TCL NXTPAPER 70 Pro Brings Paper-Like Comfort and Serious Battery Life to a Budget Phone You Can Grab Right Now

Most phone screens simply blast light into your eyes for hours on end since that is how they are designed, but the TCL NXTPAPER 70 Pro is a completely different story. Starting April 8th, 2026, you’ll be able to get one at T-Mobile and Metro by T-Mobile for $199, which is a fairly good deal given the display this phone offers.

The screen, a 6.9-inch Full HD+ display running at 120Hz, features the TCL NXTPAPER coating, which does an excellent job of reducing glare and blue light from the screen, resulting in a mere 3.41%, which is a huge bonus for anyone who wants to browse at night without harming their eyes. You have a dedicated side button that allows you to switch between three display modes based on what you are doing at the time. Color Paper keeps things vibrant for video / social media, while Ink Paper softens the image so it feels like reading on actual paper, and Max Ink transforms the entire thing into an e-reader that TCL claims can last up to 7 days on a single charge. Plus, the display as sharp as a tack no matter what angle you look at it from, color calibration works wonderfully on photographs and videos, and the screen’s matte surface is much better at handling outside light than anything with a glossy finish.

The rest of the hardware on this phone is solid without going overboard, as the MediaTek Dimensity 7300 chipset makes everyday chores a breeze, along with 8GB of RAM. Storage ranges from 256GB to 512GB, and it can be expanded up to 2TB using microSD. It’s also a really little phone, measuring 8mm thick and weighing 208 grams. It fits well in one hand, and the IP68 classification ensures you don’t have to worry about dust or water getting in the way. The box includes a T-Pen stylus, and drawing or sketching on the paper-like screen seems more natural than it should, which is difficult to describe unless you experience it.

Battery life is excellent, with a 5200 mAh battery that charges in around 75 minutes with a 33 watt charger, and while not being the largest battery available, it will last you a full day with mixed use. If you need a little more juice, simply turn on Max Power mode to get a few extra hours. The 50 megapixel main camera with optical stabilization shoots rather standard-looking shots, and it’s complemented with an 8 megapixel ultrawide as well as a 32 megapixel front camera. The video maxes out at 4K at 30 FPS, which is adequate but nothing special nowadays. Still, for a $199 phone, I’d say this is a more than reasonable price.