The Vivo X300 Pro is set to be the next major camera flagship by the brand in India. It has already launched in China, and an India launch is speculated for later this year. Considering it is camera-centric, it will directly compete with other camera-focused phones in the market, particularly the likes of the iPhone 17 Pro. While it is not an apples-to-apples comparison, but if you are a photography enthusiast, you might be interested in knowing how the camera specifications compare on paper and what really differs between the two phones. Read on for the details.
Both feature a triple-camera system, but one goes overboard with hardware
The Vivo X300 Pro continues to ship with Zeiss branding. It has a triple-camera setup, just like the iPhone 17 Pro, but the lenses and sensors are quite different. For instance, the Vivo X300 Pro has a 200-megapixel Samsung HPB sensor, compared to the 48-megapixel sensor on the iPhone 17 Pro.
The iPhone 17 Pro has a new 4x shooter, which can double as an 8x lens using Apple’s computational algorithms, allowing for lossless-quality zoom. Of course, actual performance will need to be compared in real life. On paper, however, the Vivo X300 Pro’s 200-megapixel sensor is known to deliver solid results. The same was seen with the X200 Pro, where far-reaching zoom was consistently better than on mainstream flagships.
What about the ultrawide and main sensors?
The iPhone has a large 48MP primary sensor, as has been the case for the past few generations. It is a tried-and-tested sensor that produces natural background blur thanks to its size, delivering pleasing and consistent results. It is a no-frills, no-nonsense sensor that performs reliably. For the ultrawide, the iPhone also uses a 48MP sensor, which has seen improvements compared to previous generations and allows for ultrawide macro photography.
The Vivo X300 Pro, on the other hand, uses a 50MP primary Sony sensor, which, while iterative, is new compared to last year. Based on the X200 Pro, you can expect consistent results. Its ultrawide uses the Samsung JN1, an upgrade from the previous generation, and the same 50MP JN1 sensor is used for the front-facing camera.
The iPhone, by contrast, receives a significant upgrade to its front-facing camera, with an 18MP square sensor that allows filming in landscape without changing the phone’s orientation. On the front-facing camera, the iPhone is hard to beat, particularly as it also supports ProRes Log recording.
What about video?
The Vivo X300 Pro allows shooting up to 8K and supports RAW video, which the iPhone can also do. However, the iPhone 17 Pro has a trick up its sleeve: it can shoot ProRes RAW video, which takes up significant storage but delivers detailed footage that can be graded in software such as DaVinci Resolve. In terms of video, the iPhone remains hard to beat, especially thanks to its cinematic mode and RAW recording capabilities. That said, both phones support 4K recording at up to 120fps.
