iQOO Neo 7 5G Review with Pros, Cons, and Verdict

Vivo is back, oh, sorry, iQOO is back with another gaming smartphone that offers real value to certain types of people. So let’s find out whether you should spend 30k on this device or not.

The iQOO Neo 7 5G price in India starts from Rs 29,999 for 8GB of Ram and 128GB of storage while 12GB of Ram and 256GB of storage is priced at Rs 33,999. The device comes in Frost blue and Interstellar black color options while it’s available for purchase on Amazon India.

iQOO Neo 7 5G Review

Yes, definitely iQOO Neo 7 5G is worth buying for those who wanted to buy the best gaming smartphone under Rs 30,000 but if gaming is not your highest priority then kindly stay away from this device.

iQOO Neo 7 5G Pros and Cons

PROS	CONS
120Hz Refresh Rate	Plastic Build
Super Bright 1300nits Panel	No Ultra-Wide Lens
The Best For Gaming with 90Fps support	Average Cameras
Superfast Ram and Storage	Filled with Bloatware
120W Fast Charging	Ads here and there within the OS
8 5G Bands
Well Balanced Stereo Speakers

Display

The iQOO Neo 7 5G comes with a 6.78-inches 120Hz AMOLED panel with a resolution of 1080 x 2400 pixels and a pick brightness of 1300 nits.

The in-display fingerprint sensor works like a charm, it’s as good as any other optical sensor. There is also the Always on Display option which again has tons of customization as it runs on Fun Touch OS.

What I’m saying is, the phone has a solid display and you won’t face any kind of problems while playing games or even using a smartphone outdoors.

The problem is built quality,

This is a Rs 30,000 smartphone and yet, it has a plastic frame & back while there is no mention of what kind of glass they have used on the front.

Related: 5 Best Smartphones Under Rs 30000

So yes, the build quality is not up to the mark as it should have been, just like the display.

Luckily, iQOO has added Widevine L1 support along with HDR support which means, you will be able to watch FHD+ movies on almost all the OTT platforms without any issues.

Overall, the display quality is rock solid while the build is not as good as its price tag.

Performance

iQOO has made tons of compromises for the processor, so if you wanted to buy the best gaming smartphone under Rs 30,000 then your search ends here, consider buying iQOO Neo 7 5G for gaming only.

Mediatek Dimensity 8200 is a powerful processor built on 4 nm architecture which means, it will provide faster performance along with longer battery life.

iQOO has also partnered with PUBG New State for 90fps gaming. So if you’re a fan of PUBG New State then it’s good news.

The 90fps mode will be there on other games too but iQOO has only mentioned the PUBG New State.

The phone also has 2396 mm2 of vapor chamber (VC) and a 3D graphite structure, now what does that mean?

Related: Best Smartphones Under Rs 25,000

It simply means the phone won’t get hot in summer, also the Mediatek Dimensity 8200 is well optimized SoC, so an extra layer will make the device even more cooler.

IQOO has also added 8 5G bands which include the n1, n3, n5, n8, n28A, n41, n77, and n78.

Overall, when it comes to performance, iQOO Neo 7 5G is a beast and you will get the best possible speed whether in gaming or in day-to-day usage.

Cameras

If iQOO has put all the money in a processor then what did they lose? the answer is CAMERAS…

Now, iQOO is a mobile company but it’s a mobile gaming company, so they will cut down lots of things to provide faster performance.

Still, let’s talk about the cameras, a little bit,

The iQOO Neo 7 5G comes with 64MP primary sensor with OIS, a massive 2MP macro, and a bigger 2MP depth sensor while there is a 16MP primary sensor on the front.

The rear cameras can shoot videos in 4k@30/60fps while the front can shoot at only 1080p@30fps.

The OIS does help a lot when shooting videos but keep in mind, OIS doesn’t work well in 4k@30/60fps, so to get better stabilization, always use the 1080p@30/60fps.

The colors are the same as last year’s iQOO Neo 6 5G, nothing has changed, and the only change is missing the ultra-wide lens.

Now, low-light photography or even Videography has always been a weak part of iQOO and the same does reflect in iQOO Neo 7 5G.

I’m hoping that iQOO will improve the cameras, just like Nothing did with Nothing Phone 1.

Do note that, the cameras are not 100% reliable, sometimes, the sensor takes the best images under sunlight, and sometimes, it feels like, is this a 30k smartphone or 10k?

The 64MP primary sensor is more than capable to take the best images, the only problem is, the software.

That, 2MP+2MP sensors are diamonds and you will get the perfect images, so I’m not wasting my or your time talking about it. (sarcasm, if in case)

Coming to the 16MP selfie shooter, again, it has the same color science as Vivo Phones. For those who don’t know, the front camera produces social media-ready images which means, you won’t have to edit or do anything with images, just take a selfie and post the same on social media.

Related: 5 Best Gaming Smartphones Under Rs 20,000

Again, the selfie images are white and vibrant, just like Vivo smartphones.

All in all, the iQOO Neo 7 5G doesn’t have world-class cameras nor they are decent, feels like iQOO didn’t do much work on them nonetheless, as this is a gaming smartphone, one should not judge the cameras.

You should know that you will never get a perfect smartphone, you will have to choose one or two features. In the case of the iQOO Neo 7 5G, the phone has a solid battery and a powerful processor but it misses out on cameras, a big time.

Check out the camera samples of IQOO Neo 7 5G (Raw images – G drive)

Audio

No 3.5mm Audio Port but iQOO has provided the Type-C to 3.5mm Audio Connector.

The stereo speakers work well and they’re as good as any other speakers, the 40% of the volume comes from the top speaker while the remaining comes from the bottom speaker.

The Carrier Aggregation does work well, no issue there along with that there is support for dual 5G.

Battery

The 5,000mAh battery will last for two days if you’re a normal user but if you’re a gamer who plays games for hours then get ready to use that 120W charger every day which will take about 26 minutes to charge from 0% to 100%.

The 120W charger is provided in the box, so no need to buy a new charger from anywhere.

Verdict

iQOO Neo 7 5G Specifications

Price	8GB Ram + 128GB storage: Rs 29,999 12GB Ram + 256GB storage: Rs 33,999
Available On	Amazon
Display	6.78-inches Display AMOLED AMOLED Panel HDR10+ Support 120Hz Screen Refresh Rate 1300 nits pick the brightness Always on 388PPI density 87.6% screen-to-body ratio
Resolution	1080 x 2400  pixels resolution
Dimensions	164.8 x 76.9 x 8.6 mm
Build	Glass front, Plastic back Plastic frame
OS	Android 13 – Fun Touch 13 2 Years of OS Updates 3 Years of Security Updates
Chipset	Chipset: Mediatek Dimensity 8200 (4 nm) GPU: Mali-G610 MC6 CPU: Octa-core (1×3.1 GHz Cortex-A78 & 3×3.0 GHz Cortex-A78 & 4×2.0 GHz Cortex-A55) 90fps Gaming Enabled
Storage Options	8GB Ram + 128GB Storage 16GB Ram + 256GB Storage LPDDR5 Ram UFS 3.1 Storage (On 128GB)
SD-Card Slot	No, only 2 SIM
Rear Cameras	64MP Primary Sensor (f/1.8) – OIS 2MP Macro (f/2.4) 2MP Depth (f/2.4) Video 4k@30/60fps 1080p@30/60fps Camera Samples
Front Camera	16MP Selfie Shooter (f/2.5) Video 1080p@30fps
3.5mm Jack	No
Stereo Speakers	Yes
Carrier Aggregation	Yes, 4 x 4 MIMO.
Bluetooth Version	5.3
FM Radio	No
NFC	Yes
5G Support	Yes, 8 5G Bands SA: n1, n3, n5, n8, n28A, n41, n77, and n78 NSA: n41, n77, and n78
Sensors	In-display Fingerprint Sensor Accelerometer, Ambient light sensor, Proximity Sensor, E-compass, Gyroscope, Infrared
Fingerprint Sensor	In-Display Fingerprint Sensor
Battery	5,000mAh (non-removable) 120W Wired Fast Charging 0% to 50% in 10 Minutes 0% to 100% in 26 Minutes
Colors	Frost blue and Interstellar black
Weight	193 Gram
Performance Score	–
In the box	iQOO Neo 7 5G 120W SUPERVOOC Power Adapter Type-C to 3.5mm Audio Connector Safety Information and Warranty Card Protective Case SIM Tray Ejector

Image Credit: Harshit Technical