Three smartphones in the Tecno camon 18-series showed up on the company’s website less than 48-hours ago. And even though the phones have not been officially announced in any country yet, we do know that Nigeria will be among the first market to be able to purchase any device in the series.
Now, first thing first; the Camon 18-series is a total upgrade over the Camon 17-series, and all the three smartphones in the series offers better CPUs and better OS over their predecessors.
But from the ads and promo videos we’ve seen so far, there is one key selling point Tecno has been squeezing to the front of viewers and potential buyers; and that is Gimbal Image and Video Stabilization, which is the major selling point of the Camon 18-series.
The question is, is this stabilization technology available on all the Camon 18-series, of course not. So where is the Gimbal OIS on the Camon 18 series? That is the question this comparison article seeks to answer.
Tecno Camon 18 vs Camon 18P vs Camon 18 Premier Specs comparison
| Tecno | Camon 18 | Camon 18P | Camon 18 Premier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Display | 6.8-inches FHD+(1080 x 2460) IPS screen with 90Hz refresh | 6.8-inches FHD+(1080 x 2460) IPS screen with 120Hz refresh | 6.7-inches FHD+(1080 x 2400) AMOLED screen with 120Hz refresh |
| CPU (GPU) | 2.0GHz Mediatek Helio G88 CPU (with Mali-G52 GPU) | 2.05GHz Mediatek Helio G96 CPU (with Mali-G57 GPU) | 2.05GHz Mediatek Helio G96 CPU (with Mali-G57 GPU) |
| Storage (RAM) | 128GB ROM, 4GB RAM with 256GB via SD card | 128GB ROM, 8GB RAM with 256GB via SD card | 256GB ROM, 8GB RAM with 256GB via SD card |
| Cameras | Rear (Triple): Main: 48MP (F1.8, PDAF) Depth: 2MP F/2.4 Macro: 2MP F/2.4 with (Dual-LED) Front: 16 MP (Dual LED) | Rear (Triple): Main: 48MP (F1.8, PDAF) Telephoto: 13MP 1.7X optical zoom and 30x digital zoom Depth: 2MP F/2.4 with (Quad-LED) Front: 16 MP (Dual LED) | Rear (Triple): Main: 64MP (F1.6, PDAF) Periscope: 8MP 5X optical zoom and 60x digital zoom Ultrawide: 12MP with Gimbal OIS and (Quad-LED) Front: 32 MP (Dual |
| OS (UI) | Android 11 with HiOS 8.0 | Android 11 with HiOS 8.0 | Android 11 with HiOS 8.0 |
| Data | 2G/3G/4G LTE, support Wi-Fi (2.4GHz/5GHz) & Bluetooth 5.0 | 2G/3G/4G LTE, support Wi-Fi (2.4GHz/5GHz) & Bluetooth 5.0 | 2G/3G/4G LTE, support Wi-Fi (2.4GHz/5GHz) & Bluetooth 5.0 |
| Battery | 5000mAh Li-Po Battery 18W charger | 5000mAh Li-Po Battery 33W charger | 4750mAh Li-Po Battery 33W charger |
| Color | Dusk Gray, Ceramic White, Iris purple | Dusk Gray, Ceramic White, Iris purple | Polar night and Vast sky |
| Additional Features | Dual SIM, Fingerprint Sensor (side mounted), USB Type-C | Dual SIM, Fingerprint Sensor (side mounted), USB Type-C | Dual SIM, Fingerprint Sensor (side mounted), USB Type-C |
| Dimension (Weight) | 168.9 x 76.7 x 8.8 mm; (-) | 168.9 x 76.7 x 8.8 mm; (-) | 163.8 x 75.9 x 8.2 mm; (-) |
| Price at launch | Not Available | Not Available | Not Available |
Comparison Summary; Where is the Gimbal OIS?
As shown on the table, the Camon 18 Premier is obviously the better option among the three, which is expected. Although it is nice to see that the 18P is flaunting same CPU and RAM size of the Premier model.
But as obvious as it can be, if Gimbal Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) is the primary reason you are planning to get the new Camon iteration from Tecno, then ensure to go for the 18 Premier as the technology is absent on the vanilla Camon 18 and the 18P.
IMPORTANT: It is worth noting also, that the Gimbal OIS technology is only available to the Ultrawide camera on the 18 Premier, which is a 12-megapixel lens, and not the main 64-megepixel lens nor the 8-megapixel Periscope lens. So you should expect shaky images when using these other lenses.
