The iQOO Neo 9 Pro (review) launched recently in India at a starting price of Rs 35,999. The new mid-ranger is aggressively priced and competes with a lot of other smartphones in the under Rs 40,000 segment, such as the OnePlus 12R, Nothing Phone (2), Redmi Note 13 Pro+, and more. We recently did a performance comparison between the iQOO Neo 9 Pro and OnePlus 12R, which you can read here. Now, it’s time to see how the iQOO phone fares against one of its chief competitors, the Nothing Phone (2) (review).
| iQOO Neo 9 Pro | Nothing Phone (2) | |
| Processor | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 | Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 |
| GPU | Qualcomm Adreno 740 | Qualcomm Adreno 730 |
| Memory | Up to 12GB LPDDR5X RAM | Up to 12GB LPDDR5X RAM |
Table of Contents
Geekbench 6
First up is the Geekbench 6 test. The iQOO Neo 9 Pro takes the lead in this test with significantly higher single-core and multi-core scores, highlighting the performance boost the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 offers over the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1.
iQOO Neo 9 Pro | Nothing Phone (2) |
Single-Core – 2082 | Single-Core – 1739 |
Multi-Core – 5839 | Multi-Core – 4621 |
AnTuTu
The AnTuTu benchmark results for both smartphones also share a similar story, with the iQOO Neo 9 Pro in the lead across the board. The iQOO Neo 9 Pro showcases a performance boost of around 55 percent over the Nothing Phone (2) and significant improvements in the GPU score.
iQOO Neo 9 Pro | Nothing Phone (2) |
AnTuTu score – 16,11,015 | AnTuTu score – 10,37,614 |
CPU Throttle
In the CPU throttle test, the iQOO Neo 9 Pro exhibits impressive stability and throttles down to 87 percent of its maximum performance. What was surprising, however, is that the Nothing Phone (2) dropped to 62 percent of its maximum performance. It is likely due to the thermal throttling, as the Nothing device heated up significantly during testing. The iQOO Neo 9 Pro also emerges as the winner in this CPU throttle comparison.
iQOO Neo 9 Pro | Nothing Phone (2) |
87 percent CPU throttle | 62 percent CPU throttle |
Gaming test
The final test on the list is the gaming performance test. We played BGMI for around 30 minutes on each smartphone at the Ultra HDR resolution and Ultra frame rate settings. The gameplay experience on both smartphones was pleasant, with no apparent frame drops or lag. Where the differences lie, however, is in the details.
The distant in-game objects, such as houses, trees, and shrubbery, tend to appear more naturally with the iQOO Neo 9 Pro, while they can sometimes pop into the gameplay with the Nothing Phone (2). The colours and overall game look a bit more appealing on the iQOO Neo 9 Pro. On the other hand, the Nothing Phone (2) did not heat up as much as the iQOO Neo 9 Pro during gameplay.
Verdict
- The iQOO Neo 9 Pro is the undeniable winner in this comparison, which is no surprise. It comes with last year’s flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC and is geared towards providing the best performance output.
- The iQOO Neo 9 Pro also offers a set of capable cameras and a great battery life, along with the best performance output in the segment, making it one of the most value-for-money smartphones under Rs 40,000.
- That said, the Nothing Phone (2) comes with one of the most unique designs currently on the market, easily topping the iQOO Neo 9 Pro in terms of looks.
- In addition to its design, the Nothing Phone (2) offers a near-stock Android experience with its bloat-free UI, a decent set of cameras, and a great display.
- If performance is your top priority, the iQOO Neo 9 Pro is the easy choice, however, if you value a clean UI experience and a unique design, you won’t go wrong with the Nothing Phone (2).
