The foldable smartphone market has been steadily heating up for the past two years, and it is now arguably boiling over with releases and announcements coming in thick and fast from different manufacturers.
Prior to MWC 2023, we had already seen OPPO release the Find N2 and the Find N2 Flip. Other manufacturers have now joined the party, including the Honor Magic Vs from Honor and the Phantom V Fold from Tecno which we will be taking a look at today and which has been introduced to the world at MWC 2023.
Normally known for making smartphones targeting the entry-level market, Tecno is now showing its hand in the higher-end market with the release of the Tecno Phantom X2 and X2 Pro and now the first foldable in their line-up, the Phantom V Fold.
The price of the Phantom V Fold will start at $1,099 a staggering 60 percent drop from the $1,799 price point the Galaxy Z Fold4 from Samsung had at launch. Despite the big gap in price, the Phantom V Fold will hold its own based on the specs, however, the obvious drawback is that it is powered by the Dimensity 9000+ chip instead of the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 found in the Z Fold 4.
This does not mean the Phantom V Fold will be a slouch by any means, the Dimensity 9000+ is a solid chip and has also been used in other higher-end smartphones including the Find N2 Flip.
Where the Phantom V Fold shows its strength is the displays. The device features a 6.42-inch screen on the outside with a 21:9 aspect ratio, which makes it more usable for day-to-day activities. On the inside, the display measures 7.85 inches. Both the inside and outer screens are capable of 120 Hz refresh rates. In addition to all these, the crease in the middle is smaller than the one in the Galaxy Z Fold 4, and it can hold flat when closed.
The battery at 5,000 mAh is also larger than the one in the Z Fold4 and also features much faster fast charging at 45W.
The camera setup is equally impressive featuring a triple set-up at the rear; 50 MP main sensor, 50 MP telephoto lens and 13 MP ultrawide. The outer front-facing camera has a 32 MP sensor, with the inside one being 16 MP.
The Galaxy Z Fold4 however beats the Phantom V Fold in water resistance, as Samsung is still the only company making foldables that are water-resistant certified. Also, the Phantom V Fold can not stay in place when in mid-fold (L-shaped like a laptop)
On the internals, the device comes with Android 13 out of the box but coated with Tecno’s HiOS on top. This is in addition to the generous 12 GB of RAM and 512 GB of internal storage. Whether this will be enough to take some market share out of Samsung’s foldable lineup remains to be seen, but at almost half price, Tecno has positioned its first foldable for success.
