The sub-10k smartphone market is now filled with a lot of options. It’s getting difficult for consumers to choose one which can meet their expectations. Either their choice is out of stock or they are not available in some cities for delivery because the handsets are exclusively sold online. India with its vast demographics has this problem and online retailers can’t serve every customer’s desires.
Tecno being an offline-only brand from Transsion Holdings tries to resolve this by serving parts of the country via old-school channels. The company launched a new smartphone earlier this year which we had reported in a blog post a while ago. Called as the Tecno Camon i the company launched a camera centric smartphone in sub-10k price segment. We believe the smartphone does well for the price of ₹8,990 but here’s our thoughts in a bit detail.
What works for Tecno Camon i
Being a camera centric smartphone, Tecno Camon i does pack a good bunch in the specification list. The smartphone is powered by a 64-bit 1.3GHz quad-core MediaTek MT6735 processor with 3GB of RAM. Tecno Camon i runs on Android 7.0 Nougat-based custom UI. It offers a 5.65-inch HD+ 18:9 Full View IPS display and good colour production. The device comes with 32 GB ROM and supports microSD card up to 128GB. With standard connectivity features including Bluetooth, WiFi, GPS, etc. the handset is backed by a 3,050 mAh battery.
On the camera front, the smartphone comes with a 13MP camera sensors both on front and back along with LED flash. Placed as a camera centric smartphone in the market, the performance camera is at-par for its priced. We might have contendors competiting in the camera department but Camon i never failed us with poor selfies.
What doesn’t work for Tecno Camon i
Tecno Camon i though being a good buy for its price doesn’t state that its perfect. Just like every other smartphone there are pros and cons here as well. Tecno Camon i comes with a 3050mAh battery which barely lasted for a day in our review period. This might not be a case with everyone since we were testing our setup and it might not be the same for everyone. We just hope that Tecno commits for regular updates wherever possible so that users can enjoy a stable and secure smartphone experience.
ION Verdict
We believe Tecno Camon i can be in our list of smartphones to buy under 10k price segment along with contenders which are better. There is no doubt about that there are better smartphones in this price range but their availability turns out to be an issue for consumers. Tecno being an offline brand is served across retailers in the country and they do have a appreciable service network. As a part to promote the brand and to gain trust amongst the consumers, Tecno products come with a unique promise of “111”, which offers 100 days’ replacement warranty, 1-time screen replacement and 1-month extended warranty over and above the 12 months’ warranty period. The smartphone is available in three different color options, Champagne Gold, Midnight Black and City Blue for ₹8,990 which is right for its offerings.
Image Credits : Chetan Bhawani
