Lava Play Ultra 5G Review: Budget Gaming Phone with Good Display and Performance

The Lava Play Ultra 5G is the latest offering from the homegrown brand, which falls into the sub-₹15K category—a segment that's become fiercely competitive with brands like Vivo, iQOO, POCO, and Redmi.

After spending over two weeks with it, I can say Lava wanted to deliver a phone that can handle games without breaking the bank. But the "Ultra" branding somewhere feels a bit ambitious as we're used to seeing them on top of the line flagships. To test why Lava chose to go with it, let's dive deeper into how it performs and check whether this is the phone you should pick for gaming or not.

PROS

• 120Hz AMOLED display
• Clean software experience with no bloatware
• Loud dual stereo speakers with clear sound
• 4K video recording on both front and rear cameras

CONS

• No ultra-wide camera
• No HDR graphics support in BGMI
• Low-light photos show yellowish tint and noise

Design and Build

Despite being marketed as a gaming smartphone, the Lava Play Ultra 5G keeps things simple and practical in terms of design. Don't expect flashy RGB lights or an aesthetic like the OPPO K13 Turbo series. Given its ₹14,999 price tag, the look makes sense - it's clean, minimal, and appealing for everyday use.

On the front, you get a flat display with rounded corners, while the back houses a squircle-shaped camera module, somewhat inspired by iQOO's Neo series. The volume rockers are positioned on the right edge, and you'll find the speaker grille, charging port, and a 3.5mm headphone jack at the bottom.

The phone also carries an IP64 rating for dust and water resistance - a decent addition at this price point. While it can easily handle light splashes, it's still best to keep it away from direct exposure to water. It's also worth noting that several phones in the same sub-₹15,000 segment now offer better protection; for instance, the Moto G96 at ₹14,999 comes with a higher IP68 rating.

Moreover, the back panel of the Lava Play Ultra has a glossy finish that resists scratches reasonably well. The phone also feels very comfortable to hold for extended periods, whether you're watching movies or videos. It measures just 7.8mm in thickness and weighs 182g.

Display

The Lava Play Ultra 5G has a 6.67-inch FHD+ AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and a claimed peak brightness of 1000 nits. In my day-to-day use, the screen performs well. Scrolling through social media or just the entire UI was smooth and responsive.

The display delivers punchy colours, and the brightness level is adequate for both indoor and outdoor use. I could easily view text under sunlight without much difficulty, though visibility does drop slightly under direct sunlight. Overall, the display on the Lava Play Ultra 5G serves its purpose well.

Performance

The Lava Play Ultra 5G is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 7300 - a 4nm octa-core chipset, the same processor runs the iQOO Z10x and Motorola Edge 60 Fusion. The Play Ultra also comes with 6GB or 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 128GB of UFS 3.1 storage.

In benchmark tests, the Lava Play Ultra scored 1,008 in single-core and 2,991 in multi-core performance, while the Motorola Edge 60 Fusion achieved 1,087 and 3,041, respectively. Although the Edge 60 Fusion shows slightly better CPU scores, the Lava Play Ultra delivers a higher overall AnTuTu score of over 700,000 compared to the Edge 60 Fusion's 640,000.

In real-world usage, the Lava Play Ultra handles everyday tasks and gaming smoothly. During my testing, I played casual titles and BGMI continuously for about 30 minutes without any noticeable lag, maintaining an average frame rate of 50-60 FPS. However, after around an hour of gaming, the device started to warm up slightly.

Moreover, the audio was great; Lava has done an excellent job here. The dual stereo speakers produce clear, loud, and immersive sound, enhancing both gaming and multimedia experiences.

Even while watching movies, the dual speakers were loud enough to fill an entire room. The inclusion of a 3.5mm headphone jack is also great for those who still prefer wired headphones.

Software

The Lava Play Ultra runs on Android 15, with Lava promising two major OS updates and three years of security patches, which is fairly standard for this price range. Though some budget phones, like the Samsung Galaxy M16 5G and Galaxy F16 5G, now come with six years of OS updates.

What really stands out is the clean software experience – there's no unnecessary bloatware that often plagues budget smartphones. You only get essential Google apps and the native app Lava Care. The overall UI feels responsive, well-optimized, and easy to navigate.

Camera

The Lava Play Ultra 5G is equipped with a dual rear camera setup, comprising a 64MP Sony IMX682 primary sensor and a 5MP macro lens. The front features a 13MP selfie camera. In daylight, the primary camera delivers decent results with good colour accuracy, dynamic range, and well-balanced contrast. Images are crisp and detailed, even when viewed at zoom. However, low-light performance sees a noticeable dip - photos sometimes show a yellowish tint and noise, causing loss of detail when zoomed in.

The front camera delivers natural skin tones and sufficient detail in good lighting, though indoor shots can appear a bit soft. Still, for the price range, it's more than satisfactory. Another highlight is the support for 4K video recording at 30fps on both front and rear cameras - a rare feature in this category. However, the actual video quality isn't very refined, and the microphone struggles to capture high-pitched sounds clearly. While recording Durga Puja dhaak performances, the audio came out muffled and crackly.

Even the absence of an ultra-wide lens is a drawback; you'll have to rely entirely on the main sensor. However, the portrait mode performs well, offering great edge detection and natural-looking bokeh that gives a smooth background blur. Here are some camera samples straight from the Lava Play Ultra.

Battery

The Lava Play Ultra 5G packs a 5,000mAh battery with support for 33W fast charging. In my testing, it took around 1 hour and 20 minutes to charge the device from 5% to 100%. Once fully charged, I could comfortably get through a full day of moderate usage, including over an hour of gaming, social media scrolling, YouTube, and watching reels.

By the end of the day, though, the phone typically needed a top-up charge at night. If you're a light user – mainly using WhatsApp for messaging and occasional calls – the battery can easily stretch to 2-3 days.

Verdict

If you're looking for a budget gaming smartphone, the Lava Play Ultra 5G is worth considering. It offers a vibrant AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, making everyday content consumption and gaming smooth and enjoyable. The dual stereo speakers further enhance the multimedia experience.

However, when it comes to regular streaming, you should invest a bit more in a mid-range phone for a better overall experience. The two years of OS updates are on the shorter side compared to what some competitors offer, and the camera setup lacks versatility, with no ultra-wide lens available.

Despite its "Ultra" branding, I feel the Lava Play Ultra 5G doesn't quite live up to the name in every aspect. While it delivers solid performance and features for the price, there's nothing truly "ultra" about its overall experience.