iQOO Z7 hands-on review – News GSMArena.com

iQOO unveiled the iQOO Z7 in India earlier this week and followed it up with another Z7 in China, which has different specs. The Chinese Z7 is not yet on sale, but the Indian Z7 is already available for purchase. It starts at INR 18,999 ($230/€215) and comes with two color options – Norway Blue and Pacific Night. We spent some time there and here are our impressions.

Let’s first check out the retail box of the iQOO Z7, which is similar in design to the higher-end iQOO number series packages, but has a smaller footprint. It includes a SIM eject tool, protective case, USB-C cable, 44W power adapter, and the usual paperwork.

The iQOO Z7 is built around a 6.38-inch FullHD+ AMOLED display with a 90Hz screen refresh rate and 1300 nits peak brightness. The display is protected by Schott Xensation Glass and has a fingerprint scanner underneath, which we found quick and accurate in the short time we’ve spent with the phone, although we wish it had be placed a little higher for easier access.

While we like iQOO for offering an in-display fingerprint reader on the Z7 instead of using a side-mounted scanner like some other brands do despite their phones containing AMOLED panels, we don’t like the shaped notch as much. teardrop hole for the 16MP selfie camera instead of a punch hole like its Chinese counterpart. It seems dated 2023.

In contrast, the iQOO Z7’s display supports HDR10+ and the phone comes with Widevine L1 certification, enabling 1080p video streaming on OTT apps. Talking about the screen refresh rate, you get three options under the iQOO Z7s Settings > Display and Brightness > Screen refresh rate menu – 60Hz, 90Hz and Smart Switch.

The former keeps the locked screen refresh rate at 60Hz all the time, while 90Hz mode boosts the refresh rate to 90Hz in supported apps. Smart Switch mode also increases the refresh rate to 90Hz, but it doesn’t bring it back to 60Hz when you’re not interacting with the screen, which is odd since other iQOO phones reduce the refresh rate after a few seconds of inactivity in this mode. This could be a bug, and we hope it will be fixed soon.

Some apps, including Google Photos, stay at 90Hz in 90Hz mode but switch to 60Hz in Smart Switch mode whether or not you interact with the screen. Therefore, we suggest sticking to 90Hz mode for the smoothest scrolling experience.

Flip the iQOO Z7 over and you see a two-step rectangular camera island spanning just over 50% of the width of the panel. The top plate has a glossy finish and houses the 64MP main camera with OIS and 2MP depth sensor. The second has a matte finish and sports an LED flash.

The Z7’s camera island causes it to wobble on flat surfaces, and the bundled case doesn’t fix it.

The back panel of the iQOO Z7 is plastic, but it barely caught any fingerprints during our use. The back cover of our Norway Blue version has a glitter pattern and reflects several colors from different angles, which is pretty cool. However, the flat design might not be preferred by everyone, and we too would have the back with curved edges for better grip and ergonomics. Either way, the Norway Blue model of the iQOO Z7 is a look, and we love it.

The overall build of the iQOO Z7 is decent, with the volume rocker and power key clicky enough.

Ports and controls

Speaking of hardware, the Indian iQOO Z7 has the Dimensity 920 SoC under the hood with up to 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, expandable up to 1TB via microSD card. The smartphone is running Funtouch operating system based on Android 13 with the February 2023 Android security patch. However, a software update that required a download of around 320MB brought it up to the level of March 2023. iQOO promised three years of security updates and two years of Android version upgrades, meaning the Z7 will eventually receive Android 15.

Like most other iQOO smartphones, the Z7 also comes pre-installed with third-party apps, and luckily the majority of them can be uninstalled if you don’t want them.

The whole package is powered by a 4,500mAh battery charged via USB-C at up to 45W. It is advertised to go from 1% to 50% in 25 minutes and 100% in 64 minutes. The rest of the highlights of the iQOO Z7 include Motion Control, an IP54 rating, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and Wi-Fi 6.

The 6GB/128GB model of the iQOO Z7 is priced at INR 18,999 ($230/€215) and the 8GB/128GB version at INR 19,999 ($240/€225). You can buy it from iQOO India official website and Amazon.in. Note that this Z7 will remain exclusive to India, and the Snapdragon 782G-powered variant, which is currently available in China, is expected to debut in Malaysia soon. You can head this way to check the detailed specification comparison of Chinese and Indian iQOO Z7 models.