iQOO 15 Review 2026: The Performance Flagship If you want a top-tier smartphone in 2026 without paying ₹1 lakh+, the iQOO 15 stands out. Launched in October 2025, it combines the new Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5,
a 7000mAh silicon-carbon battery, a 6.85-inch 2K 144Hz Samsung display, and iQOO’s Supercomputing Chip Q3—a dedicated mobile graphics chip with ray tracing and AI frame generation on Android.
After extensive hands-on experience and review of major sources, here’s an honest, clear assessment of its strengths.
Design & Build: Premium, Tough, and Surprisingly Light
iQOO 15 Review 2026: The Performance Flagship The iQOO 15 feels like a proper flagship. It measures just 8.1 mm thick and weighs 215–220 g — surprisingly manageable for a phone with a 7000mAh battery. The back is either fibre-reinforced plastic or glass (depending on the colour), with an aluminium frame and full IP68 + IP69 rating — one of the highest water/dust protections you’ll find on any Android phone right now.
The design language is clean and sporty. The Legend variant features a cool tricolour racing-checkerboard pattern that pays homage to race flags, while the Alpha (all-black) and the marble-effect “Grey” version, with a colour-changing LED ring around the camera island, look premium. The camera module is large but not obnoxious, and the in-hand feel is excellent.
Display: One of the Best Panels of 2025–2026
This is a 6.85-inch Samsung 2K LTPO AMOLED display (3168 × 1440) with M14 material, featuring a 144Hz variable refresh rate, Dolby Vision, HDR10+, and a claimed peak brightness of 6000 nits. Real-world tests clocked it at around 2700–2730 nits in HDR content — easily one of the brightest phones you can buy.
Colours are vibrant yet accurate, PWM + DC dimming keeps it eye-friendly, and the 2160Hz touch sampling rate feels buttery for gaming. Whether you’re watching Netflix in Dolby Vision or playing Genshin Impact at native 2K, this screen is a joy.
Performance & Gaming: Where the Q3 Chip Changes Everything
The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 (3 nm) is already a monster, but iQOO didn’t stop there. They added the Supercomputing Chip Q3 — a dedicated co-processor with three specialised cores:
- RT Core → Hardware-accelerated ray tracing (first phone to do full-scene ray tracing in Genshin Impact)
- DA Core → Super-resolution upscaling + lossless frame interpolation (up to 144 fps)
- AI Core → Real-time graphics optimisation
In practice, this means:
- Smoother, more stable frame rates in heavy titles
- Noticeably better visuals (ray-traced reflections in supported games)
- Less heat and better battery efficiency because the main SoC isn’t doing all the heavy lifting
Benchmarks (real tests):
- AnTuTu v11 → ~3.78 million
- Geekbench 6 → ~10,466 multi-core
- 3DMark Wild Life Extreme → Excellent sustained scores
Real gaming: Genshin Impact at highest settings with ray tracing stays smooth. Wuthering Waves and Honkai: Star Rail run at near-constant high frame rates, with the Q3 helping after the 10-minute mark when normal phones start throttling. Thermals are well-managed thanks to the largest vapour chamber iQOO has ever used.
iQOO 15 review: Made for players who take performance seriously – GadgetMatch
Camera: Surprisingly Capable for a Gaming Phone
Triple 50MP setup:
- Main → Sony IMX921 (1/1.56″, OIS) — excellent daylight detail and dynamic range
- 3x Periscope Telephoto → Sony IMX882 (OIS) — sharp portraits and zoom
- 50MP Ultrawide → Good but not class-leading
The main and telephoto cameras are genuinely strong. Daylight shots look vibrant and detailed; night mode is solid. The telephoto is one of the best in this price segment for portrait work. Ultrawide and 32MP selfie are average — perfectly usable but not flagship-killing.
Video tops out at 8K@30fps / 4K@60fps with gyro-EIS. Not the best in class, but very good for a performance-focused phone.
Check out the iQOO 15’s camera samples ahead of its international debut – GSMArena.com news.
Battery & Charging: All-Day (and Then Some) Powerhouse
The 7000mAh silicon-carbon battery is the star here. Reviews consistently report:
- 11+ hours of intensive mixed use
- 23+ hours of web surfing (Notebookcheck)
- Easily a day and a half for normal-to-heavy users
100W wired charging takes it from 0–100% in about 57 minutes. 40W wireless is also on board (rare in this segment). Bypass charging is available for long gaming sessions.
Software & Updates
Runs OriginOS 6 based on Android 16 out of the box. It’s smooth, highly customisable, and iQOO promises 5 major Android upgrades + 7 years of security patches — finally competitive with Samsung and Google.
Indian users report some bloat and suggestions (typical Vivo/iQOO behaviour), but you can disable most of it. The UI is fast and gaming-optimised.
Price in India (February 2026)
- 12GB + 256GB → ₹72,999 (often ~₹69k–70k with bank offers)
- 16GB + 512GB → ₹79,999
That’s excellent value when the OnePlus 15, Realme GT 8 Pro, and Poco F8 Ultra are priced similarly or higher.
Pros & Cons (Real-User & Reviewer Consensus)
Pros
- Outstanding battery life
- One of the brightest and smoothest displays
- Revolutionary Q3 chip for gaming
- Strong main + telephoto cameras
- IP68/IP69 + premium build
- Great value in India
Cons
- Speakers are just average (bass is weak)
- Some thermal throttling in extreme 30+ minute sessions
- OriginOS still has occasional bloat in India.
- Ultrawide and selfie cameras are average.
Final Verdict: Should You Buy the iQOO 15 in 2026?
Yes — especially if you game a lot or want maximum battery and screen quality without spending ₹90k+.
The iQOO 15 is the most complete “performance flagship” iQOO has ever made. It’s not trying to be a camera phone like the Vivo X series or a minimalist daily driver like OnePlus. Instead, it delivers raw power, insane battery life, and a genuinely next-gen gaming experience thanks to the Q3 chip.
If you’re coming from an iQOO 12/Neo series or any mid-range phone and want a proper upgrade that will still feel fast in 2027–2028, this is it.
Best for: Gamers, power users, media consumers, and anyone who hates charging their phone twice a day.
Skip if: You want the absolute best cameras or hate any trace of bloatware.
Grab it during the current bank offers on Amazon/Flipkart, and you’ll get one of the best-value flagships of 2026.
What do you think — are you team iQOO 15 or waiting for the Ultra/Mini version? Drop your questions below!
