Tecno has officially launched the Spark 30 range with two phones, Vanilla and Pro, joining the Spark 30C from early September. The Spark 30 has a black and yellow Bumblebee variant, while now we present to you the Spark 30 Pro in Optimus Prime colors: red, blue and silver.

The phone comes with an adapter, charging cable, and wired earphones, which is a decent retail package, but here are our impressions of its performance once out of the box.

Tecno Spark 30 Pro Transformers Edition hands-on review

The Spark 30 series is for budget-conscious users who still want a little excitement, nay, sparkle, from their phones. The Pro version packs a 6.78-inch AMOLED display with Full HD+ resolution and up to 120Hz refresh rate. We like the fact that it features an under-display fingerprint scanner, which works quickly and reliably.

The Transformers theme brings custom wallpapers and icon designs to Spark 30 Pro and they are definitely something extraordinary. They might not appeal to everyone, but if you’re buying a phone with the back that looks like Optimus Prime, you’ll definitely appreciate if the front looks like a Transformer too.

Tecno Spark 30 Pro Transformers Edition hands-on review

Tecno has placed a 13MP selfie camera inside the punch-hole, but the circle also doubles as a notification hub. It’s called Dynamic Port and is enabled in the Special Features menu via Settings. Just like Dynamic Island on iOS, it expands to show you notifications for incoming calls and notifications, charging status, media player, and even some suggestions.

The company has come a long way in perfecting its custom interface, and despite its many extra features, it no longer feels cluttered. There are floating windows, which allow for a multi-window experience; Smart Panel brings shortcuts to the desktop with a single swipe from the side, and Game Mode and Kids Mode are also available for different use case scenarios.

User interface features
User interface features
User interface features
User interface features

User interface features

Tecno is so proud of its AI development that it announced it twice in 2024: once in Barcelona during MWC and again in Berlin during IFA. The Spark 30 Pro is one of the first HiOS phones to have Tecno AI out of the box, including a Gemini-based voice assistant called Ella.

AI rubber: before and after
AI rubber: before and after

AI rubber: before and after

We tested the AI ​​assistant and its performance is good, nothing extraordinary. Can answer questions and maintain a conversation. It’s very important not to expect any magic from the Spark 30 Pro, especially offline, because the Helio G100 chipset is somewhat limited in terms of processing power to handle the seven billion adjustable parameters found inside Gemini.

The Tecno Spark 30 Pro has a camera island on the back with as many as four separate circles, but only one is for the 108MP camera, which is the only usable shooter.

Examples of Tecno Spark 30 Pro cameras
Examples of Tecno Spark 30 Pro cameras
Examples of Tecno Spark 30 Pro cameras
Examples of Tecno Spark 30 Pro cameras

Examples of Tecno Spark 30 Pro cameras

There is a quad-LED flash on the back and we have to appreciate Tecno implementing a dual-LED flash on the front, embedded in the top bezel. Tecno Spark 30 Pro has an IR blaster placed on the camera island.

Portrait Tecno Spark 30 Pro: 1x
Tecno Spark 30 Pro Portrait: 3x

Tecno Spark 30 Pro Portrait: 1x • 3x

Selfie Tecno Spark 30 Pro: With LED flash
Selfie Tecno Spark 30 Pro: Without LED flash

Selfie Tecno Spark 30 Pro: With LED flash • Without LED flash

We mentioned that there are wired earphones in the box, so there is obviously a 3.5mm audio jack. The Spark 30 Pro also features FM radio, NFC, dual nano-SIM + microSD card trays, and a USB-C port for up to 33W wired charging.

All these features in the same phone make the Spark 30 Pro an extremely attractive device, not to mention that it has a 5,000 mAh battery inside a 7.4mm body.

Tecno Spark 30 Pro Transformers Edition hands-on review

The Spark 30 Pro is designed for markets where 5G connectivity is not as widespread; the phone has 4.5G, which is LTE Advanced. It has AI features pre-installed, which is a big selling point for Tecno and why some may choose this phone over the Poco M6 Pro or Galaxy A15, despite these phones having more cameras or better raw performance.

We must remember that Tecno is a strong player in Africa and Southeast Asia, and this is where we expect to see the Spark 30 Pro perform well. It is expected to hit markets like Ghana, Nigeria, and Kenya this month, where the phone is expected to cost around $200 for the 8/128GB version and around $220 for the 8/256GB option.

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Philip Owell

Professional blogger, here to bring you new and interesting content every time you visit our blog.