iQOO 13 launched with Snapdragon 8 Elite and a dedicated Q2 gaming chip

iQOO is a gamer-centric sub-brand of Vivo, which just launched its flagship phone. This phone obviously comes with gaming-focused features like a dedicated chip for performance boost, a large vapour chamber, and so on. This article will discuss the iQOO 13 in further detail, including its expected price in Nepal.

iQOO 13 Overview

This one for the gamers!

Firstly, the iQOO 13 has the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset under its hood. The latest silicon from Qualcomm comes with no efficiency cores, 3nm fabbing and clocks in at 4.32GHz — pushing it to the forefront of pure performance. Furthermore, this phone packs the Q2 dedicated gaming chip. This allows users to game at 2K resolution with 144FPS smoothness.

Additionally, it is equipped with a 7K vapour chamber, which iQOO says is the largest in its history. This dissipates the internal heat allowing the phone to maintain its performance even when pushed to its limits. Meanwhile, the Warhammer vibration motor in the iQOO 13 offers a 4D gaming vibration experience, adding to the immersiveness of the game.

You are looking at a 6,150mAh Blue Volt battery in the tank that supports a rapid charging speed of 120W. You can reach charging speeds of up to 100W with third-party chargers too. Moreover, this phone can be directly powered by the charger during gaming sessions, keeping the temperature cool and protecting battery health.

Design and Display

The phone’s focus on gamers continues in its design and display as well. While iQOO 13 looks pretty much the same as its predecessor, the company has made a slight tweak giving it a flair of its own. This phone has an integrated “Monster Halo” on the camera island. You can configure 72 different light effect combinations on it with 6 dynamic effects and 12 colour combinations. This is basically a take on RGB lighting we usually see in computers.

Moving on to the front, it has a 6.82-inch Q10 Everest screen, which iQOO jointly developed with BOE. This panel uses Q10 LED as the lighting material allowing it to achieve 12.5% higher brightness than the previous display model. In the meantime, the screen’s lifespan sees a 33% boost and a 10% reduction in power consumption. In addition, iQOO 13 is apparently easier on the eyes too with software and hardware-based solutions to reduce visual fatigue, eye strain, dry eye symptoms, and the probability of astigmatism.

Camera and the rest

Even though the company has put much of its energy into gaming, it does not slack in the camera department. The iQOO 13 has a triple camera setup on the back and a 32MP snapper on the front. All three rear cameras are 50MP units. The primary shooter is paired with a VCS bionic flagship sensor. Likewise, the two auxiliary lenses are telephoto and ultrawide units. The telephoto camera is capable of 4x lossless zoom.

This phone is available in five configurations altogether. The base model comes with 12GB RAM and 256GB storage. The other trims include 12GB + 512GB, 16GB + 256GB, 16GB + 512GB, and 16GB + 1TB. Similarly, you can choose iQOO 13 in four different colours: Track Edition (Black), Nardo Grey, Isle of Man (Green), and Legendary Edition. These shades are brought in partnership with BMW M Motorsport. Lastly, the phone is touted with IP68 as well as IP69 dust and water resistance.

iQOO 13 Specifications

• Design: Flat screen and frame, curved back panel, Monster Halo on the camera bump, IP68 and IP69-rated
• Dimensions: 163.37 mm x 76.71 mm x 7.99 or 8.13 mm
• Weight: 207 or 213 grams
• Display: 6.82” 8T LTPO AMOLED Panel, Q10 lighting material, Up to 144Hz refresh rate, 1.07B colour depth, DCI-P3 colour gamut, ΔE≈0.27, JNCD ≈ 0.24, 1,800 nits HBM peak global brightness, 510 PPI pixel density, TÜV Rheinland Circular Polarisation certification, DC-like dimming, Up to 2,592Hz PWM dimming, Crystal Optical Glass
• Resolution: 2K (1,440 x 3,168 pixels)
• Chipset: Octa-core Snapdragon 8 Elite (3nm) + Q2 dedicated gaming chip
• RAM: 12GB or 16GB, LPDDR5X, Quad channel
• ROM: 128GB, 512GB or 1TB, UFS 4.0
• OS & UI: Android 15 with OrginOS 5 on top (China-only)
• Rear Camera: Triple Camera (50MP Primary with VCS Bionic sensor + 50MP Telephoto + 50MP Ultrawide)
• Front Camera: 32MP Camera (Centre-aligned hole-punch cutout)
• Security: In-display Ultrasonic fingerprint sensor, Face Unlock
• Battery: 6,150 mAh silicon carbon cell with 120W fast charging, OTG reverse charging
• Connectivity: Dual SIM, 5G, Tri-band WiFi 7, Bluetooth v5.4, NFC, five-way navigation, USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C
• Colour Options: Track Edition, Nardo Grey, Isle of Man, Legendary Edition

iQOO 13 Price in Nepal and Availability

This phone was launched on 30 October 2024 in China with a starting price of CNY 3,999. Given that, if it arrives in Nepal, we expect the iQOO 13 price to start at NPR 90,499. However, iQOO is yet to enter the Nepali market. Hence, the possibility of this phone making it here is pretty bleak.

• Meanwhile, check out our iQOO 12 vs OnePlus 12 comparison video: