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This is Vivo's X500 Pro Max and I'm not even going to get into that name. And over the past week, I wanted to see exactly what this phone could do and it only proves one thing to me, that Chinese phones, they are so good. This video is sponsored by Usmile and I feel like I couldn't have found a better day to take this camera out for a test. It's spooky, it's Halloweeny, there's a big scary monument behind me, it's kind of cold and I feel like I might have just found my favorite camera of the year on a phone and I wasn't expecting it to be a Vivo. I think Vivo is the
brand that I've probably used over the last few years. I tend to stick to Oppo and Xiaomi and of course Samsung and Google. I only really used this phone for a couple of days and instantly I realized how far ahead this is compared to my Pixel 11 Pro XL or the S26 Ultra. Just starting with simple things like the battery. Samsung have had 5,000 mA hours in their Ultra phones for years now. Then you look at the Pixel and the battery is bigger at 5,015 mA hours. But the X500 Pro Max, if you get the global version, this has a 7,800 mA hour battery. And compared to the Pixel 11 Pro XL, it's 52% bigger and it's similar with charging as well. Samsung has 60 watts with the S26 Ultra but Vivo, it
has 90 watts. And I actually think battery is probably one of the biggest areas that Google and Samsung are letting themselves down a little bit. The batteries, they are fine but they're definitely not great. I just don't get why Google and Samsung don't just squeeze a little bit more into their batteries. We're bored of the same 5,000 mA hour on the Ultras and even Google this year, they dropped the battery on the 11 Pro XLs. But with the Vivo X500 Pro Max, I never have to think about charging this thing. It just lasts and lasts. Because of the 90 watt charging, it's topped up in no time. The Vivo
though, there's one part I want to talk about without comparing it for a second and I just love its cameras. What's the one thing you don't want to see you can write a video on Halloween? Couple of rams? I think that's the omen of the devil. How about like 20 of them? I took maybe three or four photos with this and absolutely loved it. And I feel like I've been sleeping on how good a Vivo camera is. It's 3.5 times telephoto lens is very good for macro. Like it's so impressive. And I took so many photos of spider webs in the mist because I just think these look really cool. The camera is sharp. Dynamic range is great. And I always praise an iPhone for its video.
But I think the X500 Pro Max might just be one of those phones that can rival it. And if you can compare some telephoto shots from the Vivo to the S26 Ultra and the Pixel, it really just stands out, I think. The telephoto lens is three times bigger than the S26 Ultra's five times. And the details, they kind of speak for themselves here. I don't think that the Pixel or the S26 Ultra is necessarily that bad, but the Vivo is just better. You can even compare some video against the S26 Ultra and the Pixel. And I don't think that Samsung is too far behind, but I do feel like the Pixel in details and especially that stabilization is way behind. The Vivo stands out even more when you take
it into low light. I also do want to praise the mics on the Vivo X500 Pro Max as well because right now I haven't got any mics attached to me at all. You're hearing it straight through the phone. And it's very, very good. When you go to 10 times in the camera, it isn't great. Not a lot of detail and it's a little bit too AI-ish. I am unhappy with one thing though because Vivo, what is this? Please, don't put marketing videos in my gallery. Just stay away from that. I do want to talk about software, but first let me talk to you about this video's sponsor, Usmile.
Usmile sent over their C30 water flosser and their C30SE. And I have been doing Invisalign for the last few months. And let me tell you, this has been very handy for cleaning in between my teeth and keeping everything clean. On the C30 water flosser, you've got a 300 ml tank, five pressure levels, and three different nozzles depending on what you need. And I'll tell you, this works really well. You also have the C30SE as well, which is a simpler option if you're new to water flossing. This one has four cleaning modules and a one-button control. Because of the Invisalign, I have to floss like three or four times a day, so this has been a dream. So, if you want to pick up one of these for yourself, then
I'll put the links in the description. My biggest problem with this phone is probably its software. Origin OS, it is better than it used to be, but it's still not great to use. Like I mentioned, there's a marketing video in my gallery. Don't do that. There's bloatware. It's like I don't want booking.com forced onto my phone. And there's annoying notifications about people's favorite apps. Like, I don't care about that. And it is a shame because even you look past the iOS inspiration here with liquid glass, I mean, Vivo, they're not the only ones doing this. It's got some really nice animations. There's this workbench multitasking thing, which I actually think is pretty cool. I like it. And
it's definitely getting better, Origin OS. But you do have to learn it a little because it's very similar to Pixel or One UI, but there are things that aren't really in the place you expect them to be. And the software does let it down a bit. The battery, camera, the videos on this phone, they are absolutely great, but it does go to show how important having a fluid and like intuitive software experience is when you pick up a phone. The Pixel, we know the Tensor G6 is weak compared to the MediaTek Dimensity 9600 Pro running the Vivo, but the software and that experience could fool you into thinking it was on par with it. And then One UI, this is just the go. It gives you all the customization you would ever need. It's
pretty simple and it's easy to use. And if you look a little bit further, the ecosystem with Samsung and Google is just much better. You have earbuds and you have watches that are very easy to pick up for these things. With the Vivo, I know they have their own version of smartwatches and earbuds, but when I tried to look to buy some for this review, it wasn't that straightforward. I went to the Vivo website and it tells me that right now it's paused selling in the UK, so I can't buy anything including the phone direct. I do think that Google and Samsung, they are behind in the raw hardware. The Vivo X500 Pro
Max, I think is like three, maybe four generations ahead. And I would love to be able to use this on a daily basis. But my problem is that if something went wrong with this, I can't just pick up the phone or go to a live chat and get the issue fixed. So, let's say that the camera dies, it might just die cuz I have to buy it from a third party. And with Samsung or Google, I know that I can get a replacement sent to me probably next day and the support is there to help me if I needed it. And because of that, I actually think that I'm okay with a few hardware trade-offs for that peace of mind knowing that if I need help, that it's there.
Don't get me wrong, this phone is very, very good. And I can't believe it's taken me this long to appreciate how well put together a Vivo phone is. And I know I shouldn't be surprised, it's been happening for years. I'm just very slow to catch up to how good Vivo actually is. And it does go to show that Google and Samsung are so far behind, especially when you can play around with this and see what it can do. But let me know your thoughts in the comments. I'm curious to hear what you think of the Vivo X500 Pro Max if you ignore the Pro Max name. If you can subscribe to the channel before you head off, then I would massively appreciate it. Thank you very much. And if you do that, then
I will see you in the next one. See you later.
