iQOO Z9s Pro
iQOO has expanded its popular Z9 series with the introduction of two ‘s’ models: the iQOO Z9s and iQOO Z9s Pro. Aimed primarily at young multitaskers such as college students and young professionals, the Z9s Pro promises a blend of performance, design, and features. After using the smartphone for about a month, we’ve gathered our insights on its various aspects. Here’s our detailed review.
Design
The iQOO Z9s Pro is strikingly designed around a 6.77-inch curved AMOLED display. With a resolution of 2,392 x 1,080 pixels, it boasts a 120 Hz refresh rate and an impressive 4,500 nits peak brightness, making it suitable for both indoor and outdoor use. The display features a centered punch-hole for the 16MP selfie camera, and a fingerprint reader embedded beneath the screen ensures quick biometric authentication.
While the fingerprint scanner is generally fast and reliable, its positioning could be improved. A slightly higher placement would enhance accessibility, especially during one-handed use.
Flipping the phone over reveals a unique squircle-shaped camera island, reminiscent of the iQOO 12, albeit larger. This design prevents the device from wobbling on flat surfaces. The camera setup includes a 50MP primary and an 8MP ultrawide camera, accompanied by a circular flash.
The Z9s Pro is available in two colors: Luxe Marble and Flamboyant Orange. The Luxe Marble model features a glossy, marble-like pattern, while the Flamboyant Orange variant introduces a vegan leather back, which adds grip and resists fingerprints. Despite the Luxe Marble model’s tendency to attract smudges, they are not immediately visible, maintaining a cleaner appearance.
Both models carry an IP64 rating, ensuring resistance to dust and splashes. The device’s curved edges and lightweight construction make it comfortable for prolonged use. The reflective frames of the Z9s Pro enhance its aesthetics, while the right-side frame hosts the volume rocker and power button. At the bottom, you’ll find a USB-C port, a SIM card slot, a primary microphone, and a speaker grille, with a secondary microphone located at the top. The inclusion of stereo speakers enhances the multimedia experience.
Display
The 6.77-inch curved AMOLED display is a highlight of the iQOO Z9s Pro. The 120 Hz refresh rate allows for smoother scrolling and animations, while the 300 Hz touch sampling rate ensures responsiveness during interactions. iQOO claims an instant touch sampling rate of 2,000 Hz in its Ultra Game Mode, which is designed for faster touch response during gaming sessions. Popular games such as Garena Free Fire, Mobile Legends, Call of Duty: Mobile, and Genshin Impact benefit from this feature.
With support for 1.07 billion colors, the display excels in vividness and contrast, supporting HDR10, HDR10+, and HLG codecs. The Widevine L1 certification allows for 1080p video streaming on compatible apps, making it a solid choice for media consumption.
However, while the display is rated for 4,500 nits peak brightness, our tests revealed that outdoor legibility was subpar, requiring us to cover the screen to read content under direct sunlight. Additionally, the Always-On Display feature isn’t truly “always on,” activating only with a tap or slight movement, which may disappoint users expecting constant visibility.
The Z9s Pro offers multiple refresh rate modes—Smart Switch, Standard (60 Hz), and High (120 Hz)—allowing users to choose the best setting for their usage. The Smart Switch mode adapts the refresh rate dynamically, optimizing battery performance while maintaining a smooth user experience.
Software and Performance
Under the hood, the iQOO Z9s Pro is powered by the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 SoC, paired with up to 12GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 256GB of UFS 2.2 storage. Our review unit featured the highest configuration, running on Android 14 with Funtouch OS 14.
iQOO promises two years of Android version upgrades and three years of security updates, although the frequency of these updates remains unspecified. The software experience mirrors that of the iQOO 12, with an intuitive interface that is mostly smooth. However, we did experience occasional stutters during app switching, which could be improved.
Notably, the App Retainer feature, aimed at minimizing app refresh when switching, does not support some popular apps like Facebook, resulting in unwanted refreshes. This is an area iQOO needs to address to enhance user satisfaction.
Performance-wise, the iQOO Z9s Pro excels in gaming, handling heavy titles like Call of Duty: Mobile and Real Racing 3 with ease. It remains cool even during extended sessions, and features like 4D Game Vibration and AI Game Voice Changer enhance the gaming experience, although current support for 4D Game Vibration is limited.
Benchmark Performance
In benchmark tests, the iQOO Z9s Pro showed competitive performance:
- GeekBench: Multi-core score of 3,181, single-core score lower than competitors.
- AnTuTu Score: Score of 641,476, placing it well within its segment.
- 3DMark: Achieved a score of 5,351 in Wild Life tests, demonstrating capable graphics performance.
Camera
The iQOO Z9s Pro features a versatile camera system: a 16MP front camera and dual rear cameras consisting of a 50MP primary and an 8MP ultrawide. The front camera supports 1080p video recording at 30 FPS, while the primary camera, equipped with Optical Image Stabilization (OIS), can record in 720p, 1080p, and 4K at 30 FPS.
Daylight Performance
In daylight conditions, the primary camera captures sharp images with good color reproduction, though it occasionally struggles in high-contrast situations. The High-Res mode sometimes yields dull colors and reduced sharpness, particularly in shadows.
The ultrawide camera, while useful for capturing wider scenes, can introduce noise in images, especially in lower light conditions. However, portrait mode performance is commendable, offering good subject separation and detail.
Night Photography
Nighttime photography with the primary camera reveals mixed results. Some images display a purple tint, and colors can be inconsistent between modes. The High-Res mode often shows more detail in shadows but can introduce noise. Overall, low-light performance is decent for social media sharing, but the ultrawide camera lags behind in quality.
AI Features
The camera includes AI-powered features like AI Photo Enhance and AI Erase, which can improve image quality and remove unwanted elements. The Smart Circle function of AI Erase effectively identifies and removes objects, although results can vary.
Battery Life
The iQOO Z9s Pro is powered by a 5,500 mAh battery and supports 80W wired charging and 7.5W reverse wired charging. In our usage tests, the device comfortably lasts a full day with moderate use, including web browsing, social media, and gaming.
Charging speeds, however, were slightly disappointing compared to advertised claims. In practice, the phone charged from 1% to 100% in about 52 minutes, with the speed varying based on usage conditions.
Conclusion
The iQOO Z9s Pro stands out as one of the most competitive smartphones in its price segment, starting at INR 24,999 ($300/€275) in India. With a stylish design, solid performance, impressive battery life, and competent camera capabilities, it is an appealing choice for young users.
While there are areas for improvement, particularly in camera consistency and software support longevity, the Z9s Pro provides excellent value for money and should be a strong contender for anyone seeking a feature-rich smartphone.