Vivo recently introduced the Y500, a device that stood out immediately thanks to its massive 8200mAh battery and its ability to easily power through more than 20 hours of use. Just two months later, the brand is back with a more refined upgrade, the Vivo Y500 Pro.
The Y500 Pro earns its title as a “mini flagship” by delivering both long-lasting durability and strong all-around performance. It keeps the spirit of the Y500 but pushes the experience further.
One of the biggest talking points of the Y500 Pro is its impressive 200MP main camera. vivo isn’t exaggerating when it talks about “superior imaging,” because the hardware truly backs it up. The phone uses Samsung’s HP5 sensor, sized at 1/1.56 inches, about 1.56 times larger than the sensor found in the Y300 Pro+. This upgrade allows photos to reach a massive resolution of 16384 × 14056 pixels.
The 200MP lens also offers up to 30x zoom, and thanks to vivo’s in-house telephoto enhancement technology, this single camera can double as both a primary shooter and a zoom lens, delivering sharper detail at longer distances.
On the front, the Y500 Pro is equipped with a premium 1.5K high-resolution display. It reaches a peak global brightness of 1600 nits, features an extremely narrow 1.37mm bezel, and supports 3840Hz high-frequency PWM dimming to keep viewing comfortable for the eyes. It’s easily one of the strongest screens in its category.
Durability hasn’t been compromised either. The phone carries over the rugged build of the Y500, offering IP68 and IP69 protection against dust and water, a reinforced shock-resistant structure, reliable temperature control, and support for 90W fast charging.
Below is the full specifications sheet, but first, let’s dive into how this compact “national mini flagship” truly performs in daily use.
Design and Appearance
The Y500 Pro unit we received in our Fast Technology lab came in a “titanium black” finish, though the moment you look closely, you realize it’s not a flat black at all. Instead, it leans toward a deep, smoky gray with a subtle metallic sheen. It feels modern, slightly mysterious, and carries a cool, almost industrial vibe.
The back panel uses AG glass, but instead of the heavy matte finish some phones go for, this one feels more silky than frosted. It gives the phone a smooth, refined touch without being slippery.
The camera module follows the same centered circular style found on vivo’s flagship line. The infrared remote sensor is neatly built into the design, so the whole module looks unified and premium rather than cluttered.
To the right of the camera ring is the star of the show: a 200-megapixel main camera with a large 1/1.56″ sensor for better light capture. On the left sits a 2-megapixel depth lens for portrait shots. Despite the hardware packed inside, the camera bump is kept to just 2.16 mm, so the phone sits more comfortably in the hand or pocket.
The mid-frame is impressively slim at only 7.81 mm, and the entire device weighs 198.6 g. Combined, the lightweight and thin profile make it easy to hold for long sessions without straining your hand.
Both the power and volume buttons are placed on the right side. The positioning feels very natural, about 8.5 mm from the bottom, so your thumb falls on them easily. Functionally and visually, the placement works well.
Up top, vivo keeps things clean with only a microphone port, no extra lines or cutouts to break the look. The bottom is where most of the action is, featuring a balanced dual-microphone setup that helps improve clarity during calls or voice recordings. The USB-C port supports 90W fast charging, and the SIM tray sits neatly on the left side. Everything is laid out cleanly and thoughtfully.
On the front, the Y500 Pro immediately stands out with a screen similar to the one used on the vivo X200s. It offers a sharp 1.5K resolution and a dense 460 PPI, giving it a near-retina visual quality. Text, icons, and images look crisp and clean, without visible pixelation.
Peak brightness hits 1600 nits, so even under harsh sunlight, the display remains clear. The bezels are impressively slim too, just 1.37 mm on the sides, giving the phone a high screen-to-body ratio and a more immersive look, whether you’re watching videos or gaming.
One unique touch is the motion-sickness visual assist. With help from the gyroscope, the phone moves a small dot across the screen to help reduce nausea when using the phone in a moving vehicle, a thoughtful addition for sensitive users.
The phone also includes a 90W fast-charging adapter in the box, which is always a welcome sight.
Game Testing
Vivo has equipped the Vivo Y500 Pro with the MediaTek Dimensity 7400, a chip built on an advanced 4nm process. Compared to the previous Y300 Pro, this generation brings an 8% drop in power consumption, an improvement you can feel in daily use. The lower power draw not only stretches battery life but also helps the phone stay cooler, especially during extended gaming or heavy workloads.
Paired with OriginOS 6, which introduces smarter storage management, background defragmentation, and a more efficient cleanup system, the Y500 Pro is designed to stay smooth for years. Vivo claims it can deliver up to 60 months of stable performance, minimizing the gradual slowdown many smartphones experience over time. In everyday multitasking, the phone consistently feels responsive and fluid.
For gaming, the Vivo Y500 Pro supports 120fps mode in Honor of Kings, delivering fast, clean visuals and quick touch response. Whether you’re in the middle of a high-pressure team fight or moving through busy environments, the overall experience remains immersive and stable. Below are the actual performance numbers from our hands-on game testing.
Honor of Kings
With settings pushed to high definition and 120fps enabled, we ran a full 5v5 ranked match replay. During the test, the game delivered an average frame rate of 114.9 FPS, with a frame stability rating of 1.4. Even the 1% low frame rate is held at 56.4 FPS. Regular laning was consistently smooth, though the frame rate dipped slightly during big team clashes, yet still never dropped below 71 FPS, which is remarkably stable for a mid-range device.
Power draw was quite efficient, averaging 3.47W, with each frame consuming about 30.2mW.
The highest temperature recorded on the back of the phone was 36.2°C, which is comfortably cool for long sessions.
Peace Elite
In Peace Elite (PUBG Mobile CN), the maximum available frame rate is 60fps. During a match on the island map, the Y500 Pro maintained an average of 59.9 FPS, with a frame stability index of 0.8. The 1% low frame rate dipped to 37.5 FPS, which is noticeably lower than what we saw in Honor of Kings but still within acceptable limits for this type of game.
The device consumed an average of 2.57W, with per-frame consumption measured at 42.9mW.
The peak temperature on the back reached 37°C, still well within a safe and comfortable range.
If you want, I can also rewrite this in a more tech-journalistic style, a shorter summary version, or a more casual tone. Just tell me!
Photography
The Y500 Pro’s 200-megapixel main camera is easily one of its biggest highlights. Its 1/1.56-inch sensor is significantly larger than the previous generation—about 1.56 times—giving it a noticeable boost in light capture and overall clarity.
With this resolution, photos stay sharp and true to life even when you zoom or crop them later. You can comfortably reframe your shots without worrying about losing important detail. The device also comes with a strengthened telephoto algorithm that supports up to 30x enhanced zoom, making it surprisingly easy to pick up distant details that would normally be missed.
The file comes in at 14.8 MB with a massive resolution of 16384 × 14056. Even faraway buildings and a distant bridge remain well-defined, showing how well the camera handles fine details.
It’s worth noting that Zhengzhou has been dealing with gloomy weather recently, and low-light shooting naturally affects overall vibrancy. Some shots may look a bit dull because of the lighting conditions, but when it comes to resolving detail—both in wide landscapes and close-up macro shots—the Y500 Pro performs far above what you’d expect from a phone in this price bracket.
A key feature that deserves attention is its telephoto enhancement mode. Typically, when a phone tries to push super-long zoom using just one lens, the images end up soft and smudged. The Y500 Pro tackles this by offering an enhancement algorithm between 10x and 30x zoom. With cloud-based processing stepping in, the phone cleans up the image and restores clarity that would otherwise be lost.
Here’s the shot before the enhancement is turned on.
And here’s what it looks like with the enhancement enabled. The improvement is obvious—the Chinese brand name and the English text are much clearer, and the overall image looks more refined.
As for the small notice on the left, the source text was simply too tiny. After the AI reconstruction kicked in, that part ended up looking jumbled—something that’s still a limitation at extreme zoom levels.
Battery Life
The Vivo Y500 Pro comes with a massive 7000mAh battery, built with third-generation silicon-anode materials and semi-solid cell technology. This combination pushes its energy density to an impressive 837Wh/L/L. Even though the Y500 Pro uses a smaller display than the previous Y300 Pro, it still manages to keep the battery large while maintaining a surprisingly lightweight feel.
Thanks to the semi-solid battery design, the Y500 Pro holds up extremely well over time. After around 1,300 full charge cycles, the battery is still able to keep more than 80% of its original health—essentially giving it a life span of about five years, which is exceptional for a smartphone battery.
The phone is also designed to handle harsh environments, working reliably in temperatures ranging from –20°C to 40°C, ensuring safe and stable performance no matter the conditions.
When the battery drops to a critical 1%, the Micro Battery Wizard kicks in automatically. This emergency mode provides up to 4 minutes of calling and can keep essential features running—like ride-hailing plate display—for about 20 minutes, which can be a lifesaver in unexpected situations.
Charging is equally impressive. The Y500 Pro supports 90W long-range fast charging, giving you about 4.4 hours of short-video playback from just a 10-minute top-up. It also supports global direct-drive power and includes a smart charging algorithm to help preserve long-term battery health.
Real-World Charging Test
Starting from 1%, we turned on the high-speed charging mode and measured the results:
- 5 minutes: 13%
- 10 minutes: 25%
- 20 minutes: 46%
- 30 minutes: 67%
- Fully charged: 58 minutes
Considering the huge 7000mAh capacity, reaching a full charge in under an hour is impressively fast.
Battery Endurance Test
For endurance testing, we used BatteryDog—Fast Technology’s official testing tool. The phone was taken from 100% down to 20% while running a mix of heavy and everyday tasks, including:
- CPU load tests
- Multi-threading
- AI recognition
- Image scrolling
- Video playback
- Web browsing
BatteryDog locks the screen brightness at 50% (auto-brightness off) and sets the volume to 30% to ensure consistent testing conditions.
In this scenario, the Y500 Pro kept running for 12 hours and 17 minutes, and a full charge is estimated to last around 15 hours and 21 minutes. That’s plenty for a full day of use with power to spare.
Conclusion
The vivo Y500 Pro earns its reputation as a true “mini-flagship” for everyday users, delivering performance and features that feel far beyond its price tag.
Its camera setup is easily one of the strongest highlights. The 200MP main shooter—powered by the Samsung HP5 sensor—brings a level of clarity and detail rarely seen in this segment. With its high-resolution capture and upgraded telephoto algorithms, the phone handles both casual photography and zoom shots with impressive consistency, giving mid-range users a real taste of flagship-grade imaging.
Battery life is another area where the Y500 Pro stands out. The 7000mAh semi-solid battery offers the perfect blend of longevity, safety, and efficiency even in harsh temperatures, yet the phone still manages to stay relatively slim and comfortable. Pair that with 90W fast charging that brings it to full power in about an hour, and you get a device that can easily keep up with long days, busy schedules, and last-minute charging needs.
The display and build quality further push it ahead of the competition. A crisp 1.5K flat display, ultra-narrow 1.37mm bezels, and 1600-nit peak brightness give it a premium look and feel. Add the IP68/IP69 durability ratings, shock-resistant structure, and metal-framed design, and you have features that previously belonged only to higher-end models—now available in a far more accessible package.
Performance-wise, the Dimensity 7400 combined with OriginOS 6’s long-term smooth optimization ensures the Y500 Pro handles daily use and moderate gaming with ease. It’s reliable, responsive, and well-tuned for what most users need.
If the standard Y500 mainly addressed battery concerns for everyday users, the Y500 Pro goes a step further—bringing together durability, power efficiency, and standout imaging into one well-rounded device.
For anyone shopping on a budget but still wanting a flagship-level experience in photography, battery life, and overall build quality, the vivo Y500 Pro is easily one of the top choices available right now.
Read Also: Vivo Y500 Pro has been Officially Announced to be Released on November 10th