TCL 30 5G Review: A Long-Lasting, Affordable Midrange Smartphone

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The new TCL 30 5G features a large AMOLED display, lots of storage, days of battery life, and runs on Android 12. In some categories—like performance—it falls short of midrange models from Samsung and Motorola. Last year’s TCL 20 Pro 5G was a strong competitor in the midrange smartphone market with unique features that made it stand out. The company chose a simpler design for the TCL 30 5G and undercut its competitors with a lower retail price.

WhistleOut tested the TCL 30 5G’s cameras, gaming performance, and 5G speed. This phone may not be perfect for everyone, but read our full review to learn if it’s a worthwhile upgrade from the device you have now.

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Why We Recommend
the TCL 30 5G

We were pleasantly surprised by the TCL 30 5G’s performance. On paper, it’s a downgrade from last year’s feature-rich TCL 20 Pro 5G. However, it delivers adequate performance, a very long battery life, and a beautiful AMOLED display with a cheaper price tag. With strong competition in the midrange market from Samsung, Google, and even Apple, the TCL 30 5G offers a more cost-effective upgrade option for many Canadians.  

What we like: Great battery life

One advantage to a large device is more room for a power-packed battery. The TCL 30 5G uses a massive 5010 mAh battery, making it among the largest on the market—including premium flagship smartphones. 

This upgrade over last year’s models means a full day of heavy use on one charge and up to three days with only casual use. The large battery takes about 1.5 hours to charge from 0–100%, but using the included 18W fast charger means you’re less than an hour away from enough juice to get you through the day.  

What we like: Powerful 50MP HDR camera

We test a lot of midrange smartphone models, and most feature powerful camera sensors or an intuitive photo app—but rarely both. The TCL balances the need for good hardware and software. Its primary lens uses a 50MP sensor, assisted by 2MP macro and depth sensors, while an adequate 13MP selfie camera takes rich front-facing photos. 

The camera app responds quickly to capture gone-in-a-flash moments and offers many stylistic and professional features to help you take unique photos. For example, Portrait mode applies a blur to the background around the subject, giving it a professional look.

What we like: Expandable storage

The TCL 30 5G comes with 128GB of internal storage—about the same as most 2022 midrange Android devices and twice as much as the cheapest Apple iPhone SE. However, the real advantage of the TCL 30 5G comes from expandable storage. For less than $40, a simple 256GB microSD card from Amazon.ca cheaply triples the phone’s onboard storage.  

What we don't like: Limited video recording quality

Despite the powerful camera sensor and intelligent software, the TCL 30 5G limits video recording to 1080p at 30 frames per second. With 4K video as the standard on most smartphones for the last several years, it’s an odd choice for TCL to limit the resolution. This quality cap could change with a software update in the future, but for now, it’s a surprising limitation. 

What we don't like: No bells and whistles

When WhistleOut Canada reviewed the TCL 20 Pro 5G last year, it was the unique features found nowhere else that we liked most. It offered a customizable side button to launch preferred apps and an IR blaster to turn the TCL 20 Pro 5G into a universal remote control! On the TCL 30 5G, no unique features set it apart from the competition. Even the cheaper TCL 30 XE 5G uses a display that boasts a fast 90Hz refresh rate. 

TCL 30 5G Features

The TCL 30 5G is firmly targeted at consumers looking for an affordable upgrade to their aging smartphones. Many Canadians may continue to use an old device with short battery life, a cracked screen, and a lack of new security updates making it wide open to malicious apps. Priced cheaper than its competition and including two years of software updates, the TCL 30 5G offers an affordable way to upgrade an old device.

Big, bright AMOLED display

Most flagship smartphones over a few years old have screens under 6 inches, but the large display on the TCL 30 5G is 6.7 inches. It’s easy to look at, as the AMOLED display reproduces rich colour, bright images, and high pixel density with a Full HD+ resolution. Some competitive products like the Samsung Galaxy A53 feature a high refresh rate, making scrolling through web pages buttery smooth.

Long-lasting battery and fast charging

When it’s time to power up, the TCL 30 5G includes an 18W charger for fast charging. That’s a nice feature, as other brands like Samsung and Apple have long since removed wall chargers from smartphone packaging. 

In our tests, we had no trouble charging at full speed whether we used a third-party charger or the one included in the box. It takes a long time to charge this big battery; the TCL 30 5G required about 45 minutes to add 50% of battery life through 18W fast charging. However, that’s probably enough to get you through a full day. 

Adequate performance

This phone isn’t a premium performer, but you can’t expect it to be at half the price of flagship devices. We tested the TCL 30 5G in common applications—taking photos, scrolling social feeds, and playing games. The TCL 30 5G isn’t always smooth and sometimes stutters while rendering complex 3D graphics, but overall it’s a good performer with a bright, high-resolution screen. It’s worth a look if you’re considering upgrading from an older flagship phone like the Samsung Galaxy S8.  

TCL 30 5G vs. TCL 30 XE 5G

TCL released these models around the same time, and many of the same carriers sell both. The TCL 30 5G targets the midrange market, providing an affordable upgrade path for many consumers planning to ditch an old phone. The cheaper TCL 30 XE 5G trims some premium features while maintaining long-lasting battery life and offering a large screen. 

Compare the TCL 30 5G vs. TCL 30 XE 5G

In terms of performance, connectivity, and battery life, the two TCL 30 smartphones evenly match. However, the TCL 30 5G adds a sharper AMOLED display, better camera hardware, and NFC capabilities that enable using the phone as a digital wallet.  

TCL 30 5G vs. Samsung Galaxy A53 vs. Google Pixel 6a

TCL set the 30 5G retail price at more than $100 cheaper than competitive alternatives from Samsung and Google. Buying a two-year contract from a wireless carrier can save $5–$10 per month, depending on active promotions. 

We find the TCL 30 5G is a reliable midrange smartphone priced on the cheaper side compared to its competition. The Samsung Galaxy A53 offers better camera performance, and its custom Android interface makes it a better upgrade choice for long-time Samsung phone owners. As another alternative, the new Google Pixel 6a prioritizes performance and compact size, making it a good choice for Google fans who want to save money.

Recap: Is the TCL 30 5G
Right For You?

Many Canadians don’t need to upgrade their old smartphone to the newest premium smartphone with four cameras, 8K video recording, and a $1,000 price tag. Consumers looking for something to replace an aging smartphone would appreciate the solid performance of the TCL 30 5G with its smart camera software, long-lasting battery, and big, bright display. It also supports new 5G networks, and it’s still plenty fast on older 4G LTE networks and Wi-Fi 5.  Since Samsung and Google offer over five years of security updates on their midrange options, we’d like to see a longer commitment than only two years of updates from TCL. Even so, it’s a solid midrange smartphone with an affordable price tag that should last you a few years. 

Here's what you get from the TCL 30 5G:

• Big, sharp, AMOLED display
• 50MP primary camera
• Long-lasting battery
• Good performance
• Affordable price

The company also offers the cheaper TCL 30 XE 5G, which packs the same processing power and a long-lasting battery. To keep the price down, TCL chose to leave out the bells and whistles we loved from last year’s model. For instance, there is a lower-quality 6.5-inch display and mediocre cameras. Canadians interested in paying more for those extra features may consider Samsung’s Galaxy A53 or the new Google Pixel 6a.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which carriers does the TCL 30 5G work on?

Is the TCL 30 5G an Android phone?

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Does the TCL 30 5G have wireless charging?

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