The iQoo Neo 9 Pro: A Premium Mid-Range Contender in India
The premium mid-range smartphone market in India is a fiercely competitive one, with manufacturers constantly pushing the boundaries of what’s possible at around the Rs. 40,000 mark. To stand out, handsets need to be jack-of-all-trades, offering powerful chipsets, reliable cameras, and modern designs. Enter the iQoo Neo 9 Pro, a smartphone boasting the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip and a 50-megapixel primary rear camera. This phone aims to compete with heavyweights like the OnePlus 12R, Samsung Galaxy A54, Nothing Phone 2, and Oppo Reno 11 Pro.
Let’s delve into the details of the iQoo Neo 9 Pro and see if it has what it takes to be a champion in this cut-throat market.
iQoo Neo 9 Pro Price in India:
The iQoo Neo 9 Pro comes in three configurations:
- 8GB+256GB: Rs. 37,999
- 12GB+256GB: Rs. 39,999
- 8GB+128GB: Rs. 35,999 (available on March 21)
The phone arrives with a USB Type-C to Type-C cable, a 120W SuperVOOC charger, and a transparent TPU cover.
Available via Amazon, the iQoo Neo 9 Pro comes in two colorways: Conqueror Black with an AG Glass Fiery Red finish and Fiery Red with a dual-tone vegan leather back material.
iQoo Neo 9 Pro Review: Design
Sporting either a glass or vegan leather rear panel depending on the chosen variant, the iQoo Neo 9 Pro stands out with its flat AMOLED screen and flat edges, offering a modern look and feel. We tested the Fiery Red model, which features a matte red finish that resists fingerprints.
The hole-punch cutout at the top of the screen houses a center-aligned selfie camera. The display has a pre-applied plastic screen protector. On the back, a vertical dual rear camera module sits at the top left corner, encircled by a metallic ring around the camera glass.
The Fiery Red variant boasts a soft-touch vegan leather rear panel with a subtle iQoo logo at the bottom of the screen and faintly embossed “Neo” and “Power to Win” branding. While the bright colors are aesthetically pleasing, they are likely to pick up marks and stains over time, so using the included TPU case is recommended. Despite the lighter colors, the phone doesn’t feel slippery and provides a comfortable grip.
iQoo Neo 9 Pro Review: Specifications and Software
The iQoo Neo 9 Pro packs in some serious power under the hood:
- Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC (Qualcomm’s top-tier mobile processor)
- Dedicated Q1 Chip
- 6.78-inch AMOLED screen
- Up to 12GB LPDDR5X RAM
- Up to 256GB UFS 4.0 internal storage
- Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, 5G, 4G LTE, and GPS connectivity
- USB Type-C port
- No headphone jack
Running Android 14 with Funtouch OS 14, the Neo 9 Pro offers the familiar interface found on other iQoo smartphones. The phone comes pre-installed with Netflix, Spotify, Snapchat, Facebook, and PhonePe, and iQoo promises three years of OS updates and an additional year of security updates.
The phone also includes a number of preinstalled apps (Amazon, Facebook, LinkedIn, Netflix, PhonePe, and Snapchat), though these can be uninstalled. While the V-Appstore was reported to push frequent notifications on the iQoo 12, disabling notifications and clearing data for the app on the Neo 9 Pro seems to eliminate this issue.
iQoo Neo 9 Pro Review: Performance
With the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip and up to 12GB of RAM, the iQoo Neo 9 Pro is a powerhouse capable of handling even the most demanding tasks. From everyday activities like emailing and messaging to editing and exporting high-resolution videos, this phone delivers seamless performance.
When it comes to gaming, the phone excels. Fortnite runs smoothly on "Epic" (90fps) graphics with no noticeable lag or stutter after extended gameplay. Similarly, Genshin Impact performs flawlessly on "High" settings, with minimal impact on performance. Other popular games like Asphalt 9 and Call of Duty: Mobile run effortlessly, showcasing the phone’s prowess.
The optimized memory management ensures apps remain in memory even when launching demanding apps or games. The UFS 4.0 storage results in swift file transfers, particularly when copying files onto the device.
Benchmark scores further validate the iQoo Neo 9 Pro’s performance:
- AnTuTu v10: 1,585,868 points (significantly higher than the Mi 13 and Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra)
- Geekbench 6: Single-core: 2,050, Multi-core: 5,741 (surpassing the Galaxy S23 Ultra)
- GFXBench: T-rex: 120fps, Manhattan 3.1: 119fps, Car Chase: 85fps
- 3DMark: Slingshot, Slingshot Extreme (OpenGL), Wild Life, Wild Life Unlimited (Maxed Out)
- 3DMark Wild Life Unlimited: 12,789 points
The 6.78-inch 1.5K (1,260×2,800 pixels) LTPO AMOLED screen with a 144Hz refresh rate and 451ppi pixel density delivers a vibrant and responsive viewing experience. While not as bright as some flagship phones, it’s adequate for use in direct sunlight and features low-light settings with 2,160Hz PWM dimming for eye comfort.
The 5,160mAh battery is a workhorse, lasting 21 hours and 27 minutes in our HD video loop playback test and delivering a full day of mixed usage (gaming, apps, camera). With the built-in power saver mode, you can stretch battery life even further. The 120W SuperVOOC charger refills the battery in an impressive 26 minutes, while wireless charging is absent. The phone features an IP54 rating for dust and splash resistance, providing peace of mind against minor weather elements. The in-display fingerprint sensor is generally responsive, although not as quick as some competitors in the price range.
iQoo Neo 9 Pro Review: Cameras
The iQoo Neo 9 Pro sports a dual rear camera setup:
- 50-megapixel primary camera: Sony IMX920 sensor, f/1.88 aperture, and OIS
- 8-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera: OmniVision OV08D10 sensor, f/2.2 aperture
- 16-megapixel front-facing camera: Samsung S5K3P9SP04-FGX9 sensor, f/2.5 aperture
The phone’s camera app is feature-rich, offering various modes, including a Pro mode. Sliding on the viewfinder allows easy switching between modes.
The primary 50-megapixel camera captures detailed images at 1x and the inbuilt 2x in-sensor zoom. Images shot outdoors showcase accurate color reproduction and excellent detail. The camera app offers three effects: Vivid, Textured, and Natural. Vivid delivers vibrant colors, Textured sharpens images with a moody tone, and Natural offers the most balanced and accurate results.
The ultra-wide-angle camera captures decent images though less detailed than the primary camera. Color accuracy can be slightly off, but the images are suitable for social media sharing. The 2x in-sensor zoom uses the primary camera to capture 50-megapixel shots and crops the middle, resulting in clear and sharp images, especially for close-up subjects. For distant subjects, some detail may be softened when zooming in on the 2x images.
The built-in night mode performs exceptionally well with the primary camera, delivering detailed images with good light capture. It takes a few seconds to capture a shot, best suited for static subjects. Even without the night mode, the main camera takes slightly longer to capture brighter images with good detail.
Portrait mode is available at 1x and 2x zoom, producing detailed portraits with pleasing bokeh effects. The bokeh effect can be adjusted both in the camera app and in the Bokeh option in the Gallery app after image capture. No halos or blurring around subjects are noticeable, and the 2x zoom mode produces excellent portrait shots.
Video recording is supported up to 8K resolution at 30fps (OIS is disabled in this mode). The 4K and 1080p resolution options offer 30fps and 60fps modes. The 4K/60fps mode delivers the best recording quality, minimizing tearing and artefacts.
iQoo Neo 9 Pro: Verdict
The iQoo Neo 9 Pro is a strong contender in the Rs. 40,000 price range, offering a powerful Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip, reliable primary camera, fast 120W charging, and a charger included in the box.
Its main competitor is the OnePlus 12R, which also features a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip, LTPO AMOLED screen, and runs on Android 14. However, UFS 3.1 storage and 100W charging are slower than the Neo 9 Pro. The OnePlus 12R also includes a 2-megapixel macro camera, which adds little practical value.
Other options in this price segment, like the Oppo Reno 11 Pro, Nothing Phone 2, and Samsung Galaxy A54 5G, offer slower processors, slower storage, and slower charging speeds than the iQoo Neo 9 Pro.
If you’re looking for a gaming-centric smartphone with decent cameras and reliable battery life, the iQoo Neo 9 Pro is a highly recommendable choice at its current price point. The ongoing sales offers can further reduce the price by up to Rs. 3,000. It is worth comparing this phone with the OnePlus 12R before making a final decision.
