I’ve spent most of the last couple weeks using an otherwise unexceptional midrange Android phone with one amazing feature: a matte OLED display. That screen is by far the best thing about the TCL P80 Ultra, and weirdly, it’s made me more excited for the iPhone Duo and its matte inner display.
The P80 Ultra’s screen is special because it’s the first to combine the Nxtpaper tech with an OLED panel. That means it’s the best-looking Nxtpaper screen yet, with deeper blacks, better contrast, and richer colors.
Previous models have felt a little visually compromised; this one doesn’t. It also finally enables an always-on display.
Always-on displays have been the norm on Android for years, and the fact that TCL’s Nxtpaper phones didn’t have them was a dealbreaker for many.
I’ve used a couple of Nxtpaper phones over the last few years, but usually found the tradeoffs — both across the specs and in the screen itself — never quite made sense.