Digital Trends may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site. Why trust us?

How good can a $99 smartphone be? This new one looks surprisingly great

By Christine Romero-Chan Published June 12, 2024

The front and back of the TCL 50 XE 5G smartphone. — TCL

If you have $99 to spare and need a new Android phone, you may want to check out the new TCL 50 XE 5G, now available from Verizon Prepaid. This newest offering from TCL offers productivity and good performance while remaining accessible to everyone at a very low price.

The TCL 50 XE 5G has a 6.56-inch HD+ display powered by TCL’s NXTVISION technology. This means that color, contrast, and clarity are optimized for users in real time, providing a screen that probably looks a lot better than what you’d expect at this price. Like other TCL phones, the NXTVISION app provides users with multiple settings for optimal visuals, whether they’re watching videos, playing games, or reading.

Recommended Videos

The TCL 50 XE 5G’s display has a 90Hz refresh rate and 180Hz touch sampling rate. Though it’s not quite as good as 120Hz on other phones, 90Hz will still provide relatively smooth scrolling and animations, and gaming sessions will have decent screen responsiveness. Plus, for a $99 phone, anything above 60Hz is an unexpected treat.

Someone taking a TCL 50 XE 5G smartphone out of a handbag. — TCL

TCL packed a MediaTek Dimensity 6100+ MT56835 chip inside, along with 4GB RAM and 128GB internal storage. You can expand that storage up to 2TB with a microSD card. It ships with Android 14 out of the box and has a side-mounted fingerprint sensor with face unlock. With these specs, the TCL 50 XE 5G should have enough power for the average person. It also has 5G connectivity for high-speed downloads and streaming.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

For photos and video, the TCL 50 XE 5G has a 50-megapixel main camera, a 2MP depth camera, a 5MP ultrawide camera lens, and an 8MP selfie camera. Although the megapixel counts for the depth and ultrawide cameras aren’t particularly impressive, getting this many camera sensors on a $99 smartphone is pretty cool.

The front and back of the TCL 50 XE 5G smartphone. — TCL

There is a 5,010mAh battery inside the TCL 50 XE 5G that should be able to last all day and then some. You also have the TCL Smart Manager app that can extend that battery life even further with Battery Saver mode and other optimizations. The phone supports up to 18W USB-C fast charging.

The TCL 50 XE 5G won’t be the absolute best phone out there, but for $99, it doesn’t look too shabby at all. You can buy it now from Verizon Prepaid.

Topics

Christine Romero-Chan

Staff Writer, Mobile

Christine Romero-Chan has been writing about technology, specifically Apple, for over a decade. She graduated from California…

Mobile

This new Android phone impressed me as soon as I picked it up

A person holding the Oppo Reno10, showing the back of the phone.

I try a lot of smartphones, and I like it when one gives me a good feeling the moment I get it out of the box and start using it. The Oppo Reno 10 managed to do exactly that, with its unusual camera module design, curved screen, and sparkly, yet modern color scheme.

But after playing with the software and taking it out to snap some photos, have I continued to warm to the Reno 10?
Out taking photos with the Reno 10

Mobile

Steve Jobs was wrong. Having a stylus for your phone is great

Moto G Stylus 5G 2023 with stylus popped out.

Back in the day, before the iPhone, there were a plethora of personal digital assistant (PDA) devices that had styluses. Whenever you pulled out that stylus from your Palm or other PDA, you may have felt cool, and people would think, “Wow, that guy means serious business.”

But when Steve Jobs took the stage for the original iPhone reveal back in 2007, one of the things he said was, “Who wants a stylus? You have to get ‘em, put ‘em away, you lose ‘em.” Ever since the iPhone introduced smart multitouch displays that needed only your finger, pretty much every other smartphone company followed suit.

Mobile

New OnePlus budget phone comes packing 2 super-rare features

OnePlus Nord N30 5G rear face.

OnePlus has introduced a new budget-priced phone for the U.S. market that includes some compelling hardware -- and a couple of rare conveniences. The OnePlus Nord N30 5G will set you back by $300 and is already up for preorders in the U.S., with a free pair of earbuds in tow.
Starting with the standout tricks, this phone comes with a microSD slot for storage expansion. It supports cards with up to 1TB storage capacity, which should be plenty if you are into capturing a lot of videos and high-resolution videos. Just keep in mind that microSD cards of 1TB capacity from reputed brands could cost as much as the phone itself.

Another notable perk is the presence of a 3.5mm headphone jack on the OnePlus Nord N30 5G. You don’t have to fork out extra cash on a USB-C to 3.5mm adapter or splurge on a Bluetooth audio wearable. However, there is more to this OnePlus phone than meets the eye, as some of its hardware perks defy its asking price by a huge margin.
You are greeted by a 6.7-inch Full HD+ (2400 x 1080 pixels) display with a 120Hz refresh rate. For comparison, Apple will charge you $800 for the iPhone 14 Plus, but it still keeps you limited to a slow 60Hz LCD screen. And there is no ugly notch to be seen here, as the selfie camera is neatly housed inside a dot-shaped cutout at the top.
Qualcomm’s octa-core Snapdragon 695 chipset powers this phone, paired with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of onboard storage. The battery capacity is also fairly generous at 5,000 mAh. Plus, you get support for 50-watt fast charging. OnePlus ships the fast charger in the retail package, just in case you’re irked by the bad precedent set by the thousand-dollar phones from Apple and Samsung.