Vivo’s telephoto extender makes the world’s best phone camera better

When Xiaomi and Realme some rocked up to February’s Mobile World Congress pinch conception smartphones featuring attachable camera lenses, Vivo’s executives must person had a quiet chuckle knowing they were fresh to motorboat the existent point conscionable 2 months later.

Its flagship X200 Ultra went connected waste successful China a fewer weeks ago. Even by itself, it’s astir apt the champion camera telephone successful the world correct now, but it’s made moreover amended by a unsocial accessory: a custom-made 2.35x telephoto extender lens, which attaches to the phone’s existing 3.7x telephoto for a full of 8.7x optical zoom, aliases the balanced of a 200mm lens. It sounds (and looks) absurd, but it’s arguably a earthy move for Vivo, which has built its marque astir a long-running business pinch Zeiss and a increasing estimation for crafting immoderate of the champion camera systems successful immoderate Android phone.

From a creation standpoint, Vivo has divided the quality betwixt the 2 concepts I saw successful Barcelona earlier this year. Realme imagined attaching full-size DSLR lenses connected a phone’s existing camera, and Xiaomi sounded a custom, compact lens pinch its ain built-in sensor that could magnetically threat onto a phone’s back.

Vivo echoed Xiaomi successful creating civilization hardware — co-engineered pinch Zeiss — but followed Realme by piggybacking connected the sensor and different hardware already successful the phone. This sits connected apical of the 200-megapixel telephoto, mirroring its f/2.3 aperture, but arsenic a consequence has to make do pinch its 1/1.4”-type sensor, which is ample for a phone, but undeniably mini by camera standards. The cynic mightiness opportunity this is simply a much royal type of the clip-on lenses companies for illustration Moment person been trading for years, aliases that Nothing sells arsenic inexpensive add-ons to its fund CMF Phone 2 Pro, though neither operates connected rather this scale.

The X200 Ultra is an outstanding camera successful its ain right, conscionable edging its closest rival, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, and that’s earlier you strap connected this other lens. With the extender, I’ve taken photos and filmed videos I scarcely judge came retired of a phone, and made my bid that I’m going to get immoderate stares while doing so.

It excelled astatine taking shots successful conditions ranging from agleam sunlight to the adaptable lighting of a Feeder concert, pinch earthy extent and impressively meticulous colors. It has limits, and capacity drops successful due acheronian — thoroughfare scenes astatine nighttime looked amended without the lens attached, particularly erstwhile moving subjects for illustration group and postulation were involved.

There’s besides a somewhat artificial sheen to immoderate shots, signs of fierce sharpening and different post-processing. The person you zoom in, the much evident that is, and pushing shots to the app’s maximum 1600mm action creates each the telltale signs of dense integer zoom. But that still doesn’t detract excessively overmuch erstwhile you’re taking photos that show disconnected each hairsbreadth connected a bumblebee’s back, aliases the translucent texture of its wings.

That’s 1 logic I’m much impressed pinch the video capabilities, which deficiency astir of that artificiality but are nary little detailed. Excellent stabilization plays its portion here, keeping output dependable moreover astatine zoom levels wherever the slightest manus activity could ruin a shot.

The X200 Ultra is already a big, dense phone, and strapping a telephoto lens to 1 extremity does thing to thief its weight aliases balance. It’s amended than you mightiness think, though, truthful agelong arsenic you usage it pinch the remainder of the camera kit it’s sold arsenic a portion of, which includes a clip-on camera grip, select ringing mounts, and some wrist and enarthrosis straps, each for CNY1,699 (about $240) including the lens, though US importers for illustration Giztop are offering it for $399 each in.

Vivo has taken much than conscionable inspiration from Xiaomi’s photography kits for its Ultra flagships, shipping an almost identical camera grip, correct down to the fastener layout and included battery, truthful that it doubles arsenic a compact powerfulness bank. It whitethorn not beryllium original, but it’s a bully capable creation to beryllium worthy stealing, and each the much important erstwhile paired pinch the add-on lens, balancing the weight and helping to support this comfortable to use. Without the grip, this feels awkward and weighty, unnatural to hold; pinch the grip, it conscionable feels for illustration a somewhat overseas camera.

Vivo outsourced astir of the kit’s creation to PGYTech, and the value has suffered. After conscionable a fewer weeks of use, my lawsuit has fractures successful each corner, the kickstand feels flimsy, and the quick-release fastener for select rings and lens equine occasionally gets stuck. That’s a problem fixed the lens can’t beryllium mounted without the lawsuit — I’d beryllium beautiful worried that the lawsuit will break earlier excessively long, leaving the lens wholly useless. A insignificant peeve is that the lens equine is capital-U Ugly, truthful I garbage to time off it connected the telephone 24/7. That intends I can’t switch the lens connected and disconnected without changing the equine astatine the aforesaid time, adding conscionable a small spot much clash to the process.

And friction, aliases deficiency thereof, is basal to this telephoto’s appeal. It lives and dies by the thought that it’s much convenient (and often cheaper, moreover counting the telephone itself) than a afloat fledged camera. I’ve met a batch of group who look skeptical astir that, but it’s already won maine complete successful conscionable a fewer weeks. I don’t transportation a integer camera astir by habit, but I bring an aged ’70s movie SLR erstwhile I travel. It’s bulky, heavy, and takes up half my backpack, aliases it has to bent astir my cervix each day. I emotion it, but I can’t thief but resent it a little, too.

Carrying this astir feels different because it’s easy to disassemble. I’m already carrying the telephone and it’s only a fewer seconds’ activity to gaffe the lens and camera grip off. They’ll fresh into my sling bag pinch room to spare for sunglasses and earbuds. And astatine the consequence of a fewer “Is that a Vivo X200 Ultra telephoto lens successful your pouch aliases are you conscionable happy to spot me?” jokes, I’ve moreover managed to worldly the full group wrong my jeans. You can’t do that pinch a DSLR.

And yeah, of course, a DSLR would return amended photos. So would a mirrorless, and possibly moreover the Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark III that TikTok has been strangely obsessed with. But that isn’t the point. Because this mightiness not beryllium arsenic bully arsenic a camera, but it’s for judge amended than immoderate telephone retired location astatine the aforesaid zoom distance. It’s a midway point, a half-step beyond the telephone and toward the afloat camera, whether for a budding enthusiast considering investing successful a larger setup aliases an knowledgeable photographer who wants thing lighter.

This isn’t a camera, but it’s not trying to beryllium — it conscionable wants to meet photographers successful the middle.

Photography by Dominic Preston / The Verge