HiOS 15 on top of Android 15
The Spark 40 Pro+ runs on Tecno’s highly customized HiOS. In this case, it is HiOS 15.1.1 at the time of review, on top of Android 15.
We reached out to Tecno to confirm its software support policy for the Spark 40 Pro+ and, unfortunately, the company only promises two years of security patches and no major OS updates. That’s quite the bummer and a potential major deterrent for some prospective buyers.
The Android OS, even with the Tecno skin, is pretty straightforward.
Hi OS 15
There is an always-on screen, which is everything but always-on (it lights up for 15s). It supports landscape mode when charging to act as a night clock.
The not-so-AOD
The lockscreen has a couple of shortcuts on the bottom – one for the camera, and the other for the flashlight.
Multitasking features include split-screen and pop-up window modes for supported apps – nothing out of the ordinary.
There are some pre-installed apps and utilities, but overall, it’s a clean enough package. Still, there is plenty of what might be considered bloat here, like Aha Games and Palm Store, which are two separate third-party app stores, Tecno Spot, Visha Player and Hi Themes. At least the Hi browser is nowhere to be found.
By default, the Spark 40 Pro+ uses Gemini as its AI assistant. It is your standard text-based assistant, and it does not offer any interactivity with the on-screen content, which is unfortunate.
Gemini AI assistant
Luckily, you can switch to Tecno’s own Ella assistant, which is based on the DeepSeek R1 model.
Ella
Holding the Quick button summons Tecno’s Ella voice assistant, and it’s chock-full of useful features and offers voice wake-up and voice responses. It can also interact with on-screen content. Most of the data for the AI model requires an internet connection to fetch; however, commands for phone settings and tasks can also work offline.
Tecno AI menus
Tecno’s AI functions include real-time translations, document and writing assistance, sketch conversion to pictures in notes, wallpaper generation, picture editing (expand, remove objects), and more.
Image AI
Google’s Circle to Search is also included out of the box.
Gallery Edits • Circle to Search
The Spark 40 Pro+ runs on the pretty new MediaTek Helio G200 mobile platform. It is a 6nm chip from 2025, which, despite its big jump in name, is quite similar to the popular Helio G100.
This similarity is especially true in the CPU department, where the G200 has the same two ARM Cortex-A76 big cores, clocked at up to 2.2 GHz and six Cortex-A55 cores working at up to 2.0 GHz. It is paired with a Mali-G57 MC2 GPU, working at a slightly higher 1.1 GHz, compared to the 1.0 GHz of the G100.
In terms of memory, the Spark 40 Pro+ has 8GB of dual-channel LPDDR4X RAM and either 128GB or 256GB of non-expandable storage. Tecno doesn’t specifically state what type of storage chips they are. Our storage speed tests show pretty high writing speeds, but with read speeds still in line with the UFS 2.2 spec. We are testing the 256GB version.
Looking at the general benchmark performance numbers, it is clear that we are not looking at a particularly powerful device, but then again, very few new phones in this price range are significantly more powerful.
The CPU performance of the Helio G200 is quite similar to that of the G100 and G99, both very popular chips. The GPU performance is slightly better, and we are happy to report that AnTuTu places the Spark 40 Pro+ quite high on the chart, which is a good indication of its overall fluidity. It is worth reiterating that the GPU is essentially rendering everything at 1080×2400 pixels, which eases the strain a bit.
Speaking of which, in practical terms, we did notice a few slowdowns here and there while using the phone, but nothing major. The UI and most everyday tasks run smoothly without hiccups.
Thermal-throttling
The Helio G200 chipset does not put out a lot of heat and the Tecno Spark 40 Pro+ seems to keep it well at bay.
Thermal-throttling
The phone maintains a large chunk of its performance with prolonged torture testing and exhibits admirable stability in the process. The phone’s surface also doesn’t get hot at all just lukewarm at best but still perfectly comfortable to handle.
Surface temperature