Vivo

The Vivo V40e was launched in India towards the end of September and is the most affordable option in the lineup, which also includes the standard V40 and the V40 Pro. Therefore, I believe that the ‘e' in the name stands for ‘economical', but I bet Vivo would not agree with me. The V40e is a mid-range smartphone whose main selling point is its design and a claim that it's the slimmest smartphone with a 5,500mAh battery. Vivo also states that the phone is a pro at taking portrait photos thanks to the Aura light.

The premium smartphone segment sure is a cut-throat one. This is not because manufacturers offer impressive hardware at this price point but because we often see smartphones from the next tier receive price cuts and tip the scales for devices launched in the sub-Rs. 50,000 segment. The Vivo V40 Pro becomes a victim for two reasons. Firstly, it's priced a bit too high from the get-go. Secondly, it also has to compete with some top-tier premium smartphones like the iQoo 12, which was launched at Rs. 57,999 a year ago but currently retails at Rs. 49,999. Vivo's V40 Pro is priced at Rs. 49,999 for its base 8GB + 256GB variant, while the 12GB + 512GB variant is priced even higher at Rs. 55,999. After using it for a while, I discovered that its price tag is not its only problem.

Foldables have indeed come a long way, especially in India. While earlier limited to Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold range, 2024 has provided enough variety from a number of manufacturers across foldable segments. You can now get one for as low as Rs. 64,999 in a flippable clamshell form factor or pony up Rs. 1,59,999 for a top-of-the-line book-style foldable that literally competes with premium slab-style smartphones. With the emergence of tri-fold devices, foldables even make those bloated iPhone price tags in India appear palatable for Android users.