REVIEW: Tecno Spark 40 Pro, a thin smartphone, but is it good?

The Tecno Spark 40 is among the thinnest smartphones I’ve seen. But is it any good? 

Aesthetics and performance are everything when devices are competing in the low to mid-range phone market.

Given that it is a low-budget phone, the first thing I wondered about when I tried the Tecno Spark 40 Pro was the camera.

Cameras

Tecno may have taken some notes with its rear camera layout from Samsung, as it’s very similar.

I found the camera good when taking photos without zoom. However, as someone who likes to take moon photos, I was disappointed with the result, even after the AI kicked in to enhance the picture. Compared to the Huawei Pura 80 and Samsung Galaxy S Series, Tecno has a lot of catching up to do.

It features a primary rear camera of 50MP with Auto Precision AF and a secondary depth sensor. It is a very detailed image, and colours seem natural, owing to colour tuning and dynamic range management by Tecno.

A good 13MP front sensor processes selfies decently in daylight. However, indoor or low-light selfies are soft, less detailed and have muted colours.

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Photos

The 50 MP main camera on the Spark 40 Pro was good under good light, and I was very pleased. It takes crisp, high-resolution images with natural colour and exposure. HDR comes into play when required, and the camera does a good job with highlights and shadows. Even with up to 2x zoom digitally, we still get usable clarity due to the large sensor.

The camera tries its best in low light. Night and HDR modes are useful to minimise grain and enhance brightness, yet the photo is still noisy with smoother details.

Exposure may also be varied, and diffused flash may unnaturally render the colour. It’s okay to share casually, but you won’t get professional night shots.

Battery

Battery life was also not great and drains fast compared to other budget phones, even at 60hz. Tecno should’ve equipped the Spark 40 Pro with a  6000mAh battery capacity instead of 5200mAh to cater for the huge battery drainage by the display.

The Tecno Spark 40 Pro is slim with a 6.69mm body and lightweight, which feels like an extension of you. That’s one of the features going for it.

Plastic

The negative side is that the phone is still made of a plastic frame and back panel – it is solid but not as sturdy as metal or glass frames.

When you press it on the sides, you may feel a bit hollow. The on-screen fingerprint sensor is highly functional.

Operating system

With an ample 8GB of RAM, the Spark 40 Pro offers a generous memory capacity that is well-suited to meet the diverse needs of most users. The advantages of having a higher RAM capacity in a smartphone extend to improved responsiveness and smoother overall performance

The phone has Android 15 and HiOS 15.1. HiOS comes with handy features such as Game Mode, Smart Panel, app cloning and social media tools, including a WhatsApp voice changer and a fast status saver. The UI is less bloated and cleaner than the previous versions.

Verdict

Tecno Spark 40 Pro is a decent low-end smartphone that offers you more than you pay. It is well-displayed, smooth-performing and has a powerful battery. The cameras are good enough to use during the day, but night shots are not great.

This phone is a good option if you want a stylish phone with decent features at a low budget.

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