A Design That Has Aged Gracefully
One of the things I appreciated from day one was the phone’s size, and that hasn’t changed. At a time when many performance-focused smartphones feel unnecessarily large and bulky, the iQOO 15R strikes a nice balance. It’s compact enough to use comfortably with one hand while still offering a large display for gaming and media consumption.
The Dark Knight color deserves special mention. Unlike glossy finishes that quickly become fingerprint magnets, the matte fibreglass back has remained clean throughout my usage. Even after months of carrying it in my pocket and placing it on different surfaces, it still looks almost as good as new. The finish also provides enough grip that I rarely felt the need to use the bundled case.
The metal frame continues to feel reassuringly premium, while the buttons remain tactile with no signs of becoming loose over time. Despite packing a massive 7,600mAh battery, the phone never feels excessively heavy, and the weight distribution is excellent. The IP68 and IP69 ratings also provide peace of mind during unexpected rain or accidental splashes.
A Display That’s Still Among the Best
The 6.59-inch AMOLED display with superslim bezels all around remains one of my favorite aspects of the iQOO 15R. It’s still a joy to look at whether I’m catching up on YouTube videos, scrolling through social media, editing photos, or playing games.
The panel is sharp, colors are vibrant without appearing overly saturated, and outdoor visibility has never been an issue. Even under harsh sunlight, I rarely found myself struggling to read messages or navigate using Google Maps.
The 144Hz refresh rate continues to make everyday interactions feel incredibly fluid. More importantly, the experience hasn’t changed after months of software updates. Animations remain smooth, touch response is excellent, and the ultrasonic fingerprint scanner continues to unlock the phone almost instantly. It’s one of those features that spoils you to the point where switching back to an optical fingerprint sensor feels like a downgrade.
Performance That Refuses to Slow Down
If there’s one reason to buy the iQOO 15R even today, it’s performance. Many Android phones start showing small signs of ageing after a few months. Apps take slightly longer to open, animations occasionally stutter, and multitasking becomes less reliable. Thankfully, that hasn’t been my experience with the iQOO 15R.
Whether it’s juggling dozens of Chrome tabs, editing images, switching between social media apps, or handling a busy workday filled with emails and messaging apps, the phone continues to feel as responsive as it did on day one.
Gaming remains one of its strongest suits. BGMI, Call of Duty: Mobile, and other demanding titles run effortlessly with consistently smooth frame rates. Even during longer gaming sessions, the phone manages heat well thanks to its cooling system. It certainly gets warm, but never to the point where it becomes uncomfortable to hold or starts throttling noticeably.
Another pleasant surprise has been the haptics. It’s not something you consciously think about every day, but every vibration, keyboard press, and notification feels tight and precise, adding to the overall premium experience. Perhaps the biggest compliment I can give the iQOO 15R is this: after four months, I’ve never felt that the phone was slowing me down. It simply gets out of the way and lets me focus on what I’m doing.
Battery Life Continues to Impress
If performance is the iQOO 15R’s biggest strength, battery life is a close second. Despite packing a massive 7,600mAh battery, the phone measures just 7.9mm thick and weighs around 205 grams, making it surprisingly comfortable to use every day.
On most days, I comfortably finish with plenty of charge remaining despite heavy use involving messaging, photography, social media, YouTube, navigation, and gaming. On lighter days, stretching the phone into a second day is still entirely possible. That consistency is what makes the battery so impressive. I never find myself worrying about charging before leaving home or carrying a power bank during the day.
The included 100W charger also deserves praise. Even with such a large battery, charging never feels like a lengthy affair. Whenever I do need to top up, the phone is ready to go again surprisingly quickly.
OriginOS Has Matured Nicely
Software has probably seen the biggest improvement since launch. OriginOS feels polished, animations remain fluid, and the overall experience is considerably cleaner than older versions of Vivo and iQOO’s software. Day-to-day navigation feels fast, app switching is seamless, and the high refresh rate complements the software beautifully.
There are still a few pre-installed apps that I’d rather not see, but thankfully, most of them can be removed within minutes. Some AI features are genuinely useful, particularly photo editing tools like AI Erase and Image Expansion. Others feel more like nice-to-have additions that I rarely use after the initial curiosity wears off.
The biggest positive is that software updates haven’t negatively affected performance or battery life. If anything, the phone feels even more refined today than it did when I first started using it. Another good thing is that it is promised to receive four major Android OS upgrades and six years of security updates. My review unit has also received the June security update.
Cameras That Remain Reliable
The iQOO 15R was never marketed as a camera-first smartphone, and that remains true today. However, that doesn’t mean its cameras disappoint. The 50-megapixel primary camera continues to deliver detailed, vibrant photos with reliable HDR performance. During daylight, images have plenty of detail, colours look pleasing without being overly processed, and autofocus remains quick and dependable.
Portrait shots are generally impressive, with natural background separation in most situations. The lack of a dedicated telephoto camera is noticeable when zooming beyond 2x, but that’s a compromise I expected when choosing a performance-focused phone.
The 8-megapixel ultra-wide camera remains the weakest part of the camera setup. It’s perfectly usable for occasional landscape shots, but there’s a noticeable drop in detail compared to the primary sensor.
Low-light photography is respectable, but it isn’t class-leading. Night mode helps recover additional details, though it takes a couple of seconds to process each shot. Meanwhile, some of its photography-focused rivals have started pulling ahead in this area. I also noticed that portrait shots captured in low light suffer from weaker background separation and less accurate edge detection.
The 32-megapixel front camera performs well enough for video calls and selfies, while the ability to shoot 4K 60fps videos from both the front and rear cameras remains a nice bonus for content creators.
Overall, my opinion on the cameras hasn’t changed much over the past four months. They’re dependable for everyday photography, but they aren’t the primary reason to buy the iQOO 15R.
So, Should You Still Buy the iQOO 15R?
After using it for a longer duration, my answer is still yes. The iQOO 15R remains one of the easiest smartphones to recommend if your priorities are performance, battery life, and gaming. It continues to deliver flagship-level speed, an excellent display, dependable battery life, and a premium in-hand feel without venturing into ultra-premium pricing.
That said, it isn’t perfect. Photography enthusiasts will find better camera-focused alternatives in this price range, particularly if zoom performance or low-light photography is important. Likewise, those who prefer a cleaner software experience may still gravitate towards the OnePlus 15R.
However, if you’re looking for a phone that simply refuses to slow down, lasts comfortably through demanding days, and remains enjoyable to use long after the initial excitement has faded, the iQOO 15R continues to justify its asking price.
Four months of daily use haven’t changed my opinion about the phone. If anything, they’ve reinforced it. The iQOO 15R wasn’t just impressive at launch. It’s a smartphone that continues to deliver where it matters most, making it one of the strongest all-round performance phones you can buy in its segment today.
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