We subjected the TCL 40R 5G to our rigorous SBMARK Battery test suite to measure its performance in terms of range, charging and efficiency. In these test results, we’ll analyze how it performed in a variety of tests and several common use cases.
Overview
Key Specifications:
- Battery Capacity: 5000mAh
- 15W charger (not included)
- 6.6-inch, 720 x 1612, 90Hz LCD display
- Mediatek Size 700 (7 nm)
- ROM / RAM combination tested: 64GB + 4GB
Pros
- Good overall autonomy with more than 2.5 days when used moderately
- Good battery life during calls and games
- Low discharge currents during the call
- Less than 1% lost per night
Against
- Long charge time at 2 hours 44 minutes for a full charge
- Low range gain after a 5 minute quick charge
- Weak performance on the go
- High discharge currents when using camera and navigation
The TCL 40R 5G places in the top half of our battery database with a very good overall score.
With moderate use, the battery of the TCL 40R 5G lasted more than 2.5 days. The battery life was very good during the tests of the typical usage scenario and during the evaluation of individual indoor uses. Overnight, the device lost less than 1% power per night. However, the 40R 5G’s range performance outdoors was mixed, performing below average when using the camera and browsing, but excellent during calls.
With a small 15W charger, the TCL 40R 5G charging experience was poor. It took more than 2.5 hours to fully recharge the battery, and the range recovered after a 5-minute quick charge was extremely low.
The charging efficiency of the device was also poor, with a high residual consumption of the charger itself when the device was disconnected. The discharge currents were quite low during our typical usage scenario and when making calls or streaming video or music. But they were high when testing single use cases outdoors, meaning the device isn’t perfectly optimized.
Compared to devices in the same Advanced segment ($200-$399), the TCL 40R 5G ranked below average. It showed good battery life during indoor tests and an average efficiency score. But its charge score was among the lowest for this price range.
Trial summary
Learn about SBMARK battery tests: For scoring and analysis in our smartphone battery reviews, SBMARK engineers conduct a series of objective tests over a one-week period both indoors and outdoors. (See our introduction and how we test articles for more details on our smartphone’s battery protocol.)
The following section compiles the key elements of our extensive testing and analysis performed in the SBMARK laboratories. Detailed performance evaluations in the form of reports are available upon request. Do not hesitate to contact us.
Drums | Battery charger | wireless | Screen | Processor | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
TCL40R 5G | 5000mAh | 15W (included) |
– | LCDs 720×1612 |
MediaTek Size 700 |
Oppo A78 5G | 5000mAh | 33W (included) |
– | LCDs 720×1612 |
Mediatek Size 700 |
Samsung Galaxy A34 5G | 5000mAh | 25W (not included) |
– | OLEDs 1080 x 2340 |
MediaTek Size 1080 |
How the Autonomy score is composed
The Battery Life Score is composed of three performance sub-scores: Home/Office, On the Go, and Calibrated Use Cases. Each subscore includes results from a full range of tests to measure range in all kinds of real-life scenarios.
98 hours
Light use
Active: 2h30/day
65 hours
Moderate use
Active: 4h/day
39 hours
Intensive use
Active: 7h/day
Home office
A robot housed in a Faraday cage performs a series of touch-based user actions during what we call our “typical usage scenario” (TUS) — making calls, streaming video, etc. — 4 hours of active use over the course of a 16 hour period, plus 8 hours of “sleep”. The robot repeats this series of actions every day until the device runs out.
In movement
119
Samsung Galaxy M51
Samsung Galaxy M51
Using a smartphone on the go has a negative impact on range due to additional “hidden” demands, such as continuous signaling associated with cellular network selection. SBMARK Battery experts take the phone outdoors and perform a series of precisely defined activities following the same three-hour travel itinerary (walking, taking the bus, the subway…) for each device
Calibrated
134
Samsung Galaxy M51
Samsung Galaxy M51
For this series of tests, the smartphone returns to the Faraday cage and to ours bots repeatedly perform actions related to a specific use case (like gaming, video streaming, etc.) at a time. Starting with an 80% charge, all devices are tested until they have used at least 5% battery power.
Reload
ninety two
Realme GTNeo 3
Realme GTNeo 3
How the recharge score is composed
Charging is fully part of the overall battery experience. In some situations where range is at its lowest, knowing how fast you can charge becomes a concern. The SBMARK Battery Charging Score consists of two subscores, (1) Full Charge and (2) Fast Boost.
Charge complete
84
Black Shark 5Pro
Black Shark 5Pro
The full charge tests evaluate the reliability of the battery charge indicator; measure how long and how much energy it takes for the battery to charge from zero to 80% capacity, from 80 to 100% as shown by the user interface, and to an actual full charge.
The charging curves, in wired and wireless mode (if available) showing the evolution of the battery level indicator as well as the energy consumption in watts during the charging phases towards full capacity.
The time to full charge graph breaks down the time required to reach 80%, 100% and full charge.
Quick push
101
Realme GTNeo 3
Realme GTNeo 3
With the phone at different charge levels (20%, 40%, 60%, 80%), the Quick Boost tests measure how much charge the battery receives after being plugged in for 5 minutes. The graph here compares the average range gain with a 5-minute quick charge.
Efficiency
128
Oppo Reno6 5G
Oppo Reno6 5G
How the efficiency score is composed
The SBMARK Energy Efficiency Score consists of two subscores, charge rate and discharge rate, which combine both data obtained during a typical robot-based usage scenario, calibrated testing and charge rating, taking into consideration battery capacity of the device. SBMARK calculates the product’s annual energy consumption, shown in the graph below, which is representative of overall efficiency during a charge and when in use.
Charge Up
106
Nubia RedMagic 7 Pro
Nubia RedMagic 7 Pro
The secondary charge score is a combination of four factors: the overall efficiency of a full charge, relating to the amount of energy required to recharge the battery compared to the energy the battery can supply; the efficiency of the travel adapter when it comes to transferring power from an outlet to your phone; the remaining consumption when the phone is fully charged and still connected to the charger; and the residual consumption of the charger itself, when the smartphone is disconnected from it. The graph below shows the overall efficiency of a full charge in %.
Discharge
141
Apple iPhone 14 Pro
Apple iPhone 14 Pro
The sub-discharge score evaluates how quickly a battery discharges during a test, which is independent of battery capacity. It is the ratio between the capacity of a battery and its autonomy. A small capacity battery may have the same run time as a large capacity battery, indicating that the device is well optimized, with a low discharge rate.
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