The TCL Pro 5G is the company's first 5G tablet to be released in North America.TCL is best known for its TV and smartphone brands, but the company also makes tablets. This new tablet is an update of the TCL Tab, with more power and features than its predecessor.

The TCL Pro 5G features a large FHD display, Qualcomm's Snapdragon 480 5G processor, and a 13MP rear camera. This tablet can handle everyday digital needs such as video conferencing, gaming, photography, and streaming. However, aside from the 5G connectivity, there is not much of note about this budget tablet.

At 9.76 x 6.20 x 0.30 inches and 16.09 ounces (just over a pound), the TCL Pro 5G is compact and lightweight. The metallic black casing is eye-catching, but not different from similar looking tablets. The display is 10.36" with a resolution of 1200x2000 FHD+; the Dragontrail glass screen should protect it from scratches.

The tablet has a real-time SDR-to-HDR enhancement feature that allows HDR-quality video. We are curious to see how this feature works in practice; HDR-converted content does not always look right, and the 10.36" screen is comparable to other tablets on the market. However, it is somewhat disappointing that the tablet only has a refresh rate of 60hz instead of 120hz. Considering that this is not a high-end product, 60hz should be sufficient.

Running on Android 11, the TCL Pro 5G features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 5G processor along with a 2.0GHz Qualcomm Kryo octa-core processor. 4GB RAM and 64GB memory. microSD card to expand storage up to 1TB with a microSD card. These specs are not as good as the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 Plus processor and 6GB of RAM in the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7.

The 13MP high-resolution rear camera is capable of capturing photos and HD video. Users can animate clips in stop-motion mode, add real-time filters, and edit with the AI Sky Enhancement and Object Eraser features. The camera's Nxtvision technology (borrowed from the company's TV panel) can adjust the color, sharpness, and contrast of photos after they are taken; the 8MP front camera can be used for video conferencing and selfies; the Tab Pro 5G's camera is comparable to that of Samsung's Galaxy Tab S7; and the Tab Pro 5G's camera can be used to take video and photos, 13MP and 8MP cameras, respectively.

According to TCL, the tablet's 8000mAh battery lasts 25 days in standby mode (with 4G LTE). The tablet lasts 17 hours in mixed use. This is longer than the Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite's battery life of about 13 hours. The battery supports 18W charging. Connectivity features include Wi-Fi, USB OTG, and Bluetooth 5.0; the tablet can also be used as a mobile hotspot for up to 10 devices.

From the press release, the most important feature of the TCL Tab Pro 5G is 5G connectivity. Other than that, no other features stand out compared to other Android tablets on the market. Looking at Apple, the iPad 9 ($329), iPad mini 6 ($499), and iPad Air 4 ($599) are better choices, but only the iPad mini 6 has 5G.

The TCL Pro 5G is now available exclusively from Verizon in metallic black. The only available configuration comes with 64GB of expandable storage and 4GB of RAM.