ZDNET’s key takeaways
- This price range Android cellphone options a big, paper-like show, 128GB of storage, and extra.
- It has a function set that promotes minimalism and digital wellbeing.
- I simply want the digital camera system and common efficiency had been higher.
smartphones all day will be exhausting on the eyes, and over time, I’ve adjusted to the discomfort, however TCL’s Nxtpaper expertise is made for drained eyes like mine. The TCL 60 XE Nxtpaper 5G is the corporate’s reasonably priced try at relieving a number of the stress that comes from trendy smartphone screens.
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It is a distinctive trick for a really cheap smartphone that must be seen to be understood. Whereas removed from excellent, and positively a tool constructed to a value, it brings a differentiator that can matter for some customers seeking to give their eyes a relaxation whereas they scroll or learn.
A singular multi-faceted show
The show is what instantly units the 60XE aside. TCL’s Nxtpaper 3.0 matte coating offers the glass an undeniably distinctive end that I fairly like. On-screen content material seems to be a bit like E-ink relying on the mode the cellphone is in, however beneath that hazy layer is a typical 1080p, 120Hz LCD panel.
The coating addresses a slew of widespread downsides of recent shows. It reduces blue mild, cuts reflections to almost nothing, and even eliminates most fingerprints. There’s additionally a pleasant texture that feels a bit like paper, which is a pleasant departure from a sea of shiny, reflective shows.
Beneath the ability and quantity buttons is a bodily Nxtpaper Key, a plastic change that feels a bit cheaper than I would like. Flipping the change gives up a menu of distinct modes that change how the show operates.
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TCL clearly needs customers to note and recognize this function as a result of each toggle ends in a five-second full-screen animation full with an obnoxious serenade. I made positive to set my quantity to mute so I may keep away from the theatrical impact.
Every mode supplies its personal twist on usability and luxury. Colour Paper Mode, my favourite, mutes the colours whereas retaining a typical Android interface that is simpler on the eyes for all-day use. I even loved watching YouTube movies on this mode, although all the pieces feels a bit flatter than my eyes are used to.
Ink Paper Mode goes one step additional, stripping colour from icons and textual content for a no-frills grayscale method, whereas nonetheless delivering the complete unencumbered Android expertise. Max Ink Mode is probably the most dramatic change, stripping all colour whereas additionally limiting apps to a small subset of necessities and suspending sure background processes.
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The result’s an ultra-minimal, battery-saving mode that may final greater than every week on a single cost. I loved this mode for studying ebooks and will see it as an awesome resolution for customers seeking to in the reduction of on smartphone use totally.
The show does include a significant caveat. On the brightest days, the matte end would all however wash out on-screen content material, usually making it unusable in direct daylight. For those who spend time exterior studying or working, you will be on the lookout for shade like I used to be.
Efficiency and battery
Efficiency is modest however serviceable, with a MediaTek Dimensity 6100+ processor inside paired with 8GB of RAM. In use, this isn’t a cellphone for hardcore customers who push their gadgets to the restrict. I observed many actions have a slight delay connected to them. Launching the digital camera usually takes just a few seconds to barter.
Common duties like internet shopping, e-mail, and messaging are responsive sufficient to maintain me comfortable, however issues by no means felt snappy.
On the software program entrance, the 60 XE runs Android 15, with a promise from TCL of only one improve to Android 16 and two years of safety patches. As somebody who all the time decries the poor state of Android OS replace guarantees, it is a weak level, and TCL must step up its sport. Anybody hoping to get long-term worth ought to take into account different choices.
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I discovered battery life to be a spotlight, which is not that stunning given the 5,010mAh battery hidden inside. I routinely made it by way of the day with round 20-30% capability to spare at bedtime. Wired charging tops out at a gradual 18 watts, so fast daytime top-ups will take a while, nevertheless it’s effective for plugging in in a single day.
For the really battery paranoid, there’s the Max Ink Mode that significantly jumps battery life to greater than every week in case you are keen to chop down on a lot of what the cellphone is able to.
Keep for the show, however not the digital camera
The plastic marble-like backplate surrounds a big round digital camera array that is exhausting to overlook and maybe even extra premium-looking than its value level. One pet peeve of mine is an off-center digital camera module, and this cellphone has a notable wobble when positioned on a tabletop in consequence.
The digital camera system itself is one space the place the low-end cutbacks actually present. The primary sensor does its finest outdoor in very shiny circumstances and wishes a variety of mild to assist pictures taken indoors. The digital camera efficiency is mediocre with comfortable output that lacks punch and definition more often than not.
Low-light circumstances simply exhibit the digital camera system’s baseline functionality, and the ultrawide lens usually ends in grainy photographs. The 32MP entrance digital camera works, however that is about it. Let’s simply say that this isn’t the cellphone for the discerning digital camera buff.
ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation
What the TCL 60 XE Nxtpaper 5G gives is a key standout function: a novel matte show. At $250, the 60XE gives one thing that you just actually cannot discover wherever else, on this value class and past, and the advantages of which may matter rather a lot for sure customers. For everybody else, take into account telephones just like the CMF Phone 2 Pro, which gives higher imaging, higher velocity, and its signature modular design method.
Comply with my newest tech opinions and initiatives throughout social media. You will discover me on YouTube at YouTube.com/@JasonHowell, on X (previously Twitter) at @JasonHowell, and on Instagram at Instagram.com/thatjasonhowell.
