iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G review – Powerful mid-ranger for gaming enthusiasts

• The iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G is the latest mid-range smartphone from iQOO in India.
• The device has been priced starting at ₹34,999 and is available in two variants.
• Here’s my review of the iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G that will help you decide whether to buy the device or not.

iQOO recently launched the Neo 7 Pro 5G, the company’s latest mid-range offering in India. It has been placed above the company’s iQOO Neo 7 5G that was launched earlier this year and comes with a better display and a more powerful chipset.

Like the Neo 7 5G, the Neo 7 Pro 5G is also aimed at gamers looking for a powerful device. The iQOO Neo 7 Pro joins the list of powerful smartphones available in the highly competitive under ₹40,000 segment.

I have been using the iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G for a few weeks now, and here is my detailed review of the latest mid-range affordable offering from the Chinese smartphone maker.

iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G price and availability

The iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G has been priced at ₹34,999 for the 8GB RAM + 128GB storage variant and ₹37,999 for the 12GB RAM + 256GB storage variant. It is available from Amazon India and iQOO online store in Dark Storm and Fearless Flame colour options.

While the Dark Storm variant comes with a glass back, the Fearless Flame variant sports a vegan leather back.

In the box

• iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G
• Silicon case
• 120W power adapter
• USB Type-C cable
• SIM ejector tool
• Documentation

iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G specifications

iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G pros and cons

Pros

• Performance
• Good battery life with 120W charging

Cons

• Bloatware
• Slippery design

Design and display

Starting with the design, the iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G features an identical design to the iQOO Neo 7 5G but comes with a smaller camera module. The iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G comes in two colour options – the Dark Storm colour and the Fearless Flame colour option. I received the Dark Storm variant.


The Dark Storm variant comes with an AG glass back design that gives it a premium look. It has a smooth matte finish that prevents fingerprint smudges. While you don’t have to worry about fingerprint smudges, the device is a bit slippery so I recommend using a case.

The device weighs under 200 grams, and you can easily use it for a long time.

The device comes with a large rectangular camera module at the top and you also get the iQOO branding. The camera module has a noticeable bump.


The smartphone features volume rockers and the power button on the right side and the left side is plain.

At the top, you get a microphone and an Infrared sensor, which is nice to have and is rarely found on devices these days.


At the bottom, you get the SIM tray, a microphone, a USB Type-C port and the speaker grille.

Coming to the display, the iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G features a large 6.78-inch Full HD+ (2400 x 1080 pixels) E5 AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and a 360 Hz touch sampling rate.


You don’t have to worry about using the sun even in direct sunlight as it supports up to 1300 nits brightness. The tall display is great for watching content and gaming.

Software and performance

The iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G runs on Android 13 out of the box with the company’s Funtouch OS 13 on top. The device will get two years of Android updates and three years of security updates.

For those unaware, Funtouch OS 13 is a highly customized version of Android and is packed with several features.

Like its sibling, the iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G is also equipped with its fair share regarding bloatware. The device comes with applications such as Netflix, Snapchat, LinkedIn, Spotify and more. These apps can however be uninstalled.

In terms of performance, the iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G is powered by the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 coupled with up to 12GB LPDDR5 RAM and 256GB of UFS 3.1 storage.

The powerful chipset from Qualcomm, coupled with ample RAM and storage allows the device to easily multitask. As it is a gaming-centric device, I played popular titles such as Battlegrounds Mobile India and Asphalt 9 on the smartphone. The device offers a good gaming experience and even with Full HD graphics enabled, I did not notice any stuttering or lag.

To offer an improved gaming experience, the device comes with a “Monster Mode” that juices up the device to get the best performance from the processor, but it does take a toll on the battery life.

The iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G is powered by a 5,000mAh battery with 120W fast charging support. The device can be charged up to 50% in just 8 minutes and a full charge takes around 25 minutes.

The device offers a day’s battery life with normal usage, which includes streaming and some gaming.

Camera

Coming to the camera department, the iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G features a triple camera setup at the back consisting of a 50MP primary camera, an 8MP ultra-wide-angle camera and a 2MP macro camera.


The iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G has solved a big issue that its sibling had – the lack of an ultra-wide-angle camera. It


The images taken in daylight conditions turned out well, capturing good details and offering accurate colour reproduction. The presence of Optical image stabilisation (OIS) ensures you are able to capture blur-free images and videos.


The device is able to capture good portrait shots, delivering good edge detection and a proper background blur. In low-light conditions, there is a decrease in details but the images turned out decently.

On the front, the device sports a 16MP camera for selfies and video calling. The selfie camera captures decent details and gets the job done.

Verdict

The iQOO Neo 7 Pro is a feature-packed device that ticks all the right boxes. It comes with a vibrant display, powerful chipset, decent cameras and a large battery with fast charging support.

It is to be noted that while the device does perform well, it comes with some bloatware and a highly-customised version of Android. If you are a gamer looking for a powerful device and do not care about the bloatware and the UI, the iQOO Neo 7 Pro is a great option for you.

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