TCL 501

The TCL 501 has a standard rectangular, non-folding design with dimensions of 156.5 mm in height and 74.9 mm in width, giving it a total volume of approximately 113.70 cm³. At 9.7 mm thick, the body sits within a fairly conventional profile for its category. The phone does not feature a rugged build and carries no water resistance rating, meaning it lacks any certified protection against moisture or physical stress.

The TCL 501 uses an IPS LCD touchscreen measuring 6″, delivering a resolution of 540 x 1092 px at a pixel density of 203 ppi. The display does not include branded damage-resistant glass, and there is no support for HDR10, HDR10+, or Dolby Vision, nor does it feature an Always-On Display mode or a secondary screen.

The TCL 501 is powered by the MediaTek Helio G36 system-on-chip, built on a 12 nm process and featuring an octa-core CPU configuration running at 4 x 2.2 GHz and 4 x 1.8 GHz via big.LITTLE technology, with 8 threads and multithreading support. The SoC includes integrated LTE, an NX bit, and ARM TrustZone for security, alongside a PowerVR GE8320 GPU clocked at 650 MHz with a turbo mode reaching 680 MHz, supporting DirectX 12, OpenGL ES 3.2, and OpenCL 1.2. The device comes with 3 GB of DDR4 RAM running at 1600 MHz across 2 memory channels, offering a maximum memory bandwidth of 13.9 GB/s and a supported ceiling of 8 GB, while storage sits at 32 GB via eMMC 5.1. Geekbench 6 scores are recorded at 229 for single-core and 842 for multi-core performance, and the platform supports 64-bit computing throughout.

The TCL 501 features a dual-lens main camera with a 5 MP CMOS sensor and an aperture of f/2.2, capable of recording video at 1080p and 30 fps, with support for slow-motion recording, though optical image stabilization and optical zoom are not available. Autofocus options include phase-detection and touch autofocus, as well as continuous autofocus during video recording, while laser autofocus is absent. Manual controls cover exposure, ISO, focus, and white balance, and the camera also supports HDR mode, burst mode, timelapse, and in-camera panoramas, though it cannot shoot in RAW format, does not support manual shutter speed, and lacks 360° panorama or 3D capture capabilities. A single LED flash is present on the rear, with no dual-tone or RGB flash option. On the front, a 2 MP camera with an f/2.8 aperture handles selfies via a single-lens setup, without a front-facing flash or an under-display placement, and HDR10 and Dolby Vision recording are not supported on either camera.

The TCL 501 runs Android 14 as a free and open-source platform, bringing a broad set of privacy and usability features to the table. On the privacy side, it includes clipboard warnings, location privacy controls, camera and microphone access management, and the ability to block app tracking, though Mail Privacy Protection and cross-site tracking blocking are not available. Customization options include theme customization, dynamic theming, dark mode, and an extra dim mode, while focus modes and app offloading are not supported. The OS supports split-screen multitasking, Picture-in-Picture, widgets, customizable notifications, a media picker, full-page screenshots, sharing intents, and the ability to play games while they download. Additional capabilities include on-device machine learning, offline voice recognition, voice commands, live text selection from images, battery health monitoring, a child lock, multi-user support, and device position tracking. Wi-Fi password sharing and Quick Start are absent, and the device does not receive direct OS updates from the vendor, nor can it function as a PC.

The TCL 501 is equipped with a 3000 mAh rechargeable battery that supports fast charging at up to 10W, and a charger is included in the box. The battery is non-removable and does not support wireless charging, but the device does provide a battery level indicator to keep track of remaining charge.

The TCL 501 includes a 3.5 mm headphone jack for wired audio output, though it does not feature stereo speakers. On the wireless audio side, none of the advanced Bluetooth codec standards are supported, including aptX, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive, aptX Lossless, or LDAC.

The TCL 501 supports dual SIM cards and connects wirelessly via Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n) and Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac), alongside Bluetooth 5.1, though 5G is not available and NFC is absent. Wired connectivity is handled through a USB Type-C port, and there is an external memory slot for expandable storage. Mobile data speeds reach up to 300 Mbit/s for downloads and 150 Mbit/s for uploads. For location, the device includes GPS and Galileo satellite support as well as an accelerometer, but lacks a compass, gyroscope, barometer, heart rate monitor, infrared sensor, and ANT+ support. Security features such as a fingerprint scanner, 3D facial recognition, and iris scanner are not present, and there is no HDMI output, built-in projector, crash detection, satellite SOS, DLNA certification, motion tracking, optical tracking, or stylus included.

The TCL 501 includes a video light for illumination during video recording, while the display is flat and standard — there is no curved panel, sapphire glass, or e-paper screen.