TECNO Camon 15 Review: an astounding camera centered phone

Tecno Camon 15 is now available in Kenya. It was launched in Kenya in April 2020 succeeding in the Camon 12 series launched months ago.  The device is available countrywide at Ksh17999.

The Camon 15 is a camera centred which packs an advanced camera technology found in standalone cameras ideal for photography lovers and if you are a video lover, it offers good quality 4K video stream.

It is equipped with a 48MP Quad camera and 16MP selfie camera which works together with AI algorithms to significantly enhance night-time photography – processes and challenges by making images clearer, enhancing ultra-clear night shots. 

Like everyone else, I have been wondering what else does the device offer beyond the fascinating look. In this review, I will highlight the key features, specifications including the hits and the misses that you need to note and why you should hunger to have it.

TECNO Camon 15 features and specifications

Specifications

Display-                     6.6 inches 720 X 1600 Pixels

Operator-                  Android 10, HIOS 6.0

                                 Chipset-MediaTek MT6763,Helio P22 (12nm)

                                  Octacore 2.0 GHz

Body                         Weight-196g

                                  Build-Glass front, plastic back, and plastic frame

                                  SIM- Dual SIM

Memory                 64 GB, 4GB RAM

                               Memory card slot

Camera                 Main- Quad camera- 48MP

                                                                2MP

                                                                 2MP

                                                               QVGA

                                 Videos- 1080p@ 30fps

Selfie                      16MP

                                Videos- 1080p@30fps

Battery                    Non-removable Li-Po 5000mAh battery

Colors                      Shoal Gold, Fascinating Purple, and Jade

Other features on the smartphone include Bluetooth, Radio, GPS, and USB and a headphone jack.

Overall view

Design

The Camon 15 comes in an extremely gorgeous design not forgetting the colour.  I haven’t seen the rest but I will go for the shoal Gold any day. Gold in itself has a soothing feeling and the fact that it has a combination of two colours, they bring out more beauty owing to the added glossy finish on the backplate.

The 6.6′ inch touch screen is ideal, it is big enough to stream videos, go through blogs and do shoots or capture your best moments considering the incredible camera while still giving you the comfort of holding it your palms comfortably.

The Tecno Camon 15 is a camera centred device and its just good at it. The camera comes with different shooting modes, they include the AI Cam, Bokeh, Night Mode, AR Shot, Panorama, Beauty, portrait, and Wide Selfie.

However, the camera specs of this smartphone steal away the show. The presence of 48 MP quad-cam setup on the rear with dual-LED flash is a great deal for photogenic. It is also clubbed with the 16 MP front camera in the form of a stylish selfie that offers great photos too.

Both cameras are capable of recording 1080@30fps videos with the presence

8X ultra-clear photography

Night shots

Software and battery performance

The robust hardware and software performance of the phone is quite commendable. The phone is supported by an octa-core 2.0 GHz, MediaTek MT6763, Helio P22 (12nm) chipset which helps it in delivering a lag-free experience while multitasking.

This 12nm chip brings some of the best in category features to Tecno Camon 15 like AI camera enhancements and power optimization techniques.

Also, The presence of the latest Android 10 (Q) version based on HIOS 6.0 is one huge reason why one should buy this budget phone. You are sure to experience a great user interface with its advanced features.

You are guaranteed a full day or more of use with the 5000mAh battery. I tried it on normal use and it lasted for over two days.

The Camon 15  runs on the Android 10-based HiOS 6.0 Operating System. Which offers new themes, wallpapers, icon styles to users. TECNO has also added a number of live wallpapers and static wallpapers across multiple categories. There are also improvements in animation speed.

HIOS packs:

The smart panel

Tecno Camon 15 packs a smart panel allows you to access apps quickly with a swipe from the right edge. The apps in the side panel can also be edited to match your desired apps.

Dark Mode

TECNO Camon 15 supports Dark Mode, You’ll be able to have the entire system in a darker hue to reduce brightness, and as well, the dark mode saves battery life. and the idea is to make it easier on your eyes and save battery life.

The dark mode feature comes with all default apps which also apply to third-party apps and other specific apps

Wi-Fi Share

Camon 15 gives you the possibility to share Wi-Fi with other contacts without necessarily disclosing the password. So you don’t have to worry if you remember the password or not. There is a possibility that you are connected to a Wi-Fi network whose password you don’t remember or have access to but would want your friends or family to access it by just scanning QR codes.

Game Mode

The Camon 15 comes with a game mode button which allows you to add one of your phone’s physical buttons as a dedicated button to use in your game.  For example, you can set the volume key as a ‘fire’ button which makes it easier to fire at your enemies.

HiOS also solves one of the biggest problems most users encounter when playing games: interruptions by messages. With the HIOS 6.0, a snippet of the message will slide across your screen giving you a brief view of the message without interrupting your game in any way.

Social Turbo

The Camon 15 comes with an incredible box named social pilot. The box contains large great features based on WhatsApp that allows saving a status as long as you want.  You can also create your own WhatsApp meme and stickers, or check recalled WhatsApp messages by your friends. It also enhances video beauty.

Location controls and privacy tools

HiOS 6.0 features a new dedicated location section in your phone’s privacy settings that gives users more control over the location data they share with apps. This means you can opt to share location data with apps only when they are in use.

HiOS also supports gestures that allow you to do a three-finger swipe to take a screenshot and a two-finger gesture to pick calls. Then there is Phone Master which boosts the phone’s performance by letting you delete junk files and clear RAM.

Battery

On the battery front, the Tecno Camon 15 is backed by a 5000mAh battery. It gives you more than one day under normal usage. You can stream music, watch videos, take calls, surf the internet, check emails, and play games without worrying about power.

cons

The camera needs slight improvements, especially on the selfie camera, it tends to lose focus easily.

Additionally, the fingerprint scanner, found at the backplate is slow. It takes a very long time for it to finally recognize a finger. If you are planning for smooth flow with a fingerprint scanner, forget about with the Camon 15.

The device offers great battery performance but I think Tecno should do something on the charging capabilities, it takes more than two hours for a full charge. Compared with other batteries offering 5000mAh, Camon 15 is a slow charger.

The glossy finish at the back is breathtaking but also prone to accidents. If not held carefully it can easily fall off from your hands but that’s a minor issue considering the package comes with a plastic back cover.