TCL NxtPaper 70 Pro hands-on

Just yesterday, TCL announced its latest NxtPaper smartphone – the NxtPaper 70 Pro at CES 2026. We’ve now managed to get our hands on a unit, and these are our first impressions.

The headline feature on the NxtPaper 70 Pro is its massive 6.9-inch NxtPaper 4.0 display. Like all entries in the NxtPaper lineup, this is an IPS LCD panel with a matte coating that reduces glare and reflections. This makes everything from reading to watching videos much easier on the eyes.

It’s kind of like an e-ink display, though you still get full 100% sRGB color gamut coverage, an adequate FHD+ resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate. TCL also claims 900 nits peak brightness and a 1,000:1 contrast ratio.

While we’re certainly fans of TCL’s approach with NxtPaper displays, the one on the NxtPaper 70 Pro has a tendency to look washed out when placed side-by-side with a modern OLED phone display.

NxtPaper 70 Pro also brings a custom switch called the NxtPaper key, which toggles the display between its distinct profiles. Color Paper mode features rich and vibrant colors for regular use. Ink Paper mode goes grayscale for a more pleasant reading experience, while Max Ink Mode goes a notch further by going monochrome and also enabling longer battery life. TCL claims up to 7 days of reading or 26 days of standby.

The NxtPaper 70 Pro’s display features a bevy of eye-care features, including zero flicker and blue light purification. There’s also stylus support via the optional TCL T-Pen – a nice option if you’re into jotting down notes or sketches on your phone. TCL also added some neat features like AI handwriting input and an off-screen memo.

Around the back, TCL implemented a textured material that feels great and helps with the grip. We also appreciate TCL’s redesigned camera bump, which looks much cleaner than the circular cutouts on its previous generation phones.

The phone boots Android 16 with TCL’s custom interface on top. It has a nearly stock feeling with all of your familiar Google apps pre-installed and ready to go. In terms of specs, you are getting MediaTek’s Dimensity 7300 with 8GB RAM and up to 256/512GB storage. There’s a 32MP selfie cam and a 50MP main shooter on the back. The battery is rated at 5,200 mAh and features 33W wired charging.

TCL confirmed the NxtPaper 70 Pro will be available globally from late February, starting at €339.