TCL 20L+ review: Game-changing features on cheap phone

New mobile phones are getting ridiculously cheap these days, putting real pressure on companies like Apple and Samsung.

The latest gadgets making waves in the mobile phone market are the TCL 20 5G, TCL 20L+ and TCL 20 SE.

From a company more known for its televisions than mobile phones, these offerings show the Chinese multinational electronics company is making a strong play for the mid-to-low range phone market.

I tried out the TCL 20L+ and was pleasantly surprised by its performance, given its low price point.

Its main selling feature simply cannot be ignored – a phone with a quad rear-facing camera and quick hardware selling for less than $400.

The TCL 20L+ is cheap and packed with features.

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The TCL 20L+ is fast, boasting 6gb of ram, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 662 chip and Qualcom Kryo 260 Octa-Core 1.8GHz CPU under the hood.

It’s also running Android 11.

I’ve been playing a lot of Alto’s Adventure lately and the endless runner snowboarding game looked great on the 6.67-inch dotchdisplay (TCL’s words for an extremely high screen-to-body ratio).

The phone also had enough grunt to handle my mandatory PUBG MOBILE bouts.

The fingerprint unlock is locked on the power button – which I found slightly unusual but I got used to it and actually found it quite useful. It also has password, face unlock and smart lock features available.

The speakers aren’t booming but are loud enough for everyday purposes.

The headphone jack is also a big win (I’m not a fan of wireless).

The 5000mA battery will keep you powered for about 16 hours and can be fully charged in about 2.5 hours.

It comes in mily way grey and north star blue and looks pretty snazzy – plus fits in the hand nicely.

Camera

This phone is fully stocked in the camera department. On the back it has a 64MP main, 8MP wide-angle, 2MP macro and 2MP depth cameras. It can also capture 1080p@60fps videos.

There’s a 16MP camera on the front.

Dazzling display

A unique feature on the phone is the TÜV Rheinland Circular Polarisation Certification and Low Blue Light Certification. TCL says this means users can see the display while wearing sunglasses or with natural colours in any environment. This is actually pretty useful for a place with high glare like Australia. TCL claims it reduces more than 85 per cent of eye strain. The adaptive brightness and dark light mode are helpful for those who have trouble getting to sleep.

I watched Netflix and YouTube on the large HD+ screen which features NXTVISION display optimisation – technology which enhances the display in real time.

The wrap

The TCL 20L+ offers huge bang for its buck. If you can’t bring yourself to spend thousands of dollars on the latest iPhone (with very minimal changes from the last version), I’d suggest you seriously consider a TCL 20L+.

The TCL 20L+ is available today with a RRP of $399 from Harvey Norman and Officeworks.