TCL, a brand mostly known for TVs, has launched yet another new smartphone, growing its range of phones even more with the sixth phone released in the past four months. This time, TCL is packing 5G into an affordably priced device with the new TCL 20 R.
Throughout 2021, more and more phone brands have jumped on the cheap 5G phone bandwagon, with manufacturers like Samsung, OPPO, Vivo, Motorola and Realme all offering 5G technology at budget-friendly price points. TCL’s newest phone is the next step for the brand, in producing competitive devices for all budgets, and without skimping on the features.
“The 20 R 5G will enable many more people to experience 5G for the first time. However, it goes much further than price alone, as we have been able to deliver some very exciting features that we believe make the 20 R 5G best-in-class,” said Joseph Corrente, Channel Manager for TCL Communication Australia, New Zealand and Pacific Islands.
“From fast 5G to contactless transactions with NFC and Google Pay, this handset is ready for when Australia opens up again. It has a beautiful display and a refresh rate that makes it great for mobile gaming, seamlessly fitting into people’s lives and reinforcing our mission to make important technologies accessible to more people than ever.”
TCL 20 R 5G — features and specs
Of course the biggest feature of the TCL 20 R is the 5G connectivity, at a price point of $349 AUD RRP. This makes it one of the cheapest 5G phones currently in the Australian market (in addition to the Samsung Galaxy A22 5G).
The phone itself comes with a 6.52-inch V-notch display with 90% screen-to-body ratio, and TCL’s NXTVISION technology with 90Hz refresh rate and 180Hz touch sampling rate for an immersive and smooth viewing experience. There’s a MediaTek Dimensity 700 Octa-core CPU, 4GB of RAM and 64GB internal storage, plus up to 1TB of expandable micro SD storage.
As for the cameras, you’ll get a triple rear-camera setup with 13MP main camera, 2MP depth and 2MP macro lens, in addition to the 8MP front-facing camera. There’s a 4,500mAH battery, both facial and fingerprint unlocking (with fingerprint sensor on the back) and the TCL 20 R is also enabled with NFC and Google Pay. You’ll be able to choose from a Granite Grey or Lazurite Blue model.
Pick up your TCL 20 R for $349 AUD RRP through Harvey Norman, Officeworks or Mobileciti, or on a postpaid plan through Vodafone. Choosing to pick up your phone through Vodafone will allow you to split your device costs over 12, 24 or 36 months, and bundle with a postpaid plan. Vodafone will also be offering a discounted pricing of $299 in total, meaning if you pick up the TCL 20 R on a plan through Vodafone, it will be the cheapest 5G phone currently on the market.
Related: Samsung releases the latest cheap A Series phone for under $400 — the Galaxy A22 5G
- $349 AUD RRP (Vodafone, Harvey Norman, Officeworks, Mobileciti)
- 5G compatible
- 6.52 inch HD+ display with 90Hz refresh rate and NXTVISION technology
- MediaTek Dimensity 700 Octa-core processor
- Rear-mounted fingerprint reader + facial unlocking
- Triple rear-camera setup (13MP + 2MP depth + 2MP macro)
- 8MP front-facing camera
- 4GB RAM
- 64GB internal storage (plus up to 1TB expandable micro SD storage)
- Granite Grey and Lazurite Blue colourways
When you pick up your phone on a postpaid plan with Vodafone, you’ll have a choice of five postpaid phone plans. All plans include unlimited standard national calls and SMS, plus you’ll be able to get unlimited data, but the plan determines whether this unlimited data has a speed cap. The Lite and Lite+ plans include unlimited data at capped speeds of 2Mbps in addition to your fast data allowance. The Super and Super+ plans include unlimited data at capped speeds of 10Mbps in addition to the fast data allowance, while the Ultra+ plan is the only plan to offer full-speed unlimited data.
The following table shows all postpaid Vodafone plans from Canstar Blue’s database, listed in order of standard cost, lowest to highest, then by data allowance, largest to smallest. Use our mobile phone plan comparison tool to see a wide range of plans from other providers. This table includes products with links to referral partners.
Compare SIM-only plans
If you’d prefer to pick up your TCL 20 R 5G phone outright and pair with a prepaid or postpaid SIM-only phone plan, there are plenty of options out there for plans, data allowances and providers. The below tables compare a range of SIM-only plans — simply switch between the tabs to see prepaid and postpaid options.
Here is a selection of postpaid plans from Canstar Blue’s database with a minimum of 20GB of data, listed in order of standard cost, lowest to highest, then by data allowance, largest to smallest. Try using our mobile phone plan comparison tool to see a wide range of plans from other providers. This table includes products with links to referral partners.
Here is a selection of prepaid plans from Canstar Blue’s database with a minimum of 10GB of data each month, listed in order of standard cost, lowest to highest, then by data allowance, largest to smallest. If you want to compare a larger range of offers from other providers, use our phone plan comparison tool. This table includes products with links to referral partners.
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