iQOO unveiled the iQOO Z7 in India earlier this week and adopted up with one other Z7 in China, which has totally different specs. The Chinese language Z7 is but to go on sale, however the Indian Z7 is already accessible for buy. It begins at INR18,999 ($230/€215) and has two colour choices – Norway Blue and Pacific Night time. We spent a while with it and listed here are our impressions.
Let’s verify the iQOO Z7’s retail field first, whose design is much like the extra premium iQOO quantity sequence’ packages, however has a smaller footprint. It features a SIM ejector instrument, a protecting case, a USB-C cable, a 44W energy adapter, and the standard paperwork.
The iQOO Z7 is constructed round a 6.38″ FullHD+ AMOLED display screen with a 90Hz display screen refresh charge and 1,300 nits peak brightness. The show is protected by Schott Xensation Glass and has a fingerprint scanner beneath, which we discovered to be quick and correct within the quick time we spent with the cellphone. Though we might have appreciated it to be positioned a tad increased for ease of attain.
Whereas we admire iQOO for providing an in-display fingerprint reader on the Z7 as an alternative of going with a side-mounted scanner like another manufacturers do regardless of their telephones packing AMOLED panels, we aren’t as keen on the waterdrop notch for the 16MP selfie digital camera as an alternative of a punch gap like its Chinese language counterpart. This feels dated in 2023.
On the upside, the iQOO Z7’s show helps HDR10+ and the cellphone comes with Widevine L1 certification, enabling 1080p video streaming on OTT apps. Speaking concerning the display screen refresh charge, you get three choices beneath the iQOO Z7’s Settings > Show & brightness > Display screen refresh charges menu – 60Hz, 90Hz, and Sensible Swap.
The primary one retains the display screen refresh charge locked at 60Hz on a regular basis, whereas the 90Hz mode bumps up the refresh charge to 90Hz in supported apps. The Sensible Swap mode additionally will increase the refresh charge to 90Hz, however it would not deliver it again to 60Hz once you aren’t interacting with the display screen, which is bizarre since different iQOO telephones decrease the refresh charge after just a few seconds of inactivity on this mode. This could possibly be a bug, and we hope it is going to be fastened quickly.
Some apps, together with Google Images, stay at 90Hz within the 90Hz mode however swap to 60Hz in Sensible Swap mode no matter whether or not you might be interacting with the display screen or not. Therefore, we recommend you keep on with the 90Hz mode for the smoothest scrolling expertise potential.
Flip the iQOO Z7 round, and also you see an oblong two-step digital camera island protecting barely greater than 50% of the panel’s width. The highest plate has a shiny end and homes the 64MP main digital camera with OIS and 2MP depth sensor. The second has a matte end and sports activities an LED flash.
The Z7’s digital camera island causes it to wobble on flat surfaces, and the bundled case would not repair it.
The iQOO Z7’s rear panel is made from plastic, however it hardly attracted any fingerprint smudges throughout our utilization. The again cowl of our Norway Blue model has a glittery sample and displays a number of colours at totally different angles, which appears to be like fairly cool. Nonetheless, the flat design will not be most popular by everybody, and we, too, would have the again with curved edges for a greater dealing with and ergonomic expertise. Regardless, the iQOO Z7’s Norway Blue mannequin is a looker, and we prefer it.
The general construct of the iQOO Z7 is respectable, with the quantity rocker and energy key being clicky sufficient.
Ports and controls
Speaking concerning the {hardware}, the Indian iQOO Z7 has the Dimensity 920 SoC beneath the hood with as much as 8GB RAM and 128GB storage, expandable as much as 1TB through a microSD card. The smartphone runs Android 13-based Funtouch OS out of the field with the February 2023 Android safety patch. Nonetheless, a software program replace requiring a obtain of about 320MB bumped it as much as March 2023 stage. iQOO has promised three years of safety updates and two years of Android model upgrades, which means the Z7 will obtain Android 15 finally.
Like most different iQOO smartphones, the Z7 additionally comes pre-installed with third-party apps, and thankfully, nearly all of them will be uninstalled if you do not need them.
Fueling all the package deal is a 4,500 mAh battery charged by a USB-C port at as much as 45W. It is marketed to go from 1% to 50% in 25 minutes and 100% in 64 minutes. The remainder of the iQOO Z7’s highlights embrace Movement Management, an IP54 ranking, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and Wi-Fi 6.
The iQOO Z7’s 6GB/128GB mannequin is priced at INR18,999 ($230/€215) and the 8GB/128GB model at INR19,999 ($240/€225). You should buy it from iQOO India’s official web site and Amazon.in. Be aware that this Z7 will stay unique to India, and the Snapdragon 782G-powered variant, which is at present accessible in China, is predicted to debut in Malaysia quickly. You may head this solution to verify the detailed specs comparability of the Chinese language and Indian iQOO Z7 fashions.
