iqoo 9 pro Full Review and Buying Guide

The iQOO 9 Pro is a powerhouse of a smartphone, packing a punch with its Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset. This means you can expect lightning-fast performance, whether you're gaming, browsing, or multitasking.

With a whopping 8GB of RAM, you can run multiple apps simultaneously without any lag or slowdown. This is especially useful for gamers who like to have multiple apps open at the same time.

The iQOO 9 Pro's large 6.78-inch AMOLED display is a visual treat, offering vibrant colors and crisp text. It's also a great size for watching videos or browsing the web on the go.

Its 4700mAh battery can last a full day and then some, making it perfect for heavy users who need a phone that can keep up with their busy lifestyle.

The iQoo 9 Pro has a sleek design, with a white carbon fibre finish that catches the light and a tri-colour stripe on the right-hand side. The phone's rear is made of glass, and the frame is made of metal, giving it a strong and premium feel.

The phone's dimensions are 164.8 mm (6.49 inches) in height, 75.2 mm (2.96 inches) in width, and 8.8 mm (0.35 inches) in thickness. It weighs 204 gramm (7.2 oz), which is a bit heavier than average, but this makes the phone stronger.

The iQoo 9 Pro comes with a matching protective case to protect it from drops and knocks. The back of the phone features a large camera module that stretches across the width of the phone, one of the biggest design differences between this model and the older iQoo 7 Legend.

Here are the key design and build specifications of the iQoo 9 Pro:

The Vivo iQOO 9 Pro has a sleek and futuristic design that's sure to turn heads. The phone's rear is made of glass, and the frame is made of metal, giving it a premium feel.

The phone's dimensions are 164.8 mm in height, 75.2 mm in width, and 8.8 mm in thickness, making it a bit on the taller side. It weighs 204 grams, which is a bit heavier than average but makes the phone feel solid in the hand.

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One of the standout features of the iQOO 9 Pro is its display. The phone boasts a 6.78-inch OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and can get pretty bright at 1,500 nits. However, the curved edges on the screen can make it a bit tricky to hold onto when taking photos.

The iQOO 9 Pro comes with a range of storage options, including 8GB or 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. However, it's worth noting that the phone doesn't have a memory card slot, so you'll need to choose your storage options carefully.

Here are the key design and build specs for the iQOO 9 Pro:

The iQOO 9 Pro also comes with a range of color options, including a white carbon fibre finish and a Dark Cruise finish. The phone also has a large camera module on the rear, which stretches across the width of the phone.

The iQoo 9 Pro Legend's display is a real showstopper, with a 2K E5 AMOLED panel that's perfect for gaming and watching videos.

It boasts a refresh rate of up to 120Hz, which means the visuals are silky smooth and responsive. You can even swap this down to 60Hz to conserve battery power if you need to.

The display also features HDR10+ and a quoted 1500nits peak brightness, making it clear and rich in colours, even in direct sunlight.

The iQoo 9 Pro Legend's touch sampling rate is a whopping 300Hz, making it super quick to respond to gestures, presses, and swipes.

The phone is also fitted with dual stereo speakers, which are quite punchy and good for gaming.

The cameras on the iQoo 9 Pro are a highlight of the device. The main camera is equipped with a 50-megapixel Samsung GN5 sensor, which is capable of capturing stunning photos.

The main camera can shoot at full resolution in High Resolution mode, but defaults to 12.5-megapixels otherwise. It features an f/1.8 aperture, optical stabilization, and phase autofocus.

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The ultra-wide lens on the iQoo 9 Pro is also 50 megapixels, with a 150-degree field of view and an f/2.3 aperture. This lens is great for capturing wide shots, but can sometimes result in distortion.

The telephoto lens has a 2.5x optical zoom and a 16-megapixel resolution. It's limited to a 2.5x optical zoom, but its focal range is close to a prime lens, making it suitable for portraits and animal shots.

Here's a breakdown of the camera specs:

The iQoo 9 Pro also features a 16-megapixel selfie camera with an f/2.5 aperture and 1080p video recording at 30 FPS. The selfie camera is good, but the lack of 4K recording is a drawback.

The iQoo 9 Pro's software features are quite impressive. It runs on Vivo's Funtouch 12, making it feel familiar to those who have used a Vivo device before.

One of the notable features is the camera app, which has a lot of the same modes as other Vivo devices. The camera has plenty of tools available, and it's worth exploring the whole interface to know what's there.

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The settings menu has fewer options because iQoo has sprinkled more of them into the interface itself. Tap the main menu on the top right to turn on the stabilization feature, as well as the grid lines and level meter if you want them.

The iQoo 9 Pro comes with Android 12 support, which is more efficient and powerful than Android 10. This means you'll get a smoother and more responsive experience.

Funtouch OS 12 is also much smoother than the previous version, Funtouch OS 11. If you don't like the custom UI, you can uninstall some of the apps that come pre-installed.

Some of the notable software features include FunTouch OS 12, some app clutter, and the ultra game mode. Here are some of the key features:

The ultra game mode allows you to pull up a sidebar during gameplay to quickly change the settings your phone is running on. This can be really useful if you want to conserve battery life or switch to a different mode.

The Vivo iQOO 9 Pro is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset, which is one of the most powerful processors available.

The phone comes with either 8 or 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM, clocked at 2750MHz, and 256 or 512GB of UFS 3.1 storage. The RAM is based on 2 channels, making it strong enough for demanding tasks.

The phone's performance is solid, with day-to-day tasks handled easily and multi-tasking without any lag. It can also handle demanding games like Call of Duty Mobile and Genshin Impact, although it may heat up during long gaming sessions.

Here are the Antutu 9 benchmark scores for the iQOO 9 Pro:

The phone runs on Android 12 with Funtouch OS 12, and it's worth noting that the 4,700mAh battery comes with 120W fast charging, as well as 50W wireless charging and 10W reverse charging capabilities.

Curious to learn more? Check out: Iqoo 12 Pro

The display on the iQoo 9 Pro is a Super AMOLED panel with a 6.78-inch size and 120Hz refresh rate. It's a great combination for gaming and content watching.

The display is Quad HD+ with a PPI density of 518, making it brighter, more powerful, and power-efficient. The 1200 nits peak brightness also ensures that you can use the phone outside without any issues.

The display features HDR10+ support, DCI-P3 color gamut, and always-on display capabilities. It also has tempered glass protection, which is strong but not as strong as Gorilla Glass Victus.

Here are some key display specs at a glance:

The display also has a touch sampling rate of 300Hz, making it super quick to respond to gestures, presses, and swipes. This is especially useful during gaming and general tasks.

The Vivo iQOO 9 Pro is a powerhouse of a phone, thanks to its top-notch specs.

The phone is equipped with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset, which is one of the fastest processors available in the market. This chipset is paired with either 8 or 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM, which is plenty for smooth performance.

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One of the standout features of the phone is its ability to handle demanding games. The phone can run games like Call of Duty Mobile smoothly, even at the highest graphics settings.

The phone's GPU is a Mali-G68 MC4, which is one of the most powerful GPUs available in a flagship phone. This GPU is clocked at 818 MHz, making it fast and power-efficient.

Here's a breakdown of the phone's Antutu 9 scores:

The phone's storage options include 256GB and 512GB of UFS 3.1 storage, which is fast and reliable. However, there's no support for expandable storage via a microSD card.

The iQoo 9 Pro has a 4700mAh cell, which is relatively small for a gaming phone. This phone can last for around a day and a half with normal usage, including gaming, social media, and videos.

The battery life is decent, but not exceptional. In our internal battery tests, the phone achieved a score of 12 hours and 25 minutes, which translates to real-life usage.

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You can quickly top up the battery with 120W fast-charging, which is the fastest speed we've tested to date. A 15-minute charge can get you up to 94% capacity, so even a five-minute charge before you go out the door would give you enough to last the day.

However, be aware that the phone can get hot during charging, which may affect its longevity. The iQoo 9 Pro also supports 50W wireless charging, which is convenient for those who prefer not to use cables.

Here are the key battery and charging specs:

The Vivo iQOO 9 Pro has Wi-Fi 6 connectivity, which provides better upload and download speeds. This is a significant upgrade over older Wi-Fi standards, making it ideal for heavy internet users.

This smartphone also supports Bluetooth 5.2, which offers improved speed and a better coverage area. I've found that this makes a big difference when streaming music or watching videos.

One of the standout features of the iQOO 9 Pro is its USB Type-C 2.0 port, which enables faster and more efficient charging. This is a welcome upgrade over older USB ports.

In addition to these features, the iQOO 9 Pro also comes with an NFC port, which is useful for making payments or transferring data between devices.

Here's a summary of the iQOO 9 Pro's connectivity features:

The camera on the iQoo 9 Pro is a highlight of the phone, with a 50-megapixel main camera that can shoot at full resolution in High Resolution mode.

The main camera uses a Samsung ISOCELL GN5 sensor, which is paired with an f/1.8 aperture for excellent low-light performance. The ultra-wide lens has a 150-degree field of view, making it perfect for capturing expansive landscapes or group shots.

One of the standout features of the camera is the gimbal stabilization, which does an excellent job of keeping footage steady in handheld situations. You can also shoot in 8K at 30 FPS, 4K at 60 FPS, and 1080P at 60 FPS, making it a great choice for videographers.

Here are some key camera specs:

The camera app is also quite feature-rich, with options like HDR, filters, and RAW shooting in Pro mode. The software does a decent job of optimizing images, but it's worth exploring the camera app to get the most out of your photos.

The iQoo 9 Pro Legend is now available in India, and you can buy it directly from Vivo and Amazon India.

You can also get it imported from sites like Aliexpress if you're not based in India.

The 8/256GB model costs ₹74,990, while the 12/256GB model costs ₹79,990.

Although you can get it for ₹10,000 less at the time of writing, it's fairly expensive for a new player in the Indian market.

Vivo sometimes brings its handsets to the UK and other European markets, but there's no information on an international release of the iQoo 9 Pro.

The iQoo 9 Pro Legend is now available in India, and you can buy it directly from Vivo and Amazon India.

You can also get it imported from sites like Aliexpress if you're not in India.

The 8/256GB model costs ₹74,990, while the 12/256GB model is priced at ₹79,990.

These prices are around £740/US$980 and £790/US$1,050 respectively, converted.

However, it's worth noting that you can get the iQoo 9 Pro Legend for ₹10,000 less at the time of writing.

The base iQoo 9 model with 8GB RAM and 256 GB internal storage is priced at Yuan 3,999, which is approximately Rs. 46,900.

The iQoo 9 Pro versions start at Yuan 4,999 for the 8GB + 256GB variant, which is around Rs. 58,600.

The top-end 12GB + 512GB iQoo 9 Pro variant is priced at Yuan 5,999, which is approximately Rs. 70,300.

The devices began accepting pre-orders in China last evening, and are scheduled to ship from January 12.

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The iQOO 9 Pro is a premium smartphone with cutting-edge features, but it doesn't do enough to stand out in a crowded segment.

It's a competent device, but its lack of uniqueness might make you question whether it's worth the investment.

The article suggests that it's not the best choice, stating "No. It’s a competent shooter but doesn’t do enough to stand out from a crowded segment."

The iQOO 9 Pro is a gaming phone that offers so much more. It's a great option for those who want a premium smartphone with cutting-edge features.

Its rear camera is a standout feature, delivering great results. The rapid charging speeds are also a major plus, allowing you to quickly top up your battery.

However, it can get hot when put to the test, so be prepared for that.