The Tecno Spark 9 Pro is one of the phones in the Spark 9 series that is specifically built for Gen Z. It has a trendy new design plus a big front selfie camera as well as a big battery capacity and a Full HD+ display. Is this the perfect every day use smartphone?
The Tecno Spark 9 Pro, Spark 9T and Spark 9C are the latest Spark 9 devices to hit the market is the Spark series. There are some big upgrades in the Spark 9 Pro from last year’s Spark 8P. I have a section comparing the two smartphones as you read along. But first, the price.
Read about all the differences in the Tecno Spark 9 series here.
Also read about the Tecno Spark 9 Series Ambassador here.
Price In Kenya
The official prices of the Tecno Spark 9 Series are as follows
- Tecno Spark 9C KES 15,599
- Tecno Spark 9 Pro KES 20,899
- Tecno Spark 9T KES 17,199
Tecno Spark 9 Pro & Spark 8P Comparison
In the intro I mentioned that the Spark 9 Pro has some improvements to the 8P and that is clearly evident in this table. Although the Spark 9 Pro and Spark 8P have the same size display and resolution, the Spark 9 Pro has some big improvements starting with the extended memory feature, MemFusion.
| Spec/Phone | Spark 9 Pro | Spark 8P |
| Screen size | 6.6 Inch/169mm | 6.6 Inch/169mm |
| Resolution | 1080X2408 FHD+ | 1080X2408 Full HD+ |
| Refresh rate | 60Hz | 60Hz |
| Processor | Helio G85 Gaming Octa-core 2.0GHz processor | Helio G35 (2.30GHz Octa-core processor) |
| Memory | 4GB RAM + 3GB ROM | 4GB RAM |
| Storage | 128GB | 128GB/64GB |
| Front Camera | 32MP Clear Selfie Front Camera with Dual Flash | 8MP with Dual Flash |
| Rear Camera | 50MP Triple Rear Camera with Dual Flash | 50MP Triple with quad flash |
| Max Video Quality | 1440p@30fps | 1080p@30fps |
| Fingerprint | Side Fingerprint | Side Fingerprint |
| Battery | 5000mAh | 5000mAh |
| Charger | 18 Watt Dual Voltage Flash Charger | 2.0 Ampere Compact Charger |
| USB interface | USB Type C port | Micro USB |
| Sensors | -Fingerprint -Accelerometer -Light -Proximity | -Fingerprint -Accelerometer -Light -Proximity |
| Software | Android 12 | Android 11 |
Most of the specification are exactly the same but if you take a closer look you will see how big of an upgrade the Spark 9 Pro is. First of all it has a Helio G85 Gaming processor, Extended memory fusion feature, bigger front camera set up, USB Type C port and a bigger 18 watt flash charger.
Design
The Spark 9 Pro also has an overall better design than the Spark 8P. The design is similar to the Camon 19 series where it employs the minimalist dual galaxy rings for the cameras. The back cover employs a 200 million star back cover which is fingerprint proof. This means that you ca use the device comfortably without the need for wiping it constantly.
The phone is also very slim with a bezel measuring only 8.42mm despite having a 5000mAh non removable battery inside. The rounded off corners and the flat edges makes the Spark 9 Pro look like the premium device it is. My only problem is the glossy surface at the top. Yes it looks good but it is a fingerprint magnet.
You can watch a lot more about the design in my unboxing video below.
MemFusion
The Extended RAM Technology, called MemFusion on the Tecno Spark 9 Pro uses part of the Storage as RAM. There are 3 ROM values to choose from namely 1GB, 2GB and 3GB. Combined with the 4GB RAM, you can see that we can get up to 7GB RAM for better performance. Personally, I don’t know why anyone would choose anything less than 7GB RAM.
Camera
Video Recording
The maximum video recording quality is 1440p at 30 frames per second. This is higher than the Spark 8P which could record up to 1080p@30fps. What this phone lacks in quality it makes up in low light video recording owing to its quad flash setup at the back. The other video qualities available in the settings are 720p and 480p at 30fps too.
What about other video features? The Spark 9 Pro has Bokeh Mode which blurs the background automatically while shooting a video in except for the subject. The beauty mode does exactly what it means, makes the scenery and your face better looking by reducing the amount of information on the video. The quality of Bokeh and Beauty videos is capped at 720p. Another feature of video recording is slow motion where the quality is even lower at 480p but with a choice of two speeds, 120fps and 240 fps.
The Spark 7P does not have the video stabilisation feature.
Still Photography
The Tecno Spark 9 Pro has a triple camera setup at the back with dual flash. From the top we have the 50MP lens followed by a 2MP Bokeh lens and finally an AI lens.
The following are sample images shot by the Tecno Spark 9 Pro.
Selfie
The front 32MP lens is truly a clear selfie camera because it takes very nice and smooth photos.
Super Night
The difference between the AICAM and Super Night photos is very clearly shown below.
The Spark 9 Pro does not have wide angle and macro photography capabilities. But choosing the full wide photograph size will mimic an wide angle photo.
Battery & Charging
The Spark 9 Pro has a very big and generous battery at 5000mAh. the charger provided is an 18 Watt dual voltage charger.
I recently did a charging experiment to find out how long it takes to fully charge this phone. Here is the video.
In summary it took 21 minutes to charge to 18% and 1 Hour to charge to 58%. This is faster than the Tecno Spark 8P which could manage only 12% in 20 minutes and 36% in an hour. Here are my full results.
- 2 Minutes – 2%
- 5 Minutes – 3%
- 11 Minutes – 8%
- 16 Minutes – 14%
- 21 Minutes – 18%
- 30 Minutes – 28%
- 40 Minutes – 38%
- 50 Minutes – 49%
- 1 Hour – 58%
- 1 Hour 12 Minutes – 71%
- 1 Hour 20 Minutes – 78%
- 1 Hour 30 Minutes – 86%
- 1 Hour 40 Minutes – 91%
- 1 Hour 50 Minutes – 95%
- 2 Hours – 97%
- 2 Hours 6 Minutes – 98%
Conclusion
The Tecno Spark 9 Pro is a budget stylish smartphone with an amazing front camera and a long lasting battery. The charging speeds are also within acceptable limits too.