At CES last month, TCL announced a host of new phones and tablets touting the latest generation (3.0) of its NxtPaper display technology, and after seeing it in person at MWC 2024, it's the kind of upgrade we expect rivals as Apple consider adopting. also.
TCL's NxtPaper technology essentially combines the convenience and readability of E Ink displays, like those you'll find on the best Kindles, with the color, brightness, and super-smooth refresh rates of modern smartphone LCDs. In the case of the TCL 50 XL NxtPaper, which will be launched in the third quarter of this year, it will be the first time that the company brings a smartphone with this technology to the US market.
Being able to seamlessly switch between a monochrome and a full-color user interface (with the 'color paper' mode serving as a middle ground) opens up the viewing experience on TCL smartphones to no end.
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It's not a big leap, but it is a small step for Apple
Apple already does a great job with its version of the always-on display that we've had on various Android phones for generations, but add to that Galaxy S24 Ultra levels of low reflectivity and technology that's much better suited to reading. without compromising high-fidelity full-color images up to 120Hz, and you start to wonder why it's the iPhone 16 that might be playing catch-up here.
While TCL's NxtPaper technology is proprietary and would therefore have to be licensed from companies like Apple, the fundamentals don't appear to be terribly expensive, considering TCL's latest phones to feature NxtPaper 3.0 panels: the TCL 50 XL NxtPaper and TCL 50 XE NxtPaper – will cost less than $229 and $199, respectively.
