Vivo X500 Series Debuts in China With Zeiss Triple-Camera Setup

Vivo has announced its newest flagship camera phones, the X500, X500 Pro, and X500 Pro Max, at a launch event in Shanghai. According to TechRadar, which attended the event, the X500 Pro Max serves as the effective successor to last year's X300 Ultra.

The camera system remains a Zeiss-branded triple array covering ultra-wide, main, and telephoto ranges. The most significant change concerns the main camera: it now uses a 24mm focal length, matching the wide cameras found on many rival flagships, rather than the tighter 35mm lens that distinguished the X300 Ultra.

The telephoto module offers a 3.5x optical reach, equivalent to 85mm, a focal length commonly favored for portrait photography. Vivo also provides a mode that captures at 200MP resolution through that telephoto lens, while the ultra-wide and main cameras support a 50MP boosted resolution mode, TechRadar reports.

What we know so far

The X500 series was announced on September 21 and is initially exclusive to China. Vivo is expected to broaden availability later, though a US release appears unlikely. That leaves the UK and other markets as the main question marks, particularly since competing ultra-flagships from Oppo and Xiaomi are already on sale there.

TechRadar's first-look coverage is based on roughly 24 hours of use with the X500 Pro Max, and the outlet says a fuller camera comparison against the X300 Ultra and Oppo Find X9 Ultra is forthcoming. Sample photos from that early period have been published, but no controlled comparisons, lab results, or full reviews are available yet.

Interpretation

The move from 35mm to 24mm on the main camera is the clearest signal about Vivo's priorities. A 35mm main lens gave the X300 Ultra a distinct shooting character, closer to a classic documentary field of view. Adopting 24mm brings the X500 Pro Max in line with the broader flagship market, which should make it more familiar to most users but removes some of the differentiation that set the previous model apart. Whether that trade-off pays off depends on lens quality and processing, neither of which can be judged from a single day of shooting.

The 200MP telephoto mode is a headline figure, but high-resolution modes on small sensors often trade file size and processing time for detail that only appears under ideal conditions. Without side-by-side testing, it is not yet possible to say how much practical benefit it delivers.

Who should pay attention

Anyone already using an X300 Ultra has little reason to act on this announcement alone. The main camera's focal length has changed rather than simply improved, so the upgrade decision depends on whether a 24mm field of view suits your shooting style better than 35mm. For buyers in China, the X500 Pro Max is available now. For everyone else, the practical question is whether Vivo brings the X500 line to their market at all, and how it prices against the Oppo and Xiaomi alternatives already on shelves.

TechRadar's upcoming comparison should provide the first meaningful evidence on image quality. Until then, the X500 Pro Max is best understood as a repositioned flagship rather than a demonstrated leap forward.