Tecno Phantom V Fold2 review

HiOS 14 Fold + Android 14

The Phantom V Fold2 runs on HiOS 14 Fold based on Android 14. The "Fold" designation, as you might have already guessed, means the software is optimized for the current form factor.

Tecno promises 2 major Android updates and 3 years of security updates, which is below today's standards.

HiOS 14 Fold

Anyway, the HiOS 14 Fold iteration isn't much different from HiOS 13 Fold from last year except for some minor changes. For example, the app dock at the bottom can be persistent throughout apps. It becomes smaller in full-screen apps but still allows you to launch an app on the go.

HiOS 14 Fold

Still, there are a few notable additions to the software's capabilities. For instance, you get AI writing tools that help you create, summarize and edit text. The phone can also translate in real time, even during calls. You can also leverage the AI's capabilities to create wallpapers.

More importantly, though, the Phantom V Fold2 now supports stylus input. Tecno offers the V pen - a stylus with advanced capabilities. You can use it to write notes and as a remote control for camera capture, for example.

Performance

The Phantom V Fold2 retains the Dimensity 9000+ SoC from the previous generation. It's a bit dated high-end chip built on a 4nm process. The Dimensity 9000+ has a very similar CPU configuration (same cores at mostly the same frequencies too) to the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 that you'd find on a Galaxy Z Fold4 or an Honor Magic Vs. The GPU here is called Mali-G710 MC10.

This year, the V Fold2 is offered in just one memory option - 12GB/512GB. Tecno doesn't say the storage type, but according to our tests, it's probably UFS 3.0.

Here are some benchmarks to see how the device stacks against its competitors.

As you can see, the Dimensity 9000+ isn't a bad chipset and offers sufficient horsepower for everyday tasks, but ultimately, the V Fold2 is underpowered by modern standards.