14 DAY TRIAL // Alcatel came to the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this year with a full bag of new devices, with the brand new Alcatel OneTouch Idol 2 standing up in the crowd.
The smartphone has been designed mainly for the mid-range market, but it can certainly deliver an appealing, fast experience. We played with it only for several minutes at Alcatel’s booth at MWC 2014 in Barcelona, but it did impress us.
The handset is pretty slim and feels great in the hand, not to mention that its screen seems very responsive. Moreover, it can be easily operated with a single hand, which should make it even more appealing to users looking for a good device that doesn’t cost too much.
Alcatel did not offer specific info on pricing, but it did say that the new OneTouch Idol 2 would start arriving on shelves sometime in the second quarter of the year.
The best thing about the new Alcatel phone is that it comes in two versions, one featuring 3G connectivity inside, and the other with 4G capabilities.
The two look almost the same, though there are some important differences that need to be mentioned, in addition to the different data capabilities.
The processor is also different between the two models, namely a 1.2GHz quad-core one inside the 4G version and a 1.3 GHz quad-core unit inside the 3G flavor. However, you can’t really tell the difference between them when it comes to performance.
Alcatel OneTouch Idol 2 sports a 5-inch touchscreen display, which can deliver a qHD (540 x 960 pixels) resolution. Idol 2 S, on the other hand, offers a better, 720 x 1280 pixels resolution, and, thus, a better viewing experience.
Other differences between the two include the availability of a dual-SIM version of the 3G model, which also sports a smaller, 2000mAh battery (compared to 2150mAh in Idol 2 S). Idol 2 also feels a bit lighter than its 4G-enabled counterpart.
In the end, it all comes down to the type of connectivity you’ll want when buying the new Idol 2 / Idol 2 S from Alcatel. The company has managed to attract a great deal of users with its series of Idol smartphones, and it will certainly grab a few more with the new phones.
What remains to be seen is what price tags they will feature. The mid-range segment of the smartphone market has been crowded with a lot of devices lately, and Alcatel is facing increased competition there.
