vivo X300 Ultra Lands In India At INR 1,59,999 With 400mm ZEISS Lens Kit

vivo just put the X-series Ultra on Indian shelves for the first time, and the sticker on the full kit reads INR 2,09,999. That figure buys the X300 Ultra phone, a 400mm ZEISS Telephoto Extender Gen 2 Ultra, a 200mm extender, and a battery-equipped Imaging Grip. The phone alone, in a 16GB plus 512GB single trim, lands at INR 1,59,999 in Eclipse Black or Victory Green when sales open on Flipkart, Amazon, the vivo India e-store, and partner outlets on May 14, 2026.

That price tag puts the X300 Ultra above the iPhone 17 Pro Max and the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra in India. Buy the full bundle and you are spending the price of two iPhones for a phone that bolts on a 400mm telephoto lens like a DSLR.

This is also the first time an Ultra-tier vivo phone has reached India directly. Earlier Ultra models stayed China-only, leaving Indian reviewers chasing grey-market units. The May 6 announcement closes that gap, and it does so at a price that openly tests how far premiumisation in the Indian market will stretch.

What You Pay, And What You Actually Get

The phone-only price is INR 1,59,999. The complete photography kit, with both extenders and the grip, costs INR 2,09,999. vivo is also selling each accessory separately for buyers who already own a previous generation lens.

Here is the full menu, straight from vivo India’s launch announcement:

An INR 4,000 instant discount applies to the bundle of phone, 400mm extender, and grip, dropping that combination to INR 1,95,997. Buyers can stack a 10% cashback on cards from SBI, Kotak, American Express, DBS, IDFC First, Axis, and HDFC, plus a 24-month no-cost EMI starting at roughly INR 6,667 a month for the device or INR 8,167 a month for the bundle.

vivo is also throwing in a one-year extended warranty, a 60% assured buyback at INR 1,599, and a Jio cloud bonus of 5,000GB for 18 months along with Google Gemini Pro benefits. V-Shield screen damage protection starts at INR 2,499. Most of these offers expire May 31, 2026.

Notice the math on the accessories. The 400mm extender by itself costs more than a OnePlus 13R. The grip kit is priced at INR 11,999 and houses a non-detachable 2,300 mAh battery that exists only to power the grip’s controls. It cannot charge the phone.

The Triple ZEISS Camera, Built Around Three Focal Lengths

The X300 Ultra’s headline hardware is what vivo calls the ZEISS Master Lenses Collection, a three-lens system that spans the focal lengths most working photographers reach for first.

• 14mm ultra-wide: 50MP Sony LYT-818 sensor at 1/1.28 inch with OIS and CIPA 6.0 stabilisation, capable of 4K 120fps capture
• 35mm main: 200MP Sony LYT-901 at 1/1.12 inch with f/1.9 aperture and 12-bit HDR, the largest 200MP sensor currently shipping in any phone
• 85mm telephoto: 200MP custom Samsung sensor at 1/1.4 inch with 3-degree gimbal-style OIS, ZEISS APO certification, and CIPA 7.0 stabilisation
• 5MP multi-spectral chip: a separate 12-channel color sensor that reads ambient light per pixel for white balance correction

The 35mm main sensor is the unusual call. Most flagships pick a 24mm or 28mm equivalent for the main camera, the focal length your phone defaults to for everyday snaps. vivo went one step longer, betting that 35mm reads more like documentary photography and gives portraits and street shots a more natural compression. DXOMark’s preview of the imaging hardware flagged the same trade-off, noting the new color processing pipeline now works directly from RAW data earlier in the chain.

The 400mm Extender Is The Real Sales Pitch

The 4.7x ZEISS Telephoto Extender Gen 2 Ultra is what makes this kit different from every other camera phone on shelves today. Snap it onto the 85mm rear camera and the system reaches a 400mm focal length, roughly 17x optical zoom. Crop digitally and vivo claims usable images at the equivalent of 1,600mm.

It is the first 400mm-equivalent extender in the smartphone market. The previous version, sold with the X200 Ultra, capped at 200mm. The new lens uses an apochromatic design tuned for the 200MP telephoto sensor, with Vivo claiming sharp output at up to 30x zoom (around 800mm equivalent).

The 400mm lens has a very specific audience. Wildlife photography, sports, birdwatching, or any scenario where your subject is far away and staying put long enough for you to frame the shot. It is a lens that rewards patience. For someone who plans a trip specifically to photograph eagles or a cricket match from the stands, the 400mm will deliver results you simply cannot get from any other smartphone setup available today.

That assessment came from 91mobiles’ hands-on review of the kit, written by reviewer Mrinmoy Barooah after testing the extender on a farm shoot. Barooah also flagged the obvious caveat: the 248-gram extender makes the system front-heavy enough that the optional grip stops being optional in any real shooting session.

Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 And The VS1+ Co-Processor

Underneath the camera bump sits Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, the same 3nm chip Samsung uses in the Galaxy S26 Ultra. vivo claims an AnTuTu score above 4.2 million and pairs the SoC with 16GB of LPDDR5X Ultra Pro RAM, UFS 4.1 storage, and a 5,800 square millimetre vapor chamber.

What separates the X300 Ultra from the Snapdragon flagship pack is a second processor:

• Pro Imaging Chip VS1+: a 6nm vivo-designed co-processor
• 80 trillion operations per second dedicated to RAW processing, noise control, and dynamic range
• 20% faster image output than the previous-generation VS1
• 6,600 mAh battery with 100W wired and 40W wireless FlashCharge
• 2K 144Hz LTPO OLED panel at 6.82 inches, branded as a ZEISS Master Color Display

Made In Greater Noida, Aimed At Indian Buyers Who Want More

vivo is building the X300 Ultra at its Greater Noida facility, the same 169-acre plant that came online in mid-2024 with a 60-million-unit annual capacity. The company has said publicly it expects to scale that to 120 million units once the site is fully operational, though no timeline has been shared.

That manufacturing footprint matters because the X300 Ultra is being launched into a market that is moving up market faster than almost anywhere else. Counterpoint Research’s 2025 India market report found premium phones (above INR 30,000) made up 22% of all shipments last year, the highest share recorded, with the segment growing 11% year on year by volume.

vivo’s own X-series sales tell the same story. The brand’s flagship line grew 185% year on year in 2025, according to Counterpoint, with the X200 FE doing most of the heavy lifting. The X300 Ultra is a calculated bet that there are now enough Indian buyers willing to spend Galaxy S26 Ultra money on a phone that doesn’t carry an Apple or Samsung logo.

How It Compares To The Other Two-Lakh Phones

The X300 Ultra at INR 1,59,999 sits roughly INR 5,000 above the iPhone 17 Pro Max base trim in India and within a few thousand rupees of the Galaxy S26 Ultra at the same memory tier. That puts it head-to-head with the only two phones Indian premium buyers seriously consider at this price.

Where the X300 Ultra pulls ahead, on paper, is reach. The Galaxy S26 Ultra tops out at a 5x optical telephoto. The iPhone 17 Pro Max bets on a single 4x lens with what Apple markets as 8x “optical-quality” zoom. Neither offers anything close to the 17x reach of the X300 Ultra with its 400mm extender attached.

Where vivo loses is the things that decide most premium phone purchases in India. Brand recognition. Resale value. The shopping mall service centre. The phone your friend has. The X300 Ultra is being sold to people who already know they want it and are willing to learn OriginOS 6 to get the camera system.

The competitive squeeze is real. Counterpoint’s Q1 CY2026 India shipment data showed the iPhone 17 was the highest-selling phone in the country in volume terms during January through March, with more than a 4% market share. Apple now holds a record 28% value share in India.

That leaves vivo aiming the X300 Ultra at a sliver of buyers: enthusiasts who want a camera-first phone, content creators who shoot 4K 120fps Log video on the move, and anyone who has been reading import listings for the last three vivo Ultra generations. For everyone else, the X300 FE that launched alongside it covers most of what a flagship needs to do, at a fraction of the price.

If you have been tracking the same chase in lower price brackets, the new OnePlus 16 leak that promises dual 200MP cameras and a 9,000 mAh battery shows where the rest of the market is heading next.

Frequently Asked Questions

When Can I Actually Buy The vivo X300 Ultra In India?

Sales open on May 14, 2026, on Flipkart, Amazon, the vivo India e-store, and at vivo’s retail partner outlets across the country. Pre-orders began on May 6 alongside the launch event. The 16GB plus 512GB variant is the only configuration coming to India, in Eclipse Black or Victory Green. Most launch offers, including the bank cashback and bundle discount, expire on May 31, 2026.

Do I Have To Buy The Extender Lenses To Use The Phone?

No. The X300 Ultra works as a standard triple-lens flagship without any accessory attached. The 200mm and 400mm ZEISS extenders are optional add-ons priced at INR 15,999 and INR 27,999 respectively. The Imaging Grip Kit at INR 11,999 is also optional, though most reviewers recommend it for any session using the heavier 400mm lens because the system becomes front-heavy.

Is The 400mm Extender Compatible With Older vivo Phones?

No. The 400mm Gen 2 Ultra extender is only compatible with the X300 Ultra. Earlier vivo Ultra phones used different lens mounts and sensor sizes. If you own an X200 Ultra and try to fit the new lens, the system will not pair correctly. The previous-generation 200mm extender, however, can still be used with the X300 Ultra if you already own one.

How Does The Imaging Grip Battery Work With The Phone?

The grip’s 2,300 mAh battery exists only to power the grip’s own controls and shutter button during long shooting sessions. It cannot charge the X300 Ultra and is not a power bank. The grip connects to the phone over USB-C and adds physical camera controls that you cannot get from the phone alone. Plan to charge the grip separately before any extended shoot.

Can I Get A Lower Price With Trade-In Or EMI Offers?

Yes. vivo offers a 24-month no-cost EMI starting at roughly INR 6,667 a month for the phone alone, or INR 8,167 a month for the full bundle. Eligible bank cards from HDFC, SBI, Axis, Kotak, American Express, DBS, and IDFC First add a 10% instant cashback. The 60% assured buyback program lets you trade in for INR 1,599 toward a future vivo X-series purchase.

vivo’s pitch with the X300 Ultra is simple, even if the price is not. Pay flagship money, plus a serious accessory premium, and you get reach no other phone on the Indian market can match. Whether enough buyers say yes will tell us how far Indian premiumisation has actually run by the end of 2026.