If there’s a gaming brand that mobile gamers would appreciate in the Philippines, that’s Vivo’s iQOO. The company has been releasing affordable gaming phones for masses, specifically for China. In its latest announcement, it launched the iQOO Neo3 with an ultra-smooth 144Hz refresh rate and Snapdragon 865 flagship SoC that also allows for 5G connectivity for only CNY 2698 (~P20,000). The phone will become available starting April 29th but we doubt that there will be a global release date.
While you do get a very fast screen, you do have to live with an IPS LCD instead of OLED. But if you’re a gamer, that won’t probably bother you. What may bother you, however, is the pinhole cutout on the top-right corner housing the 16MP selfie camera. Should you wish to take photos with the Neo 3, you can use its 48MP main sensor joined by 8MP ultrawide and 2MP macro lenses. The starting configuration lets you have 6GB RAM and 128GB UFS 3.1 storage. If you want more than that, here’s the price breakdown:
- 8GB/128GB – CNY 2998 (~P21,500)
- 12GB/128GB – CNY 3298 (~P23,600)
- 8GB/256GB – CNY 3398 (~P24,300)
Unlike the Black Shark 3, there are no shoulder buttons here to improve your gaming experience. But you do get a headphone jack, stereo speakers, and iQOO UI which are geared towards gamers. A large 4500mAh battery powers the Neo 3 with 44W fast charging support.
For a gaming phone, iQOO Neo 3 looks like a regular device with its black and blue finishes. Regardless, it’s still an affordable 144Hz gaming phone.
READ: Huawei Apologizes for Using Nikon D850 Photos for Its Smartphone Contest
Vivo IQOO Neo 3 specs, price, availability in the Philippines
- Display: 6.57″ IPS LCD, FHD+, HDR10, pinhole cutout, 144Hz
- Design: glass backing, metal frame, Gorilla Glass 5?
- Dimension and Weight: 163.7 x 75.6 x 8.9 mm, 198.1 g
- Chipset: Qualcomm SM8250 Snapdragon 865 (7 nm+)
- CPU: Octa-core (1×2.84 GHz Kryo 585 & 3×2.42 GHz Kryo 585 & 4×1.8 GHz Kryo 585)
- GPU: Adreno 650
- RAM: 6GB/8GB/12GB
- Storage: 128GB/256GB UFS 3.1 non-expandable
- Main Camera: 48 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/2.0″, 0.8µm, PDAF
8 MP, f/2.2, 16mm (ultrawide), 1/4.0″, 1.12µm
2 MP, f/2.4, (macro)
| up to 4K@30fps video - Selfie Camera:Â 16 MP, f/2.0, (wide)
| up to 1080p@30fps video - Connectivity & Ports: 5G(sub-6GHz), 4G/LTE, Wi-Fi ax, Bluetooth 5.0, USB-C, audio jack
- Security: face unlock, side-mounted fingerprint scanner
- Battery: 4000mAh, 40W Huawei SuperCharge (70% in 30 mins), 5W reverse wired charging
- Audio: stereo speakers, aptX HD, 24-bit
- OS: Android 10.0; iQOO UI 1.0
- Colors: Blue, Black/Dark Blue
- Price: CNY 2698 (~P20,000)
- Release date: April 29, 2020 (China)
