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Some days ago, I witnessed the launch of Tecno Phantom 5 in Lagos and held the phone for the first time. Even before the event, I knew it was going to be a product I would love. The spec sheet was quite impressive and I knew what a regular Phantom feels like. I’ve used Tecno Phantom A+, Tecno Phantom Z and Tecno Phantom Z Mini. The first Tecno Phantom A+ still works though I gave it out over a year ago. The same goes for Phantom Z though it’s now bruised and battered but still works perfectly. You can see what it looks like here in a video.
I was trying to convince a friend about the latest Tecno Phantom 5 earlier this morning and wasn’t surprised when he called me a Tecno butt-licker. I’ve been called that before and I’ll tell you why.
I did write an article on why you should start using Windows 10 a few backs and someone asked me on Facebook how much Microsoft paid me to post that article. People have a way of condemning things even if they haven’t used it. It was an article written based on my experience with that OS and I wrote it to educate people. I expect a even a worse backlash on this.And by the way, I’m only trying to set things straight being someone who is on his 5th Tecno device, Tecno Phantom 5.
Tecno Mobile’s Presence in Africa
At a time when Chinese OEMs were focusing on Asia and Middle East, Tecno saw something in Africa and decided to take its investment down here. Some claim it was because they couldn’t stand the competition but I beg to differ. Only a few people will deny the fact Tecno’s entrance into the African mobile market changed a lot of things. The first budget Android phone released then was Tecno N3 and I know a handful of people who ditched their Blackberry phones for it. Tecno popularized Android OS here at time when other Chinese OEMs weren’t even looking in Africa’s direction.
Understanding Nigeria and Nigerians, Tecno introduced the first dual-SIM phone in Africa. At the moment, Nigeria has the highest Internet penetration in Africa and most of these Internet users are on mobile. This didn’t just happen in a day. It started somewhere and everyone knows more Nigerians started going online when the cost of smartphones went down. Tecno contributed to this and that’s undeniable.
Tecno Phantom 5: Things to Set Straight
I’ve seen certain people who haven’t seen or used Tecno Phantom 5 already wondering why a Tecno phone would cost that much. A premium product is expected to come with a premium price tag and with what I’ve seen, I doubt if the phone is overpriced. As a matter of fact, it’s relatively cheap.
When someone said the phone is expensive at ₦70,000, I gave three reasons why this may be so:
- If you claim the phone is expensive, Tecno isn’t definitely targeting you with this device. Despite what a lot of people say, those who like it are definitely going to buy it.
- Have you wondered why an iPhone selling for $899 in the US may cost up to ₦250,000 in Nigeria? That, surely, isn’t the equivalent amount in Naira and I guess it applies to this premium device too. Using the price of Xiaomi in China as a benchmark isn’t something I would agree with.
- This device isn’t a budget phone. It has a premium metallic build, comes with 3GB RAM, a 64-bit processor octa-core processor and a fingerprint scanner using the second generation of the fingerprint identification algorithm of Sweden FPC company. This isn’t meant to sell cheap.
I learned not to condemn or write a negative review about a product I haven’t actually used and I keep wondering why a lot people claim the phone is overpriced.
Issues Tecno Needs to Fix
The number one problem some people have with Tecno is major software upgrades. A writer posted an article on our blog about a few weeks ago and he made some points I had to agree with. In a country where people are getting more exposed to the world of technology due to it’s high internet penetration, things are changing and more people are clamoring for software upgrades.
I had a chat with a top staff at Tecno Mobile this morning and when I asked if it’s going to be the same with this new flagship product, he said there’s a high possibility of a software upgrade. On why previous devices do not go beyond the Android version they’re shipped with, he gave 3 points:
- It costs more to make a device compatible with a newer Android version financially an in terms of man-power. Trying to achieve this while maintaining the hardware quality will increase the cost of these phones
- After a software upgrade to a newer Android version, there’s a likelihood there would be bugs which might hamper users experience.
- A larger percentage of Nigerian customers do not know or actually care about software upgrades.
However, he re-assured the likelihood of software upgrades is high, saying satisfying the majority of their customers is the primary goal.
Will Anyone Spend ₦70,000 on Tecno Phantom 5
Tecno remains one of the mobile companies with the largest market share in Africa and it isn’t losing that position anytime soon. Tecno Phantom 5 is a phone launching Tecno Mobile into new waters and it’s a device a lot of us appreciate. Like I mentioned earlier, you probably won’t buy the phone because you’ve never held it or because Tecno isn’t targeting you.
It’s a premium device not meant for everybody. If you think Tecno made a mistake on this one, perhaps we should all wait and see how things turn out before being the judge.
However, I’m one of those people who would love to see this phone go beyond Android Lollipop and hope a day comes when Tecno goes beyond the shores of Africa.
PS: This is not a sponsored article even if you think otherwise. It’s a blogger’s personal opinion and I guess we’re all entitled to the privilege of self expression.