In 2020, emerging Chinese smartphone-maker iQOO made its debut in India with the launch of the iQOO 3. It was one of the first brands to bring the 5G phone to the country.
It was competitively priced low compared to the rival brands, but the device had a really good set of hardware. It features Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 chipset and the also camera and build-quality were also praiseworthy.
The company, earlier this week, unveiled the new premium phone iQOO 7 series. On paper, it comes with a really good upgrade over not just the predecessor but also on par with the current crop of 2021-series flagship phones.
Here're are my initial thoughts on the new iQOO 7.
Design and display
Our review unit is the Storm black model. It has a dual-tone shell on the back with dark blueish on the sides and features light blue in the middle when viewed from a certain angle. It looks lovely in the sunlight. It also features a raven-hued camera module in the top-left corner with iQOO brand engraving.
On the front, it features a 6.62-inch full HD+ (2400×1080p) AMOLED screen with a peak brightness of 1300 nits. It comes with a 20:9 aspect ratio, supports up to 120Hz display refresh rate and HDR10+ content. It also features in-display fingerprint sensor.
A notable aspect of the iQOO 7 is touch sensing capability. It boasts 300hz Touch Sampling Rate and 1000Hz Instant Touch Sampling Rate . The company has incorporated special Intelligent Display Chipset. It promises an enhanced frame rate in games for smoother visual enjoyment.
In the brief time, I have spent with the iQOO 7, I did not face issues in terms of viewing contents in the sunlight. So far so good.
It should be noted that iQOO has collaborated with British Motor Works (BMW) to offer a special iQOO 7 Legend edition. The rear-side boasts AG glass which exudes 3D visual effects and marine aluminum finish. On top, it comes with iconic colours of BMW in the form of three stripes with a matte finish.
The rest of the features are the same for both the standard and iQOO 7 Legend edition.
Camera
The new iQOO 7 comes with triple-camera module-- main 48MP (Sony IMX598 sensor, f/1.79, OIS: Optical Image Stabilisation ) + 13MP 120-degree ultra-wide sensor ( f/2.2 with 2.5cm macro ) + 2MP mono camera (f/2.4) with LED flash.
On the front, it features a 16MP (f/2.0).
In the normal sunlight, it takes pretty good photos. As you can see in the sample shots, it captures a good amount of details of the subject.
However, the colours are a bit warmer compared to the natural we see through the eyes. I can't complain as the images really nice and worth sharing on social media platforms.
The phone's capability to take low-light images are needed to be assessed. Stay tuned for the full review.
Processor configuration
The new iQOO 7 comes with 5nm class Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 octa-core processor backed by Adreno 650 graphics engine, Android 11-based FuntouchOS 11.1, 8GB/12GB RAM (LPDDR5), and 128GB/256B (UFS 3.1) storage.
It has a Multi Turbo feature that is capable of extending memory space and reduces energy consumption to offer a lag-free experience. If your phone model has 8GB RAM, the phone can extend to a further 3GB to 11GB RAM virtually to offer smooth functioning of the device for tasks such as playing graphics-rich games or while recording high-resolution videos.
Also, the company has incorporated a 6000mm² Graphite layer and also there is a liquid cooling system in place to dissipate excessive heat, which happens while doing aforementioned heavy-duty tasks.
It features a 4,400mAh battery and comes with a 66W super-fast charging adaptor. It takes around 30 minutes to fully charge the phone. This is one of the best value-added features of the iQOO 7.
We will be conducting more tests on the iQOO 7 to fully assess the device and come up with a full review soon. Stay tuned.
The iQOO 7 is being offered in three configurations-- 8GB RAM + 128GB storage, 8GB RAM + 256GB storage and 12GB RAM + 256GB storage-- for Rs 31,990 and Rs 33,990 and Rs 35,990, respectively. It comes in two colour options- Storm Black and Solid Ice Blue.
The company is also offering the special iQOO 7 Legend edition. It comes in two options-- 8GB RAM + 128GB storage and 12GB RAM + 256GB storage-- for Rs 39,990 (8GB+128 GB) and Rs 43,990, respectively.
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