Vivo is working on both photography and videography with the new X300 Ultra. The phone is finally hitting the global market, and to lure people away from other camera-centric Ultras, Vivo has partnered with Zeiss and renowned camera accessory maker SmallRig to make the X300 Ultra the best tool for both photos and videos.
Meet the Professional Photographer Kit, which includes an expanded video cage with two new teleconverter lenses, a case, a new grip, and two smart handles.
The Vivo The X300 Pro got a new version of this, but since it uses the same mount the lenses are interchangeable.
But the X300 Ultra takes it even further, with a virtually new 400mm equivalent telephoto extender, making it the zoomiest of all photography kits! The lens is made in collaboration with Zeiss, and there is also a new 200mm lens that is smaller and more compact than the old one.
The new 400mm lens is certainly larger, but it’s not twice the size of the old 200mm. In fact, looking at them side by side, the 400mm is only slightly longer than the old 200mm, although significantly wider.
New 400mm and 200mm lenses
The 200mm looks smaller than its predecessor and should have better balance when attached to a phone. 400 mm, on the other hand, makes the setup quite front heavy. There’s a reason telephoto lenses have tripod mounts – it’s to reduce weight stress on the camera mount. We’ll have to test and see how the photography kit case will handle the weight of the new 400mm lens.
The new camera grip on the photography kit has more controls than its predecessor. With the X300 Ultra, you have a video record button, a scroll wheel, a zoom lever, and a shutter button. The new grip has an additional function button and a flash button.
small bazooka
But that was all about the photo side of things. Vivo wants you to treat the X300 Ultra as a serious video camera, too. That’s why it partnered with SmallRig to create the Pro Video Rig Kit – a cage that puts the phone in the center, and equips it with a number of clever ways to control it.
There are two handles on each side to give you a steady grip. The handles are equipped with a Bluetooth-controllable shutter button and zoom lever.
The rig itself is expandable via multiple cold shoe mounts and quick-release ports – meaning you can attach accessories to the cage. On the case – there is an adjustable LED light on the top and an active cooling fan on the phone. You can also mount an external SSD, microphone, monitor, etc.
pro video rig kit
Accessories aside, the Vivo X300 Ultra provides a significant boost to the potential filmmaking magic of its own. All three cameras on the phone have native 10-bit log support. And Vivo has optimized video for smoother tonal roll-off and film-like texture – read “it couldn’t be more sharp and digital-looking”. Vivo calls it 4K Master Color Video.
Sound has also been tweaked – the Pro Video app can focus on the sound coming from your subject. It remains to be seen whether it will have the ability to connect an external microphone or not.
What also remains to be seen is the price of the kits, both a photography kit and a video rig kit. Vivo also hasn’t detailed when we’ll see the X300 Ultra and at what price. What we know so far is that the 35mm main camera uses a larger 1/1.12-inch 200MP imager – it’s a significant step up from the 1/1.28-inch 50MP shooter on the X200 Ultra.