Editorial: The “Other Thing” Tecno Smartphones Doesn’t Do

The opinions expressed in this article are exclusively the views of the author and not necessarily those of TechRez as a publication.

Samsung, Apple, Sony and Nokia have all resolved to use cheap and affordable phones to capture the African mobile markets, an emerging market Tecno silently entered and gained momentum with very cheap phones

The perception of tech savvy users in Africa is changing and if Tecno has no answer to threats from multi-billion dollar mobile vendors who have gradually changed their business philosophy to make cheap variants of their phones for emerging markets, the Chinese company would be dead in 2016. Emerging markets can no longer be taken for granted, even the highly rated and World’s most valuable brand Apple knows this, thus producing a down market iPhone 5C and another cheaper non-US iPhone 5C with 8 GB ROM for emerging markets.

“If we think it’s in our best interest to make a change, then we’ll make one.” Apple CEO Tim Cook said prior to the launch of a cheaper 8 GB iPhone 5C.

Does Tecno know when to make a change, especially in the best interest of their apologetic fans? Perhaps, the company’s philosophy is to keep pushing the same phones down the throat of consumers year after year with very little alteration in design and specifications. The Phantom series is a victim of Tecno’s ignorance to consumer’s needs.

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So what is Tecno not doing?

It Doesn’t Do Full HD

Tecno’s recent S7 has a resolution of 480 x 854 pixels while Phantom A3 has a resolution of 720 x 1280 pixels. Neither of them has the capacity to output full HD display. Tecno is yet to get nasty in the display department, settling for Sub HD with video recording being 720p at 30fps max. The pixel density of Tecno phones is ridiculous, standing at 245ppi max for Phantom A3. There is no first-party technology to further enhance imaging just like Sony’s Exmor RS mobile image sensor which makes the Xperia a beast in display and image with crystal clarity.

It Doesn’t Do IP57 And IP67 Certification

Thanks to Sony, they pushed the bar in mobile development, attaining the first IP57 (waterproof) and IP67 (dustproof) certification for the Xperia Z. Ever since, other mobile vendors, including Samsung have strived to make their smartphones meet the needs of consumers. Sony remains superior in water and dust resistivity department. The new Xperia Z2 will have an IP58 certification, meaning it can stay in water (5.ft) up to 60 mins. While Samsung’s Galaxy S5 features IP57 certification that places the phone’s waterproof timeframe to be around 30 mins in water (3ft). Where does Tecno come in here? There is no plan for this currently and no one knows when we will see the first water-proof Tecno device.

It Doesn’t Do 4G

The United Kingdom and Germany is leading the way for 5G development, promising download of movies in “one second”. The rest of the world is moving and every other mobile vendor is moving along in exception of Tecno who still believes 3G is the way to go. Tecno is yet to produce a smartphone with 4G capabilities and it has no excuse.

It Doesn’t Do OTA

Few months ago, South Korean tech giant Samsung said 10 of its Galaxy Models have gotten Android 4.4 KitKat Update. That’s impressive because within few clicks, your phone would be smiling with the latest Android OS. Most Tecno users have been restricted to using an outdated Android OS, preventing them from accessing all the rich features that accompanies a new OS as well as the bugs that are fixed. All of this frustration is because Tecno has been reluctant in making this most wanted OTA feature become a reality.

Users who rushed into the Tecno camp were unaware of such missing features. They saw the price tag, it was a steal so they got it. They have now raised their curiosity and have seen the shortcomings of Tecno (many of which are not in this article), they have equally seen a company who won’t put in extra effort in getting things right, because they are rest assured their apologetic fans will come to their rescue. Soon, the same apologetic fans will realize they have a choice, and Tecno will not be spared.

Tech savvy users in the west generally get hyped for a new phone from their preferred brand solely because each new phone is a massive upgrade over the previous. The differences between the Galaxy S4 and Galaxy S5 are incredible and jaw dropping. Can Tecno really say there is a difference between Tecno Phantom A1, A2 and A3? When there is a new Tecno product, geeks in emerging markets won’t care. In part, because there isn’t anything new it does out of the box that makes it worth buying. With the old phones one could at least say “well at least it can do X so I’ll enjoy that feature.” But for a new Tecno phone, what bragging rights does it have? Larger screen?

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