Alcatel has launched three budget-end smartphones, namely – Alcatel U5, Alcatel A3, the Alcatel A5 LED, and Windows 10 running Alcatel Plus 12 tablet at MWC 2017 in Barcelona. The company has not announced pricing of the smartphones or their availability as of now, but if we look at the specification of these devices, they will not be so costly and priced competitively in the budget price segment. Let’s have a quick look in specifications of each device-
Alcatel A5 LED
Alcatel A5 LED is the most interesting launch and it is packed with better specs. The highlight of this smartphone – its LED panel back that lights up with colors in different patterns. The LED back cover is removable and the company is also offering other cover options including a battery pack and a speaker back. The swappable covers are similar to the Moto Mods as can be seen in Moto Z smartphones – such as the new Edge Moto Mod with a wraparound LED light for notifications. Interestingly, the LED back cover can also provide users notifications and its functionality can be controlled by a dedicated app. Apart from the LED black cover, there is a battery pack and one with a speaker with a kickstand.
This smartphone features a 5.2-inch HD 720p display and uses an octa-core MediaTek MT6753 chipset paired with 2GB RAM and 16GB of storage that can be expanded. There are an 8MP rear snapper and a 5MP selfie camera, both supporting FHD 1080p video recording. Based on Android 6.0 Marshmallow, the device has other goodies such as Bluetooth 4.2, GPS, Cat.4 LTE, and a 2,800mAh battery.
AcolorsA5 LED key specifications
- Display: 5.2 inch IPS HD (1280×720) display
- Processor: 1.5GHz Octa-Core MediaTek MT6753 processor
- RAM & Storage: 2GB RAM, 16GB internal storage, expandable via micro SD card
- Operating System: Android 6.0 Marshmallow
- SIM Slot: Dual SIM
- Rear Camera: 8MP AF, aperture f/2.0, dual tone flash
- Front Camera: 5MP front camera
- Dimensions: 146 x 72.1 x 7.7mm / 10.2mm (with LED cover)
- Connectivity Options: 4G LTE Cat, 802.11b/g/n, WiFi direct,Bluetooth 4.2, GPS with A-GPS, Micro USB 2.0 high speed
- Battery: 2800mAh battery
William Dowie, portfolio management director at Alcatel, was quoted as saying in company’s release-
“With the A5 LED, Alcatel is delivering new fun features, like light-up notifications and unique LED cover patterns and themes you create yourself, as well as an enhanced multimedia experience and more ways to take and share selfies, ideal for people who value having fun and letting their personality shine.”
Alcatel A3
Alcatel A3 smartphone is called the “Most Affordable 5-inch HD Smartphone”, the device runs Android Marshmallow. The smartphone sports a 5-inch 720p display and is powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core processor coupled with 1.5GB of RAM. The A3 comes with 16GB of inbuilt storage, which is expandable via microSD card. There are a 13MP main snapper and a 5MP front facer on this smartphone. It has a 2,460mAh battery which is powering it.
Connectivity options include 4G LTE Cat 4, VoLTE, VoWiFi, 802.11b/g/n, WiFi direct, Bluetooth 4.2, NFC (5046Y), GPS with A-GPS. Interestingly, the smartphone comes with front-facing speakers and a fingerprint sensor, which is notably missing from A5 LED.
Alcatel A3 key specifications
- Display: 5 inch IPS HD (1280X720) display
- Processor: 1.25GHz Octa-Core processor
- RAM & Storage: 1.5GB RAM, 16GB internal storage, expandable up to 32GB via micrSD card
- Operating System: Android 6.0 Marshmallow
- SIM Slot: Dual SIM
- Rear Camera: 13-megapixel rear camera
- Front Camera: 5-megapixel front camera
- Connectivity Options: 4G LTE Cat 4, VoLTE, VoWiFi, 802.11b/g/n, WiFi direct, Bluetooth 4.2, NFC (5046Y), GPS with A-GPS
- Battery: 2460mAh battery
Alcatel U5
The smartphone sports a 5-inch 480p display and is powered by a quad-core 1.1 GHz processor coupled with just 1GB of RAM. The Alcatel U5 comes with 8GB of built-in storage. The device sports a 5-megapixel rear camera and runs Android Marshmallow. It also has a 2-megapixel front camera. A 2050mAh battery is powering this device.
Alcatel U5 key specifications
- Display: 5-inch FWVGA (854×480) display
- Processor: 1.1 GHz processor Quad core processor
- RAM & Storage: 1GB RAM, 8GB internal storage
- Operating System: Android 6.0 Marshmallow
- Rear Camera: 5-megapixel rear camera with LED flash
- Front Camera: 2-megapixel front camera
- Dimensions: 140.7 x 71.8 x 9.95 mm
- Other Features: Front-facing speakers and fingerprint sensor, 4G LTE Cat
- Battery: 2050mAh battery
Alcatel PLUS 12
Alcatel has also announced its Windows 10 2-in-1 PLUS 12 tablet. The device packs an 11.6-inch full-HD IPS display and measures 284x175x7.9mm. The tablet is powered by an Intel Celeron N3350 processor coupled with 4GB of RAM. It comes with in an unusual 32GB eMMC + 32GB embedded microSD storage configuration. The storage is expandable up to 128GB via microSD card.
The device has a USB Type-C port, micro HDMI port, and a headphone jack. It is bundled with a keyboard with SIM slot for LTE connectivity. Also, the keyboard has its own Qualcomm MDM9207 processor, 128GB RAM, 2580mAh battery and USB-A port.
Alcatel PLUS 12 2-in-1 key specifications
- Display: 11.6-inch full HD (1980×1020) display
- Processor: Intel Celeron N3350 processor
- RAM & Storage: 4GB RAM, 32GB eMMC SSD and 32GB microSD card, expandable up to 128GB via microSD card
- Operating System: Windows 10
- Rear Camera: 5-megapixel rear camera
- Dimensions: 284 x 175 x 7.9mm (tablet)
- Connectivity Options: 4G, WiFi, USB Type-C, a 3.5mm audio jack, and a Micro-HDMI port
- Battery:26.8WHr battery
Price And Availability
The pricing and the availability of the above devices have not been shared by the company as of now.
