TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper Smartphone Review – At the beginning of 2024, TCL announced their TCL 50-series phones. After waiting almost six to seven months, we finally got the TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper in the houses. Like the other TCL 50 lineup phone, the device brings decent specs. The user will notice a splendid improvement in the hardware capabilities. Furthermore, the device brings tons of additional perks, including a beautiful camera configuration and long-lasting battery life.
In terms of software support, the TCL phones are often known for providing mediocre skin. Indeed, the customization of TCL devices could be better as compared to other mainstream brands. Still, the company debuted the 50 XL Nxtpaper for the US smartphone market. At first impression, the phone is just like any other mid-range device. But, if you are planning to purchase this phone, go through our in-depth review to make the final call.
Table of Contents
TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper Smartphone Review
Highlights
- The device attains a 6.78-inch IPS LCD panel with NxtPaper technology support.
- As for the software interface, it brings the Android 14-based custom skin configuration.
- A combination of a 50MP triple camera with a 32MP selfie camera gives decent photos and videos.
- Under the hood, it equips a Dimensity 6100+ chipset with a mediocre GPU.
- In terms of battery, a 5010 mAh battery with an 18W wired charger will appear on a TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper phone.
Design and Display
The TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper arrives with a Space Blue paint job that looks quite appealing on first impression. It will bring a cool gradient color layout, which looks pretty awesome with a circular camera module. But, the camera bump is bigger than expected, making the phone wobble. At the same time, the built quality is average if you look at the side panel, whereas the power and volume buttons are present on the side.
As far as the biometric scanner is concerned, you are getting a fingerprint sensor on the side panel, which also works as the power button. It can swiftly read your biometric data and provide secure smartphone usage. Yet, there’s no information about any water repellent or IP rating configuration over this phone. So, you should avoid using this phone near water and high-altitude areas. When you are holding the TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper, it doesn’t feel heavy since it roughly weighs 198.7 grams.
On the other hand, the company ensures that the users are getting decent displays. With this, the 6.78-inch IPS LCD panel brings impressive colors and a viewing experience. At the same time, the device will bring FHD+ resolution with 120Hz refresh rate navigation support. Hopefully, you won’t notice that much thick bezels on the front screen. However, the highest screen brightness nits are below standard.
Memory and Internal
Under the hood, the TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper equips the Mediatek Dimensity 6100+ chipset, which can support daily activities. It possesses an octa-core processor unit that can handle routine activities, support gaming, and grant superb performance. All of those factors make this phone an appealing choice in the mid-range segment. At the same time, the processing speed of the phone will provide up to 2×2.2GHz cloaking speed.
Generally, this speed is more than enough if you want to use the TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper for standard usage. Furthermore, the user will obtain the Android 14 operating system with additional customization support. However, the company didn’t give any info about the Android update. But from the track record, we can say that the phone will support a couple of years of Android updates. Usually, the updates are either delayed or completely stopped.
Even later, the Android 14 customization attributes won’t become outdated even in upcoming years. Still, the thing you should consider the most would be the storage and RAM capabilities. With the TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper edition, the company is offering a single 128GB storage with 6GB RAM configuration. As a cheery on top, the device also supports 5G connectivity.
Camera
The TCL smartphones aren’t known for their camera abilities. Despite this, the TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper camera results are telling a completely different story. After testing the native camera in daylight settings, the pictures present accurate skin tones and manage the vibrant colors properly. The colors didn’t pop out that much and give a natural feeling, while the phone houses a 50MP primary, 5MP ultra-wide, and 2MP depth lens combo.
Typically, this combination is rarely seen in any mid-range phone. Besides this, it’s been a year that we have noticed great camera results from an average ultra-wide range lens. The colors are somewhat decent, and the details are on point. But like most of the average phones, the TCL 50X Nxtpaper does struggle with the lowlights photos.
Yet, we didn’t even start with the video recording, which gives a standard 1080p resolution without any stabilization software support. This goes the same for the 32MP selfie camera setup. But there’s one thing great about using the Seflie lens: it has impressive images in the daylight. Overall, if you are looking for a camera-centric phone, you shouldn’t consider this phone at all costs. But as an overall package, it might be a different story.
Battery and Others
Under the hood, the TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper offers a 5010 mAh battery with 18W wired charger support. Indeed, the phone is designed to support more than 5+ hours of screen time. In general, the device can handle three hours of gaming and a few more hours of social media usage. But, the screen time could vary drastically depending on the user’s routine. If your daily routine didn’t include gaming or hours of scrolling social media, then the phone might even survive a whole day without charging.
Nevertheless, the 18W charger will require up to an hour to refill the battery percentage from 10% to full. The device includes additional perks like stereo speakers with a 3.5 mm jack. Finding a 3.5mm jack has become challenging on the latest Android phones, whether it will be available on entry-level phones or brands that are using their older design model. If you are a fan of the jack, you might like this phone for sure.
Aside from this, the other communication sensors aren’t that bad either. You can connect with 5G networks using the standard Wi-Fi or hotspot, while the regular Bluetooth, GPS, and NFC sensors are present in this phone. Last but not least, the TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper is priced at approx $300 (Rs 24,999 in India) approx. The company cut several corners in the specs to make this price point appeal.
TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper Pros and Cons
TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper Specifications Detail
Down below you can see the full specifications of the TCL 50 XL smartphone.
| Specifications | TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper |
| Network | 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G |
| Announced | June 2024 |
| SIM | Nano-SIM |
| Dimensions | 6.60 x 2.97 x 0.32 inches |
| Weight | 198.7 g |
| Size | 6.78 inches |
| Display | IPS LCD 120Hz ~396 PPI density NxtPaper technology |
| Protection | No |
| Resolution | 1080 x 2460 pixels |
| OS | Android 14 |
| Chipset | 6nm – Mediatek Dimensity 6100+ |
| CPU | Octa-core 2×2.2 GHz Cortex-A76 6×2.0 GHz Cortex-A55 |
| GPU | Mali-G57 MC2 |
| Card slot | microSDXC |
| RAM | 6GB |
| Internal | 128GB |
| Camera | 50 MP (wide), PDAF 5 MP (ultrawide) 2 MP (depth) LED flash, HDR, panorama Max – 1080p@30fps |
| Selfie | 32 MP (wide) Max – 1080p@30fps |
| Loudspeaker | Yes (stereo speakers) |
| 3.5mm jack | Yes |
| WLAN | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band |
| Bluetooth | 5.3, A2DP, LE |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO |
| NFC | Yes |
| Infrared port | No |
| Radio | Yes |
| USB | USB Type-C, OTG |
| Sensors | Side-mounted fingerprint, gyro, accelerometer, proximity, compass, barometer |
| Battery | 5010 mAh 18W wired |
| Colors | Space Blue |
| Expected Price | $300 (Rs 24,999 in India) approx |
Conclusion
TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper’s key selling point would be the Nxtpaper technology integration. With this, the display is reflection-resistant and reduces screen glare issues. Apart from the display powers, the phone is just another mid-range phone. It has a bunch of mismatched components that lead to an incomplete product. The device might not be the best choice for camera usage. But still, the phone shines when it comes to battery life.
Yet, the performance level is mediocre. From this, you might get an idea that this phone is average in almost every aspect. However, we still consider the TCL 50 XL Nxtpaper as one of the best options released among the TCL 50-series. Instead, consider getting the Motorola Moto G Power (2024) edition will be a better deal with clean UI and wireless charging support. Nonetheless, we would recommend you go through other alternatives and make every buck worth it.
