Exclusive! iQoo's Gagan Arora explains how company came up with India's most powerful smartphone

"We have a very strong plan for 2020," said a confident Gagan Arora even as he admitted that there is a limited market for 5G smartphones in India while he unveiled one of the first such handsets to support this connectivity segment in the country. In an exclusive interview with Zee Business, Arora, Director - Marketing, iQoo explained how the company managed to produce the most powerful smartphone to have been launched in India till date. Launched on February 25, the iQoo 3 is only the second smartphone to be powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 865 processor and comes with support for 5G.

"The inspiration behind iQoo 3 was that there is no smartphone in the Indian market right now that can deliver a more powerful performance. It has the highest AnTuTu score of more than 6,10,000. The phone is 5G-ready, is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 chipset and on the design side, you get Monster Touch Control Buttons which helps in gaming," Arora said.

He explained that while performance is largely associated with hardware, the multi-dimensional focus from iQoo helped it achieve the highest ever AnTuTu score for a smartphone. The iQoo 3 features an ergonomic design which reduces fatigue during long hours of gaming and sports two Monster Touch Controls for easy gaming as well.

"Snapdragon 865 processor, 12GB RAM, LPDDR 5 and UFS3.1 - these are industry-leading standards. Apart from specifications, the design also makes a lot of difference. On iQoo 3, you get Monster Touch Controls, ergonomic design and certification from US-Ergo. So, if you are playing a game - may it be PUBG or Call of Duty - and, if your thumbs can feel the fatigue, it means that the phone is not ergonomically sound. With iQoo 3, your fatigue is reduced by 50 per cent," he said.

Not just this, the slight changes in camera and exploring new colour options also helped the brand.

"Coming to camera performance, you get a Super Night Mode. The display has HDR 10 support. For us, performance is multi-dimensional. We are not focusing on just one aspect to offer better performance. We have focused on processor, design and even on colour material and finish. We have introduced a new Volcano Orange colour with iQoo 3 which you won't find anywhere in the market," Arora added.

WATCH | iQoo's Gagan Arora's Full Interview

For those unaware, iQoo operates as vivo's sub-brand in China but will operate independently in India. Unlike some of the other brands that split from their parent company, it will have its own after-sales service and user interface. The customers will get free pick up and drop service in case their phone is damaged.

"If you look at iQoo 3, it is a premium smartphone. This is designed for a different set of consumers. So, both the product and consumer service should offer a different experience. For that, you need service centers, after-sales services and more. The philosophy should translate into the product. iQoo will run as an independent brand from Bangalore and our aim is that if a premium customer looks for a smartphone, iQoo is on top of the list. From day 1, we will be offering free pick and drop services. The smartphone will be picked from your doorstep in case of damage, repaired and delivered back," Arora explained.

The biggest challenge for iQoo or any other brand launching a 5G smartphone in India would be that the network is not available in the country yet. Notably though, iQoo has also launched two 4G models of its smartphone, allowing customers to get similar performance for less.

"We have never blindly said that we will launch a 5G exclusive phone. In the iQoo 3 line-up, we have both 4G and 5G variants. Our research helped us understand that there are a lot of customers who want 4G smartphones but there are others who want to be ready for 5G connectivity on the day it arrives in India. They want to be future-ready. I am not saying that there is a huge market for 5G in India but it is a significant segment. So, we want to serve both the sets of customers," Arora said.

WATCH | iQoo 3 Unboxing and First Look

The iQoo 3 competes against affordable premium smartphones from OnePlus and Samsung. At the same time, will take on performance-heavy devices like Realme X50 Pro 5G and Asus ROG Phone II. But, the company wants to put experience first and come up with devices that offer powerful performance.

"There is a perception in India that if a smartphone is priced at more than Rs 30,000, it is considered as a premium device. We don't think that way. At iQoo, we put experience first. So, we will design experience first, manufacture a product around it and then decide how much we want to price is at. We understand that we can't be at all price points but that is okay with us. Performance and experience are paramount," Arora explained.

What's interesting though is that iQoo's first phone in India is called iQoo 3 and not one or two.

"We have already outperformed one and two...ha ha, this is why we have come with iQoo 3 directly," Arora stated, while adding that the smartphone maker wanted to come with capabilities like Snapdragon 865 chipset and 5G support on day 1.

"That's how we are outperforming everyone," he said.