// THE VERGE — HARDWARE & GADGET
Vivo’s first Pro Max phone proves its Ultra is still in a league of its own
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The X500 Pro Max is great, but it’s a step back from my favorite phone camera.
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When I declared this spring that Vivo’s X300 Ultra had the best cameras in any phone, two things made it stand out in my mind: its excellent main camera with a narrow 35mm focal length and what remains the most capable ultrawide in any phone worldwide.
You won’t find either in the new X500 Pro Max. It has an impressive camera system with world-leading dynamic range and the same great telephoto lens found in the Ultra. But it’s lost a little something of what made its predecessor quite so special.
The X500 Pro Max is the latest in a trend that’s seen China’s major Android players roll out Pro Max models, including Xiaomi, Oppo, Honor, and now Vivo. The new models close the gap between their previous Pro flagships and camera-centric Ultra models — or, if you prefer to be cynical about it, are an excuse to slap “Max” on the box to better mask RAM-induced price hikes. A little of column A, a little of column B, I suspect.
The Pro Max adopts plenty of flagship features found in the older Ultra. It’s the same size, for one, and has a matching 1440p, 144Hz OLED display. It’s got an even bigger battery — 7,800mAh — which breezes through two days of use, with similar 90W wired and 40W wireless charging. Unlike the Ultra it doesn’t use the latest Snapdragon chipset, but its MediaTek Dimensity 9600 Pro delivers roughly comparable performance. It even features the exact same periscope telephoto camera, one of the best in any phone. Then there’s the price: €1,799 (about $2,000) puts this squarely in the ultra-premium bracket.