Upgrading your phone with a digital camera grip attachment is one factor. But doll-sized telephoto lenses that you simply mount on high of the rear digital camera? C’mon.
I wrote the Vivo X300 off as a gimmick, a humorous idea designed to generate consideration quite than precise gross sales. But then I spent a weekend carrying the phone and its elaborate equipment of goofy little lenses round — and I had approach an excessive amount of enjoyable.
The Vivo X300 Ultra is an replace to one of many perfect phone cameras on the market. It’s solely accessible in China for the time being, with a world launch that may nearly actually exclude the US. Its rear cameras aren’t any joke: a 200-megapixel most important, 200-megapixel 3.7x telephoto, and a 50-megapixel ultrawide. Vivo sells a professional digital camera grip individually so as to add a bodily shutter button. And if you wish to actually go for it there are these two telephoto extender lenses, every of which mounts to a particular plate placing it in entrance of the telephoto digital camera. This 12 months’s version contains a extra compact model of final 12 months’s 2.35x adapter, including as much as a 200mm equal, in addition to a brand new 400mm choice.
If you’re going to hold a phone just like the X300 Ultra, you may as effectively go all in. I finished wanting utilizing the devoted bag that Vivo despatched alongside my evaluate unit — partially as a result of it smells bizarre, but additionally as a result of I wanted one thing greater for a full time out on the spring honest. But I connected the particular digital camera equipment case to the phone, alongside with the professional digital camera grip, the telephoto lens adapter plate, and a crossbody strap ripped straight out of Apple’s fall 2025 catalog. I stepped out of the household SUV with 150mg of non-drowsy Allegra coursing by means of my veins, digital camera slung throughout my chest and a suitably ergonomic backpack on my shoulders. Peak guardian mode.
I took a couple of photographs across the halfway with out the attachment lenses, however as soon as we headed for the kiddie curler coaster, I knew it was time. I popped the 200mm extender on and didn’t take it off for a minimum of one other three hours. Did I appear like a weirdo? Yeah. But I used to be having an excessive amount of enjoyable to care.
It took a minute to wrap my head round utilizing a 200mm lens on a smartphone digital camera. I remembered that I needed to care about shutter pace. But as soon as I acquired the cling of it I couldn’t imagine what I used to be getting away with. Depth! Layers! An optical telephoto lens enables you to play with composition in a approach that by no means fairly interprets with digital zoom. I used to be taking photographs I’d by no means even try with one other phone digital camera, and it was principally figuring out.
I figured I’d put the extender lens on the phone, take a couple of pictures, after which take away it till I wanted it once more, however that’s sufficient of a problem that I simply left it alone. Anyway, as soon as I began realizing the entire potential for telephoto pictures, that’s all I wished to shoot.
It did imply that the lens saved banging in opposition to the carnival experience seats each time I bent over to buckle my child right into a glowing rocket ship or no matter, however this didn’t appear to do any harm to the digital camera tools. Guess I’ve that sturdy Zeiss building to thank.
I couldn’t imagine what I used to be getting away with
A child on a curler coaster coming straight towards the digital camera was nonetheless tough for the autofocus system, and I missed loads of photographs. But that may be a difficult situation for a digital camera of any measurement, and as soon as I shifted to a extra forgiving composition it began to click on. And it took me a minute to appreciate that half-pressing the digital camera grip’s shutter button was solely locking focus and publicity, not buying focus — as a result of it’s a smartphone, the digital camera is simply doing that on a regular basis by itself. But as soon as I acquired comfy mashing the shutter button all the way in which and trusting that auto-focus was working, I began actually having some enjoyable. This was additionally across the time that the demolition derby began.
On our solution to our seats we handed an indication prohibiting skilled photograph and video seize, together with cameras with “removable lenses.” I had the X300 Ultra over my shoulder with its 200mm extender connected, however no person batted an eye fixed. I’m not normally one to make use of guide publicity controls on a phone, however I undoubtedly wanted them because the automobiles began crashing and the early night mild pale.
I switched from the 200mm to the 400mm, and again once more when the sunshine grew to become too dim. From my spot about midway up the stands, 200mm wasn’t fairly lengthy sufficient and 400mm was just a little too shut. There’s the choice to make use of digital zoom on high of the teleconverter’s optical magnification, however I opted to stay with native focal lengths as a matter of precept.
I managed to get some photographs I actually like with every of the extenders — loads of element on the automobiles that we couldn’t see from the stands, the give attention to the drivers’ faces as they chased down one other automobile. Side be aware: Cars crashing into one another guidelines. I saved capturing till the sunshine was too dim and element actually began to undergo. The antihistamines had worn off and the preschoolers have been stressed, so we referred to as it an evening.
Whenever I get my arms on a telephoto lens I keep in mind how a lot enjoyable it’s. Having that have whereas utilizing a smartphone was completely surprising. There’s nothing stopping me from renting a telephoto lens for my Sony a7c to carry to the honest, and I in all probability would have gotten extra of these curler coaster pictures in focus.
But it could seemingly have caught safety’s consideration on the demo derby, and undoubtedly would have put extra of a pressure on my aching again and shoulders with the added weight. The 200mm lens attachment is small and lightweight sufficient I’d barely discover its presence in my purse, and I might undoubtedly see taking it alongside on one other household outing.
I’m frankly stunned at how briskly I went from dismissing the entire extender lens idea as a foolish thought to wanting the large phone manufacturers that promote within the US to undertake one thing related, like, yesterday. Where is Samsung on this? Why can’t I purchase a humorous little lens for the Galaxy S26 Ultra? Consider me an extender lens convert.
Photography by Allison Johnson / The Verge