Hands-on with the Alcatel 5 and Alcatel 3v

Over the past few years, Alcatel has been gaining more prominence thanks to its quality offerings in the smartphone segment. The handset manufacturer has focused its efforts on providing customers with a great experience with devices that have an appealing design and don't cost a lot of money. So it comes as no surprise that the firm is setting its sights high for 2018, aiming to do more of what it does best.

In 2017, we saw more manufacturers follow the near bezel-less 18:9 display trend and it looks like that will continue into 2018. For the new year, Alcatel will bring these elements to its new product lines that consists of the 1, 3, and 5 series. Christian Gatti, who is the Global President Alcatel Business Division and Executive Vice President TCL Communication, states that:

“By modernizing our smartphone designs and being one of the first global manufacturers to offer 18:9 full view displays across the majority of our lineup, we’re able to refocus our efforts at democratizing flagship style features and making these experiences accessible to almost any consumer worldwide.”

This movement will be an important step as companies like Honor and ZTE are also vying to position themselves as provider of affordable quality handsets. Perhaps what makes Alcatel different is that it has the backing of TCL, which licensed the brand, and is known for its production and distribution of TVs. Utilizing TCL's extensive knowledge with LCD panels, Alcatel will be able to provide the best possible displays, while at the same time keeping costs down, and also expediting the process when it comes to manufacturing handsets.

Although Alcatel did shed some light on its 1, 3, and 5 series handsets at CES 2018, it only offered folks a teaser of what is to come, saving the big reveal for Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona. Luckily, we were able to get some hands-on time with a couple of the handsets, the Alcatel 5 and Alcatel 3v. The 5 is the more interesting out of the two, as it has a design that is quite different, with a majority of the bezel residing on the top end of the handset. The bezel houses dual front-facing cameras, along with the usual proximity and ambient light sensors. Overall, this handset feels good in hand and should be an interesting offering coming in at around $300.

The Alcatel 3v is the more conservative looking phone that looks modern thanks to its 18:9 aspect ratio display with rounded corners. This device feels good in the hands and has a dual camera on the rear, along with a relatively glossy back surface. Alcatel has stated that this model will retail for $200.

It's good to see Alcatel providing various solutions at excellent price points, with phones that look much better than your average bargain offerings. With prices starting at $100, the new line of handsets should make for alluring options for budget-minded shoppers. For the time being, this is a small preview of what Alcatel has to offer, with the full reveal happening next month at MWC.

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