News

vivo launches the V20 Series in the Philippines

The more, the merrier

Published

October 24, 2020

Vincenz

It’s only been four months since vivo launched two V19 models, but they already have a new V-series in the line.

Say hello to the newest V20 series! Instead of two, they’re making it three this time.

Design

There’s a fine line between V20 SE’s design compared to its more powerful siblings. The V20 SE, being the cheapest, has a back made out of plastic.

Meanwhile, the V20 and V20 Pro are pretty much alike with a smooth glass back. A nifty difference is that, the V20 Pro is a little bit smaller and slimmer at 7.39mm than the V20 due to slimmer display bezels.

Display

Speaking of display, all phones are packed with a 6.44-inch AMOLED Full HD+ display but instead of punch-hole cameras found on the V19 series, vivo has decided to bring back display notches.

The obvious distinction can be seen in V20 Pro’s wider display notch due to the presence of dual front cameras. Meanwhile, the V20 and V20 SE both feature a single, dewdrop notch. As an added ‘Pro’ feature, the V20 Pro supports HDR10 while the latter don’t.

All variants are equipped with vivo’s in-display fingerprint scanner technology.

Performance

What sets these three apart from each other are the processors they use. The basic V20 SE is equipped with Snapdragon 665 while the V20 has the Snapdragon 720G processor. Meanwhile, the V20 Pro uses a Snapdragon 765G processor. All models come with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of base storage with slots for microSD card for the lower variants. The V20 Pro doesn’t support microSD expandability.

The V20 SE has the biggest battery at 4,100mAh while the V20 and V20 Pro both feature 4,000mAh. All models are bundled with vivo’s 33W FlashCharge adapter that promises up to 65 percent of battery level in just a thirty minute-charge.

All V20 units run on Funtouch OS 11 based on Android 10.

Connectivity

All units come with USB-C ports and a set of mono speakers. Other than the exclusion of microSD card slot, the V20 Pro also doesn’t have a 3.5mm audio jack while the V20 and V20 SE clearly has it in place. Don’t worry, the V20 Pro has a bundled USB-C to 3.5mm audio jack adapter for those who still desire the audio plugging.

As an addition to its ‘Pro’ naming, the V20 Pro is the only phone that supports 5G out of the box.

Cameras

Both the V20 and V20 Pro sport the same 64-megapixel f/1.89 wide lens plus a 2-megapixel mono lens. On the other hand, the V20 SE only has a 48-megapixel f/1.8 lens paired with a 2-megapixel depth sensor. To lessen the confusion, all models come with an 8-megapixel f/2.2 ultra-wide camera.

With the notches in mind, all models also feature a 44-megapixel f/2.0 wide selfie camera but the V20 Pro has an additional 8-megapixel f/2.2 ultra-wide lens for an added focal length when shooting selfies.

Pricing and Availability

The vivo V20 SE is the cheapest in the bunch which sells for just PhP 15,999. It’s available in Gravity Black and Oxygen Blue options.

Next in line is the V20 priced around PhP 19,999 while its 5G sibling, the V20 Pro, retails at PhP 24,999. Both phones come in two common colorways: this psychedelic Sunset Melody variant and the Midnight Jazz that leans more into black. The V20 Pro only has the Moonlight Sonata option that’s clearly based on white.

These phones are available for pre-order through their official Lazada and Shopee channels. Pre-orders run from October 23 (Friday) until October 29 (Thursday).

Early buyers of the vivo V20 Pro will receive a PhP 7,999-worth gift set including a JBL Go2 Bluetooth Speaker, a noise-cancelling wireless earbuds, additional six months screen warranty and also an extended warranty of up to two years. Those who will pre-order the V20 will receive a similar gift set as the V20 Pro minus the JBL G02 Bluetooth Speaker.

Meanwhile, buyers who will pre-order the V20 SE will receive a 10,000mAh mega powerbank, additional six-month screen warranty, and also a warranty coverage of up to two years worth PhP 3,899.

Finance

HONOR, Fidesmo partner for contactless payments across Europe, Middle East

Enabling contactless payments on the HONOR Watch 6

Published

September 16, 2026

GadgetMatch

HONOR and Fidesmo have partnered to launch contactless payments across Europe and the Middle East on the HONOR Watch 6.

Powered by Fidesmo Pay, the integration enables users to connect an existing Mastercard or Visa card to their watch and complete contactless transactions directly from the wearable device.

This brings Fidesmo’s network of over 900 banks and financial institutions to HONOR’s customers. Users can connect an existing card to the HONOR Watch 6 instantly through the HONOR Health App, which installs a unique token directly onto the watch.

Acting as a secure reference to the payment method, this token allows customers to pay without storing their actual payment details on the device. Once installed, users can tap the watch at any
contactless terminal to pay, just as they would with a card or phone.

HONOR joins a group of device partners that already includes Swatch, Polar, and Mondaine as Fidesmo continues to build momentum across categories.

Entertainment

Max vs 100 will feature Max Verstappen race against 100 go-karters

The live event will stream at midnight on September 17.

Published

September 15, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

As a child, one of my favorite thought experiments is to imagine who would win in a fight between my favorite characters at the time and a number of other random beings. For example, will Superman prevail against 100 Magnetos? Those are the ways I kept my young mind occupied. Now, as a former child, I still do the same thing but with more realistic people, like imagining if Steph Curry can win against 100 high schoolers. This week, ESPN and Disney+ are making one of those imaginary fights real: Formula 1 legend Max Verstappen versus 100 go-karters.

In an upcoming live event streaming exclusively on Disney+, Max vs 100 will pit the four-time world champion against 100 go-karters from everywhere in pop culture. This gaggle of 100 will include popular content creators such as Twitch streamer ExtraEmily, car photographer Larry Chen, and NBA shooting coach Chris Matthews.

All 101 drivers will race around one of the most iconic tracks in Formula 1 history, Silverstone in England. The track will be reconfigured to match the special race.

Of course, this is more than just a parade of go-karts. Max Verstappen will start at the back of the grid, meaning he has to overtake all 100 racers to win. Now, the Dutch driver is no stranger to winning from the back. In 2024, he won the Sao Paulo Grand Prix despite starting from P17 (out of 20 racers). Max vs 100, though familiar for the driver, presents a different challenge. Can he overtake 100 times to win the race?

Max vs 100 will stream live through Disney+ on September 17, 12:00am PHT.

Apps

Apple’s best feature to cure motion sickness is finally on Android

Google copies a good page from Apple’s playbook.

Published

September 15, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

As an Android user, I’ve been jealous of iPhone users for a while now, but it’s not for the reason you might think. See, I’m ridiculously prone to motion sickness when I’m not driving. So, when I discovered that Apple has a software-based cure called Vehicle Motion Cues, I wanted it immediately. Now, Android does have third-party apps that do the same thing, but they’re not as good as a fully native version. Well, those dark, nauseating days are about to come to an end. Android 17 is finally getting a similar tool called Motion assist.

Before that, let’s rewind for a bit. What do these features do? How can they cure motion sickness?

Whenever you open Vehicle Motion Cues or Motion assist, the interface spawns a series of dots on the screen. These dots respond to movement. For example, if the vehicle turns to the left, the dots also go to the left, mimicking the movement. Without cues like this, the stationary nature of the screen clashes with our brain’s perception of movement. The disparity creates that feeling of nausea. Basically, our eyes are desperately trying to focus on the static screen, but our brains are telling us that we should be seeing motion. Having moving dots reorients our brain and places the phone inside our perception of movement.

Now, you can enable the same feature on your Android 17 device through Settings > All services > Motion assist under Personal & device safety. You can also set it so that the feature turns on automatically when the phone detects that you’re in a moving vehicle. Finally, you can also tweak the shape, color, and opacity of these dots.

Android 17’s Motion assist is rolling out now to compatible devices.