Editorials · Reviewer Insight
Vivo X500 Pro Max vs Galaxy S26 Ultra: Sample Photos Comparison
Vivo brings the big camera guns to this fight
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Vivo offers a superb telephoto camera
Popular camera phones like the Galaxy S26 Ultra seem to have settled a bit in the past few years. Samsung hasn't upgraded the 3X telephoto camera in years, and that 5X periscope does not have the largest sensor around.
Up and coming Chinese companies have certainly noticed that, and have stepped up their camera game in a big way. The new Vivo X500 Pro Max might be the most impressive camera challenger this year.
So I took the Vivo X500 Pro Max and the Galaxy S26 Ultra outside and shot dozens of photos with each camera in all sorts of different conditions. You can judge the results below, but first, let's take a look at the impressive new camera hardware in play.
Vivo X500 Pro Max vs Galaxy S26 Ultra Camera Specs:
|
|
| vivo X500 Pro Max | Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra |
| Main camera | |
|---|---|
| 50 MP (LOFIC sensor, OIS, Laser and PDAF) Sensor name: Sony LYT-L910 Aperture size: F1.6 Focal length: 24 mm Sensor size: 1/1.28" |
200 MP (OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Samsung ISOCELL HP2 Aperture size: F1.4 Focal length: 23 mm Sensor size: 1/1.3" Pixel size: 0.6 μm |
| Second camera | |
| 50 MP (Ultra-wide, Autofocus) Sensor name: Samsung ISOCELL JN5 Aperture size: F2.0 Focal Length: 15 mm Sensor size: 1/2.75" |
50 MP (Ultra-wide, PDAF) Sensor name: Samsung ISOCELL JN3 Aperture size: F1.9 Sensor size: 1/2.5" Pixel size: 0.7 μm |
| Third camera | |
| 200 MP (Telephoto, Periscope, OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Samsung ISOCELL HP9 Optical zoom: 3.5x Aperture size: F2.7 Focal Length: 85 mm Sensor size: 1/1.4" Pixel size: 0.56 μm |
10 MP (Telephoto, OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Sony IMX754 Optical zoom: 3.0x Aperture size: F2.4 Sensor size: 1/3.94" Pixel size: 1.12 μm |
| Fourth camera | |
| 50 MP (Telephoto, Periscope, OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Sony IMX854 Optical zoom: 5.0x Aperture size: F2.9 Focal Length: 115 mm Sensor size: 1/2.52" Pixel size: 0.7 μm |
|
| Front | |
| 50 MP | 12 MP (PDAF, HDR) |
See the full
vivo X500 Pro Max vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra specs comparison
or compare them to other phones using our
Phone Comparison tool
While both feature a similarly sized 1/1.3-inch main camera sensor, the Vivo also has a telephoto camera of roughly the same size. Samsung has two telephoto cameras, but both of them feature tiny sensors, so Vivo's solution actually makes a lot more sense.
The 3.5X native zoom of the Vivo telephoto camera is also much more practical than the 5X periscope camera of the Galaxy, which often feels too long for everyday shooting.
But let's see what that actually means for the actual images:
Main Camera
Portraits
Zoom
Ultra-wide Camera
Selfie
So, did we just witness a surprise?
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