TECNO Camon 16s finally launched in Kenya to join its other Camon 16 series – the Camon 16 Premier and the Camon 16 Pro.
We’ve already reviewed the TECNO Camon 16s but how does it stack up against the competition especially in the under 20K segment.
The under 20K segment is really competitive and you need to standout big.
TECNO Camon 16s Review: Not Enough Spark
The focus of this article is a comparison review between the Infinix Note 8i vs the TECNO Camon 16s and I’ll include (insert Watchmojo lady’s voice)some honourable mentions at the end of the article.
Before we begin, both smartphones retail at Ksh 16,999. Infinix Note 8i comes in two configurations – 4GB RAM and either 64GB or 128GB onboard storage.
Design
Both Infinix Note 8i and the TECNO Camon 16s are nicely designed smartphones with colour gradient backs which you’ll love showing when placed on surfaces and they will grab attention wherever you are.
For the Infinix Note 8, you can different colours including Deepsea Luster(our unit), Silver Diamond and Iceland Fantasy.
The TECNO Camon 16s comes in Ice Jadeite(our unit), Blue Hawaii and Misty Grey.
The two tone finish is nice to look at and in terms of design, you can’t go wrong with either.
Both smartphones feature quad-camera setups with a 48MP primary camera with 2MP depth sensor, 2MP macro sensor and an additional AI lens.
The TECNO Camon 16s has a rear fingerprint sensor while the Infinix Note 8i has a side mounted fingerprint sensor incorporated in the power button.
Both have punch-hole displays with an 8MP selfie camera in the cutout.
The TECNO Camon 16s has a 6.6″ LCD display with a resolution 1600 by 720 pixels while the Infinix Note 8i has a 6.78″ LCD display with a resolution of 720 x 1640 pixels.
Both offer stereo sound so you’ll enjoy consuming multimedia content.
If big is good for you then go with the Infinix Note 8i otherwise both work as expected.
Software Performance
Under the hood is where the smartphones part ways(cue – the ending of Fast and Furious 7 end scene)
The TECNO Camon 16s features a MediaTek Helio P35 processor coupled with Power VR GE8320 GPU coupled with 4GB of RAM and 128GB of board storage while the Infinix Note 8i has an octa-core Mediatek Helio G80 processor, Mali G52 GPU, 4GB of RAM and either 64GB or 128GB of onboard storage.
Infinix really upped their game spec wise as the G80 is a beefier processor compared to the Helio P35 which is relatively a downgrade from the Camon 16 series which ship with the MediaTek Helio G90T – I was kinda disappointed as this would have CHANGED EVERYTHING!
If you’re looking for an all reliable performance phone be it gaming, heavy multitasking or regular light tasks – then the Infinix Note 8i is the perfect pick.
Both phones come with Android 10 and the TECNO Camon 16s come with HiOS v6.1 while the Infinix Note 8i has XOS 7.1.
Both user interfaces come with little neat extra features such as Social Turbo, Game Mode and Smart Panel.
Performance-wise, you are better off with the Infinix Note 8i.
Cameras
Both phones have similar setups: 48MP quad setups as stated above with 2MP depth sensor, 2MP macro sensor and an additional AI lens.
We also have 8MP punch-hole selfie cameras.
In terms of camera performance, you are getting your money’s worth from the two phones – it’s amazing how good budget smartphones have come especially considering photography.
I will add, though, Infinix Note 8i has a night mode so that gives it an advantage for lowlight shots.
However, the selfie cameras for both need some work. The main cameras deliver – that you can count on.
You are not going to go wrong with either pick. For me, I’d go with the added versality of the Infinix Note 8i with the night mode.
Battery Life
Another good thing is the battery performance for either phone.
The TECNO Camon 16s has a 5000mAh battery while the Infinix Note 8i has a 5200 mAh battery.
TECNO Camon 16s has a micro-USB charging port while Infinix Note 8i has a Type-C charging port that has 18W fast charging while the 16s has 10W charging.
Both phones offer all day performance on heavy performance and two day battery life with light use.
The Infinix Note 8i wins it here with the relatively larger battery and fast Type-C charging.
Verdict
When it comes to picking the right budget smartphone, value proposition is a big thing a lot of price-conscious people consider and the Infinix Note 8i ticks most checkboxes in terms of overall performance, photography and battery performance.
As I said in my review of the TECNO Camon 16s, the company could have changed a few things specs-wise – especially adding a newer and faster processor(the Helio P35 is also in the TECNO Spark 5 Pro) but not ncessarily the Helio G90T its bigger Camon 16 siblings have.
A Type-C charging port would be welcome too.
Infinix Note 8 Review: The Upgrade Was Worth The Wait
Honorable Mentions
The under 20K smartphone market has alot of really good smartphones for consumers to pick.
In this case, I will focus on the 17K range that includes devices like Huawei Y7p, Huawei Y7a, OPPO A53 and Nokia 3.4.
