iQOO Z10R goes official in India: large battery, new MediaTek chip under Rs 20,000

Published On: 26 Jul, 2025Last Updated On: 29 Jul, 2025

iQOO appears to be capitalising on its Z10 series by launching multiple models in India. So far, the company has introduced the iQOO Z10 Lite, Z10x, and Z10. With the latest addition, the iQOO Z10R, iQOO is targeting the Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000 segment, allowing the brand to cover the full budget to mid-range spectrum with the Z10 lineup. For the upper mid-range, there’s the Neo 10 series, while the iQOO 13 caters to the flagship category.

The iQOO Z10R has been launched at a starting price of Rs 19,499 for the base 8GB + 128GB model. The 8GB + 256GB variant is priced at Rs 21,499, while the top-end 12GB + 256GB version costs Rs 23,499. The smartphone will be available from July 29th at noon via Amazon.

While iQOO’s naming scheme may seem confusing, the brand has managed to differentiate each model in design. The Z10R features a small circular camera module housing the dual rear sensors, along with an Aura Light ring that offers soft fill light in low-light photography. The phone is built entirely out of plastic, which is understandable for this price. However, it stands out with its IP68/69 rating, which provides the highest level of protection against water and dust. Colour options include Aquamarine and Moonstone.

The iQOO Z10R sports a 6.77-inch FHD+ quad-curved AMOLED display (2392 × 1080) with a 120Hz refresh rate and 300Hz touch sampling rate. It supports HDR10+ and is Netflix HDR certified, making it a strong option for content consumption. The display offers 1,300 nits of brightness in HBM and peaks at 1,800 nits. While this is decent, rivals like the CMF Phone 2 Pro and Realme Narzo 80 Pro achieve significantly higher brightness levels of 3,000 and 4,500 nits, respectively.

Powering the Z10R is the MediaTek Dimensity 7400 SoC, a new 6nm chipset launched earlier this year. MediaTek claims it offers 10% better performance and 25% improved power efficiency over its predecessor. This is the same chipset found in the Narzo 80 Pro, where we found gaming performance to be solid; therefore, we expect similar results from the Z10R. The phone includes LPDDR4X RAM with up to 12GB virtual expansion and UFS 2.2 storage.

On the camera front, the Z10R gets a 50MP primary sensor with OIS and 10x digital zoom, along with a 2MP depth sensor. You also get a 32MP front camera, with both cameras supporting 4K video recording at 30fps. While decent, it lacks an ultra-wide lens, which phones like the CMF Phone 2 Pro and Redmi Note 14 offer, making them handy for landscape or group shots.

The camera app comes loaded with features like Night Mode, Portrait, Micro Movie, Panorama, Ultra HD document, Supermoon, Dual View, Underwater, and more — plenty for photography enthusiasts to play with.

Battery-wise, you get a 5,700mAh unit with 44W fast charging. This capacity should easily get you through a full day of heavy use. It outpaces many phones in the segment, except for a few, such as the Narzo 80 Pro (6,000mAh) and OPPO K13 (7,000mAh). On the software front, the Z10R runs Funtouch OS 15 based on Android 15. iQOO is offering 2 years of Android updates and 3 years of security patches. This is on par with most in this segment, though not as impressive as the CMF Phone 2 Pro’s 3+6 years or Galaxy M36’s 6+6 years.

If you’re looking for a sub-Rs 20,000 phone with a solid AMOLED display, reliable performance, and a large battery, the iQOO Z10R is worth considering. It’s especially suited for media lovers and casual gamers. That said, it falls a little short in terms of camera versatility and long-term software support compared to some rivals. If those matter to you, you might want to explore alternatives like the CMF Phone 2 Pro or Galaxy M36. A complete performance verdict will follow in our detailed review.