iQOO 9 5G

Vivo makes some of the most stylish phones on the market right now, and the iQoo 9 Legend Edition is no exception. The design inspired by BMW M Motorsport is the most striking feature of the Legend Edition of the 9 Pro. It has a white carbon fiber finish that catches the light and looks sleek and high-end overall. If the racing-inspired colorway isn't for you, the iQoo 9 Dark Cruise – Vivo's fancy term for basic black – is. Both phones come with matching protective cases to keep them safe from bumps and falls. 

Source: IQOO 9

The back of the phone has a large camera module that spans the width of the phone, which is one of the most noticeable design differences between the model and the older iQoo 7 Legend. It is a slim device at 8.83mm thick, but it is on the taller side – something to consider if you need to slip the phone into small pockets or bag compartments. While this is a gaming phone from Vivo, it does not have a typical gaming design. You won't find any of the extra buttons and triggers found on the Asus ROG line.

The camera configuration is what distinguishes the iQoo 9 Legend from other gaming phones on the market right now. Vivo's technology is always quite solid, and while the photography isn't quite as good as what we've seen on the top-end X70 range, it's still not bad. The phone is equipped with three cameras. A 50Mp main camera with GN5 gimbal stabilization leads the way. A 50Mp wide-angle 'fisheye' camera and a 16Mp 'portrait' camera - aka a telephoto - round out the package.The main camera performs admirably, producing realistic-looking textures and letting in the maximum amount of light even when photos are taken in low-light conditions. It had some issues with the sun getting in the way of the shot, as well as with moving subjects like animals. However, overall, it was simple and easy to get a good shot with the iQoo 9.

The ultra-wide camera was also impressive, with a 150-degree field of view. When compared to the main sensor, this loses some color and depth, but it's not a significant difference from what you'd find on cheaper handsets. There's also the option to use the camera in fisheye mode, among other unusual shooting modes.

The iQoo 9 has a 4700mAh battery, which is small in the world of gaming phones. The phone scored a respectable 12 hours and 25 minutes in our internal battery tests using PCMark for Android. This score translates to real life, as I was able to use the phone for gaming, social media, and watching videos for about a day and a half. The phone can charge extremely quickly thanks to 120W charging speeds. It's the fastest speed we've ever tested. A 15-minute charge increased it to 94 percent, indicating that even a five-minute charge before leaving the house will provide you with enough power for the day. These charging speeds are only available on a small number of phones, so this is a significant advantage for the iQoo 9.

The iQoo 9 is powered by a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, Qualcomm's most recent flagship chip at the time of writing. This chip is only found in a few phones on the market, including the Samsung Galaxy S22 series (in the US, that is). The chip is paired with 8 or 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM and 256GB of storage. I put the 12GB configuration to the test. The phone can also connect to 5G networks. The iQoo 9 performs admirably on a daily basis. It can easily multitask, with no lag when using social media, watching videos, and messaging at the same time.It can also handle some fairly demanding games, with Call of Duty Mobile running smoothly even on the highest graphics settings.
The Vivo iQoo 9 Legend has a lot to like, including a flagship chip, decent gaming performance, an enviable rear camera, a bold design, and one of the fastest charging speeds on the market right now.When used vigorously, it can get quite hot, and the lack of an IP rating may be a source of concern for some. This is also a device for more casual gamers, as the lack of triggers and extra buttons may irritate others.