The democratization of foldables is now a fact. Joining a growing list of bendy-screen models now available outside of China, the Tecno Phantom V Fold presents a value-oriented alternative to the Galaxy of a similar name – the de-facto standard for a tablet in a phone’s guise.

The Phantom has the better proportions of foldables that aren’t the Galaxy the cover screen is larger and so much more usable than the one on the Samsung, and the foldable display on the inside is bigger too. A large battery is then needed to power all that 120Hz OLED screen area, and you end up with a rather heavy package – a gram shy of 300g.

You do get a pretty capable camera system with a couple of 50MP units for main and tele, plus an autofocusing ultrawide – when are we ever getting AF on an UW on a Samsung foldable?

Unlike the bulk of foldables, the Tecno has a Mediatek chipset at its heart. The Dimensity 9000+ is about on par with the Snapdragon 8(+) Gen 1 though, so the Phantom V Fold is anything but underpowered. And with 12GB of RAM as standard and 256GB or 512GB of storage, you won’t be pressed for memory either.

Other small niceties include 45W fast charging, stereo speakers, and an FM radio – flagship Snapdragons dropped that a while ago. It’s a most welcome sight that the V Fold runs Android 13, so its software is current, too (also quite capable, it turns out).

Specifications of the Tecno Phantom V Fold
Network: Technology GSM/HSPA/ LTE/ 5G

Body
Dimensions

• Unfolded: 159.4 x 140.4 x 6.9 mm
• Folded: 159.4 x 72 x 14.2-14.5 mm

Weight: 299 g
SIM: Dual Nano-SIM

Display
Type: Foldable LTPO AMOLED, 1B colors, 120Hz, 1100 nits (peak)
Size: 7.85 inches, 196.9 cm2 (~88.0% screen-to-body ratio)
Resolution: 2000 x 2296 pixels (~388 ppi density)

Platform
Operating system: Android 13, HiOS 13 Fold
Chipset: Mediatek Dimensity 9000+ (4 nm)
CPU: Octa-core (1×3.20 GHz Cortex-X2 & 3×2.85 GHz Cortex-A710 & 4×1.80 GHz Cortex-A510)
GPU: Mali-G710 MC10

Memory
Card slot: No
Internal storage: 512GB ROM – 12GB RAM, UFS 3.1

Main camera
Triple: 50 MP, f/1.9, (wide), 1/1.3″, PDAF 50 MP, (telephoto), PDAF, 2x optical zoom 13 MP, 120 (ultrawide)
Features: Dual-LED flash, HDR, panorama
Video: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30fps

Selfie camera
Single: 16 MP, (wide) Cover camera: 32 MP, (wide)
Video: Yes

Sound
Loudspeaker: Yes, with stereo speakers
3.5mm jack: No

Communication
WLAN: Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band
Bluetooth: 5.2, A2DP, LE
NFC: Yes
Positioning: GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, BDS
Radio: FM Radio
USB: USB Type-C, OTG

Features
Sensors: Fingerprint (side-mounted), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass

Battery
Type: Li-Po 5000 mAh, non-removable
Charging: 45W wired, 40% in 15 min, 100% in 55 min (advertised)

Colors
Available colors Black and white

In the Box

• Phone x 1
• USB Type-C Cable x 1
• Charger x 1
• Eject Tool x 1
• Aramid Fibre Protective Case x 1