The $499 TCL 20 Pro 5G is the latest mid-ranger to challenge the Google Pixel 4a and Samsung...

nanoguy

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TL;DR: There's no overload of compelling mid-range 5G phones on the market, with Samsung's Galaxy A52 5G and Google's Pixel 4a 5G being the notable exceptions. TCL believes there's room for a third option they can provide. They've also readied two budget phones for people who need to upgrade but don't want to break the bank.

TCL had introduced five phones as part of the TCL 20 series, two of them in January and three more in April that were released in different regions around the world. Now some of these are set to arrive to the US.

The three models that will land in the US are decent options for people who need to upgrade their phones and can't or don't want to break the bank in doing so. The most expensive of the pack is the TCL 20 Pro 5G at $499, followed by the $249 TCL 20S that skips some features like wireless charging and in-screen fingerprint scanner, and then there's the basic $189 TCL 20 SE.

The TCL 20 Pro 5G is a mid-range handset in the same price category as the Galaxy A52 5G and the Pixel 4a 5G. It compares pretty well with its curved 6.67-inch AMOLED display (2,400 x 1,080 pixels) and support for HDR10. A display cutout hides a 32-megapixel selfie shooter, and there's an in-screen fingerprint scanner. The TCL 20 Pro 5G doesn't sport the fastest SoC, packing the efficient Snapdragon 750G backed by 6 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage. Those of you interested in this phone may also appreciate the presence of a headphone jack, something that the Pixel 4a lacks.

Other notable features are a decently large 4,500 mAh battery and support for Qi wireless charging, along with a pinky promise from TCL that you'll get two big Android updates. It's also worth noting the company is still working to make it work on Verizon's 4G and 5G networks, which is going to take a few more weeks.

If this is too much phone for you, the TCL 20S skips some features to reach a lower price point. The display is the same size but you get a flat LCD instead. The fingerprint scanner lives on the side of the device, and the phone is powered by the Snapdragon 662 SoC, 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage. There's no 5G, but you do get a slightly larger, 5,000 mAh battery and a 64-megapixel quad camera module.

The TCL 20 SE is a basic phone for people who don't spend too much time in apps and just want the essentials for under $200. The display measures a respectable 6.82 inch, but is only 720p and is powered by the Snapdragon 460, 4 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage. Keep in mind this one won't be compatible with Verizon's network, but at least you do still get a 5,000 mAh like with the TCL 20S.

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I have today bought Xiaomi poco F2 pro for 350 euro and it has beefy spec too: snapdragon 865, 6 GB ram, 128, Amoled screen etc..
 
I feel that there is little progress in the past 2 years for the smartphone industry. I'm saying if you're using a phone which was released in say Q3 2019 you probably aren't due for an upgrade yet unless you want 5G reception right now.

in Q3 2019 I bought a $270 Samsung A50s 4/64 which has all the bell and whistle - a decent 10nm processor which is also used in last year most popular Samsung model (A51), 1080p AMOLED screen, on-screen fingerprint, NFC, fast UFS memory, respectable 48mp camera and whatnot for less than $270. for the same money today I don't think you can get much more. probably a slightly faster SoC or a 5G equivalent SoC. or probably a higher refresh rate screen. but not everything at the same price from Samsung.

now if you're comparing a sub $300 Samsung from 2017 and a sub $300 Samsung from 2019 that'll totally be a different story.
 
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