Smartphone brand vivo has taken the wraps off the vivo V23 5G smartphone in Kenya, as expected. A surprise show at the launch event, held this morning in Nairobi, was another smartphone announced towards the end of last year: the vivo V23e.
The vivo V23e varies from its sibling the V23 5G, which launched weeks after it, in the camera department where, in place of the dual selfie camera setup we find on the V23 5G, it has a single sensor – the same 50-megapixel one found on the V23 5G but without its wide-angle companion. This has implications on its looks as well as it gets a V-style (teardrop) notch which is a little different to what we have on the V23 5G.
It also uses a MediaTek Helio G96 chipset (in place of the Dimensity 920 silicon found on the V23 5G) and sees its battery capacity shrunk to 4,050mAh. It runs on a slightly older version of Android, Android 11. However, it gets most of the customizations that vivo has added to the V23 5G since it is powered by the same FunTouch OS 12 the latter runs. NFC, a nice add-on to the vivo V23 5G, is also left out on the budget device.
The choice of chipset means that this device doesn’t have 5G network connectivity capability and those interested in that will have to stay with its more capable sibling.
Still, it manages to get the same display panel as the V23 5G, obviously, minus the high (90Hz) refresh rate. It also gets the under-display fingerprint sensor and the same cameras at the back as its sibling.
The vivo V23 5G’s headline feature is its colour-changing back panel, found on the Sunshine Gold colour variant.
Specifications of the vivo V23 5G are as captured here.
The vivo V23 5G is going for Kshs 60,000, starting at the same price point as the Oppo Reno6 5G did last year.
The vivo V23e is going for Kshs 34,000, offering a competitive option for the budget-conscious buyer while leaving out just a few of the features that many are unlikely to miss, anyway (5G coverage is still not yet in the double-digit percentages in the country, for instance, and features like an extra wide-angle sensor on the front and more than standard refresh rate are just nice to have, nothing more).
The vivo V23 5G is up for pre-order starting today and running till February 27th. It will go on sale on February 28th. The vivo V23e, on the other hand, goes on sale on March 14th.
Both devices will be available for purchase at stores online and offline countrywide at the dates indicated above.
vivo is offering 90 days free screen replacement to buyers of the devices and backing them up with a 2-year warranty.
Check out our unboxing and first impressions of the vivo V23 5G below:
