Gadget of the Week: Vivo’s back-to-basics budget phone

What is it?

Not so long ago, affordable phones meant accepting glaring compromises. The trade-off was poor screens, tiny batteries and software you’d rather not touch – or bloatware that forced you to touch too much.

Nowadays, even the most modest phones aim for a baseline of usability that can suit most people’s everyday needs, and are defined by what they pack in rather than what they leave out. 

The new Vivo Y04 is a great example.

It looks and feels like what it is: an entry-level handset that covers all the basics for people who want a straightforward smartphone that does its job. But, at the same time it is surprisingly rich in features.

Physically, the phone is light and comfortable in the hand. The plastic back panel is hardly premium, but it felt solid enough that I didn’t worry much about everyday knocks while testing it. The design is neat, with a smooth finish and curved edges that helped it nestle into my palm. The Vivo Y04 weighs 199g and didn’t feel bulky, even with a large 5500 mAh battery tucked inside. 

In short, it won’t wow anyone at first glance, but will survive most commutes – even a day spent navigating a crowded taxi rank.

The Vivo Y04 is powered by a Unisoc T7225 chipset, an octa-core chip that prioritises efficiency over speed. In other words, don’t expect lightning-quick responses if you try to jump between a dozen apps, especially not with its meagre 4GB of RAM. However, it serves its purpose for browsing the web, answering messages, making voice calls, and keeping a running commentary going on WhatsApp or Instagram. 

Vivo has managed its software well, so that Funtouch OS 14 – the company’s skin over Android 14 – feels smooth most of the time.

The 6.74-inch IPS LCD screen with 720 × 1600 resolution and 90Hz refresh rate is not the sharpest panel on the market, if that market is phones two or three times the price. At the entry-level, that’s a great display, bright enough for most conditions. It renders videos and photos with a decent level of contrast, although under bright sunlight the screen might look a little washed-out. That’s one of the compromises of an affordable LCD panel, but it will hardly be noticed indoors. 

The phone excels in battery life, thanks to the massive 5500 mAh pack that easily powers the phone into the next day. Charging is capped at 15W, so it’s not the slowest top-up you’ll ever see, but still best to charge overnight.

_{Photo courtesy Vivo.}

Cameras and software
The Vivo Y04 features a 13 MP wide-angle main camera paired with a 0.08 MP auxiliary lens, and a 5 MP wide-angle front-facing selfie camera. The main camera supports 1080p@30fps video shooting, and recording is fine for social media snippets, though it isn’t stabilised and can look shaky if you walk and shoot at the same time. 

Front and rear lenses do a fair job when the light is good, especially if you stand still for a moment before you tap the shutter. Images tend to lose detail when you zoom in, so don’t expect portrait-grade bokeh or night-time brilliance. The setup struggles in low light, but Vivo has included scene-enhancing modes in the camera app, including AI Photo Enhance.

While the Funtouch skin may imply bloatware, Vivo has given a light touch to standard Android 14 features, like better privacy controls and improved notification handling. Vivo’s touches are layered on top, without it feeling cluttered or slow, matching the phone’s focus on practicality.

A clear strength of the phone is storage, starting at 256 GB, and that is complemented by the option to add a microSD card for excessive photos, music and videos. Bearing in mind that many high end phones with high-res cameras come in at 256GB storage without card expansion options, that’s not bad for an entry-level device.

Connectivity is straightforward: 4G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0 and GPS, as one would expect. There’s even a 3.5 mm headphone jack, a small feature that’s disappearing from mid- and high-end phones but still useful if you don’t want to pay extra for wireless earphones. A side-mounted fingerprint scanner is quick and accurate enough, and the phone also supports face unlock.

Protection is a big deal for Vivo, which includes 180 Days 360° Accidental Protection, including one-time free repair of screen, back cover, camera glass, and frame. However, the big surprise for a small budget is that it is IP64 rated, meaning it is dust tight and water resistant for splashes. But don’t take it swimming. 

How much does it cost?

The Vivo Y04 has a recommended retail price of R2,999.

Why does it matter?
The Vivo Y04 is refreshing in its honesty in that it doesn’t aim to dazzle. It will suit people who need a phone that lasts all day, can run the most popular apps comfortably, and doesn’t cost the earth. Given that South Africa’s smartphone market is driven by value as much as style, this phone makes a sensible option for those who care more about practicality than prestige.

What are the biggest negatives?

• Camera struggles indoors and in low light, making nighttime photos grainy.
• The 4GB of memory can result in it feeling slow if you jump between multiple apps quickly.

What are the biggest positives?

• Strong battery life that easily stretches into a second day.
• Clean, lightweight software that keeps the phone feeling responsive.
• Expandable storage and a 3.5 mm jack, both of which add practical flexibility.

* Arthur Goldstuck is CEO of World Wide Worx, editor-in-Chief of Gadget.co.za and author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to AI.