A PRO Phone for the Price of a BUDGET PHONE!

That’s the Tecno Camon 20 Pro for you!

In a live event, Tecno announced the Camon 20 Pro 5G for the Philippine market. This thing is just overwhelming for its set price of PHP 12,999 (and PHP 11,999 for its early bird sale). There are phones that are underwhelming with specs that couldn’t justify their price, phones that are priced just right, and then there are phones like the Camon 20 Pro which has specs that are way too much for its asking price. Not that it’s a bad thing but it does leave you with the question: “How are they getting their profits back?”

Before we answer that question, let’s dive down to the spec sheet. The phone features a design that is reminiscent of their newest POVA 4 series with a geometrical camera layout. This makes it unique and original and feels right at home to Tecno’s products. Officially, this design is called “Puzzle Deconstructionist”.

The display features a 32MP front camera and measures 6.67″. It uses AMOLED backlighting and has a 120Hz refresh rate. Its resolution is 2400x1080px, or FullHD+ in short.

There is a MediaTek Dimensity 8050 inside which is not exactly new since it is a rebrand of the popular MediaTek Dimensity 1300. For 13K, this is way too good, versus others who settle with a Dimensity 810 or Snapdragon 695. The Qualcomm equivalent would be Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G. It comes with 8GB RAM and 256GB internal storage with virtual RAM and MicroSD Card expansion respectively.

The Camon series is designed around camera capabilities and the same goes here. This one is a 64MP RGBW sensor with OIS. Just like with Infinix’s Zero X series, Tecno is introducing previously flagship-only features to a more familiar market. That is worth an applause. Also, this thing borrows a previously unique Vivo feature, the ring light flash. The primary camera is sadly paired with two useless 2MP sensors. You can’t have it all at its price range and we’re honestly not complaining.

There is a 5000mAh battery with 33W fast charging. It has a USB-C port, a 3.5mm jack, and an in-display fingerprint scanner. The latter is pretty rare for a sub-15K phone. In terms of connectivity, you get 5G services, 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.2, and Wi-Fi 6/6e.

It comes in Dark Whelkin and Serenity Blue. It is now available for pre-order in Shopee, TikTok Shop, and Lazada. Again, the price is PHP 13,999 but you could get it temporarily for PHP 11,999. That’s not all! When you purchase one online on any of these e-commerce sites, you could get a PHP 1,000 discount, a FREE pair of headphones worth PHP999, and a chance to win the upcoming Tecno Phantom X2 Pro foldable phone (which will be discussed in a future article), an electric scooter, and many more. It’s like Tecno giving away everything!

SPECS:

• 6.67″ FullHD+ (2400x1080px) AMOLED, 120Hz refresh rate
• MediaTek Dimensity 8050 (MediaTek Dimensity 1300), 6nm
• CAMERAS:
  • 64MP (Primary), f/1.7, PDAF, RGBW, OIS
  • 2MP (Depth), f/2.4
  • 2MP (Macro), f/2.4
  • Ring LED Light
  • FRONT: 32MP, f/2.5
• HiOS 12.6 based on Android 13
• 5000mAh, 33W fast charging
• USB-C, 3.5mm jack, Virtual RAM, MicroSD Card Slot, In-display fingerprint scanner
• 5G services, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 6/6e, Bluetooth 5.2, NFC
• Dark Whelkin, Serenity Blue
• PRICE:
  • PHP 12,999 PHP 11,999 (June 6-8, early bird)

Tecno’s Business Strategy

Now to call back to the question, how does Tecno get their money back with such a ridiculously low price? Tecno’s software is baked with ads. On every app, you get ads. Also, while the hardware is amazing, you do get slightly compromised with software because Tecno is not known for releasing software updates. Which means you’ll be stuck with Android 13 forever. Like Xiaomi, they also rely on online platforms to make sales, eliminating the need to pay for expensive rental space in malls and shopping centres. Also, while Tecno does celebrity endorsements, they rarely pay for TV ads and instead, let customers and their community do the advertising for them via word-of-mouth.

Asia is not their primary market. It’s Africa, where they account for 20% of the market share there. This is also why you see Tecno phones being released there first. Tecno rarely focuses on wealthy markets and instead focuses on developing markets. The company has now emerged from Africa, all the way to Latin America, Asia, the Middle East, and parts of Europe. Hence why even if they do not fair well in the flagship segment, it’s not their biggest loss. In developing countries, midrange and budget phones are more mainstream, and this is where Transsion, not just Tecno, excels.