The Tecno Camon CM is the latest smartphone from the company to go on sale in Kenya. This is also the first smartphone from the company to be launched in 2018. The Tecno Camon CM is available in Kenya for Ksh 17,000, you can get it from Jumia and most other Tecno branded shops. The Camon CM is the first smartphone from the company with the 18:9 aspect ratio, a phone that is twice as tall as it is wide.
With the phone available in retail stores, I had to do an unboxing and first impressions post just to show you guys what the phone is all about. This is not a full review, that will be up in about one week.
We are used to seeing new Camon devices launch in May but the Camon CM surprised us with a launch in January. My bet is the company wanted a device with this modern aspect ratio and did not want till May. Either way, it is good for consumers, more variety to choose from.
What Do You Get in the Box?
So, what do you get in the box? If you are planning to buy the Tecno Camon CM, below is what you should be expecting in the box.
Camon CM accessories
The Phone (Camon CM)
USB Charging/data cable and wall adapter
Earphones
Transparent back cover
User Guide and Warranty Information
Before we get started, you can find the video unboxing did below.
First Impressions and Initial Thoughts
Taking out the Tecno Camon CM from the box for the first time, you get to see how different it is from other Tecno phones. The phone is noticeably light, slim and thin and even though it has a 5.7-inch display, it feels comfortable to use with one hand. This is thanks to the 18:9 aspect ratio that allows the company to fit a larger display on a small form factor. With this aspect ratio, the phone is taller (from top to bottom) and narrower when compared to other smartphones with the same size display.
Tecno Camon CM
The Tecno Camon CM also has thin bezels above and below the display giving it a dramatic look. It also has onscreen navigation keys so you will really see the tall display when you look at the phone for the first time. The side bezels are thin but are not the thinnest ones I have seen so far. This display is one of the phone’s key selling points thanks to its thin bezels. The company is calling it a Full View display.
Still on the display, the Tecno Camon CM comes with a screen protector pre-installed. This is a nice addition and I am always a big fan of manufacturers who sell their phones with the protector pre-installed.
The Tecno Camon CM is a camera centric device but does not come with a dual camera setup at the back as I expected. You only get a single 13MP camera at the back and another 13MP unit in front for selfies. the back camera had Quad (4) LED flash below it to help when taking photos when the lighting isn’t so good. At the back is also where you get the fingerprint scanner whose setup process is surprisingly quick.
Nothing else is included in the back, it looks really clean with the antenna bands pushed to the top and bottom edges.
The usual ports and buttons include the micro USB port, speaker grille and microphone at the bottom, the power and volume keys on the right, the headphone jack up top and the SIM tray on the left. This is not a hybrid slot and means you can use two SIM cards and a microSD card at the same time, very nice indeed. As I have just mentioned, the phone comes a micro USB port and this is not a USB Type C port, quite a disappointment, I was hoping for USB C at this point.
As for the OS, the Tecno Camon CM comes with Android 7.0 Nougat with HiOS (v 3.2) out of the box. This is another disappointment, with Android Oreo already out there, I don’t get why Tecno did not use that on this phone. The phone might get updated down the road but that nothing has been confirmed yet. The software experience has been good so far, I have not had any issues. We will have to wait and see if that is the case as I review the phone.
Below are some of the other key specifications you get on the Tecno Camon CM.
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As I have said above, I will be using the Tecno Camon CM and have the full review in about a week.
