TECNO Mobile Spark 7 Pro Review, Is This Android Smartphone Worth The Money?

If you're thinking of upgrading your entry-level smartphone for better gaming and overall mobile experience but you can't spend more than PHP 7,000 on a new device because of the pandemic, here's a new handset from international tech brand TECNO that you might want to check out.

With an official suggested retail price of only PHP 6,990, TECNO Mobile Spark 7 Pro has several key selling points that will surely delight budding mobile gamers, mobile photographers, and even those who are now starting to use their handsets for online business.

Before I share with you my thoughts on the many features of this Android smartphone, let me show you the smartphone's packaging as well as everything that's inside.

TECNO Spark 7 Pro comes in this neon orange box with blue fonts and glossy design accents. I actually think it's very eye-catching and it looks different compared to the packaging of other brands.

At the bottom of the box, the company listed down the main selling points of the product, which I will talk more about in a bit.

Lifting the cover, you will be greeted by the handset itself wrapped in plastic, which helps protect the screen from damage during shipment.

The complete retail package includes the smartphone itself, the travel charger, the micro-USB charging cable, the pair of earphones, the user manual, the warranty card, and a free soft gel case so you won't have to buy one separately.

Alright! Now, let's take a closer look at the device. Let's start with the design and build.

TECNO Spark 7 Pro features an all-glass face and a polycarbonate backplate with gorgeous micro-line pattern and pearl finish.

For a device with such a large display, I find the TECNO Spark 7 Pro very slim and easily pocketable.

It has a fairly small footprint at 164.9 x 76.2 x 8.8 mm and it weighs just 193 grams, making it a joy to keep in the pocket and allowing for one-handed use.

Although the entire back panel of the TECNO Spark 7 Pro is made predominantly of plastic, I don't think it looks cheap at all.

I think that the metallic finish and the high-gloss camera module give the device an air of elegance.

For me the long, rectangular camera module - housing three shooters - is the main identifying physical characteristic of this release.

This is largely similar to what's on the TECNO Pova 2, which shows that the company is doing its best to streamline the look of its smartphones.

OK. Now, let's jump to TECNO Spark 7 Pro's display, which is one of its highlights.

TECNO Spark 7 Pro sports a 6.6-inch HD+ IPS display that delivers a decent viewing experience when browsing websites, watching Youtube videos, viewing vlogs and Tiktok clips, as well as when playing games.

Although I wish that the handset's screen had a higher resolution at FullHD, I think that the 90Hz Refresh Rate of the panel somehow makes up for it.

The 90Hz Refresh Rate enables smoother screen transitions and more fluid touch response, which you will really appreciate if you're coming from an entry-level device with a 60Hz or lower refresh rate.

As for imaging capabilities, TECNO Spark 7 Pro - I definitely think - can certainly be relied on for everyday point and shoot photography.

Sure, it doesn't come with the bells and whistles of more expensive cameraphones but its 48 MegaPixel main camera, 2 MegaPixel depth sensor, and AI camera make TECNO Spark 7 Pro a decent upgrade for mobile photographers who are still using an entry-level smartphone from two to three years ago. On top of that, the main camera also has Super Night Mode that lets you take clear, crisp, and brilliant images even in low lighting conditions.

Like most of you, I also wish that the handset came with an ultra-wide-angle shooter to give the cameraphone greater flexibility for snapping images  -- but given the handset's price, it's hard to nitpick or complain too much about this limitation.

If you still love taking selfies, you'd be glad to know that the 8 MegaPixel front-facing camera - neatly housed in the punch hole located in the upper left corner of the screen - delivers clear photos. It also comes with LED torchlight that can be very useful in low to zero lighting conditions.

Good for TikTokers and Youtubers, TECNO Spark 7 Pro has 2K front and back video recorders that deliver clear clips even when used indoors, especially when you use the LED light. Youtube's compression favors videos uploaded in 2K and 4K so that's another reason why I like these cameras.

Is TECNO Mobile Spark 7 Pro good for playing popular mobile games like Mobile Legends Bang Bang, which is very popular in the Philippines?

The quick answer to that is yes. 

This handset's 12nm 2GHz Octa-Core Mediatek Helio G80 Processor and Mali-G52 MC2 GPU deliver a smooth gaming experience when running MLBB.

Honestly, Mobile Legends is the only game I am fond of currently so that's the only one I've tried playing on the TECNO Mobile Spark 7 Pro so far -- and based on my experience, this smartphone is good for it. I think the company's Game Engine, which boosts the performance of the processor as well as network connectivity, greatly helps as well.

I mean, it's not the smoothest MLBB gameplay experience ever but it's far from annoyingly laggy and the game doesn't really crash on the device. For me, that's good enough - again - given the SRP of this model

For multitasking, the handset has 4GB RAM which is hardly a highlight but so far, I haven't really experienced stuttering or lags when running multiple apps on the device. For storage, the phone has 128GB of ROM that can easily be expanded using the dedicated microSD card slot; No complaints there.

What about the battery life, you ask?

Well, TECNO Spark 7 Pro runs on a very large 5,000 mAh Li-Po battery that easily delivers up to a whole day of uptime even for heavy gamers. If you don't like carrying a big powerbank everywhere you go, you will certainly appreciate the benefits of this high-capacity pack.

What's even more amazing is that if you don't really use your handset for gaming or running resource-intensive applications, you can even get up to two days of uptime coming from a full charge.

One downside of this battery pack, though, is that it doesn't support fast charging. It's limited to just 10W, which means that it takes quite a while to charge this smartphone from 0% to 100% compared - for example - to TECNO POVA 2, which supports 18W Dual IC Fast Charging technology.

So, is TECNO Mobile Spark 7 Pro worth your money?

The device has clear points for improvement as noted above -- but overall, I think it's a pretty decent package for only PHP 6,990.

Obviously, the company made compromises here and there to keep the price of the model very accessible but as a whole, I find this smartphone a real joy to use for taking photos, browsing websites, watching videos, and playing Mobile Legends.

I think that if you're coming from a smaller and more laggy entry-level smartphone from 2017 or 2018, you will fall in love with the key features of this budget-friendly offering.

If I got your interest, you can now purchase TECNO Mobile Spark 7 Pro at the company's stores and retail partners in major malls nationwide as well as through TECNO Mobile's official online store in Lazada and Shopee.

TECNO Spark 7 Pro is available in three hip colorways, namely, Alps Blue, Spruce Green, and - what I have here - Magnet Black.

TECNO Spark 7 Pro Specs

164.9 x 76.2 x 8.8 mm

193 grams

6.6 inches, HD+, 720 x 1600 pixels, 266 ppi, 20:9 ratio, IPS LCD

90Hz Refresh Rate

Punch Hole for Front Cam

Triple Rear Camera Module:

48 MegaPixel, Phase Detection AutoFocus

2 MegaPixel Depth Sensor

AI Camera

Front-Facing Camera:

8 MegaPixel

LED Torchlight for Front Cam

Video Recorder:

Front and Back - FullHD 1080p 30fps

Android 11

HIOS 7.5

12nm 2GHz Octa-Core Mediatek Helio G80 Processor

Mali-G52 MC2 GPU

4GB RAM

128GB ROM

eMMC 5.1 Internal Storage

Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n

Bluetooth

4G LTE-A

FM Radio

Rear-Mounted Fingerprint Scanner

microUSB 2.0

USB On-The-Go

Non-Removable 5,000 mAh Li-Po Battery Pack

High-Gloss Polycarbonate Shell

Alps Blue, Spruce Green, Magnet Black

TECNO Spark 7 Pro Price in the Philippines

Official Suggested Retail Price - PHP 6,990

Release Date - June 15, 2021