vivo Y12 is the latest smartphone from vivo to be launched here in Nepal. The phone is focused on the youth of the nation and has a lot to offer. In our unboxing video, we told you guys that we liked what we saw and would put the phone to the test. So we have been using the phone for almost two weeks now and our findings have been interesting. In this vivo Y12s review, let’s discuss all our findings and see if the phone is the right choice for you.
vivo Y12s Review
Multi-media Experience
The vivo Y12s is a good multi-media device. It packs a 6.51 inches HD (720 x 1600 pixels) IPS display with a 20:9 aspect ratio. The tear-drop style notch makes an appearance, residing in the top center of the display. Personally, I feel that the design is a bit out-of-date. I would have loved to seen a punch-hole style notch in 2021 mid-tier smartphones.
Getting into the details, the media-consuming experience on the vivo Y12s has been great. Lately, I have been binging on the latest episodes of “Attack on Titan” and the “American Gods”. During this escapade, the phone has been a great companion. This has largely to do with the size and vibrancy of the panel. Although just HD, the panel is good for media consumption.
The speaker on the Y12s is good enough for general use. Although I do wish they were a bit louder and fuller. vivo also could have doubled the earpiece as a secondary speaker and used the opportunity to provide us with a true stereo setup. Maybe in the next iteration of the phone.
Talking about gaming, the phone’s gaming assistant immediately showed up as soon as I launched a game. It provides features like performance boost and notification management for uninterrupted gaming. I am really happy that vivo is making an effort to cater to the gaming community. The actual gaming on the phone is actually really good. I fired up PUBG on the phone and I was pleasantly surprised by the experience. I didn’t get crazy gameplay but the overall experience was good for a mid-tier smartphone.
Photography Experience
The vivo Y12s is a camera-centric smartphone that packs a dual camera set up. The layout is made by an f/2.2 13MP wide and an f/2.4 2MP depth sensor. This combo makes for some decent photographic experience. The two sensors work in conjunction to produce some eye-catching pictures in good lighting conditions. The photos, themselves, have some great details and color accuracy.
That said, I would have loved to see a bit more dynamic range with the camera. And although the color accuracy is great, personally, I prefer a bit vibrant output. Those wanting a bit of punch from the image will have to manually edit the photos.
The phone also packs an f/1.8 8MP front camera for all your social-media-ready selfies. Just like its counterpart, the front camera takes some great selfies in ample lighting conditions. The images in low light conditions, however, are a bit soft with a noticeable amount of artifact-ing.
Overall, the camera offering of the vivo Y12s is quite good considering its price. Although the low-light is not the phone’s greatest forte, the images are passable for a quick share on your favorite social media. I also loved how vivo has some goods filters and modes to further enhance the picture taking experience.
Day-to-Day Experience
The vivo Y12s is a good-looking device. Although made from plastic, the phone has some premium elements to it. For one, the glossy finish at the back makes it look more like glass. It also comes with a gradient finish that adds an extra oomph to the design department.
Talking about the performance, the phone was easily able to handle my day-to-day needs. This is all thanks to the included Mediatek MT6765 Helio P35 processor backed by 3GB of RAM. The phone also comes with a PowerVR GE8320 GPU for better graphics performance. These combinations make up for quite a performer! That said, I do wish that vivo had included a better processor with the phone. A Qualcomm or a higher-tier MediaTek SoC would have done wonders.
Other features of the phone include a Fingerprint scanner. vivo this time has decided to go with a side-mounted fingerprint scanner. The sensor is attached to the power button itself making unlocking the device a tap away. This is really an intuitive and inexpensive way of implementing the biometric option. The device also features Face Unlocking capability. Although not as secure as the digit sensor, it is there if you need quick and seamless access to your device with surface-level protection.
And finally, booming day-to-day usage is the inclusion of a large 5000mAh non-user removable battery. This is a great inclusion for a phone at this price range. I got around 5-6 hours worth of battery life on a single charge with the device. Needless to say, the phone will get casual users 2 days’ worth of usage without any problem.
The large battery coupled with the optimized performance and HD display of the Y12s will make up for prolonged battery life. And adding to that, the device also comes with a 10W Fast Battery Charger out of the box. That said, the charging speed is a bit slow. In 30 minutes, the phone was only able to juice up from 0 to 21%. So charging the phone will more or less 2.5 hours with the included Fast Charger.
Software Experience
The Software Experience of the vivo Y12s is quite surprising. This iteration of the Funtouch OS is quite light-weight. For those wondering, the phone runs the latest Funtouch OS 11 based on Android 10. I was pleasantly surprised with the near-stock look and feel of the device. From the app icon to the notification shade, the design looked identical to the vanilla Android. This helps the device stay smooth without being bogged down by heavy skin.
Besides that, the new iteration of Funtouch OS is very functional. It has a lot of bells and whistles which makes using the phone a joy. Some interesting features include Easy Touch Assistant, Gesture Navigation, Eye Protection, and Ultra Game Mode. These features are quite useful and come in handy at times.
vivo Y12s Review: Verdict
The vivo Y12s is a good smartphone that focuses largely on its design and dual-camera setup. And I can see just why! The phone looks absolutely amazing with its glossy gradient design. And the pictures from its cameras are passable for the price point.
Not only the design and cameras but the phone packs a complete package with a notched display, feature-packed software, great battery life, and much more. There, however, are some shortcomings like the lack of a USB Type-C port. I think this was a missed opportunity on vivo’s part. The inclusion of the USB Type-C port would have been the cherry of the cake.
Overall, the vivo Y12s is a good device for the price of Rs 17,999. We recommend you give the device a thought while going shopping for a new budget smartphone.
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