Gaming phones have always left me curious about their looks. Why the need to make it obvious that they are gaming phones, especially with their design? If you look at the broader picture – phones usually targeted at gamers feature some sort of aesthetic to ensure it does not get unnoticed.
Well, there’s nothing wrong with it. Gamers love the loud and bold design language from their gaming devices. But there are users who are more of a regular one – the ones who want a phone with solid performance, sleek and premium design, and most importantly don’t give away their hidden gamer side. Simply put, they want to be discreet about it.
Vivo, I guess understood the underlying problem here and decided to do an ‘Ultra’ with its Series T lineup in the form of T3 Ultra.The Series T lineup that aims to deliver a value-for-money proposition keeping performance as its showstopper.
Vivo T3 Ultra is aimed at taking the entire lineup to the Ultra level in terms of performance while keeping the price accessible to a wider audience.
Vivo T3 Ultra: Is it a real deal? Or has Vivo taken things in a direction where it has offered top-notch performance at the cost of something else? I have been using the phone for almost 3 weeks now, and here’s my review with all the answers that might come up when making the buying decision.
Design and display
You’ve seen it before. Yes, the V40 series – the recently launched one – has the same design as the Vivo T3 Ultra. And, you shouldn’t hold it against the T3 Ultra or V40 series. Because as the old adage goes– If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it. Vivo has done the same thing here. The design is functional, it’s subtle, and looks premium and professional too if you get it in the Lunar Grey colour option – the one I have here. The other colour – Frost Green – is more attractive to my eyes. Nonetheless, both colours make the phone aesthetically pleasing to the eyes.
That’s not it. The curved design language paired with slimmer side rails paired with matte-finish back panel texture looks appealing in all ways. The phone has a max thickness of 7.58mm which makes it one of the thinnest phones in the market.
The phone also comes with Smart Aura Light – the staple feature of the V series phones. Plus, the camera housing has a large circular element at the top which then extends towards the bottom to join a cylindrical design.
The left and top edges of the phone are smooth, with only the "Professional Portrait" branding visible. The buttons are well-positioned, responsive, and provide a satisfying click when pressed. At the bottom, you'll find the main speaker, microphone, and charging port.
Now, a performance-centric phone needs a good display to back it up and Vivo hasn’t compromised there. The Vivo T3 Ultra features a 6.78-inch curved AMOLED display with a 1.5K resolution and a 20:9 aspect ratio, designed to enhance the viewing experience. Offering a smooth 120Hz refresh rate, the display ensures fluid visuals, ideal for high-intensity gaming. With a peak brightness of 4500 nits, the screen stays clear and vibrant even under bright lighting, ensuring uninterrupted gameplay.
The 445 PPI ensures sharp graphics, while Vivo has optimised the display for accurate colour reproduction, allowing users to enjoy rich, immersive visuals. The centrally placed 50MP front camera sits just below the earpiece grille, which doubles as a secondary speaker, adding to the immersive audio-visual experience during gaming.
Vivo T3 Ultra: Performance
If you’ll ask me to tell that one thing that should make you buy the new Vivo T3 Ultra smartphone then my answer will be the performance.
First and foremost, the AnTuTu benchmark result – over 160000 – which is impressive in this price range. While numbers don’t lie, they don't always mean the real-world performance when it comes to smartphones.
To test that out, I decided to ditch my primary phone for T3 Ultra. After I completed the setup process which by the way went through smoothly without the phone getting warm. But that’s just one part of it.
I also installed all my go-to apps – around 150 of them. The phone managed them all without getting sluggish or laggy. I also used them on and off and the phone’s multitasking capabilities are on point – credit goes to the 12GB RAM – here and faster storage.
Apps loaded without any delay and moving between one app to another is also pretty smooth and seamless. The phone also keeps most of the apps active in the background and resumes without reloading it – something I always appreciate in a smartphone.
As far as my daily usage of a phone is concerned it includes a lot of X scrolling, accessing Instagram and other platforms to keep up with the ongoing technology trends and stories.
Beyond this, I also use the phone for calls and browsing all the time with around 15-20 tabs running at the same time.
And, music playback is a mandatory thing when I am writing articles – like this review. The remaining part is gaming and watching movies and shows.
Even with all of this heavy-duty stuff, the T3 Ultra never struggled to keep up with my usage. The performance remained smooth throughout the day and the thermals were completely sorted out. Unless you push the phone really hard with heavy photo editing or video editing.
Talking about gaming performance, I played Genshin Impact, CoD Mobile, BGMI, and some lightweight titles. All the game ran with smooth frame rate at High graphic settings.
Overall, the phone’s ability to handle demanding tasks including high-end gaming is commendable and the thermal management Vivo has offered here adds icing to the cake.
Coming to the software part – I have said it before and I am going to say it again – Vivo’s FunTouch OS has come a long way and I wish it stays the same. The FunTouch OS based on Android 14 is clean – comes with a lot of first-party apps from Google – instead of its own. Plus, the user interface is also minimalistic with features that are useful and functional.
Still, there is some bloatware that comes pre-installed with the phone. However, most of them can be uninstalled but that’s an added effort.
Talking about the speakers, the stereo speakers do a decent job with good details and depth. The bass is also well pronounced and I don’t have any complaints with the vocals as well.
Camera
It’s a Vivo phone and it is incomplete unless Vivo throws some nice cameras into the mix. The T3 Ultra comes with a 50MP primary sensor paired with an 8MP ultra-wide sensor.
The 50MP primary sensor captures sharp, vibrant images with excellent detail and dynamic range in well-lit conditions. It excels at quick autofocus, allowing for smooth, lag-free photography. Portrait mode offers a decent bokeh effect, with good edge detection, though not as advanced as in premium models.
The 8MP ultra-wide lens is useful for capturing wider scenes like landscapes or group photos. While not as sharp as the main sensor, it delivers minimal distortion and maintains consistent color, making it a handy addition for more expansive shots.
In low light, the main sensor performs well with Night mode, bringing out sharpness and detail in darker settings. The ultra-wide lens struggles slightly in low-light scenarios, producing softer images with some noise, but it remains serviceable for casual nighttime photography.
The T3 Ultra records videos up to 4K at 30fps, with decent stabilization to reduce shakiness. It’s ideal for casual users capturing everyday events or travel footage.
The front camera is also 50MP and it does an impressive job at capturing detailed shots in both daylight and lowlight conditions.
Overall, Vivo hasn’t compromised much when it comes to cameras. Sure, it does not have that V40-series ZEISS camera performance but the T3 Ultra’s setup is more than enough for most needs.
Battery
The T3 Ultra is powered by a 5500mAh battery with 80W FastCharge technology, ensuring all-day battery life even under heavy usage. In my tests, the phone had about 35% battery left at the end of the day. The 80W charger is impressive, fully charging the device from 0 to 100% in under an hour. This makes the T3 Ultra a reliable option for users seeking long-lasting battery life and quick charging without compromising daily performance. Ideal for power users, the T3 Ultra keeps you going all day with minimal downtime.
Verdict
The Vivo T3 Ultra delivers a solid balance of performance, design, and affordability. Powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 9200+ chipset, it handles demanding tasks and gaming with ease. Its 50MP main camera performs well in most scenarios, and the 5500mAh battery with 80W fast charging offers impressive endurance. While lacking the ZEISS integration seen in Vivo's V-series models, the T3 Ultra's camera setup is more than adequate for most users. Overall, it’s a good choice for those seeking high-end performance at a competitive price.
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