iQOO Z9s Pro review: Balanced, as all things should be

This is the iQOO Z9s Pro that has just launched for some 25000 Rupees in India and for the price, it features very similar specs as the Nord CE 4, it’s like they are twins!! I am not complaining though, here too you get the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 chip, a gorgeous 6.7-inch 120Hz AMOLED screen and big 5500 mAh battery, which is quite competitive for the price. We have some amazing phones from OnePlus, Motorola, Nothing, Poco and even infinix. So, where does the iQOO Z9s Pro stand, let’s talk about that!!

iQOO Z9s Pro Specifications

• Display: 6.67-inch AMOLED, 120Hz refresh rate, 300Hz touch sampling rate, 387 ppi
• Resolution: 2392×1080
• Ingress: IP64 rating
• Chipset: Snapdragon 7 Gen 3
• Memory/Storage: Up to 12GB LPDDR4X RAM, Up to 256GB UFS 2.2 storage
• OS/UI: Funtouch OS 14 based on Android 14
• Rear Camera: 50 MP (OIS) + 8 MP
• Front Camera: 16 MP
• Battery and Charging: 5500 mAh, 80W fast charging
• Colors: Luxe Marble (Plastic), Flamboyant Orange (Leather)

iQOO Z9s Pro Review

Design

First of all, let’s start with the design side of things. And here you get the iQOO Z9s Pro in two color variants, Blue and Orange. The Orange one has a leather back design while the other has a plastic body. I have the Orange variant and the feel of this phone is amazing. I don’t know how iQOO has managed to fit in a 5500 mAh battery in such a slim body, but it does not look or feel bulky at all. And the subtle curves make it feel quite handy too. iQOO has provided IP65 rating as well, which, I know is not as good as the Moto Edge 50 Fusion’s IP68, but it definitely can withstand water splashes better than something like the OnePlus Nord CE 4 or the Nothing Phone 2A’s IP54 rating. That said, the only thing that has bugged me about the design is the glass protection. Not that there is none here, but it’s not Gorilla Glass protection, it’s actually Schott Xensation glass, so I am not sure how durable that is against drops or scratches. By the way, the frames are made of plastic, so it’s better to case this phone up to make sure it lasts longer!

Performance and Gaming

• Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 Chipset

Anyway, a lot of you guys might be concerned about heating issues due to the phone’s slim form factor, but I am happy to report that during my tests, the phone did not heat up like a volcano ever, even during heavy gaming sessions. IQOO says that they have used a 3000 mm square Vapor Chamber cooling system here and evidently, it works well. Here are my gaming test results and you can see how stable the outcome is when it comes to the 99th Percentile and average fps, that too without ever crossing 40 degrees while playing PUBG, Mobile Legends or even Genshin impact for that matter. The thermals here are actually better than the Nord CE 4 which features the same Snapdragon 7 Gen 3. And iQOO is one of the companies that is pretty serious about gaming, so you also get a couple of gaming specific features like 4D Game Vibration that gives you a vibration feedback in certain game actions, like when firing a gun. Then there’s motion control that can trigger different in- game controls based on gestures like tilt, lean, push, etc. 4D game vibration is a little slow in working but motion control works really nicely. Still, you don’t have the option to play games like PUBG and COD at 90 fps here like the Poco X6 Pro though, which is even cheaper than the IQOO Z9s Pro. So, if you are really serious about gaming and performance, the X6 Pro could be a wiser option, especially considering it also comes with DDR5X RAM and UFS 4.0 storage to support faster performance.

Memory and Storage

• Up to 12GB LPDDR4X RAM
• Up to 256GB UFS 2.2 storage

Here you are getting a basic DDR4X RAM and UFS 2.2 storage. Anyway, the normal performance of this phone is good, no issues. iQOO has also optimized the UI to run at either 60, 90 or 120Hz depending on the content that’s played on the screen in the auto mode. You do get the option to force 120Hz in all the apps and even then everything runs very smoothly too, so no complaints! However, I did feel like the iQOO Z9s Pro to be a little slower when switching between the multitasking tiles. I don’t know if it’s the animation, but sometimes, it feels a little laggy.

UI and Software

• Android 14 with Funtouch OS 14

Other than that, the phone boots on Android 14 with Funtouch OS 14 on top and iQOO has also promised 2 years of OS and 3 years of security updates with this phone. FYI, out of the box, the phone is running on July’s security patch. And as always, you do get a few apps pre-installed, 26 to be exact, but you can uninstall most of the ones that aren’t useful to you, and if you know your way around smartphones, it’s not going to be that big a deal for you.

Display

• 6.67-inch AMOLED, 120Hz refresh rate, 300Hz touch sampling rate, 387 ppi

Moving on, I have had a great time interacting with this display too. The touch response here is amazing and not to mention the iQOO Z9s Pro also has a nice quality AMOLED screen. It’s a 6.67-inch Full HD 10-bit display with HDR 10+ support in both YouTube and OTT platforms like Netflix and a whopping 4500 nits of peak brightness. And if you are wondering how bright it can go in auto mode, it’s 1300 nits. In real life usage, I didn’t have much difficulty viewing things outdoors on a sunny day. It’s actually very similar to the OnePlus Nord CE 4. The trimmed down bezels also serve for a good viewing experience on this phone. But I found a little bug in this display. When I played HDR videos in 1080p everything ran well, but as soon as I switched to 4k, the videos got visibly stuttery. And it’s not a one or two time thing, it happens all the time, so I hope iQOO will bring forth an update to fix this soon!

Speaker and Haptics

Also, I wished the haptics and speakers here were a little better too. The vibration feedback isn’t exactly buzzy, but it’s not as crisp and tight as the Nord CE 4 or the Nothing Phone 2A. And I also wish iQOO had integrated haptic feedback in the UI elements such as the brightness/ volume slider etc. The stereo speakers here are good enough for watching reels and movies, they are loud but they can sound a little distorted and shouty when you are listening to songs with a lot of trebles.

Cameras

• 50 MP (OIS) Rear Camera + 8 MP UW
• 16 MP Front Camera

Okay let’s talk about the cameras now and we know iQOO phones have never been all about cameras and here too, the output is decent I would say. It has a 50MP Sony IMX 882 sensor and as you can see from the photos i have clicked, it produces a very punchy output with nice details and artifacts. Sometimes, the white balance can be a little off, but in good lighting, you can get some nice shots out of its camera. However, I found that it is not able to handle dynamic range in shadow conditions that well, but besides that, the images are fairly satisfying. In fact, under harsh sunlight, it is able to handle glares and highlights so well, even better than the Nord CE 4. iQOO has included an ultra wide lens this time; it was missing on last year’s Z7 Pro, but since it’s only an 8MP sensor, the detail rendition is only average here. Plus, for some reason, they have an even punchier result than the primary camera, which does not look good all the time. The portraits are nice though. You also get a 2x mode for better subject focus and background blur here. They are a little processed and smoothened, so you won’t find a lot of details, but the skin tone looks pleasing to the eye, so not that big of an issue. Selfies are nice too. Again, the beautification is there, but you get sort of an airbrushed finish in the pictures which a lot of you guys may prefer! But I have to tell you, the selfie videos from this phone are strictly average . The max you can shoot is 1080 30 fps, which means there is no 4k option and even then in the 1080p videos, the stabilization is not good. There is a 4k recording option from the back camera, capped at 30 fps, and the output is not bad, EIS works pretty well to stabilize the footage. The videos are a little cropped, but usable I would say!

Battery and Charging

• 5500 mAh with 80W

Alright, I have saved the best for the last, because the battery life on the iQOO Z9s Pro is fantastic – all thanks to a big 5500mAh battery. So even on days with extremely heavy usage, I was able to get more than 7 hours of screen on time, that too with 20% battery left at the end of the day. Charging is fast too, the 80 Watt charger that you get inside the box can take the phone from 0-30% in 13 minutes, 50% in about 23 minutes and 48 minutes for a complete refill.

iQOO Z9s Pro Review: Pros and Cons

iQOO Z9S Pro: Conclusion

 Okay, conclusion time!! So, until today, my favorite phone under 25,000 was the OnePlus Nord CE 4 because it’s the most balanced value-for-money phone at that price. Having used the iQOO Z9s Pro for a week, I can confidently say that, just like the Nord CE 4, this is also a safe option for someone who is looking for a good value midrange phone. Everything is just really balanced here, it’s got competitive performance, decent cameras, nice display, amazing battery life and more importantly – An appealing design. Yes, the haptics and speakers could have been a little better here, but it’s not that big of a deal in my opinion. Plus, you are also getting some sick launch offers, which makes it one of the competitive phones in the sub-25K price segment.

• Meanwhile, watch our video review of iQOO Z9S Pro