vivo V27 Review | Geek Lifestyle

In our vivo V27 review, we explore the phone’s capabilities to determine if it’s the next premium mid-range phone for you!

A few months ago, vivo launched the V25, a phone that was a great match for users who loved to capture portraits and all kinds of photos, all while having a design that would catch the attention of most.

Now, vivo has followed up the V25 with the V27, a new phone that promises to be even better for portraits, especially at night. This is thanks to the phone’s Aura Portrait Algorithm, with a special ring light-like flash that promises to capture clear portraits even when there’s not a lot of light. Though aside from photos, the V27 also promises good performance in a package that looks sleek and attractive.

After some time with the phone, we can finally deliver our full verdict on the vivo V27. So, is this the next mid-range upgrade for those who need a new phone? Here’s what we think!

Geek-sthetic

For starters, let’s take a look at its design. While the Emerald Green colorway doesn’t exactly look like emerald (it’s more of a lighter green), it does look quite nice thanks to its marble-like look. And even if it’s a glossy back, it’s not a huge fingerprint magnet. Along with the eye-catching finish, the back also has the distinct camera module with the Aura Light flash.

Though much like the V25, the V27 also comes with vivo’s color-changing feature. If you put it under sunlight or UV light, the phone’s back transforms into a darker green hue. Its color does change back to the lighter green when taken out of the light.

Of course, this color change is nor permanent, but it’s a nice touch and one that’s especially apparent if you use the phone while outdoors (especially here in the Philippines when it’s usually sunny out). Though take note that the effect will only work without a case. So you may opt not to use the included jelly case if you want the full color-changing look (if you’re willing to risk it that is).

Moving to the front, the vivo V27 looks nice and premium thanks to the slim bezels and small holepunch notch at the top. The curved edges are also a good touch to elevate the phone’s style and give it more of an all-screen look. And don’t worry, even with the curved edges, the phone is still quite comfortable to hold, both vertically and horizontally.

Binge-Watching Factor

The phone’s display is a large 6.78-inch AMOLED screen with an FHD+ resolution, a 120Hz refresh rate, and HDR10+. If you love watching movies, shows, or any other videos while on the go, you won’t be disappointed with the V27 as the screen has a vibrant color output, with deep blacks to boot thanks to the AMOLED panel. The screen also gets quite bright, even when outdoors, so you won’t have to worry about not being able to watch when there’s a lot of light.

As for its audio, the V27 only has a single, bottom-firing speaker. In terms of sound quality, the speaker is just fine. While it’s not bad for some casual video-watching, audio can sound a bit shrill or tinny when played in max volume. The fact that there’s only one speaker also isn’t ideal when playing games as you can easily block out the speaker grill while gripping the phone.

So, for the best experience, you’ll want to have headphones or external speakers, but they need to be wireless as the phone does not have a 3.5mm headphone jack.

Gaming Prowess

The vivo V27 is powered by a Mediatek Dimensity 7200 that’s paired with up to 12GB of RAM. This configuration should be powerful enough to run most of today’s games, and that was indeed the case in our tests.

In popular games like MOBAs, the phone should have no issues. For instance, League of Legends: Wild Rift ran at a smooth 60FPS in our tests, though the recommended setting for this is Medium. You can push it to high, though you may get some dips here and there.

Meanwhile, Call of Duty Mobile ran smoothly on the phone at the High graphics setting. Even after an hour or so of playing, the phone did not slow down.

For more demanding games though, you may need to temper your expectations a bit. The vivo V27 is capable of playing titles like Diablo Immortal, though you’ll need to drop the graphics setting to Low and play at 30FPS. At least the game was playable and smooth on the V27 with these settings.

Overall, the V27 may not be a gaming phone, but if you do want to get some gaming on, the phone should have enough power for most popular games, albeit not at max graphics settings (as expected for a mid-range device).

Geek Photoshoot Capabilities

Now we move on to the highlight feature of the V27, its cameras. At the back, the phone has a 50MP main + 8MP utlrawide+ 2MP macro triple rear camera setup. Meanwhile, the front has a 50MP selfie shooter.

While the phone’s rear camera setup is billed as a portrait master, the performance for landscape photos are quite good. Whether outdoors or indoors (so long as there’s ample lighting), the V27’s 50MP main camera can capture quality photos.

At night, the main camera’s performance is also pretty good, that is if you use the Night Mode. While Auto Mode shots can turn out a bit blurry, Night Mode photos retain a lot of detail, all while being sharp.

For portraits though, the V27 truly shines, especially at night. This is thanks to the phone’s Aura Portrait Algorithm as well as the special flash that’s built in.

As you can see, even when there’s not a lot of light, the flash is powerful enough to light the subject clearly, all while providing a clean bokeh effect. The phone can even blur the background well even if there are some bright lights at night.

For a more in-depth look at the phone’s portrait capabilities, read our quick feature HERE.

Moving on to the ultrawide, it can take pretty nice photos in daytime. Low light performance is also not bad when using the Night Mode, though there is a noticeable dip in quality as you would expect from an 8MP shooter.

The 2MP macro camera meanwhile is surprisingly good as it can take sharp macro photos even when indoors. Though of course, you’ll want sunlight for the best possible results.

Finally, the 50MP selfie shooter can take nice photos, even at night. This makes it a good match for those who love posting or sharing selfies.

Everyday Reliability

As the phone can work well for gaming, it’s no surprise that the V27 is a reliable partner for everyday use. Thanks to the capable processor along with the 12GB of RAM, the V27 did not slow down during our time with it, even when running our everyday apps along with some light content creation. It also helps that the phone has vivo’s extended RAM feature which borrows memory from the internal storage if needed.

As for battery life, the V27 won’t disappoint as it has a 4,600mAh battery. While not the biggest battery out there, this should still give most users well over a day of use on a single charge. For us, the phone was easily able to last for a day, and even more on days that we only use it lightly. This makes it a great match for those who don’t like bringing power banks while out and about.

If you do need a top-up, the V27 has a 66W fast charge feature which can fill the phone up to 50% in just 19 minutes. This is a welcome feature for those who tend to forget to charge their phones at night.

Final Geek Lifestyle Verdict

The vivo V27 has an attractive design, a great display, reliable day-to-day performance, and cameras that excel in portrait photography (especially at night). These features make it a compelling option for users who want to upgrade to a new Android phone.

Of course, the phone isn’t perfect. At its price tag of PHP 24,999, the gaming performance is just fine. You can find other phones in this price bracket that outperform the V27 when it comes to gaming.

But for those who prioritize having great cameras (especially for portraits) all without sacrificing looks and everyday performance, the vivo V27 is well worth considering.

vivo V27 Specs:

• MediaTek Dimensity 7200 (4nm)
• Mali-G610 MC4
• 12GB RAM / 256 GB Storage
• 6.78-inch Curved AMOLED FHD+ display, 120Hz refresh rate, Corning Gorilla Glass Victus
• Rear camera: 50MP f/1.9 main IMX766V with OIS + 8MP Super-Wide-angled Camera (Optical angle of 120˚, 108˚ after distortion correction), and 2 MP Super Macro Camera (4cm focus distance).
• Front camera: 50MP f/2.5 HD Auto-Focus
• 3G, LTE, 5G Dual SIM
• WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, under display fingerprint scanner, gyro, USB Type-C
• 4600mAh battery with 66W fast charge support
• Android 13 with Funtouch 13
• Emerald Green (with photochromic properties)
• PHP 24,999