https://notes.ghed.in/posts/2025/tcl-nxtpaper-screen-tech/

Notes

by Rodrigo Ghedin

  * Mastodon
  * Email
  * RSS feed

15/1/2025

TCL's bet on screens that look like paper

Since 2021, TCL has been investing in an intriguing screen technology
called NXTPAPER: an LCD panel that attempts to simulate paper to be
less harsh on human eyes. As someone who spends more time than
recommended looking at screens, this greatly interests me.

The Chinese manufacturer announced a new version at CES 2025, called
NXTPAPER 4.0. It brings a "significant advancement" in the weak point
of previous versions, (low) brightness, thanks to a "sophisticated
nano-matrix lithography technology". / tcl.com

I don't know what this means, but it seems to have yielded results.
The screen of the Tablet 11 Plus, one of the devices with NXTPAPER
4.0 announced, reaches up to 550 nits. This value doesn't compare to
the best traditional screens, but it should be readable. / tcl.com

In addition to the tablet (still without price or release date), TCL
also announced a phone, the TCL 60 XE NXTPAPER 5G. (Good name,
marketing folks.) Both tablet and phone have an "NXTPAPER Key" that
toggles between conventional mode and "Max Ink Mode," which,
according to TCL, "turns the display into an e-ink format designed to
reduce eye strain and ensure maximum eye comfort." / tcl.com

When activated, Max Ink Mode also disables notifications and adds a
super nice side effect that I'll only believe when I see it: a huge
increase in battery life, up to 7 days of reading and 26 days (!) on
standby. It will be released first in Canada, in May, for USD 199.

The rest of the 60 XE phone's specifications seem decent, a level
above those of its predecessor that Marques Brownlee tested, liked,
but not enough to recommend it. / youtube.com/@mkbhd

Some videos show the "NXTPAPER Key" and "Max Ink Mode" in action. TCL
made a clip (13min) of the section where they discussed mobile
devices in their CES presentation and made it available on YouTube. /
youtube.com/@CNET, youtube.com/@TCLMobile

While E-Ink (company) tries to make its screen technology (the one
used in Kindle) faster, some manufacturers have been betting on the
same approach as TCL and are trying to make conventional screens more
eye-friendly. The startup Daylight launched an (expensive) tablet in
2024 with an even more aggressive proposal -- black and white LCD
panel, similar to those of calculators. / daylightcomputer

<< Meta's moderation policy dismantling will hurt, but it can be good
in the long run US$ 30 million to reinvent the wheel >>

Smiling white man wearing glasses and a black t-shirt

Rodrigo Ghedin is a Brazilian journalist covering consumer tech for
Manual do Usuario, a small, independent publication he founded in
2013. In this blog, he shares his best writings in (admittedly
imperfect) English to a broader audience.

CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 * 2022-2025