More info regarding Vivo’s upcoming NEX 2 smartphones has just leaked. This time around, Vivo actually published official images for the upcoming NEX 2 smartphone (even though the company did not confirm its name yet) via its official page on Weibo (Chinese social network), which is not surprising at all, as Chinese companies are known to do that ahead of time. By doing this, Vivo basically confirmed the design of the phone, and these are HD renders, and do share quite a bit of info when it comes to the phone. We’ll talk about them in a moment, but it’s worth noting that, in addition to those renders, a real-life hands-on video with the Vivo NEX 2 also surfaced online, which is something we’ll talk about as well in a moment.
Let’s kick things off with renders, shall we. If you take a look at the gallery down below, you will be able to see three official Vivo NEX 2 renders. These renders basically confirm the design that leaked recently, as the NEX 2 will be an almost completely bezel-less device. As you can see in the provided renders, the device will have an extremely thin bezel below the display, which is only a hair thinner than the phone’s sides, and space above the display. An earpiece will be placed above the display, as part of the phone’s frame, basically, while a front-facing camera is not visible here for a good reason. This smartphone will sport with two displays, one on the front, and one on the back, which is also visible in the provided images. Now, if you want to take a selfie, all you have to do is flip the phone around, and you will be able to utilize the phone’s secondary display on the back, thus eliminating the need of a separate front-facing camera, as the phone’s rear-facing cameras are more capable anyhow. Speaking of which, the Vivo NEX 2 will include three cameras on the back, and those three cameras are horizontally-aligned, while an LED flash sits right next to them. That odd circle that you can see on the back fo the device actually has a purpose as well, Vivo refers to it as “Lunar Ring”, and around it the company included an RGB light, and that strip will function as a notification LED, basically, it will light up when you have a notification, someone is calling you, etc… we’ll probably get various settings to go along with it. It is also easy to notice that the phone’s rear-facing display will be considerably smaller than its front-facing one, and that both displays will sport rounded corners. The phone, needless to say, will be made out of metal and glass.
If you take a look at the video that is embedded down below, which has a duration of 10 seconds, you will get to see the phone handled in real life. Unfortunately, though, the phone’s displays are not active in this video, so all you get to see is the design of the phone, and this is the very first real-life image of the phone that we get to see in a video. The phone that is shown in the video actually looks identical to the official renders that Vivo shared, and you will notice that the phone’s volume up, volume down, and power / lock keys are included on the right, while a separate physical key sits on the left-hand side of the device. Well, that key will probably be customizable, but that’s only a guess.
Background: This is the second time the Vivo NEX 2 showed its head, though the first time that some official info leaked. The phone actually appeared in several images a couple of days ago, while a YouTuber called “Mrwhosetheboss” showed us parts of the phone in his YouTube video, as he was not allowed to show the whole things. In his video, he did show the “Lunar Ring” in action, in case you’re interested in checking that out, while two more real-life images were shown in a recent leak. Neither of those leaks actually shared the phone’s release date, nor did Vivo, but considering that the company already shared official renders of the device, the Vivo NEX 2 will probably become official in the coming weeks, maybe even before the end of the year, who knows. The Vivo NEX S and NEX A were introduced back in June, so if the company announced the NEX 2 in December, it will be its second flagship in only six months, which wouldn’t be all that surprising, but it makes more sense for Vivo to wait for the Snapdragon 855 to become available, and include that processor in the NEX 2.
Impact: The Vivo NEX 2 will not be the first smartphone to include two displays, not even close, but this is one of the more interesting implementations, that’s for sure. Instead of utilizing a pop-up camera, Vivo opted to include a secondary display and make use of the phone’s primary shooters, which may be a good idea, but considering that this phone will have displays on both sides, it will be interesting to see how will it bear being used on a daily basis, hopefully its rear-facing display will not scratch up too bad. Considering the phone has two displays, making cases for it will be more difficult for manufacturers, of course, as both displays need to be accessible at all times, and other than regular bumpers and sleeves, cases will probably be hard to come by. This is just a thought, something that comes to mind when you think of a phone with two displays, not to say that it’s a bad idea or anything of the sort. At the moment, there’s no spec info when it comes to the NEX 2, but the phone will almost certainly include high-end specifications, and at least one OLED panel, though it’s possible that both its front-facing and rear-facing displays will include OLED panels, we’ll see. All in all, the Vivo NEX 2 will be one of those devices that will try to stand out, differentiate, as it will not only include two displays, and no separate front-facing camera, but a rear-facing notification ring, and no notch or a display hole, like many other phones.
