Design and Build Quality
TECNO Camon 19 Pro follows a very squarish design with flat sides and slight curved corners. I’m not a fan of the metallic finish on its rear panel, but I like the dual rounded islands for its cameras.
Like a number of other mid-range devices today, this also has a side-mounted fingerprint scanner which is also the power button. You also get a USB-C port, and a headphone jack.
You got a 6.8-inch screen with a 120Hz refresh rate. It’s not as lively and vibrant as an AMOLED display on more pricey devices, but the quality is decent enough for media consumption.
Performance
TECNO Camon 19 Pro runs on a Helio G96 processor – a staple in many mid-range devices and has proven itself in delivering a good balance of performance and efficiency. As expected, performance for typical day-to-day tasks is more than satisfactory, and with 8GB of physical RAM plus 3GB of virtual RAM, multitasking becomes a breeze. You also get 128GB of storage, which is more than enough for my use case.
Mobile Legends runs very smooth in Ultra Refresh Rate and High Graphics settings plus HD Mode enabled. For Diablo Immortal, I would recommend 30 FPS + Low to Medium preset for a better experience. Genshin Impact will run well at 60 fps too, provided the preset is at its lowest.
Unfortunately, the speakers on this phone are only average at best – the low end is lacking, and the clarity could use a bump.
Camera
TECNO Camon 19 Pro has a 64MP main camera with OIS, a 50MP telephoto lens, and a 2MP depth sensor, along with a 32MP front camera.
Photo samples show good dynamic range and plenty of detail. The depth of field effect also shows good accuracy. The AI tends to boost colors for a livelier look. 1080p video quality is also decent, with the Ultra Steady feature doing a good job of minimizing shakes.
I did run into a couple of issues with the optics – the telephoto camera simply could not focus properly without me having to move the phone back. This sort of defeats the purpose of having one, for closer shots. The main camera, on the other hand, also can have a bit of trouble focusing on room lighting.
Software
TECNO Camon 19 runs HiOS 8.6.0 on top of Android 12. This UI looks very familiar and seems to have a lot of similarities to Infinix’s XOS.
That means you also get the goodies from that skin, including Lightning Multi Window, which allows you to open a floating window using a gesture or from the Smart Panel for multitasking.
Then there’s Game Mode, which involves various features including a panel that you can open in-game to adjust various settings.
In terms of extra apps, you do get a few, some can be uninstalled, other cannot. Performance-wise, I didn’t run into any major issues like stuttering or lags.
Battery
Continuously playing a 1080p 60fps YouTube video on Wi-Fi at 50% brightness, the TECNO Camon 19 Pro managed to last around 17 hours in a single charge, which is a great result. What’s even better is that the 5,000mAh battery can be recharged from zero to full in about an hour using the supplied charger.
Verdict
TECNO Camon 19 Pro is a solid option for its price, offering good performance, a smooth and fluid display, and great battery life. As for its optics, the main camera does a great job of capturing good quality photos, but the telephoto lens needs work on focusing. The speaker is also average at best. Get it here.
At the time of writing, the device is priced at PHP 13,990 via the brand’s official store in Lazada.
Emman has been writing technical and feature articles since 2010. Prior to this, he became one of the instructors at Asia Pacific College in 2008, and eventually landed a job as Business Analyst and Technical Writer at Integrated Open Source Solutions for almost 3 years.
