Technologies

TCL 40 Series Phones Will Cost Under $200 and Launch This Summer

TCL’s 2023 phone line focuses on the price-conscious market while bringing 5G to cheaper devices.

TCL will bring four under-$200 phones to the US this year, two of which will have 5G. Revealed as part of the Chinese company’s Mobile World Congress announcements Sunday in Barcelona, the four devices are part of the TCL 40 Series of phones.

The highest-end will be the TCL 40 X 5G, which is priced at $199 and set for release this June. The phone includes a triple rear camera system anchored by a 50-megapixel main camera, an 8-megapixel front-facing camera, a 6.56-inch HD Plus display with a 90Hz refresh rate and a MediaTek Dimensity 700 processor. The TCL 40 X 5G will also include a 5,000-mAh battery, 64GB of storage and 4GB of RAM.

TCL is also touting the phone’s 180Hz touch sampling rate, which is a figure normally used to describe how responsive the phone would be for gaming or any other activity involving quick response. For instance, the Samsung Galaxy S23 has a 240Hz touch sampling rate when in gaming mode, and the RedMagic 7 gaming phone has 720Hz.

The step-down model from the X is the TCL 40 XE 5G, priced at $169 and also set for a June release. It shares many of the same specs as the X, but will have a 13-megapixel main rear camera. The screen, processor, battery and storage options will otherwise be the same.

Costing $20 less than the XE, the $149 TCL 40 XL does not support 5G but has a larger 6.75-inch screen. The phone will also have a 50-megapixel main rear camera, an 8-megapixel front facing camera, a MediaTek G37 processor, 128GB of storage, 4GB of RAM and a 5,000-mAh battery. The TCL 40 XL will be released in May.

The 40 X, XE and XL are all exclusive to the US, and will be released in partnership with a US carrier that will be announced at a later date. For the prepaid market, a $119 TCL 406 phone will launch this year with a 6.6-inch HD Plus display and dual speakers.

It’s notable that TCL is squarely targeting the under-$200 phone market with the 40 Series, with TCL Chief Marketing Officer Stefan Streit noting that keeping the phones partnered up with carriers is an important part of its strategy right now.

The TCL 40 XL does not include 5G, but does come with a larger screen.

TCL

«We just started with TCL as a mobile brand three years ago, the brand is still very young,» Streit said, noting that from the company’s perspective the midpriced ($300 to $600) phone market is currently under pressure from inflation. While TCL has teased its ability to create a higher-end phone concept or a foldable phone, Streit said the company plans to focus on the entry-level market for now before choosing to step back up. TCL has a longer history in TVs and makes some of CNET’s favorites, including the 6-Series, which we think is the best TV for the money right now.

TCL also confirmed during a press briefing that the phones are all being sold exclusively in carrier partnerships. This means that while they have cheaper prices or even be offered for free by the carriers, it’s quite possible that they will be loaded up with carrier bloatware, as I found with last year’s TCL Stylus 5G.

The TCL NxtPaper 11 tablet includes stylus support and a display coating designed to feel like paper when drawing.

TCL

While we look forward to testing these phones when they arrive later this year, it’s definitely a bonus to see 5G connectivity beginning to trickle down to even cheaper devices. After years of 5G being more of a «nice to have,» these TCL phones may begin the trend of the networks being in use across all devices.

TCL also rolled out a line of affordable tablets at MWC, including the TCL NxtPaper 11 and the TCL Tab 11. Both tablets offer an 11-inch screen with 2K resolution, with the NxtPaper tablet touting stylus support with a display coating designed to feel like paper when writing or drawing. The NxtPaper 11 launches in Europe this May at $249, while the Tab 11 launches the same month with a $179 starting price.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Sunday, June 8

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for June 8.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword isn’t too tough, but 1-Across might make you think of the sky, and that’s not the direction you need to go. Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

The Mini Crossword is just one of many games in the Times’ games collection. If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Org. with shooting stars
Answer: NBA

4A clue: Buildings with weather vanes, stereotypically
Answer: BARNS

6A clue: Swiss watch brand
Answer: OMEGA

7A clue: What Santa, Gandalf and Dumbledore each have
Answer: BEARD

8A clue: Pie in the ___
Answer: SKY

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: «I’m bad with ___» (party excuse)
Answer: NAMES

2D clue: Start of a billiards game
Answer: BREAK

3D clue: Seeing red
Answer: ANGRY

4D clue: Timothée’s role in «A Complete Unknown»
Answer: BOB

5D clue: Feeling blue
Answer: SAD

How to play more Mini Crosswords

The New York Times Games section offers a large number of online games, but only some of them are free for all to play. You can play the current day’s Mini Crossword for free, but you’ll need a subscription to the Times Games section to play older puzzles from the archives.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for June 8, #258

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, No. 258, for June 8.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition isn’t too tough, but let’s hope you know the résumé of a certain NBA player to get the blue group. Read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Let’s go at it.

Green group hint: Signal-callers.

Blue group hint: Hoops star’s teams.

Purple group hint: Great barbecue town.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Competition.

Green group: Names of NFL QBs.

Blue group: Teams Tyrese Haliburton has played for.

Purple group: Kansas City ____.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is competition. The four answers are bout, contest, event and match.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is names of NFL QBs. The four answers are Baker, Bo, Dak and Tua.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is teams Tyrese Haliburton has played for. The four answers are Iowa State, Kings, Pacers and USA.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is Kansas City ____. The four answers are Chiefs, Current, Monarchs and Royals.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for June 8, #728

Here are some hints and the answers for Connections for June 8, #728.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle could be tricky. The purple category is one of those «sounds like» groups, that can be really tough to figure out. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group, to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Keep at it.

Green group hint: Think Wall Street animals.

Blue group hint: Online encyclopedia subheads.

Purple group hint: $$$.