• The iQOO 16 launches in China with Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6.
• An enormous 8,400 mAh silicon-anode battery powers the device, backed by rapid 100W wired and 40W wireless charging.
• Its 6.85-inch 165Hz AMOLED panel offers up to 10,000 nits of localized peak brightness and 5,000Hz touch sampling.
• China pricing ranges from CNY 5,999 to CNY 8,499, depending on the configuration.

Smartphone manufacturers are engaged in a fierce competition for mobile gaming, and the new iQOO 16 aims to establish a significant benchmark. With a starting price of CNY 5,999 (about $900) in China, iQOO’s latest flagship is out to dominate your pocket with a hardware lineup that blurs the line between a daily driver and a dedicated portable console.

The star of the show is the battery. You get an 8,400 mAh silicon anode cell with 100W wired and 40W wireless charging.

As expected, the iQOO 16 is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 processor, a 2nm chip that can reach clock speeds of up to 5.01GHz. The company pairs it with LPDDR5X Ultra Pro RAM, UFS 4.1 storage, a dedicated Q4 gaming chip, and an 8,500mm² vapor chamber to keep sustained workloads in check.

Image 1 of 3

(Image credit: Vivo)

Another highlight is the 6.85-inch Samsung M16 AMOLED panel with a 3168 x 1440 resolution and a 165Hz LTPO refresh rate. It can hit 2,800 nits across the entire display and up to 10,000 nits of localized peak brightness, with touch sampling rates as high as 5,000Hz.

The rear camera hardware is made up of three 50MP sensors: the main, the ultrawide, and a 3x periscope telephoto.

The 165Hz panel, dedicated gaming silicon, big cooling system, and huge battery are built for sustained high performance, not just chasing short benchmark bursts. That makes the iQOO 16 feel more like a portable gaming machine that just happens to be a phone.

Prices go up to CNY 6,799 for 12GB/512GB, CNY 7,499 for 16GB/512GB, and CNY 8,499 for 16GB/1TB. The phone runs on Android 17 with OriginOS 7 and has IP68/IP69 protection.

iQOO has not announced any plans to launch it globally at this time, so it's available only in China for now. Previous reports have indicated that the phone is being certified for international use, but the company has not confirmed when or where it will be available outside China.

Jay Bonggolto always keeps a nose for news. He has been writing about consumer tech for as long as he can remember, and he has used a variety of Android phones since falling in love with Jelly Bean. Send him a direct message via X or LinkedIn.