vivo X300 Ultra (with Photographer’s Kit): Just because they an

Smartphones have pretty much gone from a niche product to an essential item for everyone in a span of two decades – and the rapid pace of innovation has reached an eventual plateau. The slab phone has pretty much been a cookie-cutter affair, all following the same formula with different “tiers” in terms of features and pricing.

For the Chinese (and Samsung), there’s a tier of phones that sits above the “Pros” and “Pro Maxes” of the world, dubbed Ultra. This is what happens when they throw the best currently available hardware at the moment into one phone and push innovations in an otherwise repetitive space.

Of course, it comes with one cost, and it’s quite literally that. The vivo X300 Ultra is the phone maker’s ultimate (non-folding) smartphone currently available, and the base phone costs Php 109,999 for the 512GB/16GB configuration in Steppe Green. However, the one we’re looking at today is the Photographer Kit that bumps it up to a princely PHP 149,999, and what better way to kick off the review than with the cameras?

THE CAMERAS

This is the main reason you buy this phone. The Ultra camera system here is basically no expense spared, with the best hardware that vivo has, alongside the expertise from Zeiss for the optics and color processing.

One of my key takeaways from using this camera system is that it’s best used as a point-and-shoot that so happens to have more capabilities, rather than using it to replace a dedicated camera. Of course, you totally can, but the experience isn’t frictionless.

In fact, the hardware setup here is more biased towards photography rather than video shooters, and it’s evident with the trio of main shooters and focal lengths available:

1. The 50MP ultrawide lens (14mm f/2.0) that’s as big as the one in the iPhone 17 Pro Max’s wide sensor at 1/1.28”, which also has OIS and PDAF
2. The 200MP wide lens (35mm f/1.9) that sits at a larger 1/1.12” sensor size and features vivo’s Gimbal OIS
3. The 200MP periscope telephoto (85mm f/2.7) with a large 1/1.4 sensor with multi-directional PDAF and OIS
4. The 50MP selfie camera (24mm f/2.5) with a 1/2.76 sensor with autofocus
5. The additional telephoto extenders at both 200mm and 400mm.

The camera app is a little too feature-rich, requiring you to take at least a good 30 minutes to sit down and sift through all the available modes and functions, including manual controls.

In my usage, other than changing the color profile to Refined (instead of Zeiss), swapping between the high resolution modes, I found that using the camera’s default settings and modes to be the most enjoyable.

Plus, you’ll want to use this with the Imaging Grip connected. It completely changes how you approach this as a camera and gives you way better ergonomics, which is part of what will make you want to pick it up and shoot.

Photo quality is, in short, nothing but incredible. The Zeiss optics are sharp across all three lenses, render colors very nicely, and handle flares very well thanks to the T* coating. The latter is something that smartphones typically struggle with, especially iPhones.

Due to the large sensor sizes across all three lenses, the images tend to look more camera-like, especially for those higher-contrast scenes or images with subjects close enough for the natural depth of field to show up.

The ultrawide lens, at 14mm, is not as wide as other phone cameras, but it has enough resolution to resolve a lot of information at its widest. The larger sensor also allows it to gather a lot of light, and having an ultrawide lens that’s this capable in low light is an extremely useful kit in a photographer’s arsenal.

It has a hidden 2x mode by pressing on the .5x zoom icon that brings it up to the more smartphone-like 28mm. There’s some loss in quality due to zooming in digitally, but it’s a good in-between transition to the next focal length.

The wide lens is a more natural 35mm. For photographers, this is a more natural focal length that’s close to what the human eye sees. The larger depth of field, thanks to the bigger sensor, adds an artistic flair, and this is the best lens to use in lower light.

The telephoto lens is my favorite of the three. At 85mm, it’s the perfect focal length for portraits, giving subjects a nice compressed look to them. The large sensor also gives this a more pronounced natural depth of field, meaning you can get some really artsy shots with this lens. 

However, the low-light performance is naturally not as good but still impressive (for a phone) meaning darker shots from this lens will require a bit more patience or involvement to get the ideal shot.

The latter two lenses can also do high-quality digital zoom for 50mm, 70mm, and 135mm thanks to the 200MP sensor, but I would personally recommend shooting it in the 25MP mode for a good balance between resolution and the benefits of the processing.

However, image processing is a little too heavy-handed, even with “turning off” (well, down as much as possible) the AI processing and beauty filters. Across all lenses, there’s some weirdness, and text becomes slightly garbled with extended zoom weaves.

You’ll notice this with the telephoto extenders mounted. Most people will use these to zoom into very, very distant things, and the image processing will most likely use AI to get a surprisingly usable result. However, these two make for excellent sports lenses, allowing for almost professional-like quality without having to resort to unusable levels of digital zoom

Autofocus and shot-to-shot times are fast across all lenses, but that’s only for static subjects. When you start using high-resolution modes, expect a bit more of a delay.

There’s a dedicated street photography mode that only allows you to swap between the fixed focal lengths, and there’s a sports mode that bumps up the refresh rate of the viewfinder to help you keep track of the subject, but this won’t be dethroning Sony any time soon for autofocus tracking and speed.

Video-wise, it’s very competent with capabilities like 10-bit LOG recording, 8K@30fps or up to 4K@120fps WHILE recording Dolby Vision HDR, support for the APV codec, a quad-mic setup, and more.

On paper, it’s excellent, but in practice, recording video tends to be a bit all over the place. 35mm is a bit too narrow for most video, so you’ll have to use the 14mm lens. However, even that one is a bit too wide for most people, so you’ll have to adjust your shooting style with this phone.

Video is generally stable across the two wide lenses, and there’s great dynamic range and decent sharpness. However, just like in photo mode, the white balance can shift a lot, and zooming has a noticeable “pop” as it switches between the lenses.

As powerful as it is with all the all-out hardware, Zeiss optics, and manual controls and all, the camera lacks one thing: consistency. Results flip-flop between “alright” and “amazing”, which is great for those who prefer an engaging camera experience.

The iPhone is pretty much “boring” as a camera, but it’s very consistent and reliable in its results, which is why many creative professionals swear by it as a backup camera.

WHAT’S IN THE BOX?

On top of the standard phone package (which includes the device, a thin silicone case, the 100W Flash Charger, and USB-C cable), this gives you another case that serves as the basis for this “photographer kit”.

In terms of protection, it’s not much as it exposes the top and bottom parts of the phone, and it’s a thin case with a microfiber lining inside and a rubberized grip at the back.

In the box are four different mounts—two style rings in silver and black, a 67mm filter adapter, and a plate for mounting the telephoto extenders. These mount on the case via a bayonet mount with a button release, and it’s sturdy enough to support the weight of the massive 400mm telephoto extender.

Second is the Imaging Grip that slides on via rails on the bottom and connects to the phone via USB-C.

Here, there’s a zoom rocker, a two-stage shutter button, a video button, a quick function button, and a power button that turns this little grip into a 2,300mAh power bank in a pinch, rechargeable via a USB-C port on the bottom of the grip beside the lanyard loop.

Then, you have a thin strap made in collaboration with PGYTech, which uses its quick-release anchors that can be threaded in three different ways.

You can turn it into a neck strap, a body strap, or my personal favorite, a hand strap, after disconnecting the other end of the strap. You don’t have to use this, as the case accepts standard lanyard threads, but Peak Design anchors don’t fit here.

Finally, the whole reason you’d want the Photographer Kit: the telephoto extenders. These are better than any standard ones you find on your favorite online marketplace, as these are solid chunks of glass made in collaboration with Zeiss, and give the phone the ability to have unzoomed telephoto reach of 200mm and 400mm.

It comes with two extra sets of lenses and rear caps, and a tripod collar mount machined from solid aluminum for both telephoto extenders.

Design and build

Aside from the absolutely massive camera disc at the back, the X300 Ultra looks like your average flagship smartphone from 2026. 

Flat glass front and back, flat aluminum sides that are mostly featureless with three physical buttons, speaker grilles with a USB-C 3.2 port at the bottom, a physical nano-SIM slot (but this has eSIM support!), IP68 and IP68 ingress and water protection, and that’s it.

The rear end features a camera-like positioning of the dual LED flash at the top left corner of the phone, and the camera disc features knurling on the sides and writing of the camera system’s equivalent focal range and aperture (f/1.85-2.67 and 14-85mm ASPH).

It weighs a monstrous 237g, and it is very top-heavy. However, the total thickness with the camera hump is at 8.49mm, and it’s large enough to provide a shelf for you to rest your finger under to comfortably support the device.

Display

The large 6.82-inch LTPO OLED display is front and center. It features an impressive refresh rate range of 1-144Hz, a resolution of 3168 × 1440, coverage of up to the P3 color gamut, and most importantly, up to 4,500nits of peak brightness.

The last two aspects are important since this phone will be used most likely as a camera in bright conditions, and of course, it holds up to its claimed specifications. However, note that in very hot situations, the screen will dim to thermal throttle, but almost every other phone and dedicated camera will do the same thing.

It comes pre-applied with a plastic screen protector so you can use your phone right out of the box, and there’s an ultrasonic fingerprint scanner underneath that’s one of the fastest I’ve used in the market.

SOFTWARE AND PERFORMANCE

Camera suite aside, the X300 Ultra runs OriginOS 6 based on Android 16, meaning it’s the latest software. Much like the rest of the lineup, it’s highly customizable with iOS-specific customizations like AirDrop support and native AirPods support, and has a surprising amount of bloatware and ads, even on a flagship model.

The latter is unacceptable for a device that’s priced this much, and while the software does offer a surprising amount of flexibility, there’s no hiding the iOS-inspired elements all around.

At least the hardware pushing the software is top-tier, with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 offering nothing but the fastest Android performance available on the market. It’s mated to 16GB of RAM and 512GB of UFS 4.1 storage, so performance is not an issue.

Multitask with RAW photo editing, video editing, or play games like Zenless Zone Zero at maxed out settings, but just expect the chipset to get a bit warm to the touch.

Signal strength and wireless connectivity are excellent, and the stereo speakers on this are quite decent with a surprising amount of bass, but they don’t get as loud as other competitors.

BATTERY

The X300 Ultra uses a 6,600mAh silicon-carbon battery, and it can utilize the FlashCharge standard to juice that huge pack up in a surprisingly quick amount of time at speeds of up to 100W.

It also supports 40W fast wireless charging, but this is rarer unless you have a wireless charger that supports not only these speeds, but can also seat the device properly, thanks to the massive camera jump.

This can also act as a power bank in a pinch, with reverse wired and wireless charging.

When using it as a camera with mobile data always on, I found myself often recharging by the end of the day. Granted, this is an unnatural, resource-intensive way to use the device.

Using it more like a standard smartphone brings that battery life up to 1.5 days of usage, but having the ability to rapid charge and get a sizable amount of charge back in less than 30 minutes just feels like something that flagship phones should have as standard.

CONCLUSION

This is an amazing camera that just so happens to have a great phone stuck on the back of it. The thing is, it’s also a very niche product thanks to its price, even just for the base device. vivo knows that this isn’t going to be a mass seller, so it won’t cater to most people.

The target market of this device is not one to cross-compare it with other smartphones for the best value. They know that they want something like this, and they’re willing to shell out for the privilege of having the best hardware at the moment.

When compared to the other Ultra camera phones out there, the X300 Ultra is oriented towards the photographer, especially with the photographer’s kit. Is the latter necessary? Not exactly, as the base camera system is already fantastic to begin with, but the add-ons allow you to experience the full capabilities of the device.