Miss removable batteries? TCL has you covered, but only if you sacrifice everything decent about a modern phone.


The TCL Ion X describes exactly that.

This above here is the TCL Ion X. While TCL is much more popular for their televisions than smartphones, they have a decent footing in the United States, and seeing that we daily the TCL 10 5G due to its smooth UI, we’re somewhat disappointed that the company did not get the recognition it deserves here in the Philippines. However, the company may have gained traction again thanks to MemoExpress heavily discounting the TCL 20R 5G from a 15K price point to just 5K making it the most affordable 5G handset to date.

But we’re not here to talk about the 20R 5G, we’re here to discuss the other monstrosity they have created, the Ion X. It’s a nostalgia bait. Meaning, if you dearly miss the 3.5mm jack, removable batteries, and MicroSD slot (where several companies are slowly removing in trade of a more slim and premium look), then this phone could be for you. Of course, there’s always a catch.

Firstly, the phone is a BUDGET phone, with very basic budget phone specs. The phone utilizes a notchless 18:9 tall display with a resolution of HD+ (1512x720px). It also sports a MediaTek Helio G25 chipset with 3GB RAM and 32GB internal storage, and it uses a generic 13MP primary and an ancient 5MP front shooter. Did we forget to mention that it only comes with 3000mAh battery? These days, that’s quite small

The phone, however, does come with USB-C and Bluetooth 5.1, so in terms of connectivity, the phone is theoretically good. It runs TCLUI based on Android Go but TCL did not mention which version. The rear cover is removable and actually reminds us of the Samsung Galaxy S5 with its dot design.

We’re not expecting the phone to hit the Philippines, but you could buy it in the US. There’s obviously no fast charging here. Price is USD 119 (~Php 6.6K).

Source: XDA Developers