TCL 40R Smartphone Review – The TCL smartphone usually comes with an interesting set of features that make them overwhelmingly exceptional sometimes. But at the same time, they have constantly produced average mid-range phones. However, the company is trying to offer the best specs and features that it can provide to users. Recently, the smartphone makers launched the TCL 40R that is released in November, in Europe.
The new TCL 40R smartphone is unveiled in the affordable 5G segment, and because of that, you will notice downsides while using this phone. Hopefully, the first impression is not that bad since the phone offers a good display, decent processing power, long-lasting battery life, and a beautiful camera setup. Let’s head toward the TCL 40R review to find out more details about this phone.
Table of Contents
TCL 40R Smartphone Review
Highlights
- The device brings a 6.6-inches IPS LCD panel with a 90Hz refresh rate and HD resolution display.
- As for the software end, you will obtain the Android 12-based TCL 4. 0 custom layering.
- In terms of performance, the phone arrives with a Dimesnity 700 chipset.
- A standard 50MP triple camera module is introduced on the back panel with a regular 8MP selfie lens.
- Last but not least, you are getting a massive Li-Po 5000 mAh battery that refuels by a 15W charger.
Design and Display
The overall build quality of the TCL 40R smartphone is pretty sleek as you are getting different options from which you can choose the best among them. You will receive Stardust Purple and Starlight Black shade option that will ensure provide immersive holding experience. If you are looking for something out of the box, you can check out the Purple shade options, whereas the Black color looks more professional.
In terms of the design, the company used a new camera module that gives the phone a cool look, while the TCL branding can be seen at the bottom. On the side panel, you will find a fingerprint scanner emblemed on the power button with Volume keys. Besides this, it’s one of the few phones that offers a 3.5 mm jack port.
Though, it’s just a standard 6.6 inches IPS LCD panel that only got 720p resolution. But still, it’s a good thing to notice that the company is providing a 90Hz refresh rate that will slightly improve the overall user experience. In terms of brightness, the phone can easily go up to 400 nits, which is pretty good for normal outdoor usage. However, you won’t find any protective coating on the screen.
Memory and Internal
The TCL 40R 5G arrives with the 7nm MediaTek MT6833 Dimensity 700 chipset that will provide 5G connectivity smoothly and renders decent performance. But we won’t recommend advanced gaming sessions with this phone as the processing powers are limited to 2×2.2GHz cloaking speed. But it’s not that bad for normal usage since the phone provides sufficient power to impressive daily usage.
The GPU configuration does boost the visual aspect to some extent, and the 90Hz refresh rate brings a decent touch response. At the same time, you are getting the latest Android 12 custom skin based on the TCL UI 4.0 interface. The company does give a different take compared to the stock android interface, and you will find several personalization settings options inside the interface. But, there are a few bloatware apps inside the interface too.
Hopefully, the company knows the requirements of the users so the TCL 40R smartphone equips 4GB RAM support that will grant immersive performance for everyday activities. As for the internal storage options, you can choose between the 64GB to 128GB eMMC 5.1 space, while you can also expand storing limits with the Shared SIM slot option if you want to.
Camera
When you are purchasing a TCL phone, there’s no doubt that you are getting a brilliant display. But the same thing doesn’t apply to most of the TCL phones, especially in the camera department. The camera module is always been the downside for them. But for a few years, the company has improved the AI software that will enhance the overall photo and video recording experience.
On the TCL 40R, you will notice that the company houses a triple camera module. Which, you will get a 50MP primary sensor with a 2MP macro and 2MP depth lens. Undoubtedly, the combo of 2MP camera setup is a big downside in the real-life test since the majority of work is performed through the image processing unit. The daylight photos got fine details with impressive colors, yet, the lowlight photos are disappointing.
As for the portrait mode, you will get proper edge detection with a decent background blur effect intact. Following this, the TCL 40R smartphone also equips an 8MP selfie lens that captures adequate images and video with proper lighting. Though, the night mode photos have noise and oversaturation of colors. At last, the video recording can go up to 1080p standard recording without any stabilization support.
Battery and Other
The battery section is one of the key things you should look for before you are purchasing any smartphone. The TCL 40R comes with a huge Li-Po 5000 mAh battery capacity that will handle long gaming sessions with ease. Furthermore, you can easily squish out more than 6+ hours worth of screen time for anything you want to do on this phone. At the same time, you will obtain a 15W wired charger inside the box.
Though it might not be fast as compared to the competition, it roughly requires an hour and a half to entirely refuel the battery cells. As for the sound output experience, the loudspeaker audio is clear and crisp. In terms of the price point, the TCL 40R smartphone is priced at $240 (Rs 19,490 in India) approx, which is looking like a good deal as a budget 5G smartphone.
TCL 40R Specifications Detail
Down below you can see the full specifications of the TCL 40R smartphone.
| Specifications | TCL 40R |
| Network | 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G |
| Announced | October 2022 |
| SIM | Dual SIM |
| Dimensions | 6.48 x 2.97 x 0.35 inches |
| Weight | 192 g |
| Size | 6.6 inches |
| Display | IPS LCD 90Hz 400 nits brightness 20:9 ratio ~267 PPI density |
| Protection | No |
| Resolution | 720 x 1612 pixels |
| OS | Android 12, TCL UI 4.0 |
| Chipset | 7nm – MediaTek MT6833 Dimensity 700 |
| CPU | Octa-core 2×2.2 GHz Cortex-A76 6×2.0 GHz Cortex-A55 |
| GPU | Mali-G57 MC2 |
| Card slot | microSDXC (uses shared SIM slot) |
| RAM | 4GB |
| Internal | 64GB, 128GB eMMC 5.1 |
| Camera | 50 MP (wide), PDAF 2 MP (macro) 2 MP (depth) LED flash, HDR, panorama Max – 1080p@30fps |
| Selfie | 8 MP (wide) Max – 1080p@30fps |
| Loudspeaker | Yes |
| 3.5mm jack | Yes 24-bit/192kHz audio |
| WLAN | Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, hotspot |
| Bluetooth | 5.1, A2DP, LE |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, BDS |
| NFC | Yes |
| Infrared port | No |
| Radio | Yes |
| USB | USB Type-C 2.0 |
| Sensors | Side-mounted fingerprint, accelerometer, proximity, compass |
| Battery | Li-Po 5000 mAh Fast charging 15W |
| Colors | Stardust Purple, Starlight Black |
| Expected Price | $240 (Rs 19,490 in India) approx |
Conclusion
The TCL 40R smartphone brings lots of exciting things under the hood, and there’s no denying that it also got an astounding design layout. But, like many other mid-range phones, there are a handful of flaws in this phone as well. You won’t receive an ultra-wide lens, the resolution is stuck at 720p, no proper video stabilization support, slow charging, and the list can go on and on.
Currently, the phone is exclusive to the European smartphone market, and there’s no clear indication about being released on the global stage so far. In that situation, if you want a great smartphone, we would suggest you check out the Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 Pro, it’s the most ideal phone that appears in the mid-range segment. Finally, decided what you want according to the requirements.
