Vivo Y21 Review - Big Battery, Big Display on a Budget

 You're looking for a new phone but don't want to break the bank. The latest budget phone from Vivo might be just what you need. With a big 5000mAh battery, 6.51” display, and decent camera setup, the Vivo Y21 packs some impressive specs considering its price tag. Its modern design and handy software features make it feel more premium than its budget pricing would suggest. While it lacks 5G connectivity and has slightly underpowered performance, the Y21 still delivers solid value. If you want good battery life and screen size without spending a ton, read on to see if the Vivo Y21 is the budget phone for you.

Introducing the Vivo Y21 - An Affordable Big Battery Smartphone

The Vivo Y21 is a budget-friendly smartphone that doesn't skimp on features. For under $200, you get a massive 5,000mAh battery, 6.5-inch display, and capable camera setup. If you're looking for an affordable phone with solid specs, the Y21 deserves your consideration.

Long-Lasting Battery Life

With a 5,000mAh battery, the Y21 provides enough juice to get you through more than a day of normal use. You can stream video for hours, browse social media, take photos, and play games without worrying about running out of battery. When it's time to recharge, the phone supports 10W fast charging to power up quickly.

Big, Bright Display

The Y21 comes with a 6.5-inch LCD display featuring a waterdrop notch and 720p resolution. The large screen gives you more space to view content, play games, and operate the phone comfortably. And while the resolution isn't the highest, the display gets bright enough for outdoor use and shows social media, streaming video, and web pages clearly.

Capable Cameras for the Price

For the money, the Y21 offers a capable triple camera setup on the back including a 13MP main shooter, 2MP macro lens for close-ups, and 2MP depth sensor to add bokeh effects. You can capture detailed photos in good lighting, as well as portrait shots, macro photos, and video. Around front is an 8MP selfie camera for video calls, snapshots, and unlocking the phone with your face.

With its well-rounded features and budget pricing, the Vivo Y21 hits a sweet spot for anyone wanting an affordable big-battery smartphone. You get modern essentials like a large display, capable cameras, and biometric security, all for under $200. If you're on a budget but don't want to sacrifice useful features, the Y21 deserves a look.

Vivo Y21 Design and Display - Big and Beautiful on a Budget

The Vivo Y21 features a 6.51-inch teardrop display with a 20:9 aspect ratio, giving you an expansive viewing area for streaming videos, playing games or browsing the web. The large screen is complemented by thin bezels, especially the tiny notch at the top which houses the selfie camera.

A Tall and Slim Profile

The Y21 has a tall, narrow design typical of phones today with its 20:9 display. It’s easy to grip and operate with one hand though, thanks to its slim 8.5mm profile and rounded edges. The back panel has a minimalist aesthetic with just a vertically-aligned camera module and Vivo logo. The plastic body keeps the phone lightweight while still feeling solid.

HD+ Resolution and Wide Viewing Angles

With an HD+ 1600x720 resolution, the Y21’s screen provides vivid details and accurate colors when viewing content or playing games. The LCD panel also offers wide 178-degree viewing angles, so you get a clear, bright image even when viewing the screen from the side. Outdoor visibility could be better, but for the price, the Y21’s display is quite capable.

Bottom-Firing Speaker

The Y21 has a single bottom-firing speaker which produces clear audio and can get fairly loud when listening to music, watching videos or gaming. As with most budget phones, bass is lacking and the speaker placement means it’s easy to muffle the sound when holding the phone in landscape mode. For better audio, you’ll want to use headphones.

The Vivo Y21 offers an expansive display and slim design that punches above its budget-friendly weight. The large screen is ideal for media consumption on the go, while the tall and narrow body still allows for easy one-handed use. At this price point, the Y21’s display and build quality are hard to beat.

Camera Performance - Decent Daytime Shots for the Price

For a budget phone, the Vivo Y21 actually packs a pretty capable camera setup. The triple rear camera array is headlined by a 13MP main shooter, paired with a 2MP macro lens and 2MP depth sensor. While the specs aren’t going to blow you away, in good lighting conditions it can capture social media-worthy shots.

Crisp shots in broad daylight

When the sun is shining, the 13MP camera does a respectable job. Images show reasonably good detail and color accuracy. The camera struggles a bit with high-contrast scenes, often overexposing highlights, but for casual daytime photography around town or in nature, you’ll likely get shots you’re happy to share. The macro lens also allows you to get creative with close-up shots.

Struggles in low light

Once the lights go down, though, the Y21’s camera limitations become more apparent. Without a dedicated night mode, low-light photos are often soft, noisy, and lacking in detail. The camera also has a tendency to produce blurry shots in dim conditions, even with the flash enabled. For most evening or indoor scenarios, you’ll want to manage your expectations.

Capable selfie camera

On the front of the Vivo Y21, an 8MP selfie camera takes decent self-portraits and is fine for video calling. Again, in low light the quality starts to suffer, but in good lighting, the selfies showcase natural skin tones and a reasonable amount of detail for a budget phone. Several beauty filters and modes are on hand if you want to get creative.

Overall, while the Vivo Y21 isn’t going to compete with high-end camera phones, its triple rear camera and selfie shooter get the job done for casual photography and social sharing in good lighting conditions. For the price, the camera performance is quite capable, as long as you’re realistic about its low-light and video limitations. The Y21 aims to keep costs down, but still delivers where it counts for its target audience.

Hardware and Software - Entry-Level Specs With FunTouchOS

The Vivo Y21 is an entry-level smartphone, so don’t expect flagship-level performance. It’s powered by a MediaTek Helio P35 processor with 4GB of RAM, which is enough for basic tasks like browsing social media, sending messages and streaming music, but not intense gaming. The 64GB of storage should be enough for most people, but you can add a microSD card for up to 256GB more space.

Display and Design

The Y21 has a large 6.51-inch HD+ display with a teardrop notch at the top housing the selfie camera. The bezels are fairly thin, giving it a modern look. The plastic back has a textured pattern that looks stylish while also resisting fingerprints. It comes in Dazzle Blue and Diamond Glow colors. At just under 7 ounces, the Y21 feels lightweight for its size.

Battery Life

One of the Y21’s best features is its massive 5,000mAh battery which provides up to 18 hours of video playback on a single charge. For most people, that should easily last through two days of normal usage before needing a recharge. When it’s time to power up, the 10W charger fully recharges the battery in around 3 hours.

Software and Special Features

The Y21 runs Vivo’s FunTouch OS 11, which is a customized version of Android 11. It includes some useful tools like Smart Motion, which lets you control certain functions by waving your hand over the screen. The Ultra Game Mode provides performance boosts for gaming, and iManager helps keep your phone running smoothly. You’ll find a few pre-installed apps, but less bloatware than on some other budget phones.

For basic needs like communication, entertainment and photography, the Vivo Y21 delivers solid performance and value at an affordable price point. The large high-resolution display, beefy battery and lightweight design make it a compelling option if you’re on a budget. While the specs won’t satisfy power users, for casual use it has everything you need.