TCL demoes 5G smartphones and data terminals at MWC 2019

TCL Communication, the company behind smartphone brands like BlackBerry and alcatel, has just showcased plenty of 5G devices at MWC 2019. The highlight was TCL’s first functional 5G USB data terminal, which is in a pre-launch stage.

It was developed jointly with China Mobile and will start shipping next quarter. The manufacturer also exhibited 5G CPE and smartphone devices, aiming to prove the industry it is ready for the next era in communication.

TCL said PC users will be able to enjoy 5G at 4Gbps downlink and 2Gbps uplink speeds. In order to achieve such results, the device uses the n41 and n78 frequency bands, 200M bandwidth, and 4x4 MIMO antennas.

The terminal relies on the Helio M70 SoC for its 5G speeds - Mediatek developed the chipset with 2G/3G/4G/5G-enabled support. It is backward compatible with all connectivity generations if the 5G network drops for some reason. There is also a 4,000 mAh battery in the device.

Charles Zou, General Manager at TCL, said the company will focus on research and development of 5G smartphones, tablets, data terminals. We hope this means an alcatel or BlackBerry smartphone with gigabit speeds will be in the pipeline soon.