TECNO Spark 7P Review: A Huge Step-Up

TECNO Spark 7P recently launched in the country and we got to spend a good amount of time with it – including a quick hands-on and early first impressions review and now after taking it through its paces, here’s our full review.

Design

TECNO Spark 7P is a nicely designed smartphone. We got our unit in Alps Blue but other colours you can pick include Summer Mojito, Spruce Green and Magnet Black.

The back panel of the TECNO Spark 7P has a subtle gradient finish, especially for the Alps Blue option.

The Summer Mojito one is the most iridescent colour if you are into that.

We have the TECNO Spark branding on the bottom right, a triple AI-powered camera system and a fingerprint sensor on the back.

We also have a power button and volume rockers on the side that are easily accessible. At the bottom, we have a micro-USB port, a headphone jack and a speaker grille.

At the front, we have a 6.8″ display with 720p resolution.

The screen is bright and vibrant to look at. The topping of it all is that buttery smoothness thanks to 90Hz refresh rate. Using this smartphone feels nicer with the fast refresh rate – be it opening and switching apps, swiping between homescreens, gaming, binge-watching movies and tv shows, scrolling Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and browsing the web.

You’ll definitely enjoy consuming multimedia content with the TECNO Spark 7P.

At the top bezel, we have an earpiece that functions together with the bottom speaker for stereo sound. We also have an 8MP front-facing camera accommodated in the notch for taking selfies.

The TECNO Spark 7P is solidly designed and well built and you’ll love using the smartphone.

Software and Performance

TECNO Spark 7P sports TECNO’s new user interface, HiOS 7.6 that runs on top of Android 11. HiOS 7.6 comes with a new modern layout with a minimalist visual experience and new features like Peek Proof, App Twin, Video Assistant, Improved Smart scanner with document correction, Phone cloner, among others.

One feature I got to use a lot is the smart panel which when enabled can be accessed by swiping form the left. A list of commonly used tools is revealed and you can customize to your preferences. I added shortcuts to apps I frequently opened that didn’t need to stay on the home screen.

You are also getting Android 11, Google’s latest mobile operating system. The new OS brings with it improved handling of app permissions for the camera, microphone, and location, scoped storage, and auto-reset permissions for apps you haven’t used in a while, Nearby Share, ability to pin apps in the share menu and scheduled dark mode, powerful media controls, seamless updates, Multitasking pane, improved autofill, suggested apps, biometric authentication, among a host of other useful features.

HiOS 7.6 also features bloatware. However, the unnecessary apps can be easily uninstalled or disabled.

Running the TECNO Spark 7P is Helio G70 chip with a Mali G52 GPU coupled with 4GB of RAM and 128GB of onboard storage.

This spec update step ups TECNO’s game here with the Spark 7P, pun intended.

The smartphone keeps up with my routine tasks which involve switching between light and heavy workloads.

I was switching between mutiple Chrome tabs, curating my Spotify playlists, scrolling social media, checking and replying to emails.

I could also push the TECNO Spark 7P out of its comfort zone with heavier tasks including gaming high graphics games and that high refresh rate comes is the icing.

I was pleased to see these games play so fluidly including Two Dots, Alto’s Odyssey, Ninja Arashi 2, Dead Trigger 2, Atomas, Among Us, Critical Ops, Final Fantasy XV Pocket Edition, Asphalt 9 Legends, NFS No Limits which you can play at 90Hz.

PUBG Mobile couldn’t play at 90Hz which was sad to see. However, I got to pick the highest graphics options including HD graphics and High Frame Rate.

In terms of general performance, the TECNO Spark 7P is a significant step-up and I’m especially impressed.

Cameras

The TECNO Spark 7P comes with a 16MP triple camera setup and an 8MP selfie camera. We have a quad-LED flash next to the camera array and a dual-LED flash at the front in the top bezel.

TECNO Spark 7P included new camera features to play around such as slow motion(240fps), Night Portrait for selfies, Video Bokeh, Super Night Mode and Smile Snapshot.

Video resolutions include shooting them at 30fps for 720p, 1080p and at 2K.

The TECNO Spark 7P handles various scenes quite well and I’m happy to report the cameras fared better than I expected.

Most photos turned out very well with decent detail and dynamic range in good light, including color rendition. Lowlight performance surprised me especially the Super Night Mode.

Here are some photo samples. Link to the full resolution images will be provided below the gallery.

Selfies and Portraits

Regular Shots

Bokeh Shots

Lowlight and their Super Night Mode

Click here to access the photos in full resolution.

Battery

TECNO Spark 7P rocks a 5000mAh battery that provides excellent battery life for everyday use. For most users, the big battery should be sufficient for most users and pull more than a day.

The phone’s battery has served me well the couple of days I’ve been using the TECNO Spark 7P. During days where put the phone through heavy use, I would get between 20% and 30% of remaining battery life even with 90Hz enabled – which I would use for some late night browsing before hitting slumberland.

On light use, the TECNO Spark 7P can go till the next day before needing to juice up.

The downside to this huge battery is the hours it takes to charge the TECNO Spark 7P as it comes with a microUSB port. You’ll have to wait over 2 hours to go from empty to full.

Battery life with the TECNO Spark 7P is pretty strong and that 90Hz refresh rate is the last thing you should worry about.

So if you’re looking for a battery workhorse, the the TECNO Spark 7P is the one to pick.

So, should you buy the TECNO Spark 7P?

TECNO Spark 7P is a huge step-up and its upgraded features make for a compelling buy – you are getting a lot of value for money – consistent performance thanks to the hardware and software combination, capable photography especially the super night mode, impressive battery perfomance and the high refresh rate screen.

The TECNO Spark 7P is an overall alluring package and delivers just about everything you’d need in budget smartphone and then some more.

Pricing and Availability

TECNO Spark 7P starts retailing from Ksh 13,499 and is available in TECNO’s official retail stores country and in partner e-commerce sites.