Hello.
It’s nice to escape from autumn Moscow to sunny, hot and sometimes wet Singapore. Especially when it’s a work trip to launch a new smartphone from Tecno, a company that has taken second place in Russia in smartphone sales. Albeit in the moment, albeit for a short time, but for a brand that until recently was unknown to the general public, this is a huge achievement. I spoke about second place in “Spikins”, but I won’t repeat it here.
Tecno already has a smartphone with a flexible screen – the V Fold. The first pancake for many companies turns out to be lumpy, there were some rough edges and a number of shortcomings, but all of them were covered by a very competitive price. During the promotional period, a smartphone could be bought for 80 thousand rubles, today it is one hundred thousand rubles.
When you compare this device with the Samsung Z Fold4 and Huawei Mate X3, you see a lot of shortcomings, and that’s normal. But you start to remember the prices of your competitors, and everything falls into place. And the main thing here is that Tecno is actively developing its products and improving them. And I see that the changes are very noticeable, the company is not only increasing sales and marketing efforts, but also building a product.
Let me start with the fact that the new model expands the model range for Tecno and increases the average price of the phone. This is an analogue of the Z Flip from Samsung and models from a number of other companies that have the Flip prefix, so the name fits perfectly here.
I’ll dwell a little on my impressions of the device, and only then we’ll move on and delve into the company’s plans in Russia.
Aluminum body with eco-leather inserts, but the weight is not excessive. It is perceived well, the hinge is of its own design (minimum 200,000 openings). The feeling of the device is very pleasant, however, look at the photos for yourself.
The external display is like a telephone dial, but this is a development of the ideas inherent in the Phantom line and various devices. I like this design, but there is a drawback – the ceramic bezel is very reflective and gets dirty with your fingers, this cannot be corrected.
I do not have the final sample, it does not open 180 degrees, the flaw will be corrected in commercial samples. But if you close your eyes at this moment, then we see a curious device. A round external screen, you can display pictures on it, or you can access various functions without opening the device.
Everything inside the device is familiar and normal. The OLED matrix is LTPO, which is not bad for such a product. With a price of 65-70 thousand rubles in mid-October, we will get a good model for retail (on the gray market you can take the Samsung Z Flip4, for the same money this device will win the competition, which is understandable, the situation with the Fold is repeated).
At the presentation they showed additional and sometimes funny cases, the emphasis is clearly on the fashionable audience.
I’m not sure that such cases will actually appear in Russian retail, but for presentations this is just the thing! It turned out interesting.
Perhaps we should also share examples of pictures taken with the Flip camera, as well as videos.
Another product that was shown at the presentation is MegaBook T1 2023. It is already on sale in Russia, the price starts from 49,990 rubles.
A nice laptop with balanced performance, but don’t expect anything special from it.
Let’s return from the presentation to what is happening with Tecno in Russia and what its plans are. I talked with the CEO of the company in the world, he has a very balanced view of things. There is no desire to become number one at any cost, but in Russia the company sees that it will periodically take first place in sales. In three years it may become number one, not earlier. To put it mildly, it is very ambitious, but considering where the company was a couple of years ago and where it is today, you can try to believe it. Another point that appeals to me here is the focus on making the product improve in all aspects. Constant research in Russia, customer surveys and similar interests. Tecno builds communications with the market correctly.
Of all the Chinese companies, only Tecno actively invites me and many of my colleagues to meetings. Engineers and designers come, show future products, and are interested in what functions may be most in demand in our country. Interestingly, the result of such conversations is also visible; the product is changing. But here you also need to understand that, unlike many manufacturers, Tecno works in the market, does not hide its presence, and is aggressive in marketing and advertising. And this provides an advantage that translates into every aspect of the business.
For example, in the last few months we have had several press tours where Chinese manufacturers showed various devices. Usually this is arranged in such a way that nothing can be said about the official part, as if we were not on the trip with the company. It gets to the point of absurdity – you can’t take pictures of your colleagues so that no one thinks that you are somewhere together. It is clear that no one observes these stupid prohibitions, and such trips are an open secret for everyone. With more than ten participants, keeping something like this a secret is a utopia. Tecno approaches the issue adequately, does not hide and does not try to create some kind of appearance of something that is not there. It’s exactly the same story with partners, which results in winning in the market.
Much of Tecno’s luck is due to the selection of a team that found its place in Russia. People grew up with the company in a matter of months, they used their chance to the fullest. I don’t believe in hardware, that they know how to sell themselves. I believe in people and what they can do. And when I look at Tecno, I see a vibrant company in China, designers and engineers are developing quickly, they got a chance and took advantage of it. But Russia is also experiencing rapid growth; this is the main foreign market. I have seen many manufacturers grow or not grow, Tecno has all the ingredients for growth, and they cannot be imitated. Many people talk about how they are champions and will do this and that. But in reality, only a few are capable of this; Tecno has already become such a champion and is carving out a share for itself in the Russian market. Direct competitors are adapting to the company’s line, I see the adoption stage. There were already laughs, the frivolous perception ended along with the increase in share. So now there will be direct competition, which is beneficial for you and me, it lowers prices. And in Russia they did not grow due to the direct clash of the same Tecno with realme and Xiaomi. By the way, the first two companies will clearly take away, and very quickly, Xiaomi’s share; this process cannot be stopped. But at the same time, everyone is increasing investments in the market, since it has become very competitive. And it’s wonderful in every way.
Regardless of what many buyers think about Tecno, the numbers speak for themselves. I’m curious, what exactly is your opinion? What associations does the Tecno brand evoke?
