To say that iQOO made a splash in the Indian smartphone market last year would be a bit of an understatement. Not only did the brand offer compelling, well-rounded handsets in the affordable segment, but the company’s flagship killers spared no expense in the performance department, and brought a handful of segment-first features to the table too.
Given iQOO’s pedigree to squeeze every ounce of value out of its mid-range offerings, I couldn’t help but wonder what the company could do in the premium segment. Enter, the iQOO 9 Pro, the brand’s grandest smartphone to date. The device was recently launched in India and is the first phone in the country to feature Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 mobile platform. I managed to get my hands on a unit and here’s what I make of it.
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Verdict
The iQOO 9 Pro is the first smartphone from the company in the premium space. For the price, the device gets a lot right, however, lacks some notable features that would’ve otherwise assured the phone a place amidst the best flagship phones in the country.
Design
iQOO has a penchant for making good-looking phones and the brand’s latest contender looks like a million dollars too. The smartphone has been constructed in parts using glass and metal and the handset’s design exudes elegance. The back of the phone, for instance, features a ginormous camera bump which, for some, could be too flashy or over the top. However, I find the contrast between the camera module and the phone’s otherwise white back quite appealing. A fringe benefit of the same is that the device doesn’t wobble on a flat surface either, which is great.
That’s not all, as the phone comes draped in the iconic BMW colourway which debuted with the iQOO 7 Legend (review). However, this time around, the back of the phone features a subtle carbon fibre pattern, which further accentuates the iQOO 9 Pro’s good looks. What’s more, the bundled case is a spitting image of the phone’s design, thereby allowing users to flaunt the smartphone whilst keeping it safe from accidental drops at the same time.
