HMD Vibe available in the US with budget-friendly launch price

In April, HMD announced the HMD Pulse and Vibe as its own phone lineup without the iconic Nokia brand. Among these, only the HMD Vibe would launch in the US. Now, the device is finally available.

HMD Vibe is a budget phone with humble specs

The HMD Vibe is a budget-friendly Android device that starts at $149. The company promises that the phone offers solid performance, decent AI-powered cameras, and up to 2 days of battery life. It is completely built in plastic around a 6.56-inch IPS LCD screen. The display has an HD+ resolution of 720 x 1,612 px, an aspect ratio of 20:9, and is covered by a layer of reinforced glass.

The device is powered by the Snapdragon 680 chipset, so there is no 5G in this model. It is available with 3GB/6GB of RAM along with 64GB/128GB of internal storage. There is a MicroSD slot that supports up to 512GB of additional capacity. It also includes a virtual RAM system that promises to improve performance during multitasking.

Although the company promises up to two days of battery life, the device integrates a 4,000 mAh cell, far from the figures present in other modern devices. The HMD Vibe supports 10W charging through its USB-C port, so filling it up to 100% won’t be especially fast either. There is a single speaker and a 3.5 mm audio jack.

“AI” cameras with OZO Audio Surround support

For the photography section, there is a dual rear camera system. The configuration includes a 13 MP main sensor with “AI HDR” according to the company. The secondary camera is a 2 MP depth sensor. The device supports OZO Audio Surround during video recording to capture high-quality sound. On the other hand, its front camera has a 5 MP sensor.

There is dual-band WiFi (2.4GHz/5GHz) and Bluetooth 5.0, but not an NFC chip, so you won’t be able to use the Vibe for contactless payments. The company included an FM radio that also works wirelessly.

At launch, the HMD Vibe is available in the US in a single color: Charcoal. This is a far cry from the multiple color options available for HMD Pulse devices. However, overall, the Vibe seems like a decent and cheap enough device to enter the world of smartphones for the first time, or to have as a backup phone.