With the PHANTOM X flagship release, Tecno Mobile offers an exciting phone that combines elegance, luxury, and affordability without compromising quality.
Design: 5/5
Our test unit came in Starry Night Blue, inspired by the blue hues of Van Gogh’s The Starry Night (1889). It’s a color that changes from metallic blue to baby blue, depending on how the light hits the phone’s back surface. Its silk glass cover feels smooth (and good) to touch while also feeling luxurious.
The Tecno PHANTOM X has a 6.7” FHD+ OLED curved display with a 90Hz refresh rate. Its curved screen distinguishes it from the other Tecno Mobile phone releases so far this year. The sim card tray is located at the upper part of the phone bezel, while the headphone jack, USB Type C port, and speaker are located at the bottom. The power and volume buttons are on the right side of the phone.
Hardware: 4/5
The Tecno PHANTOM X is powered by a Helio G95, one of the latest MediaTek processor releases. It has 8GB RAM and 256GB internal storage, expandable via microSD. The phone unit also has a powerful 4700mAh battery with 33W Flash Charge support.
The rear camera placement of the Tecno PHANTOM X is also quite unique, located at the center of the phone’s upper half. The camera module consists of a 50MP main camera, an 8MP ultra-wide-angle camera, and a 13MP professional portrait/telephoto camera, beside which are the laser focus and rear flash light.
In front, on the upper left corner of the screen, are two cameras — a 48MP main camera and an 8MP ultra-wide angle.
User Experience: 4/5
In other GadgetsLab reviews of the Tecno Mobile smartphones POVA 2 and CAMON 17 Pro, you’d expect the brand to focus primarily on gaming smartphones. So the PHANTOM X is quite an eye-opener, as beyond its gaming capabilities, this smartphone also offer strong camera performance.
Its 50MP rear camera is versatile in terms of camera settings and produces accurate colors, especially in low light and night mode — definitely a step up from earlier releases. I especially liked the AI CAM setting in the Camera app because it fixes the setting and makes sure that you have an amazing photo throughout the picture-taking process. In addition, the pictures require only minimal post-processing. This is helpful for creatives who want to take color-accurate photos for smooth photo editing. Even regular mobile photography enthusiasts will enjoy editing their aesthetic IG pictures.
I also liked the front cameras on the Tecno PHANTOM X, which offer a nice selfie experience with the Beauty and Portrait camera setting. The selfie pictures have excellent detail as well as color accuracy. Moreover, the settings offer easy customizability and user-friendly camera and filter options. Phones that have a lot of camera settings tend to overwhelm me, but here, the settings are easy-to-use, especially for those who are not tech-savvy.
With regard to its bread-and-butter gaming capabilities, the Tecno PHANTOM X doesn’t disappoint. I played the latest release of Pokémon Unite, and it worked seamlessly at the highest settings with no issues whatsoever. Other games such as Mobile Legends: Bang Bang and League of Legends: Wild Rift were also able to run at the highest graphic settings.
I also played Genshin Impact—one of the most demanding games graphics-wise. Although it can only handle the game at the Medium setting (30fps), it still worked fine, despite some slight lag issues, especially when starting the game.
One of the downsides of the phone is that it heats up when gaming. Although it has a nice liquid cooling system, steady periods of gaming can definitely heat the phone unit easily. The single speaker is of good quality and can fill the room with sound. However, its location needs some serious review as, when playing games in landscape orientation, you can cover the speaker with your palm. I found this really disappointing because SFX adds so much depth to the overall gaming experience.
Value: 4/5
The Tecno PHANTOM X is a great addition to the brand’s range of affordable yet uncompromising phones. The phone’s versatility for gaming, photography, and productivity makes it a must-have for people in the market for a mid-range phone with luxurious design and stellar phone performance that’s also affordable and budget-friendly.
Specifications:
- CPU: MediaTek Helio G95, 8 Core, 2.05GHz*2+2.0GHz*6
- Memory: 256GB (ROM) + 8GB (RAM)
- Display: 6.7″ FHD+ OLED Boundless Screen
- Resolution: 1080×2340
- Operating System: HiOS based on Android™ 11
- Camera: 48+8MP Front Camera with Dual Flash; 50+13+8MP Rear Camera with 1/1.3 inch ultra-large sensor & Quad Flash
- Battery: 4700mAh, 33W Flash Charge
- Fingerprint: Ultra-Thin In-display Fingerprint
- Front/Back: Glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 5)
- Height: 163.5mm
- Width: 73.78mm
- Thickness: 8.72mm
- Colors: Starry Night Blue, Monet’s Summer
- Package box includes fast charging adaptor, USB Type C cable, 3.5mm jack earphones, sim card tray ejector pin, and a black hard phone case
What’s Hot:
- Premium Design
- Large Storage
- Nice Curved Display
- Decent Camera Settings and Filter Options
What’s Not:
- Has only one speaker
- Heats up easily when gaming
- A bit laggy on games with demanding graphics
Bottomline:
The Tecno PHANTOM X is an affordable phone, yet is also luxurious and has premium quality.
Reviewed by Archangel Nudalo