vivo X300 FE Review

The vivo X300 FE has a difficult job.

It joins a family that includes the vivo X300, X300 Pro, and X300 Ultra — smartphones that have established themselves as some of the most camera-focused devices in vivo’s portfolio.

Naturally, expectations are high.

As the youngest sibling in the lineup, the X300 FE doesn’t get the same flagship camera hardware found on its more expensive brothers. What it does get, however, is much of the same X300 DNA packed into a more compact and accessible package.

You still get a ZEISS-powered camera system, a flagship Snapdragon chipset, wireless charging support, IP68 and IP69 durability, and a surprisingly large 6,500mAh battery.

As someone who daily drives the standard vivo X300, I was curious whether the X300 FE could retain what makes the series special while carving out its own identity.

After spending time with the device, I think vivo may have gotten the formula right.

Design and Construction

The vivo X300 FE measures 150.8 x 71.8 x 7.99 mm and weighs 186g.

Before we talk about the design itself, let’s take a quick tour around the phone.

At the top are the secondary microphone and infrared blaster. The left side is completely clean, while the right side houses the volume rocker and power button. At the bottom are the speaker grille, primary microphone, USB-C port, and dual nano-SIM tray.

Our review unit came in Mist Purple, and personally, I think it’s one of the better-looking color options available.

The finish manages to look elegant without feeling boring, and depending on how light hits the rear panel, it can reveal subtle shifts in tone. As someone who uses a Pink vivo X300 daily, the Mist Purple immediately stood out to me as an eye-catching finish.

What I appreciated even more was the camera design.

Unlike the circular camera islands used throughout the rest of the X300 family, the X300 FE adopts a horizontal camera bar. Personally, I prefer this approach. It looks cleaner, feels less bulky, and gives the phone a unique identity instead of simply looking like a smaller version of the X300.

The phone uses an aluminum frame paired with a glass rear panel, resulting in a premium in-hand feel. Everything feels solid, from the buttons to the overall construction.

One of the most surprising things about the X300 FE isn’t the camera system or the chipset. It’s the battery.

Despite being nearly identical in size to the standard X300, vivo managed to fit a larger 6,500mAh battery inside. For reference, the X300 comes with a 6,040mAh battery, while the X300 Pro carries the same 6,500mAh capacity found here.

Rounding things out are IP68 and IP69 ratings for dust and water resistance.

Overall, the X300 FE never feels like a lesser member of the family. If nobody told me this was the youngest sibling in the lineup, I probably wouldn’t have guessed based on the build quality alone.

Display, Multimedia, and Biometrics

If there’s one thing vivo didn’t cut corners on, it’s the display.

The X300 FE features a 6.31-inch ZEISS Master Color AMOLED display with a 1.5K resolution, 120Hz refresh rate, and peak brightness of up to 5,000 nits.

The panel is excellent.

Colors are vibrant, blacks are deep, and sharpness is exactly what you’d expect from a premium flagship smartphone. Whether I was watching videos, browsing social media, or editing photos, the display consistently looked fantastic.

The relatively compact size also works in its favor. Large enough for entertainment, yet still comfortable enough for one-handed use.

For multimedia, the stereo speakers performed better than expected. Audio is loud, clear, and more than capable of handling videos, music, and gaming without sounding overly distorted.

For biometrics, the X300 FE uses an ultrasonic in-display fingerprint scanner.

As expected, it’s reliable as always. Unlocking the device is quick and consistent, and during my time with the phone, I rarely encountered failed scans.

Face Unlock is also available, although it relies solely on the front-facing camera. It works well enough in good lighting conditions, but for security-sensitive tasks, the fingerprint scanner remains the better option.

Cameras

Let’s get the obvious out of the way: if you’re buying an X300-series smartphone, you’re probably buying it for the cameras.

The vivo X300 FE features the following setup:

The good news is that the X300 FE still delivers the photography experience that the X300 series has become known for.

Photos are detailed, colors are pleasing, and portrait shots continue to be one of vivo’s biggest strengths. The ZEISS partnership remains one of the company’s strongest advantages, and it shows.

vivo X300 FE Sample Shots

Jun 2 – 6

The telephoto camera is easily my favorite lens on the device. Having a dedicated 3x optical zoom camera adds a level of flexibility that many competing smartphones still lack.

Whether I was shooting portraits, food, pets, or distant subjects, I found myself reaching for the telephoto camera more often than expected.

One thing I also appreciate is the consistency between the main and telephoto cameras. Color reproduction remains relatively similar regardless of focal length, helping create a more refined photography experience.

Having spent a lot of time with the standard vivo X300, I couldn’t help but compare the two.

The overall experience feels familiar, but the X300 still has the edge when it comes to overall camera performance. Images from the X300 generally have a bit more refinement, especially in more challenging conditions.

vivo X300 FE VS. vivo X300 Sample Shots

Friday, Jun 5

The difference isn’t enough to make the X300 FE disappointing. If anything, it highlights how good the standard X300 really is.

The weakest part of the setup is the 8MP ultra-wide camera. It’s usable when needed, but it’s clearly not on the same level as the main and telephoto sensors.

Still, viewed on its own, the X300 FE remains one of the better camera phones in its class.

Performance and Benchmarks

Compact phones often come with compromises.

Fortunately, performance isn’t one of them.

Powering the X300 FE is Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 processor paired with LPDDR5X Ultra RAM and UFS 4.1 storage.

Benchmark results are impressive:

In everyday use, the phone feels exactly like what you’d expect from a flagship smartphone. App launches are quick, multitasking is effortless, and the overall experience remains consistently smooth.

Gaming performance is equally impressive.

Using GameBench, Mobile Legends averaged around 120 FPS while maintaining temperatures of approximately 30°C.

Meanwhile, Genshin Impact averaged 60 FPS while reaching temperatures of around 41°C.

Simply put, you can definitely game on this compact device.

The only downside is thermals.

During prolonged gaming sessions or extended heavy workloads, the aluminum frame becomes noticeably warm. Performance itself remains stable, but the heat can become uncomfortable over time, particularly around the frame where it’s easiest to feel.

Fortunately, it never reached a point where it significantly affected gameplay.

The X300 FE proves that compact smartphones don’t necessarily need to sacrifice power. In many ways, it’s a compact powerhouse.

OS, UI, and Apps

The vivo X300 FE runs OriginOS 6 based on Android 16.

OriginOS has quietly become one of the better Android skins available today.

The software experience feels polished, responsive, and incredibly smooth. Animations are fluid, transitions feel natural, and everything appears well optimized.

What I particularly like is the amount of customization available. Users can personalize almost every aspect of the experience without making the interface feel cluttered.

Visually, OriginOS 6 complements the premium nature of the hardware. Everything feels cohesive and thoughtfully designed, from the icons to the widgets and system animations.

vivo is also committing to five years of Android OS updates and seven years of security updates, adding significant long-term value to the device.

The OriginOS 6 remains one of the highlights of the X300 FE.

Connectivity and Battery Life

Battery life is where the X300 FE really starts to shine.

Despite maintaining almost the same footprint as the standard X300, vivo managed to fit a 6,500mAh battery inside.

Combined with the efficiency of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5, the result is excellent endurance.

Our PCMark Work 3.0 battery test yielded an impressive 26 hours and 20 minutes, which is among the better results we’ve seen from a device in this category.

The phone also supports 90W FlashCharge and 40W wireless FlashCharge.

For a compact flagship smartphone, battery life is genuinely difficult to fault.

Conclusion

The vivo X300 FE may be the youngest sibling in the X300 family, but it successfully establishes its own identity.

Instead of trying to compete directly with the X300 Pro or X300 Ultra, it focuses on delivering a balanced flagship experience in a package that’s easier to carry and easier to recommend.

You get a premium design, an excellent display, dependable flagship performance, capable ZEISS-powered cameras, long software support, wireless charging, and outstanding battery life.

Sure, there are compromises. The ultra-wide camera feels like the weakest part of the package, while thermals can become noticeable during prolonged gaming sessions.

At PHP 54,999, however, the overall package remains compelling.

In many ways, this is an all-in-one smartphone. If you’re specifically looking for a compact flagship, you can hardly go wrong with the vivo X300 FE. It checks almost all the boxes you’d want from a modern premium smartphone, a great display, dependable performance, good cameras, excellent battery life, fast charging, wireless charging, long software support, and a polished software experience.

As someone who daily drives the standard vivo X300, transitioning to the X300 FE never felt like a major downgrade. Sure, I’d miss the better camera system of the X300, but many of the things I enjoy about using it every day; the software experience, battery life, reliability, and overall polish — remain intact.

That’s perhaps the biggest compliment I can give the vivo X300 FE.

What we liked:

• Premium and compact design
• Clean horizontal camera layout
• Cameras!
• Excellent battery life

What we didn’t like:

• Ultra-wide camera feels underwhelming
• Aluminum frame gets warm during prolonged gaming

vivo X300 FE specs:
6.31-inch AMOLED display
2640 x 1216 pixels,120Hz refresh rate
460ppi, 1.07 billion colors,P3 color gamut
2160Hz PWM dimming
5000 nits local peak brightness
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 5
Adreno 829 GPU
12GB LPDDR5X Ultra RAM
256GB/512GB UFS 4.1 storage
Triple rear cameras:
– 50MP Sony IMX921, f/1.57, OIS Main Camera
– 50MP Sony IMX882, f/2.65, OIS, 3x Optical Zoom Telephoto Camera
– 8MP f/2.2 ultra-wide camera
– 50MP f/2.0 front camera
Dual nano-SIM, eSIM
5G,4G LTE
WiFi7, Bluetooth 6.0
GPS, NFC
In-display ultrasonic fingerprint sensor
IP68/IP69 dust and water resistance
Stereo speakers
OriginOS 6 based on Android 16
6500mAh battery
90W FlashCharge (wired)
40W Wireless FlashCharge
7.99mm (thickness)
191g (weight)
Mist Purple,Luxe Black (colorways)