Just a couple months back, Vivo Singapore had impressed us with it’s new generation’s Vivo X70 Pro 5G (Review) smartphone which went beyond our expectation in many aspects, especially in the imaging front.
While most of the hype are probably on the X70 Pro at the moment, let’s not forget that the company had also recently announced a new model known as the Vivo Y76 5G which shapes up to be an attractive option for those on a slightly tighter budget.
Armed with a 5G-ready chipset and a versatile triple-cam unit, the Vivo Y76 5G is a future-proofed device which certainly looks good on paper considering that the phone is priced at just S$429 in the local market.
However, does the phone really has what it takes to stand out in this highly competitive segment? Let’s find out in our Vivo Y76 5G review!
Design
Vivo has always been known to launch some of the most best-looking mid-range models in the market and the new Vivo Y76 5G is certainly not an exception here. Just like most other Vivo smartphones, the Vivo Y76 5G builds upon a super sleek chassis that measures just 7.9mm in thickness, making it one of the slimmest phone within the segment.
Aside from improving the visual appeal of the phone, the real benefit of a slender design actually lies in the ergonomic aspect of the device. It’s slim body, coupled with a featherlight weight of just 175 grams makes the phone extremely easy to hold or use with one hand whenever the situation calls for it.
The Vivo Y76 5G review unit sent to me comes in a Midnight Space colorway which I really love. This color isn’t those eye-catching colors that we normally see among Vivo smartphones, such as the gorgeous Sunset Dazzle paintjob that we saw on the Vivo V21 5G (Review). Instead, the Midnight Space colorway gives the phone a slightly understated and yet elegant outlook which I believe some of us would much prefer over those attention-grabbing colors.
What I really like about this color is in fact it’s glittery, lustrous sheen that looks really mesmerizing whenever you tilt the phone at an angle against the incident light. In fact, it does reminds me of the twinkling stars in a night sky to some extent.
Also, thanks to it’s frosted rear finish, it’s rear panel holds up well against those unsightly smudges which would otherwise tarnish it’s overall appearance. While I’m not exactly sure of the material used for it’s back panel, but it does feels premium on hand and definitely doesn’t gives an impression of a sub-$500 smartphone.
Finally, it’s rectangular camera bump on the upper-left corner appears to be heavily inspired by the X70 series smartphones which you can easily tell from the familiar dual-tone design despite a slightly different arrangement in their imaging sensors.
Display
Moving on to the front side of the phone, we’ll be greeted by a 6.58” display with minimal bezels along it’s side edges. Like most other Vivo’s Y series smartphone, the Y76 5G continues to adopt a waterdrop notch to accommodate it’s front-facing camera that will be used for selfie and video calls.
Speaking of the display, it’s an IPS LCD display that offers a sharp FHD+ screen resolution along with 60Hz refresh rate which makes scrolling and animation felt adequately smooth on the display.
Also, the front display actually carries support for 96% NTSC color gamut coverage which ensures accurate and highly realistic color reproduction when viewing photos or binge watching your favorite movies on the phone.
In outdoor environment, the front display generally has no issue getting sufficiently bright when auto brightness is toggled on. However, it does struggles a little when using the phone directly under the sun. Still, I don’t see that as a real issue considering how infrequent we’ll be using the phone in such scenario.
Other than that, it also comes with a much needed Eye Protection Mode that helps filter out harmful blue light which very often causes eye fatigue after prolonged usage.
Performance
Under the hood, the Vivo Y76 5G is powered by an octa-core MediaTek Dimensity 700 chipset which brings support for the next-generation’s 5G connectivity which you can leverage to enjoy faster download speed and lower network latency.
Apart from the possible gain in network speed, the Dimensity 700 chipset is itself a pretty reliable workhorse for both entertainment and productivity as well. For instance, I hardly experience any stuttering whenever I switch between different apps or work on multiple applications simultaneously.
This is something impressive keeping in mind that the Dimensity 700 isn’t exactly a high-end chip like the Dimensity 1200 mobile platform which was used on the more expensive Vivo X70 Pro (Review).
Even when dealing with more intensive workload such as video editing or playing graphically demanding game titles like PUBG New State or Call Of Duty Mobile, the phone did handled them remarkably well too.
More importantly, I also didn’t came across any heating issue over the past three weeks of testing even though the phone isn’t equipped with a dedicated cooling system like what we saw among flagship phones.
Finally, the Vivo Y76 5G also features 8GB worth of RAM along with 128GB built-in storage which can still be further expanded via a microSD card. As usual, the Vivo Y76 5G does support the company’s proprietary Extended RAM Technology that swaps 4GB ROM for an additional 4GB virtual RAM that brings it total RAM up to 12GB.
Cameras
Coming to the imaging front, the Vivo Y76 5G flaunts a triple-camera system comprising of a 50 megapixels (f/1.8 aperture) main camera, 2 megapixels (f/2.4 aperture) macro camera, as well as a 2 megapixels (f/2.4 aperture) depth sensor.
At first glance, the camera hardware may seems rather average. However, what really sets it’s image quality apart from other similarly-priced device in the market is the underlying AI enhancement algorithms that make photos look as if they are shot by a phone that cost twice it’s price.
Regardless of lighting conditions, the Vivo Y76 5G is able to capture some really flattering shots with good exposure and dynamic range that give photos a natural-looking vibe with aplenty details.
Like what we saw on another other Vivo smartphones, the phone also has a usable HDR mode which will certainly come in handy whenever you’re taking photos of a low contrast scene (with strong backlit).
Of course, in an extremely dark environment, we can also rely on it’s capable night mode which does a great job in brightening up dark regions and reveal shadow details that are otherwise non-visible within the photos.
As for close-up shots, there’s an option between using it’s dedicated macro camera or the usual 2x / 3x digital zoom via it’s main camera. Personally, I tend to rely on the latter for majority of the smartphones as I find it way more convenient without needing to get really close-up with the subject.
Thankfully, the Vivo Y76 5G continues to deliver decent result in this aspect with photos that appear sharp and detailed. More notably, the camera also performs well in terms of edge detection, ensuring only the necessary regions of the photo are blurred out.
Battery & Charging Speed
To keep it’s light on, the Vivo Y76 5G draws power from a respectable 4,100mAh battery that consistently offers more than a day’s battery life. With power saving features turned on, it’s battery life can be extended to nearly 1.5 days.
Where the Vivo Y76 5G really shines is perhaps it’s blazing-fast 44W wired charging speed which is obviously among the fastest within it’s price range. Charging the phone with it’s bundled 44W charging adapter takes merely an hour to recharge a completely flat battery to it’s brim. Likewise, a short 30 minutes charge is also good enough to recharge it’s battery from 0 to 70%.
Of course, we won’t expect a budget smartphone of it’s price to feature stuffs like wireless charging. Therefore, there’s nothing really we can nitpick when it comes to it’s battery department.
Verdict
The Vivo Y76 5G might not be an expensive smartphone like it’s fellow counterparts from the V and X series lineup. Despite that, the phone still has plenty to offer for it’s users such as the next-generation’s 5G connectivity, reliable mobile and camera performance, as well as a class-leading charging speed.
Hardware aside, the Vivo Y76 5G also features one of the most gorgeous design in the segment that offers an excellent handling experience which makes the phone a real pleasure to hold on hand. With all that in mind, the Y76 5G is definitely one of the top few options to consider for those who’re intending to get themselves an affordable and yet competent smartphone.
Pricing & Availability
In Singapore, the Vivo Y76 5G is available for purchase in two colours Cosmic Aurora and Midnight Space at the recommended retail price of S$429 (without contract) via major telcos including M1, Singtel, StarHub, vivo’s official store on Lazada, Qoo10, Shopee, consumer electronics and IT stores, authorised retailers and vivo’s flagship store at Causeway Point.
For a limited time only, customers can purchase the vivo Y76 5G through selected channels and receive a free weighing scale worth S$39.90. This promotion is available while stocks last, and terms and conditions apply.
