vivo Y73 Review

Today, we’re taking a closer look at the newest addition to vivo’s Y-Series in the Philippines, the vivo Y73. Aimed at delivering premium features at a more affordable price point, this device boasts an AMOLED display, a capable mid-range SoC, a triple rear camera system, and a hefty battery for battery longevity.

Specifications

Design and Build Quality

Despite having a plastic back panel, the Y73 doesn’t feel cheap or flimsy. The Roman Black variant uses a stripe pattern which makes does a good job of adding to that premium look, and the matte finish means you get less smudges, should you choose to use it without a case. It’s not the most compact phone in the world, but it’s easier to hold and use with one hand compared to a lot of other phones that I have recently tried. The curved glossy sides with a metallic finish, well, not a fan of that.

There’s just a tiny bit of wobble on the buttons, which are all located on the right side, while the SIM Slot is on the left. It uses a triple slot SIM tray, so you can go Dual SIM and still use your microSD card for added storage.

You get a USB-C port, along with a speaker grille, microphone, and a headphone jack, to the delight of folks like myself, who still prefer to use wired headphones, minus the dongle.

vivo Y73 has a 6.44-inch FHD+ AMOLED display which delivers rich and punchy colors and sharp text. The only catch is that it sticks to a 60Hz refresh rate, which no longer feels as smooth, especially when you’re coming from a 90Hz screen or higher. A Widevine L1 security level also means you’ll be able to watch content from streaming platforms at HD quality or higher.

Performance

Perhaps the best part of this phone, is the SoC – the proven and tested Helio G95, along with 8GB of RAM plus up to 4GB of extended RAM, and 128GB of storage. If you’re going to use this phone for simple day to day tasks, you’re not likely to run across any major issues.

As for gaming performance, the device managed to output respectable results in terms of average FPS. Depending on what’s happening, there are sharp drops in FPS here and there on CODM, though I honestly didn’t notice.

FPS Graphs

Camera

Apart from delivering good performance, the vivo Y73 also does well in the camera department. At the back of the device is a 64MP main shooter, along with two 2MP modules for Bokeh shots and macro photography. Again, I would have an ultra-wide over a macro camera, but it is what it is. Something to take note of.

In any case, the phone shoots photos with good amounts of detail and exposure. The depth of field effect it produces is also very convincing and edge is on-point in most instances. Focusing speed is fast enough.

For the video department, the phone can shoot up to 4K 30fps, with Ultra Stabilization available at up to 1080p 60fps. While this feature does a good job of reducing shakes, the quality itself is average at best.

You can also shoot videos using both the front and rear cameras at the same time. The device even allows for a picture-in-picture mode, or a side-by-side mode.

When shooting a video with the front camera, a Steadiface feature can be enabled to reduce shakes, and while it works well, it’s a bit of a reach to get your whole face in the frame.

And while all of these things are great, I just wish that having to go into an actual settings menu just to change the frame rate and resolution wasn’t a thing. Other devices offer a convenient quick access panel for these adjustments.

Software

vivo Y73 runs on Funtouch OS 11.1. Performance-wise, the UI feels well-made and snappy enough. Menus are straightforward, and there are a number of actually nifty features like Ultra Game Mode for blocking notifications or calls for an uninterrupted gaming experience, and Multi-Turbo, which basically optimizes multiple aspects of the device to improve performance.

There is also a Game Sidebar that you can launch in-game with a swipe from the left, allowing you to mute notifications, block calls, lock the screen brightness, take a screenshot, engage screen recording, and more.

In terms of customization, vivo’s Android skin offers a lot of options – you can change the effects for the fingerprint scanner, for charging, for facial recognition, and even for when the screen turns off. There’s an Always-On display, which is one of my most wanted features in any OS.

vivo offers the full suite of authentication methods – via fingerprint, facial recognition, or the more traditional ones like using a PIN or pattern.

Battery

Using PCMark’s Work 3.0 benchmark that simulates tasks like video and photo editing, web browsing, and data manipulation, the vivo Y73 managed to score just short of 14 hours of uptime, which is a very good result. Of course, your mileage may vary depending on several factors such as the apps you use or whether you’re on Wi-Fi or mobile data.

You won’t have any problems charging the phone too, as zero to full only took around an hour using the supplied charger.

Verdict

The vivo Y73 scores high marks for me in most aspects, and is a great all-around device. It looks good, it performs well, it’s got some capable cameras that not only takes good photos, but also decent quality videos (minus the stabilization), and it offers excellent battery life. You also get a headphone jack, a triple slot SIM tray, and fast-charging. Oh, and it’s got an AMOLED screen.

Now, before you buy, take not that you’ll be missing out on a high refresh rate display and an ultra-wide camera, which you’ll find in a number of other devices in this price range. If you can live without those, then this phone is a good option. Good, but not the best.

Emman Tortoza

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Emman has been writing technical and feature articles since 2010. Prior to this, he became one of the instructors at Asia Pacific College in 2008, and eventually landed a job as Business Analyst and Technical Writer at Integrated Open Source Solutions for almost 3 years.