Vivo V40e Challengers: Vivo recently launched the successor of the bestselling Vivo V30e. The Vivo V40e follows its predecessor in terms of USPSs and brings a mix of good design, a pretty much best-in-class selfie camera and a big battery with fast charging support. But that is not all. The phone comes bundled with some other impressive specs too. The phone features a 6.67-inch full HD+ curved AMOLED display with a 120 Hz refresh rate. And while it comes with a plastic frame and back, it does feel quite premium thanks to its sleek design.
Vivo V40e is a tall phone at 163.7 mm but despite having a large 5500 mAh battery, is a mere 7.5 mm thin. That battery incidentally, comes with support for 80W fast charging, with a charger in the box as well. The phone is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 7300 chipset, which is paired with 8 GB RAM and up to 256 GB storage. This makes the phone a decent mid-segmenter that can handle most of your smartphone needs without any struggles.
The stars of the show, as in most V-series devices, are the cameras. The V40e comes with a dual rear camera setup featuring a 50-megapixel main sensor with OIS and an 8-megapixel ultrawide, and on the front continues Vivo's selfie supremacy with a very good 50-megapixel sensor with autofocus, something which even flagships lack.
On the software side, the phone comes with FunTouchOS based on Android 14 out of the box, an in-display fingerprint scanner, stereo speakers and IP64 dust and water resistance.
All of this at a starting price of Rs 28,999 makes the latest Vivo very good value for money indeed, but also places it in a segment full of equally impressive phones.
Here are five phones that can give the Vivo V40e a run for its money:
Redmi Note 13 Pro+: The Note That’s Got It All
Price: Rs 28,999 onwards
Going up against the Vivo V40e is none other than the most premium Redmi Note of them all – the Redmi Note 13 Pro+. The phone comes with a curved 6.67 inch 1.5K resolution AMOLED display with 120 Hz refresh rate. It is powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 7200 Ultra processor which may not be the most powerful around, but what the phone lacks in processor power, it more than makes up for it in the camera department.
The Redmi Note 13 Pro+ brings a 200-megapixel Samsung Isocell HP3 sensor with OIS, a large f/1.65 aperture and up to 4x lossless zoom main sensor - a rarity in this segment. This is coupled with an 8-megapixel ultrawide and a 2-megapixel macro sensor, while on the front, you get a 16-megapixel selfie snapper.
A 5,000 mAh battery powers the device and it comes with super fast charging support of 120W. Yes, the phone does come with Android 13 and MIUI out of the box but it can be upgraded to Android 14 and HyperOS right away.
You also get a better IP68 rating, IP68 and stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos support, and a really different design (the vegan leather variant) which helps the phone turn heads too.
Nothing Phone 2a Plus: Lights Will Guide You
Price: Rs 25,999 onwards
It is unlike most of the ‘Plus’ variants in the market, as it does not come with added millimetres to its display or more mAhs to its battery but rather comes with some improved specs. We are talking about the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus, which is a slightly enhanced version of the Phone (a). The Nothing Phone 2(a) Plus sports a 6.67-inch full HD+ AMOLED display with 120 Hz refresh rate and topped with Gorilla Glass 5 protection.
The phone is powered by MediaTek Dimensity 7350 Pro chip (better than the 7200 on the plain 2a) paired with 8 GB or 12 GB RAM options while 256 GB storage - a very good mid-segment combination. The phone has a dual 50-megapixel sensor set up on the back – one main with OIS and another ultrawide and yet another 50-megapixel sensor sits on the front for selfies and video calls, although unlike the Vivo V40e, this one does not have autofocus.
It runs on a 5,000 mAh battery, with support for 50W charging, although you do not get a charger in the box. The phone runs on Android 14 out of the box with clean, clutter-free NothingOS on top. Its LED-laden, transparent back with Glyph UI makes this the most stand-out phone in the list by some distance.
Poco X6 Pro: Mid-Segment Powerhouse
Price: Rs 24,999 onwards
Its design might be a little on the plain side, but the Poco X6 Pro is the powerhouse in this list, bringing a near flagship-level Mediatek Dimensity 8300 Ultra processor to the mid-segment, with up to 12 GB RAM and 512 GB of storage. This makes the phone capable of handling everything from routine everyday tasks to even high-end gaming (with very good stereo speakers to make the experience more immersive).
The other specs are very good too - a 6.67-inch full HD+ AMOLED display with 120 Hz refresh rate, Gorilla Glass 5 protection and Dolby Vision support, and a triple camera set up on the back featuring a 64-megapixel main sensor with OIS, an 8-megapixel ultrawide sensor and a 2-megapixel macro, with a 16-megapixel sensor on the front.
Round that off with Android 14 with HyperOS on top, and a 5000 mAh battery with 67W wired charging support along with a charger in the box, and the Poco X6 Pro emerges as the phone for those who want flagship-like power for below Rs 30,000.
OnePlus Nord 4: Nord-ache For Everyone
Price: Rs 29,999 onwards
Its distinct metal back makes the OnePlus Nord 4 a very different phone not just in the mid-segment but in any price zone. And it is not just its appearance, but also its specs and performance that make it a headache for the Vivo V40e. The Nord 4 comes with a 6.74-inch flat AMOLED display with a resolution of 2772 x 1240 and a refresh rate of 120 Hz.
It runs on the admirable Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 chip, coupled with up to 12 GB of speedy LPDDR5X RAM and up to 512 GB UFS 4.0 storage (although the base 128 GB storage variant rather strangely comes with UFS 3.1), making it one of the most capable phones in the segment. It sports a very impressive camera line up too, with a dual camera setup on the back comprising a 50-megapixel Sony Lytia main sensor with OIS and an 8-megapixel ultrawide sensor, although the selfie sensor is the standard 16-megapixel one that OnePlus seems to prefer.
The phone matches the Vivo V40e in terms of battery - it too comes with a 5,500 mAh battery - and comfortably surpasses it in terms of fast charge support as it comes with 100W fast charging and a charger in the box. Top this with the famous OxygenOS that runs in its veins on top of Android 14, and dual stereo speakers, and you get a phone that is hard to beat at its price point.
Vivo T3 Ultra: Powerful Bro
Price: Rs 31,999 onwards
One of the biggest challengers to the Vivo V40e comes from within its own family - the recently released Vivo T3 Ultra. It might be a little more expensive than the Vivo V40e, but it comes with a very similar design and offers more processor power for the extra bucks it charges. The Vivo T3 Ultra features a 6.78-inch curved AMOLED display with 2800 x 1260 resolution, 120 Hz refresh rate and an extremely impressive maximum brightness of 4500 nits.
It is powered by the near-flagship level MediaTek Dimensity 9200 Plus processor which paired RMA and storage variants of 8GB + 128GB and 12GB + 256GB, making it an absolutely smooth sailor in gaming as well as regular waters.
You get the same camera numbers as the Vivo V40e – a 50-megapixel main sensor paired with an 8-megapixel ultrawide on the back and a 50-megapixel selfie snapper with autofocus on the front, although the cameras are not believed to be on quite the same level as the ones on the V40e (the V series is after all, the camera series).
It matches the V40e in battery numbers too and brings a 5500 mAh battery with support for 80W fast charging and a charger in the box. Round this off with Vivo's FunTouch OS on top of Android 14 along with stereo speakers, Schott Glass in front and back and an IP68 rating and you get a smartphone that is solid both in terms of design and specs, for just a little more than the Vivo V40e.