The Y70 is another one of the 4G devices that manufacturers resorted to launching in the Australian market last year once it became apparent that 5G availability for mobiles was just so much hype. Of course, by then many smartphone makers had reaped the benefits of the higher prices that those models command.
Like any other 4G Android phone in this range — the Y70 costs $449 — there is much that is good, and some aspects which are better on other models.
Taken on a normal sunny day about 11am.
The user has to compare and see what he/she needs, what kind of use they intend to put the device to, and then part with their hard-earned.
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vivo, one of the three main brands from the Chinese electronics giant B.B.K. Electronics — the others are OPPO and OnePlus — has given the Y70 a thin body and it weighs 171 grammes. The skin over Android 10 is called Funtouch OS 11 and it is clean. There aren't too many excessive apps and the sharpness is noticeable.
But these days, every single Android device looks much like the previous one, The sameness of the operating system also tends to jar a bit. Which is why I often regret that Microsoft chose to give up on Windows for mobiles; at least, there would nominally have been three choices.
Portrait mode also yields good results.
Another good point about the Y70 is the charging technology. You can get to about 65% in half an hour and the 4100mAh battery is sufficient to go for a full day without any strain.
In terms of storage and memory — 128Gb and 8GB respectively — the Y70 again is more than adequately equipped. You won't need to expend any of your cash on a SD-card for additional storage.
But the SoC is an older one from Qualcomm, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 665, which is an 11nm octa-core processor. You can get better in this price range, that's all one has to say.
The sound isn't the best when you listen without earphones. But given that vivo has provided a good set of headphones, using those is recommended; the sound is very good through those phones.
Night shots come out clear.
The camera set-up again is so-so and nothing out of this world. Pictures taken at night come out well, while those taken in daylight are as good or as bad as the next Android model in this range.
vivo has fared well in India and Europe and hence its models may be geared towards those markets more than Australia. One could pick up the OPPO A91 for an additional $50, which is the best model I have used in this range that offers features commensurate with price.
But then the cash goes to the same manufacturer anyway, so the Y70 would have done its job if it drives you in that direction!
The Y70 is available instore and online at JB Hi-Fi, Big W, Officeworks, Mobileciti and Amazon.
BASIC
CPU Qualcomm Snapdragon 665
RAM & ROM 8GB+128GB
Battery 4100mAh (TYP)
Fast Charging 33W (11V/3A)
Colour Gravity Black and Oxygen Blue
Operating System Funtouch OS 11 (Based on Android 10)
BODY
Dimensions 161.00×74.08×7.83mm
Weight 171g
Material Plastic
DISPLAY
Screen 6.44-inch
Resolution 2400×1080 (FHD+)
Type AMOLED
Touch Screen Capacitive multi-touch
NETWORK
Network UK/FR/DE/IT/ES/PL/AU/TR
2G GSM B2/3/5/8
3G WCDMA B1/2/5/8
4G FDD_LTE B1/2/3/5/7/8/20/28
4G TDD_LTE B38/40/41(120M)
CA 1A+3A
Card Slot 2 Nano SIM + 1 Micro SD
Standby Mode Dual SIM and Dual Standby
CAMERA
Front 16 MP FF / Rear 48MP AF + 2MP AF (macro) + 2MP FF (bokeh)
Aperture "Front: f/2.0 (main)
Rear: f/1.8 + f/2.4 (macro) + f/2.4 (bokeh)"
Flash Rear flash
Scene Modes "Front: Portrait, Photo, Video, Night, AR Stickers, Pano, Live Photo
Rear: Portrait, Photo, Video, Night, AR Stickers, Pano, Live Photo, Pro, Slo-mo, AI 48 MP, DOC"
MEDIA
Hi-Fi Chipset N/A
Audio Playback WAV, AAC, MP3, MP2, MIDI, Vorbis, APE, FLAC
Video Playback MP4, 3GPP, AVI, WMV, RMVB, MKV, FLV
Video Recording MP4
Voice Recording Supported
CONNECTIVITY
Wi-Fi 2.4GHz, 5GHz
Bluetooth Bluetooth 5.0
USB Type-C
GPS Supported
OTG Supported
NFC Supported
FM Supported
LOCATION
Location GPS, Beidou, Galileo, GLONASS
Sensors
Accelerometer Supported
Ambient Light Sensor Supported
Proximity Sensor Supported
E-compass Supported
Fingerprint In-Display Fingerprint Scanning
Gyroscope Gyroscope (Entity)
IN THE BOX
Model name Y70
Earpieces Supported
Documentation Supported
USB Supported
USB Power Adapter Supported
SIM Ejector Supported
Protective Case Supported
Protective Film (applied) Supported