Tecno Phantom X2 Pro on display during its launch event in Dubai.
Chinese smartphone brands have been the biggest, even dominant, players in the global smartphone scene (with the notable exception of North America) for half a decade. But while anyone who remotely follows mobile technology will have heard of Huawei and Xiaomi, there is another Chinese brand, one that is a virtual unknown in the west and even an obscure name in its home country, that has the strongest grip. on its intended market.
This would be Shenzhen-based Tecno, which has been selling smartphones in Africa since 2006, and has almost 20% market share in the continent making it Africa’s largest phone brand. In fact, Tecno was recently named as the number six most admired brand in Africa (regardless of industry) by the African Business publication.
Tecno is a major presence in retail stores in Nigeria. (Photo by Jean Chung/Getty Images)
While Tecno is still pouring a lot of resources and attention in maintaining its lead in Africa, in recent years the brand has ventured into other emerging markets such as Latin America, Southeast Asia, India and the Middle East. Today, Tecno sells phones in more than 70 markets.
It is not difficult to see the pattern: Tecno has avoided developing, traditionally rich markets such as North America, Europe and East Asia, in favor of developing markets.
The company’s general manager Jack Guo essentially admitted the move was to avoid strong competition and win in underdeveloped markets.
Tecno general manager Jack Guo.
“When we first entered the smartphone business we visited more than 90 countries and analyzed the market,” claims Guo, who has been with Tecno since 2013. “Most of the brands were focused on China and Europe. But there was one region whole with a large population and low phone penetration rates. We decided to focus on that.”
Selling in Africa and other developed markets means, of course, selling budget phones. And that was the impression I got when I tested my first Tecno device two years ago. I thought the phone was good for an entry level handset, but it was clearly a budget phone by no means pushing any industry standards. Little did I know behind the scenes, Tecno was already working to aim higher.
This week the company launched its first series of flagship phones, the Phantom X2 and X2 Pro, in Dubai. With the top model priced at the equivalent of $900, it is Tecno’s most expensive phone by several times.
Dubai launch event.
The Phantom X2 series, in fact, had a lavish launch in Dubai last week, and this represents Tecno’s move into the more affluent market. Now we are not talking about the US or Japan, but rather countries like Saudi Arabia and the UAE. The Middle East represents an attractive market for Tecno, as consumers in this region have more spending power than, say, consumers in Nigeria or the Philippines, but it is also a region without the red tape and geopolitical scrutiny that comes with entering western markets, like. as the United States or the UK The region also has a lot of growth potential, as a recent report from the research company Canalyst sets the Middle East for double-digit smartphone growth in 2023.
Tecno’s deputy general manager, Laury Bai, says that the Phantom X2 Pro’s standout feature—that retractable portrait lens—has been in development for two years. A result of the company poured a piece of its profits in R & D over the years. The company declined to provide the exact number, however.
The retractable camera technology, which sees the camera lens physically protrude from the body of the phone. This extended body gives the optics more room to capture and process image information, as well as produce shots with a more natural separation between subject and background.
The pop-out portrait lens.
I tested the phone and the portrait lens really works. This, coupled with the flagship chip and Tecno’s decision to equip the phone with Samsung’s flagship GN5 sensor, gives the Phantom X2 Pro the most capable hardware of any Tecno phone yet. It certainly looks and feels premium.
But as any marketing guru will tell you, making a good product is only half the job, you still have to sell it to consumers, convincing them the product and brand is the real deal. The Dubai launch event helped. So, too, have partnered with household name partners such as Google, Intel and Microsoft. Regional representatives of each brand took the stage during the event. Long gone are the days of Tecno phones launching with suspect software. This time, the Phantom X2 Pro has the full blessing of Google and the guarantee of three years of software support.
Tecno’s Jack Guo along with representatives from Google, Microsoft, Intel, and Mediatek.
The Dubai launch event also saw the introduction of Tecno’s second laptop. Like almost all other phone brands, Tecno understands that building a connected ecosystem can bring more growth, and to this end, the company has launched wireless headphones, routers, smartwatches and webcams over the past two years. Their quality standards varied, but one thing remained consistent—they were very affordable.
Tecno is counting on the Phantom X2 series and its diversified product portfolio to win over consumers and markets. But while Tecno will continue to build flagship phones going forward, Guo said the emerging market will remain the company’s top priority. The affordable entry level phones that have proven popular from Nigeria to Ethiopia to Indonesia will still be the company’s main bread and butter for the foreseeable future.
