TECNO has been growing its presence in the smartphone space over the past 10 years, making an impressive push in over 70 markets. While it primarily offers its smartphones in parts of Africa, Latin America, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East, it managed to capture the world's attention in December 2022 with the release of the PHANTOM X2 Pro 5G and PHANTOM X2 5G. At Mobile World Congress, it would do it again, with the announcement of the PHANTOM V Fold. The arrival of the PHANTOM V Fold was not only important for the brand as a consumer product but was also an instrumental piece to further the TECNO brand to a global audience.
No corners were cut for these striking, eye-catching displays
The TECNO PHANTOM V Fold is part of the company's premium sub-brand line, so as you might expect, it has pulled out all the stops with its first foldable handset. It delivered a device that not only looks stunning but also feels good in your hands. The flagship handset features dual LTPO AMOLED displays with an adaptive refresh rate from 10 to 120Hz. The phone's outer display comes in at 6.42 inches and has a subtle yet thoughtful curved edge, which is a nice touch, especially when you're gripping the device or when your fingers are gliding over the screen's surface.
When the handset unfolds, you're greeted by a large, stunning 7.85-inch screen with an 8:7 aspect ratio, perfectly optimized for all your favorite digital content. Better yet is the almost non-existent crease in the center, which minimizes distractions and allows the user to focus on what's important. TECNO instills confidence with its PHANTOM V Fold because it's also built with aerospace-grade construction materials and has also been tested to withstand up to 200,000 folds.
Plenty of power, backed by careful considerations
The company has also taken great care to not only equip its foldable flagship with just the right internal hardware but also software too. The PHANTOM V Fold utilizes MediaTek's top-tier Dimensity 9000+ processor, which is paired with 12GB LPDDR5X RAM. In addition, the handset offers plenty of internal storage space coming with either 256GB or 512GB options. And you can expect to get plenty of use on a single charge thanks to its large 5,000mAh battery. However, if you do find yourself running low, you can always quickly charge up, going from zero to 40% in 15 minutes. To get fully charged, it'll take less than an hour.
As you can imagine, the combination of all these elements makes for a wonderful experience, whether it's browsing the web, playing games, or even being productive. But all of this wouldn't be possible without the careful considerations put into place with the device's customized software.
TECNO understood that when it came to building a quality foldable smartphone, it would need capable software with a robust and expansive set of features. That's why the firm created HiOS13 Fold, a custom OS based on Android 13, which is now one of the phone's core pillars.
The OS is optimized with productivity in mind, with custom features like split screen, picture-in-picture, and pop-up windows to maximize the display real estate. It took things further by ensuring that some of the most popular apps in the world would be able to take advantage of these capabilities, bringing a unique and pleasant experience.
A camera for every situation
With all of that said, no smartphone would be complete without a proper camera setup, and the PHANTOM V Fold is equipped with a triple camera array on the rear that has a 50MP Super Night main camera, 50MP telephoto, and 13MP ultrawide. It also has an additional camera on the front and also another one on the inside display as well. That's a total of five cameras, so you know this smartphone is built to handle all your photography needs.
But going back to the main camera, just to give you a sense of its capabilities, the unit features a custom 1/1.3-inch sensor with a large aperture of f/1.85. That means it can take in lots of light when shooting, giving users high-quality images, and videos too. You can also expect the camera to utilize software enhancements like Super Night Mode, Super Night 4K Video, and Super Night Portrait tastefully and when necessary, expanding the hardware's capabilities to new levels whenever challenging scenarios may present themselves.
PHANTOM V Fold is a new and formidable contender in the mobile market
With the PHANTOM V Fold, TECNO further solidifies why we as consumers and technology enthusiasts should be paying attention to this brand. Its first foldable is phenomenal when it comes to its design, materials, and build quality. The brand took extra care to develop custom software too, ensuring that users would be able to get the most out of this format.
While it's great for entertainment, its multitasking abilities showcase why a foldable smartphone is important, bringing an added element of usability that's critical to the experience. It's one that you simply can't find on a normal smartphone. And while all this might be surprising to some, TECNO is clearly confident about its position, and for good reason, and honestly, we can't wait to see what else lies ahead.
We thank TECNO for sponsoring this post. Our sponsors help us pay for the many costs associated with running XDA. While you might see sponsored articles alongside standard XDA content, they will always be labeled as such, and they do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial team. XDA will never compromise its journalistic integrity by accepting money to write favorably about a company or alter our opinions or views in any way.