Tecno Spark 20 Pro+ smartphone review: restomod

 

Tecno has updated its Spark series of smartphones. Now there is the 20 series, which consists of four models – Spark 20, Spark 20c, Spark 20 Pro and Spark 20 Pro+. Today we’ll talk about the top one, Tecno Spark 20 Pro+, which has a good module for the main camera, a fairly powerful processor and fast charging. Last but not least, the models are interesting in their design, especially 20 Pro+, which differs in style from the junior ones.

 

Contents

• Design
• Ergonomics
• Hardware
• Camera
• Impressions
• Characteristics

 

Design

 

Tecno Spark 20 Pro+ really looks elegant. It has a thin body with an elongated screen that covers almost the entire front side. The side edges are noticeably thinner than the top and bottom, and if you look from the front, they are not there at all. The display is curved on the sides; by swiping from the edge, you can open a panel with selected applications. The smartphone fits perfectly in the hand due to its narrow body, although it has a nominally large diagonal.

 

 

So where have we seen this before? Answer is here. STOP! No need to immediately reach for tomatoes. Literally everything has been improved in the Spark 20 Pro+ model, and not only due to the development of the processor and camera modules.

 

In the Tecno model, the display occupies a much larger area; in the old one of 2017, above it there was a huge, by today’s standards, strip with sensors and a camera. “The front part has become extremely laconic, with thin black stripes on top and below the screen” – LOL. We even were not able to realize the limits of thinnes.

 

 

The edges rounded on both sides looked futuristic back then. The front camera, embedded in the screen matrix, was generally only available in concepts. What can we say about a much more powerful processor, even if not Snapdragon, more than a hundred megapixels in the main camera and a capacious battery. Tecno Spark 20 Pro+ has taken some of the design and ergonomics of the classic model and put everything new into it. It’s a restomod, if you will.

 

The available body colors are all beautiful: Temporal Orbits – black, Lunar Frost – frost white and Radiant Starstream – gold. There is also a version of green Magic Skin 2.0 – in it the cover on the back is not plastic, but with an imitation of leather texture and stitching.

 

 

Ergonomics

 

 

We already said that the S8 had very pleasant ergonomics, although the screen on almost three sides was in danger of falling. In the modern Spark 20 Pro+ model, it is another inch larger diagonally.

 

Given the large length, I would like the body to be a little wider, but then competition begins with ultra-massive models. It’s not a fact that the manufacturer planned to target such a segment with this line. The Spark 20 Pro+ model is already 7 mm wider than the old S8, so adjustments were made to the proportions.

 

In addition, a fingerprint sensor is now built into the screen. However, it is located completely below and it is not very convenient to grab the body in your hands.

 

 

The adjustment and power keys are grouped on the right, the connectors and tray are on the bottom. What is unusual here is a stereo speaker system. The addition to the main one was not a conversational one, but a full-fledged version on the upper edge. Both are loud and complement the video really well.

 

 

On the back there is a whole island with three main camera modules and a flash. It is quite tall, so the included case is very appropriate. And in the box there isprotective glass that you can install yourself. And this is just a great bonus, since such matrices and the glass on them have always been expensive.

 

 

The smartphone body received, albeit minimal, but useful protection from moisture and dust at IP53 level.

 

 

Hardware

 

The Tecno Spark 20 Pro+ is powered by a MediaTek Helio G99 processor. This is an eight-core chipset, which is manufactured using a 6-nanometer process technology. It has 2 Cortex-A76 cores with an operating frequency of 2200 MHz and 6 Cortex-A55 cores operating with a frequency of 2000 MHz. In benchmark tests, it is on par with its counterpart, the MediaTek Dimensity 6020 chip.

 

 

Modern additions to improve performance and save battery power include artificial intelligence-based engines that take care of routine operations, relieving the load on the processor cores. Aurora Engine allows you to speed up the launch of games and popular programs. Darwin Engine optimizes software load, increasing frame rates and reducing average temperatures while the device is under load.

 

As for memory, there is a fast 256 GB UFS 2.2 drive installed, and there is also a 512 GB version. This is quite enough, although the developers of modern mobile games, which occupy 9 GB, are a little overwhelmed. Physical RAM is 8 GB. The same amount can be programmatically allocated from the drive.

 

 

As for communications, there are all the latest versions – new Bluetooth, 5 GHz Wi-Fi and current navigation systems and of course NFC.

 

 

The battery lasts for the whole working day for scrolling social networks, chatting in instant messengers and watching online videos. If you take a break for work, the charge will last all night until the next morning. Then you can put your smartphone on a charger, which here supports a power of 33 W and will replenish the battery in about an hour. Unfortunately there is no wireless charging here.

 

Camera

 

The smartphone has three main camera modules and a single one for the front one.

 

 

The main highlight is the 108-megapixel with 1/1.67″, 0.64 micron and f/1.8 lens. It has PDAF phase detection autofocus, but no optical stabilizer. You can shoot in pixel binning (default) or full resolution modes. Honestly, the difference in resolution between 12 megapixels and 108 megapixels is so great that there is no point in taking full-size pictures. They benefit from detail, but these large photographs don’t look very good on their own. On them you can find much more noise, pixel grid, and blur. So for practical purposes, we recommend limiting yourself to 12-megapixel options.

 

In general, the quality of shooting and detail is very good, and the focusing speed has increased. This is noticeable progress in this price segment. Yes, nuances are noticeable in pictures taken with complex lighting, for example, at night, but “daytime” photos can now compete with frames taken by cameras of more expensive models.

 

The 3x zoom function is digital here. This is facilitated by a 2 megapixel module. Yes, the quality is not so great, but ultra-flagships with their 10-30x zooms also rely on post-processing more than optical capabilities.

 

The module for macro photography also has a size of 2 megapixels. It’s not very clear why you should use it when pictures taken in automatic mode at short distances turn out better. Yes, the focal length of the main module is longer, but cropping a regular photo will give a better result than the original in macro.

 

 

The front camera with a 32 megapixel resolution module also provides high detail and good sharpness. There are nuances in color reproduction, but again this is a big step for smartphones of this level.

 

The work of the algorithms during post-processing is visible. Usually after 1-2 seconds the photo changes colors and shades. At the same time, the AI in most cases does not distort the picture.

 

The smartphone can shoot video in a maximum resolution of 1440p at 30 frames per second or 1080p at 60 fps. The result is a detailed and clear picture with good color rendition. The quality is good for static shooting, but in motion everything becomes sad due to the lack of an optical stabilizer. By the way, higher video resolutions (4K or 60 fps for modes above 1080p) are not supported by the processor, not the camera.

 

The camera has various modes: dual video, shooting the starry sky, super macro and others.

 

Impressions

 

Tecno Spark 20 Pro+ is a modern and beautiful smartphone. The company is making leaps and bounds not only with commercial success, but also qualitatively updating its model range, which allows you to get a nice and quite powerful device at an affordable price. This model looks great, if you once liked screens with touch-sensitive edges, which are now simply called rounded, then this model will not leave you indifferent.

 

There is no feeling that this is an “attempt”, a “test of the pen”, a “concept” to install modern equipment in an old building. The processor is fast, but gets a little warm in heavy games. The latest Android 14 with the proprietary HiOS 14 shell is installed. It is not overloaded, and has a reserve of options for customizing its appearance and operation. The screen is bright and has excellent color reproduction. It has a modern built-in camera and fingerprint scanner.

 

With each generation of Tecno models, the camera became more and more adequate. Now, it seems it has reached the level of “good”, and remembering the price, it has reached “very good”. Without any concessions from our editorial side.

 

All this is collected in an elegant, non-massive and comfortable case. Yes, it is better to protect the main camera modules with a cover, but who would talk to their “comforts” behind. And so, before us is a cool representative of the lower middle price class.

Characteristics of the Tecno Spark 20 Pro+ (KJ7) smartphone:

OS:	Android 14 + HiOS 14
Screen:	6.78”, 1080×2436, IPS, 120 Hz
Processor:	MediaTek Helio G99 (2×Cortex-A76 2.2 GHz, 6×Cortex-A55 2 GHz)
Graphics:	Mali-G57 MC2
RAM + storage	8 (+8 GB virtual) + 256 GB (max. 512 GB)
Main camera:	108 MP, f/1.75, 1/1.67”, 10x digital zoom 2 megapixels, f/2.4 0.08 megapixel sensor
Front camera:	32 megapixels, f/2.2, dual flash
SIM slot:	2xnano-SIM + Micro SD
Networks:	2G (GPRS/EDGE) 3G (WCDMA/UMTS/HSPA) 4G (LTE)
Communications:	Wi-Fi 5 802.11ac, NFC, Bluetooth 5.2, 3.5 mm audio
Navigation:	A-GPS, GPS, Beidou, Galileo
Connector:	USB Type-C
Sensors:	Accelerometer Gyroscope Light sensor Proximity sensor
Protection:	IP53
Battery:	5000 mAh
Charging power:	33 W
Dimensions:	164.65×75.04×7.55 mm
Weight:	175 g
Supplier:	Representative office of Transission in Ukraine
Price:	$240

Rating:

+ wonderful design

+ general ergonomics

+ performance

+ capacious battery

+ protective glass included

-fingerprint sensor is too shifted down

-no wireless charging

-peculiar camera algorithms

 

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