The sub-₹20,000 smartphone segment in India has evolved so fast that even a smartphone from the first half of 2025 feels like it’s years old. Today, we have a new smartphone that shares the title of the biggest-battery phone under ₹20,000 with another phone (from a sibling brand). I’m talking about the vivo T5x 5G, which brings practical two-day battery life to a segment where it used to be a dream for buyers.
The smartphone offers a genuinely impressive spec sheet, including a capable chipset, dual IP ratings, and a design unlike most on the market, all starting at ₹18,999. Whether that’ enough to stand out is what this review is here to find out.
vivo T5x 5G Price & Availability
The vivo T5x 5G is available in three memory and storage variants.
- vivo T5x 5G (6GB + 128GB): Rs. 18,999
- vivo T5x 5G (6GB + 128GB): Rs. 20,999
- vivo T5x 5G (6GB + 128GB): Rs. 22,999
Color options include Star Silver and Cyber Green. It is available to purchase on Flipkart. You can also get some bank offers to further lower the effective price.
vivo T5x 5G Tech Specs:
- Display: 6.76-inch FHD+ IPS LCD, 120Hz refresh rate, 1,200 nits peak brightness (HBM), TÜV Rheinland Low Blue Light certified
- Processor: MediaTek Dimensity 7400 Turbo octa-core (4nm), ARM Mali-G615 MC2 GPU
- Memory: 6GB / 8GB LPDDR4X RAM (+ up to 8GB virtual RAM), 128GB / 256GB UFS 3.1 storage (non-expandable)
- Software: OriginOS 6 based on Android 16
- Camera: Rear: 50MP Sony IMX852 f/1.8 (PDAF) + 2MP depth sensor f/2.4 | Front: 32MP f/2.45
- Video: Rear: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60fps, slow motion | Front: 4K@30fps | EIS on both
- Battery: 7,200mAh silicon-carbon, 44W FlashCharge, reverse wired charging, bypass charging
- Connectivity: 5G (12 bands), Wi-Fi 6 (2.4GHz + 5GHz), Bluetooth 5.4, USB Type-C 2.0, 3.5mm headphone jack
- Navigation: GPS, BeiDou, GLONASS, Galileo
- Biometrics: Side-mounted fingerprint sensor, face recognition
- Build: IP68 + IP69, MIL-STD-810H, SGS 5-Star Corner Drop Rating, 166.6 x 78.4 x 8.39mm, 219g, Dual Nano-SIM, no SD card slot
- In the box: 44W FlashCharge adapter, USB cable, SIM ejector tool
6 Things I Love About The vivo T5x
1. Massive 7,200 mAh Battery
I led with the design because it’s quite unique in this segment. Another headline feature is the vivo T5x’s 7,200 mAh silicon-carbon battery (similar to that on the iQOO Z11x).
In day-to-day use, which includes running benchmarks, taking lots of camera samples, and playing BGMI on the smartphone, it consistently averaged around 10 hours of screen-on time, which is quite good, if you ask me. With light usage, you can even push past 10-11 hours of screen-on time from the handset, making it an actual two-day smartphone for call-and-text users.
Beyond the numbers, the phone supports bypass charging during gaming. And for topping up, the company has included a 44W FlashCharge adapter in the box. That saves you around ₹1,000 to ₹1,500 on a good wall adapter.
2. Design And Durability
Something that is immediately clear about the vivo T5x 5G is that it doesn’t look like other phones in the segment. The neat reflective textures on the back panel (marble-like finish, doesn’t gather fingerprints easily) give the phone a personality that most mid-rangers don’t bother with.
The quad-curved back panel enhances the handset’s overall ergonomics, and so does the textured plastic frame that feels intentional and grippy. Buttons are quite tactile as well. vivo doesn’t leave any stones unturned in the durability department as well.
The squircle camera module in silver finish with the two camera sensors, an LED flash, and the Dynamic Light ring, adds just the right amount of contrast to pop up, but the matte finish avoids it from being a reflective nightmare.
You get both IP68 and IP69 ingress protection ratings, as well as compliance with the MIL-STD-810H standard, which tests the phone for use in various environmental conditions.
3. Performance
Performance is yet another strong point of the vivo T5x 5G. It features the Dimensity 7400 Turbo (4nm) chip, which tries to punch well above its segment (especially since the phone is priced under ₹20,000). The model I received had 8GB of physical RAM (paired with 8GB of virtual RAM) and 256GB of internal storage, which I believe is a solid combination for the price.
Writer’s Note: I’d personally recommend the 8GB + 128GB variant if you don’t require the additional storage.
Day-to-day experience is quite smooth, with no major issues in opening or closing apps (thanks to UFS 3.1 storage), switching between them, using the camera, or performing the usual tasks like calling, texting, browsing the internet, etc.
| Benchmark | vivo T5x 5G (Dimensity 7400 Turbo) |
| AnTuTu v11 | 962,406 |
| Storage (Score, Sequential Read Speed, Write Speed) | Score: 96802; Sequential Read: 2168.8 MB/s; Sequential Write: 1957.7 MB/s |
| Geekbench 6 CPU (Single-Core, Multi-Core) | Single-Core: 991; Multi-Core: 2685 |
| Geekbench 6 GPU (OpenCL, Vulkan) | OpenCL: 3047; Vulkan: 3074 |
| 3DMark Wildlife Extreme (Score, Avg FPS) | Score: 1015; Avg FPS: 6.08 |
| 3DMark Wildlife Extreme Stress Test (Best Loop, Lowest Loop, Stability) | Best Loop: 1018; Lowest Loop: 1015; Stability: 99.7% |
4. OriginOS 6
Out of the box, the handset ships with OriginOS 6, which is based on Android 16. Compared to Vivo’s older Funtouch OS, the overall experience, interface, and interactions feel more cohesive and responsive. I wouldn’t say it’s a day-and-night difference, but the UI feels quite snappy (even more due to the 120Hz refresh rate). Occasional lags are still there, though.
Key software features on the handset include the Origin Island, a pill-shaped floating hub at the top of the screen that handles live updates and drag-and-drop actions (one of my favorite OriginOS 6 features). The AI toolkit also includes many options, including Transcript Assist, AI Erase, Circle to Search, Gemini Live integration, and Office Kit for PC-to-phone file transfers.
vivo has confirmed two years of operating system and four years of security updates for the handset, which, even though it is a reasonable commitment for a sub-₹20,000 smartphone, doesn’t quite add up to the industry-leading software promises by Samsung.
5. 50MP Primary Camera And 32MP Selfie Camera
The vivo T5x’s 50MP Sony IMX852 primary camera (with PDAF) holds up well in practice. In daylight, results are sharp and have ample dynamic range, and the color tuning leans toward a natural profile rather than the oversaturated, punchy look that many budget phones default to. Portrait mode is quite reliable.
Low-light performance is slightly more measured. In challenging low-light conditions, noise and diminished clarity tend to creep into pictures. For video, both the primary and front cameras support 4K at 30 fps, with EIS. There’s a dedicated Dual-View Video mode that lets you record from the back and front cameras simultaneously, quite a useful addition for budding creators.
Selfies now come out sharper, thanks to the 32MP sensor on the front, with ample details and mostly accurate colors. The HDR is a bit hit-or-miss; it doesn’t show up in a few selfies.
6. 120Hz Display Screen
The vivo T5x comes with a 6.76-inch FHD+ IPS LCD panel that supports a 120Hz refresh rate, making a noticeable difference to the scrolling fluidity, UI animations, and gaming responsiveness. It’s not an adaptive panel, though. Color reproduction feels natural; I didn’t have to make any tweaks there.
Peak brightness is rated at 1,200 nits in HBM mode, enough for well-lit indoor scenarios, golden-hour walks, or early-morning metro rides. However, the brightness comes a tad short when viewing the screen under direct sunlight around noon. The panel also carries a TUV Rheinland Low Blue Light certification, and also comes with a dedicated Eye Comfort Mode (in the display settings).
4 Things That I Wish Were Better On The vivo T5x 5G
The IPS LCD screen on the vivo T5x does its job, and does it quite well. It’s just that it’s not an AMOLED screen that inherently has better viewing angles, higher contrast, and better color richness (as some rival brands already offer in the same segment). The thick bezels on the vivo T5x don’t help either, and the chin is noticeably chunkier than the other three sides, giving the handset’s front a slightly outdated appearance.
The gaming performance on the vivo T5x could have been better, and here’s why I say that. BGMI tops at Smooth + Extreme (60 fps) or HDR + Ultra (40 fps). Even though the phone offers a stable and consistent frame rate (around 85.5 to 59.0 fps) at the Smooth + Extreme setting, it feels short of what a 90 or 120 fps session feels like.
And it shouldn’t be a chipset issue, because the CMF Phone (1), which comes with the Dimensity 7300 chip, supports 120 fps gameplay on BGMI. So, the company could have provided at least 90 fps on the vivo T5x, especially since it’s powered by the successor, the Dimensity 7400 Turbo.
Its thermals are well managed, plus it also supports the bypass charging feature.
Another thing that hasn’t quite improved is the bloatware situation. The smartphone comes with multiple pre-installed apps, including Netflix, Facebook, TrueCaller, Instagram, LinkedIn, Block Black, Spotify, Amazon, and PhonePe. It adds another step to the setup process for people who like clean and tidy user interfaces.
The charging speed, I truly wish, was better on the vivo T5x 5G. A complete charge, with the 44W adapter provided in the box, takes around 80 to 90 minutes. While overnight chargers or those who plug in their phone at their office desk are good to go, those who rely on speedy top-ups might have to plan their charging time accordingly.
The overall situation could have been better had the phone supported 60W or 80W wired charging, but again, not all my wishes always come true, and I’ll learn to make peace with this one as well.
A few other things to keep in mind include the absence of a microSD card slot, optical image stabilisation on the primary camera, the fact that the phone has a 2MP secondary depth sensing camera that doesn’t really do anything, and its hefty form factor (weights 219 grams and has a side profile of 8.39 mm). These aren’t cons per se, but you should still know about them before getting the phone.
You can follow Smartprix on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Google News. Visit smartprix.com for the latest tech and auto news, reviews, and guides.
