Alcatel launches IDOL 4 series smartphones and PLUS 10 Windows 2-in-1 at MWC

Alcatel, the smartphone brand owned by Chinese electronics manufacturer TCL, has been keeping busy with plenty of devices already launched in the new year. However, that hasn't stopped the company from making new announcements at the 2016 Mobile World Congress.

First off, the company will no longer be using the OneTouch brand for its smartphones and will simply stick to Alcatel for future devices. According to the company, this would help it increase its engagement with millennial customers, who are its target. The lineup of devices under the newly established Alcatel brand is as follows:

• IDOL 4 series: The ALCATEL flagship augments the user experience with a Boom Key that enhances taking photos, listening to music, gaming and more

• POP 4 series: “Designed by you, inside and out,” with vast collection of colors and styles, and optional technology upgrades

• PIXI 4 series: Offers a comprehensive and reliable user experience at an affordable price

• PLUS 10: The brand’s first connected 2-in-1 Windows® device for unbeatable productivity on-the-move

Alcatel launched the IDOL 4 and IDOL 4S smartphones, which are the top end devices from the company and will be priced at $250 and $400 respectively. The devices do pack a punch with respect to hardware specifications and come with nice multimedia features as well.

	IDOL 4	IDOL 4S
Screen size and resolution	5.2" IPS LCD w/ Full HD resolution	5.5" AMOLED w/ QHD resolution
Chipset	Qualcomm Snapdragon 617	Qualcomm Snapdragon 652
RAM	2/3 GB (Region dependent)	3 GB
Storage	16 GB + MicroSD card support	32 GB + MicroSD card support
Camera	13 megapixel rear, 8 megapixel front	16 megapixel rear, 8 megapixel front
Battery	2610 mAh	3000 mAh

Both devices feature magic dual SIM slots, which allow the user to put in an extra SIM card by swapping out the memory card. The company has introduced an additional button on the devices called the BOOM key which is said to give an "Augmented Experience" in various applications such as the Gallery, Camera, Videos and supported games. For example: Pressing the BOOM key in Asphalt releases Nitro and speeds up the car, while boosting the audio experience as well.

Certain variants of the IDOL 4 smartphones will come in packaging that can double up as VR headsets similar to Google Cardboard. The pricing and availability of the IDOL 4 smartphones has yet to be revealed by the company.

Although, the Idol Pro 4 running on Windows 10 Mobile wasn't unexpected today, Alcatel did announce a Windows 10 based 2-in-1 device called the PLUS 10, which hadn't been leaked previously. The PLUS 10 is a 10-inch LTE tablet with a keyboard dock. It is powered by an Intel Atom x5 Z8350 quad core processor clocked at 1.92GHz and 2 GB of RAM. The device has 32GB of internal storage and support for MicroSD cards.

Both, the tablet and the keyboard house a battery each with a total capacity of 8410 mAh. Additionally, the PLUS 10's keyboard can act as a WiFi hotspot for 15 devices when detached. However, the device's 1280x800 resolution is low in comparison with similar offerings from competitors.