iQOO is back with their latest flagship device, the iQOO 15. Unlike other flagship devices that focus a lot on camera capabilities and performance with various collaborations with photography companies. The iQOO 15 still uses the same identity, which is amazing internal performance to provide a good gaming experience. Continue reading this article for more reviews.
iQOO 15
6.85″ LTPO LEAD AMOLED screen, 144Hz
2K, 1440 x 3168 pixels, Dolby Vision, HDR10+, 6000nits
Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 processor
2 x 4.6 GHz Oryon V3 Phoenix L chips
6 x 3.62 GHz Oryon V3 Phoenix M
Adreno 840 Graphics Chip
RAM 16GB LPDDR5X Ultra Pro
Internal Storage 512GB UFS 4.1
Primary Camera 50MP f/1.8, OIS (Wide Angle)
50MP f/2.0 (Ultra Wide)
50MP f/2.8, OIS (Telephoto 3.5x)
8K@30fps
32MP f/2.4 Selfie Camera
4K 60FPS
7000 mAh SiC battery
FlashCharge wired charging 100W
Wireless charging FlashCharge 40W
Nano SIM/Telephony/eSIM
NFC Yes
Audio jack No
Waterproof IP68/IP69
Scanning system Under-screen fingerprint scanner
Face scanning
Selling price RM 3699 (12/256 GB)
RM 3899 (16/512 GB)
RM 4299 (16/1000 GB)
Design
The design of the iQOO 15 has undergone subtle changes but the difference can be clearly seen because it uses a boxy and flat body. Just like several other flagship devices that use a boxy body this year. For me, this boxy body shape is more pleasant to hold in addition to making the device look more modern. This type of body is also more comfortable during gaming sessions.
Apart from the flat body, the design of the iQOO 15's back panel also caught my attention. This is the latest color for this iQOO called ZEN. This back panel, there are elements of red color like volcanic lava that are beautiful when playing with light. The glass of the back panel and the aluminum frame also use a matte finish that does not easily stick to fingerprints.
This iQOO 15 also still has RGB lights, namely Dynamic Light with the nickname Monster Halo. This is one of the elements that makes this device look like a gaming device in addition to its latest design. Its position has changed under the camera bump compared to the iQOO 13 which is located on the front of the camera bump. For durability, the iQOO 15 has an IP68/69 rating just like several other flagship devices
Screen
The screen is one of the biggest strengths of this iQOO 15. It is equipped with the latest screen in collaboration with Samsung, namely LEAD AMOLED, which is 6.85” in size with 2K resolution. In addition, it has a refresh rate of 144Hz, Dolby Vision, HDR10+ and a maximum brightness of up to 6000nits.
The screen provided is indeed very, very good with beautiful color reproduction. The bezel around this screen is also very thin, even and because it now uses a flat design so there is no overflowing content on the sides. No matter, you want to watch any type of content or in a game session, this screen is able to provide the best display for you.
Throughout the period of use, there were no major issues or problems with this screen. The only small problem I faced was that the large screen size was very difficult to use with one hand, but I can understand because this is a gaming device so it is logical with the size of the screen provided.
The fingerprint scan is also fast because it uses an ultrasonic sensor, I am grateful that most flagship devices now use this sensor. In addition, the iQOO 15 is also equipped with a facial scanning system but I rarely get to use it because fingerprints are faster than facial recognition.
Software
iQOO 15 follows in the footsteps of the vivo X300 series by running the Origin OS 6 operating system based on Android 16 right out of the box. Using Origin OS, iQOO 15 now feels more complete and fresh compared to Funtouch OS.
The experience of using iQOO 15 with Origin OS 6, I can say the same as when using vivo X300 Pro before. The Dynamic Glow interface design looks neat, there are several animations and effects that make the experience of opening and closing applications feel fast. The Dynamic Island feature is also interactive and can do multitasking such as Drag and Go.
There is only one small problem with Origin OS 6, which is the fat applications available on the device. However, I noticed that the number of applications is not as much as when using Funtouch OS before.
In my opinion, after using Origin OS 6 on the vivo X300 Pro and now on the iQOO 15, I feel that Origin OS still cannot compete with ColorOS from OPPO because the experience of using ColorOS is more enjoyable, but I see vivo's efforts to improve Origin OS by providing a large number of updates lately.
iQOO 15 will receive support for 5 Android version updates and 7 years of security patches. Not as long as support offered by Google, Samsung and Honor, but this is still very good for most users.
Performance
The main strength of the iQOO 15 lies in its performance. This device uses the latest and most powerful Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip. Not only that, iQOO also adds its own graphics chip, the Supercomputing Chip Q3. In addition, it also comes with 16GB LPDDR5X Ultra Pro and the use of UFS 4.1 storage. The specifications offered are indeed quite good for daily use or gaming.
Specifications that are very prominent this year. Therefore it is very compatible compared to the devices and chips below.
Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 – Honor Magic8 Pro
Dimensity 9500 – Vivo X300 Pro
Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 – OnePlus 15
Tensor G5 – Google Pixel 10 Pro XL
Dimensity 9500 – Oppo Find X9 Pro
Apple A19 Pro – Apple iPhone 17 Pro
Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy – Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra
MediaTek Dimensity 9400 – Oppo Find X8 Pro
AnTuTu 3D
Chip Score
iQOO 15 3,726,305
Honor Magic8 Pro 3,424,247
Vivo X300 Pro 3,507,869
OnePlus 15 3,720,096
Google Pixel 10 Pro 1,214,735
Oppo Find X9 Pro 3,472,342
Apple iPhone 17 Pro 2,634,345
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra 1,946,864
Oppo Find X8 Pro 2,629,017
Geekbench 6
Single Core Multi Core Chip
iQOO 15 3480 9789
Honor Magic8 Pro 3587 9853
Vivo X300 Pro 3507 10469
OnePlus 15 3553 10484
Google Pixel 10 Pro 2303 6134
Oppo Find X9 Pro 3158 9298
Apple iPhone 17 Pro 3560 8835
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra 2957 9435
Oppo Find X8 Pro 2663 8959
3DMark Wildlife Extreme
Chip Score
iQOO 15 6788
Honor Magic8 Pro 7659
Vivo X300 Pro 7075
OnePlus 15 6741
Google Pixel 10 Pro 3266
Oppo Find X9 Pro 6127
Apple iPhone 17 Pro 5873
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra 6135
Oppo Find X8 Pro 6251
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 on the Magic8 Pro is competitive with the one used in the OnePlus 15 and the Dimensity 9500 on the Vivo X300. The device can run common apps without issues and games like Genshin Impact, and COD Mobile on high settings without any issues. There were no serious heating issues during the review period. Just lukewarm after 30 minutes.
If the benchmark score is showing very high values, it already indicates that everyday use on this device also feels very fast. Although this chip is more powerful on paper, in real use it feels like there is no significant difference with the Dimensity 9500. The iQOO 15 also does not heat up too much during long gaming sessions because it uses a cooling system
What gives the iQOO 15 a little difference from other flagship devices is the first gaming experience on this device. The use of the Q3 Supercomputing chip provides a new experience during gaming sessions. For example, you can play in 2K resolution which makes the game look sharper and increases the frame rate to 144FPS even though basically games like PUBG Mobile can only reach up to 72FPS. However, this feature can only be activated for a few games such as PUBG Mobile, MLBB and Genshin Impact.
In addition, iQOO also introduced the Ray Tracing feature which was previously famous for PC Gaming for smartphones. This feature has not yet been widely used on the iQOO 15 because it is still limited to Genshin Impact only. The result is not like PC gaming because it looks like the contrast in the game is only added. It can be said that this Ray Tracing feature is quite interesting but still immature. Furthermore, if you activate this ray tracing feature, the Super Resolution and Frame Rate features cannot be used.
Left: Without Ray Tracing | Right: With Ray Tracing
Camera
This time iQOO has given a better upgrade to the camera on this iQOO 15. All lenses use the same megapixel value of 50MP. The main lens uses a Sony IMX921 sensor with a relatively large size. The telephoto lens has changed to a telephoto periscope with 3x optical zoom with a maximum zoom of up to 100x. The ultra-wide lens is still the same and has not improved with the previous model.
To be honest, I don't have high expectations for the performance of the iQOO 13's camera because I understand that the main purpose of this device is its internal performance. However, the image results are quite good for a device that is not focused on photography. The main lens can produce sharp and detailed images. Even though there is no collaboration with a photography company, iQOO still provides several image filter options.
The telephoto lens also has image quality that is more or less the same as the main lens in terms of color reproduction and detail at 3x optical zoom. However, I noticed that the image will be over-processed at zooms above 3x, causing the colors to look like watercolors. Although it can zoom up to 100x, I don't recommend using it because the image results are not usable at all.
The ultra-wide lens is nothing too special because it still uses the same sensor as before, so the image production is also quite adequate for users who are not too focused on photography. Although the iQOO 15 has a slight improvement in photography, I feel that it is still not enough to compete with some other flagship devices.
Battery
iQOO 15 is equipped with a 7000 mAh battery that uses SiC technology. This large battery capacity can certainly provide daily use without any problems. Moderately heavy use such as playing with the camera, several MLBB and PUBG Mobile game sessions and watching a movie can still get SoT around 8-9 hours.
For charging, iQOO provides 100W FlashCharge in the box which is actually a little slower than the previous iQOO 13 which used 120W FlashCharge. However, this time iQOO 15 is equipped with 40W FlashCharge wireless charging. The Bypass Charging feature is still maintained for this game-focused device.
Audio
iQOO 15 is equipped with stereo speakers as a complement to the gaming device. The audio quality produced is better when compared to the vivo X300 Pro. The audio produced is balanced because the second speaker is located at the top of the device so it can produce sound as loud as the speaker at the bottom. However, it feels a little lacking in dynamics when playing again but in a PUBG game session the sound is very good.
What's In The Box
Here's what's included in the box we received:
1 x iQOO 15
1 x USB-C to USB-C Cable
1 x USB-C 100W FlashCharge Charger
1 x Frame
1 x User Manual.
1 x SIM Ejector.
Conclusion
If you're looking for a gaming device that's full of extra features to provide a satisfying experience, you can consider this iQOO 15. All the flagship specifications are complete on this iQOO 15 except for the camera performance. In terms of internal performance, it can compete with various other flagship devices. The use of Origin OS 6 also gives a fresh new breath to this iQOO 15. Simply put, this iQOO 15 is the best device if you're looking for a device that has amazing internal performance.
Pros
Bright and smooth 144Hz display.
A flagship chip with solid performance.
Fresh OriginOS with interesting AI features.
7000 mAh battery lasts all day.
100W wired and 40W wireless fast charging.
Cons
Camera is less than satisfactory.
Software support is shorter than competitors.
