X Fold3 Pro ships in what we'd call a standard vivo high-end box - a large squarish package made of thick cardboard. The list of contents, while not lavish by the standards of yesteryear, still covers the basics well - not something you can expect everywhere.

The bundle includes a 120W power adapter (the phone only supports up to 100W) and a USB cable to go with it. A snap-on back cover adds a layer of protection without introducing a lot of bulk and spoiling the look too much.