TCL has just announced its first 5G tablet from Verizon, the Tab Pro 5G. The specs are largely midrange, but it offers a large and crisp screen, decent performance, and fast 5G connectivity at a reasonable $400 price tag. Verizon is also offering a “Buy More, Save More” promo where users can save $100 on a new Tab Pro 5G purchase if they also purchase an eligible Android smartphone on a Verizon plan. It’s no iPad, but it’s a good budget-friendly option for a device with 5G Ultra Wideband.
The device weighs 16.09 ounces and comes in Metallic Black, giving it a relatively standard and inoffensive look. The tablet also has a fingerprint sensor built into one of the side keys and face-unlockcapabilities.
In terms of hardware, the Tab Pro 5G features a 10.3-inch, 2000 x 12000 resolution FHD+ display with a standard 60Hz refresh rate. The panel comes with the increasingly common set of adaptive features to make reading easier, like dark mode, eye cComfort, reading mode, and more.
For cameras, the tablet has a 13-megapixel rear sensor and an 8MP front-facing camera; both take 1080p video at 30 frames per second. The tablet also comes with dual speakers and microphones with noise cancellation, making it a decent option for multimedia and taking Zoom calls.
Under the hood, the slate runs a Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 chipset and has 4GB of RAM. These are decidedly average specs, but it should serve fine as a family or kids’ tablet. While it does start with only 64GB of built-in storage, it is expandable up to 1TB with a microSD card, so space isn’t a worry.
The 8,000mAh battery should provide 17 hours of battery life, according to TCL, and it has a USB-C port that supports an 18-watt adapter. It should charge to full in four hours. It even has reverse wireless charging capabilities to help keep all your devices online for the day — a feature we’ve typically only seen on Samsung devices. One notable downside is that there isn’t a 3.5mm headphone jack, a somewhat surprising omission for a tablet. If you intend to use wired audio, you’ll need to do it with the included USB-C audio adapter.
The Tab Pro 5G runs Android 11 out of the box, supports Bluetooth 5.0, and is built to utilize Verizon’s 5G coverage and speeds by supporting mmWave and sub-6GHz. Is it among some of the best tablets of 2021? Probably not. But a reasonable price and 5G connectivity may make it a compelling enough option for Verizon customers.
