Vivo S50 Pro mini launches as new Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 flagship with iPhone Air-like design

Vivo has formally introduced the S50 series in China, and among the two phones introduced, the S50 Pro mini is the main highlight. It's among the first phones to be powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5, a flagship SoC that sits right below the Elite version. This SoC makes the new compact phone stand as a proper successor to the S30 Pro mini, which is powered by the Dimensity 9300+.

Another notable change from the predecessor is the rear design. The new Vivo S50 Pro mini looks more like the iPhone Air from the back, featuring a horizontal camera island that resembles the "camera plateau" of the Apple phone. Of course, Vivo isn't the only notable brand that has pulled a move like this, as the Honor 500 series took the same inspiration.

Nonetheless, the camera setup of the S50 Pro mini didn't see much of an upgrade over the predecessor. It still has a Sony 50 MP primary sensor that's paired with a 50 MP periscope telephoto and an improved ultrawide camera. On the front, there's a 50 MP selfie shooter, and the picture samples shared by the company from the camera appear social media-ready.

Speaking of the front, the Vivo S50 Pro mini comes with a 6.31-inch flat display with a variable 120 Hz refresh rate and 100% P3 color coverage. A 6,500 mAh battery powers the internals of the compact phone, which is the same as the predecessor, and it has support for 90 W fast charging (140 W Anker Prime charger curr. $64.99 on Amazon). It supports 40 W wireless charging as well.

As for the price, the configuration with 12 GB of RAM and 256 GB of UFS 4.1 storage costs CNY 3,699, about $524. There are two more options available, and the mid-tier one brings 512 GB of storage, and it costs CNY 3,999, around $567. The top-end option with 16 GB of RAM and 1 TB of storage costs CNY 4,299, about $609. The S50 Pro mini is available in three colorways, and Vivo has yet to share when this Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 flagship phone will make a global debut.