Alcatel he is a touch idol 3. What functions do not use at all

22.07.2021

Live photos of Alcatel Idol 3 5.5

Specifications

Android 5.0.2
Screen 5.5 inches, IPS, 1080x1920 pixels, 401 ppi
Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 chipset, 4 cores up to 1 GHz, 4 cores up to 1.5 GHz, graphics coprocessor Adreno 405
2 GB of RAM, 16 GB of internal, microSD memory card
microSIM
13MP Sony EXMOR camera, LED flash, 8MP front camera
Li-Ion 2910 mAh battery, standby time - up to 600 hours, talk time - up to 13 hours (2G / 3G), full charging time - 2.5 hours
FM radio
NFC, Bluetooth 4.1 LE, Wi-Fi 802.11 a / b / g / n, 2.4 / 5 GHz, LTE
Dimensions - 152.7 x 75.1 x 7.4 mm, weight - 140.7 grams

Contents of delivery

Telephone
Charger with USB cable
JBL Wired Stereo Headset
A clip for removing the SIM card
Instructions

Positioning

The 5.5-inch model is a pair to the younger device, they have a similar positioning, and therefore in this review I will repeat what I said for the Idol 3 4.7, with one amendment and going ahead a lot - these devices are fundamentally different in perception. If I didn’t like the younger model, it didn’t cause any special emotions, then with the phablet everything is different.

In 2015, Alcatel decided to completely change the positioning of its devices, abandon the countless number of models with the Idol name and make only two devices in this line - one with a 4.7-inch diagonal, the second with a 5.5-inch screen. The analogy with Apple suggests itself, the company also simultaneously brought to the market two devices with different diagonals (in Alcatel they are the same, which strengthens this association). Devices such as Idol Mini, Idol X and so on are a thing of the past. This is a necessity for Alcatel to focus on the best deals, make them understandable to consumers, and not be sprayed with many similar devices.

The Idol 3 model should be the optimal solution in terms of price / quality ratio, good characteristics, there is an additional feature in the form of high-quality JBL speakers, a good screen inside Android 5. The last few years, Alcatel devices have been good in terms of both functionality and design. The manufacturer creates them for a mass consumer who is not greedy for brands, and wants to use the phone as long as possible until it breaks. But at the same time, Alcatel is beginning to equip its devices with loud "technologies", the company wants to match the level of first-tier manufacturers. For example, we see in this device speakers and software from JBL, for the screen - Technicolor Color Enhance settings. These are the first steps in the direction where the company creates additional value through partnerships with other brands. This will only play a role if Alcatel starts to instill this approach from generation to generation.

For IDOL 3, we can also say that this is an atypical device for the company, since for the first time Alcatel singles out key and secondary markets, making the cost of these devices different for each of them. For example, in the USA the price of IDOL 3 5.5 inches is 249 dollars in the company's online store, this price can be perceived as a promo, nevertheless, it exists and affects the perception of the device in other markets. So, in Russia, the younger and more functional version costs 15,000 rubles, that is, about $ 300. What looks too high a cost, especially against the background of competitors, which we will talk about in the conclusions. It should be understood that Alcatel is at a crossroads - on the one hand, the company does not want to lag behind the success of Chinese manufacturers in the world, on the other hand, it is difficult for it to refuse to position itself in the segment of affordable products in terms of price / quality ratio. It turns out a multidirectional movement, some models remain in the old paradigm, something in the new, and sometimes the same model in different markets acts in a different capacity. This creates a lot of confusion, which will negatively affect Alcatel's sales to some extent.

Design, dimensions, controls

Outwardly, this is a usual and familiar Alcatel, the trick is that the screen protrudes a little, and on both sides of it there are speakers from JBL. They are small, average in volume (the declared power is 1.2 W for both), they play quite cleanly. Interestingly, this is one of the few devices in which two microphones are combined with speakers, you can take the phone as you like, even upside down, it doesn't matter. The only element that is not paired is the front camera (8 megapixels, the 4.7 has a 5 megapixel camera).

The case was made non-separable, which may seem like a drawback to someone. On the other hand, there are no complaints about the build quality. In total, several colors will be available, in Russia initially a phone appears in a classic dark gray case.

On the back you can see the main camera - 13 megapixels (EXMOR from Sony of the latest generation). There is also an LED flash. On the top there is a 3.5 headphone jack, on the bottom there is a microUSB connector. On the left side there is a tray that can be removed with a special "paper clip". Depending on which model you have (two SIM cards or one), the tray is different - in the case of one microSIM card, the second place is given to the microSD memory card. Or it could be two microSIM cards. On the right side there is a paired volume rocker.

I like the way this phone is in the hand, for a phablet it is not bad in size, it can be compared well with other devices of this class. The dimensions of the device are 52.7 x 75.1 x 7.4 mm, and the weight is 140.7 grams.

Display

Diagonal 5.5 inches, 1080x1920 pixels, setting Technocolor Enhance as a color profile, this almost does not affect the perception of an IPS-screen. There is no air gap, the screen is made using OSG technology. The backlight control settings are typical and works well.

Compared to the junior model, the screen has brighter backlighting and better color rendition. From all points of view, this is a more advanced matrix, moreover, it is well readable in the sun. The screen is excellent for its class, and you can be glad that it is not only suitable for reading news or working on the web, but also well suited for watching the same movies.

Battery

The device is able to work for one full day at a load above average, at normal or moderate load - 1.5-2 days, which is already quite good. The capacity of the Li-Ion battery is 2910 mAh. The declared operating time in standby mode is up to 300 hours, in talk mode - up to 13 hours.

The device has a built-in utility for limiting power consumption (disables certain functions), it turns on by default when the charge reaches 30%. The downside is that it is not natively integrated into Android, de facto it is an add-on program that is no different from those that you can download from the Play Store. There is no particular benefit from using it.

Full charging time of the battery is about 2.5 hours.

Memory, RAM, hardware platform

The device has 2 GB of RAM, built-in 16 GB (7.2 GB is available to the user for their files, plus a small piece of system memory), plus you can install memory cards up to 128 GB.

Inside there is an 8-core Snapdragon 615 chipset, this is an excellent and performance-balanced solution. The main thing is that despite the speed of work in all tasks, power consumption does not grow. In the same IDOL 3 4.7, the performance in ordinary tasks is much worse, the device is slower. This cannot be said here, everything works well.

Camera

Conventional 13-megapixel camera (Sony Exmor module). In addition to the already standard HDR operating mode, it became possible to adjust retouching in real time for both the main and front cameras, so you can hide skin imperfections. Of the interesting things, I note the presence of a manual mode - a choice of white balance, ISO value (from 100 to 2400 plus auto mode), focus is selected with a slider, shutter speed (from 1/2 to 1/2000). The presence of such settings allows you to pull out images that cannot be handled by the automation.

Of the other modes, I will note the QR-scanner built into the phone, you get a picture of the code and a link, if it was, of course, encoded in the code.

In contrast to the 4.7 model, the camera shoots well here, some pictures can be called excellent at all. For its price group, the camera is simply excellent and clearly outperforms many Chinese devices. You can see examples of photos below.

And this is how the video is recorded, the device has no special achievements or shortcomings in this aspect.

Communication capabilities

The model supports 4G (LTE FDD: 1/3/7/8/20), it also has NFC, Wi-Fi, BT 4.1, USB & BT Modem Tethering - in a word, a standard set of technologies, without any special features.

Software features

Alcatel is trying not to change the standard Android much, but still they bring their own changes, including on Android 5. If in Hero 2 icons with a small square had a mini-window, then the icons with a circle and a larger window open. If you want to open the entire application, press the button again.

This unit has Android 5.0.2. Alcatel has redesigned the standard interface, but not much. Some people may not like this. The curtain remained from Android 5, in the scrolling mode of the screens on the left there is always Alcatel Stream, in which you can see new applications, weather, news. A completely useless thing that HTC has clearly spied on. But here it makes no sense, since you can't even edit news sources, which makes the whole venture pointless.

The phone has an FM radio, the range of functions is typical. Voice recorder, calculator, compass, and built-in memory manager plus AVG antivirus.

Mix has been taken over as a music application, in it you can not only listen to music, but also mix it, apply different effects, all you have to do is turn the device over to a horizontal orientation. Do you need it? For young people, such entertainment may be suitable, but this is a toy that should not be overestimated; it will not work with him to turn into a DJ, although an idea of it can be formed.

Contents of delivery

Telephone
Charger with USB cable
JBL Wired Stereo Headset
A clip for removing the SIM card
Instructions

Specifications

Android 5.0.2
Screen 4.7 inches, IPS, 720x1280 pixels
Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 chipset, 4 cores up to 1.2 GHz, Adreno 306 graphics coprocessor
1.5 GB of RAM, 16 GB of internal, microSD memory card
microSIM
13MP Sony EXMOR camera, LED flash, 5MP front camera
Li-Ion 2000 mAh battery
FM radio
NFC, Bluetooth 4.0 LE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b / g / n, LTE
Dimensions - 134.6 x 65.9 x 7.55 mm, weight - 110 grams

Positioning

The Idol 3 model should be the optimal solution in terms of price / quality ratio: good characteristics, there is an additional feature in the form of high-quality JBL speakers, a good screen inside Android 5. The last few years, Alcatel devices have been good in terms of both functionality and design. The manufacturer creates them for a mass consumer who is not greedy for brands, and wants to use the phone as long as possible until it breaks. But at the same time, Alcatel is beginning to equip its devices with loud "technologies", the company wants to match the level of first-tier manufacturers. For example, we see in this device speakers and software from JBL, for the screen - Technicolor Color Enchance settings. These are the first steps in the direction where the company creates additional value through partnerships with other brands. This will only play a role if Alcatel starts to instill this approach from generation to generation.

For Idol 3, we can also say that this is an atypical device for the company, since for the first time Alcatel singles out key and secondary markets, making the cost of these devices different for each of them. For example, in the US, the price of Idol 3 5.5 inches is $ 249 in the company's online store, this price can be perceived as a promo, nevertheless, it exists and affects the perception of the device in other markets. So, in Russia, the younger and more functional version costs 15,000 rubles, that is, about $ 300. What looks too high a cost, especially against the background of competitors, which we will talk about in the conclusions. It should be understood that Alcatel is at a crossroads - on the one hand, the company wants to keep up with the success of Chinese manufacturers in the world, on the other hand, it is difficult for it to refuse to position itself in the segment of affordable products in terms of price / quality ratio. It turns out a multidirectional movement, some models remain in the old paradigm, something in the new, and sometimes the same model in different markets acts in a different capacity. This creates a lot of confusion, which will negatively affect Alcatel's sales to some extent.

Design, dimensions, controls

The case was made non-separable, which may seem like a drawback to someone. On the other hand, there are no complaints about the build quality. In total, there will be three color solutions available, in Russia initially a phone appears in a classic dark gray casing.

I like the way this phone fits in the hand, it is optimal in size, it can be compared well with other devices of this class. The dimensions of the device are 134.6 x 65.9 x 7.55 mm, the weight is 110 grams.

Compared to Lumia 830

Display

Diagonal - 4.7 inches, HD-screen resolution (312 ppi) and Technocolor Enchance settings as a color profile, this has almost no effect on the perception of an IPS-screen. There is no air gap, the screen is made using OSG technology. The backlight adjustment settings are typical, no problem whatsoever. A good, high-quality, but in no way distinguishing display from others. This is a typical solution for an inexpensive device.

The screen fades a lot in the sun. The effect is that in order to save energy, the brightness of the backlight was abandoned, it is insufficient outdoors, and we can say that indoors for those who are accustomed to other, brighter devices, it will also not be enough.

For a budget device, such a screen is typical, but for a middle-class device it is no longer enough, it just falls short of the generally accepted level. This is not so noticeable yet, but with the release of new models the difference becomes tangible.

Battery

The device is capable of working for one full day under normal load. The capacity of the Li-Ion battery is 2000 mAh, which is not much, but a day of operation is quite a good time under load. The device can provide two days of operation only with a minimum of calls.

Full battery charging time is about 1.5 hours.

Memory, RAM, hardware platform

The device has 1.5 GB of RAM, built-in 16 GB (7.2 GB is available to the user for their files, plus a small piece of system memory), plus you can install memory cards up to 128 GB.

Inside there is a quad-core Snapdragon 410 chipset, the choice is clear based on the cost of the device, not a record holder in performance, but a good solution with LTE support. Most models in this price segment (in Russia) already have 8-core chipsets.

In the interface, the device hardly slows down, although slowdowns are sometimes encountered. It is not very clear what is to blame, the slowness of the chipset or the add-on from Alcatel. But there is clearly a lot of work for optimization, the device is not slow, but it cannot be called super-sensitive. Again I have to say that this is a budget solution.

Camera

Of the other modes, I will note the QR-scanner built into the phone, you get a picture of the code and a link, if it was, of course, encoded in the code.

Now about the cons. At the moment, the camera software, despite the availability of devices on sale, is far from final in terms of quality. There was a flaw in the prototypes with focusing speed, they fought with it and eventually won. The camera is focused almost instantly, and there are no problems. But in conditions when you have a light source in the field of the frame, the camera aims at it. In my case, in the hotel corridor, the lamp gives the feeling that the picture was taken in complete darkness, although it is a bright day and everything is flooded with light. The same is the case when shooting outdoors, if there is a lot of sky or the sun in the frame, then the picture becomes indigestible, it is dark. This is clearly a flaw in the image processing algorithm, which they promise to improve in the next firmware for the camera, which will become available in early summer.

You can see examples of photos below. The quality is typical for this kind of products, if you forget about the above.

And this is how the video is recorded, the device has no special achievements or shortcomings in this aspect.

Communication capabilities

The model supports 4G (LTE FDD: 1/3/7/8/20), it also has NFC, Wi-Fi, BT 4.0, USB & BT Modem Tethering - in a word, a standard set of technologies, without any special features.

Software features

Alcatel is trying not to change the standard Android much, but still they bring their own changes, including on Android 5. If in Hero 2 icons with a small square appeared a mini-cat, then the icons have a circle and a larger window. If you want to open the entire application, press the button again.

The phone has an FM radio, the range of functions is typical. Voice recorder, calculator, compass, and built-in memory manager plus AVG antivirus.

Mix has been taken over as a music application, in it you can not only listen to music, but also mix it, apply different effects, all you have to do is turn the device over to a horizontal orientation. Do you need it? For young people, such entertainment may be suitable, but this is a toy that should not be overestimated, it will not work to turn into a DJ with it, although an idea of it can be formed.

Among the unlocking methods, there is Eye-D, which reads a drawing of the retina of your eyes. The method is slow, not very reliable, and we added it to expand the number of those same chips.

In the settings, you can also enable screen unlocking by tapping, gestures to mute the sound (you need to turn the phone over).

There is no point in talking about pre-installed games or other applications, they are of no particular value.

Alcatel, once one of the leaders in the mobile device market, has significantly lost ground in the era of smartphones. Today, this brand is significantly inferior even to some newly-minted Chinese companies that produce copies of devices produced by eminent developers.

Things are more complicated with Alcatel. The company initially worked on its models using the tactic of increasing the number of devices. We all remember the versions of One Touch introduced in 2014. Then the company considered it right to prepare a huge number of different modifications, which, however, did not have a resounding success.

In the case of the Alcatel Idol 3, the developer slightly changed his strategy. As we can see, only 2 models entered the market under this name. What are these smartphones, and what the user should expect from them, read on.

Positioning devices

In fact, looking at the technical characteristics of the devices, you can think about Apple for the reason that the size of the displays in both cases is the same. Alcatel also released sizes of 4.7 and 5.5 inches. Apparently, the strategy of "Yabloko" in this regard was copied for a reason - perhaps the company identified this as the best ratio of displays and wished to create competition in these segments.

As for the phones themselves, they are presented in the budget class - their cost does not reach $ 300. Considering the characteristics of smartphones, we can conclude that the developers were trying to find the ideal value for money.

The pricing policy followed by Alcatel is interesting. Idol 3, which is the subject of today's review, is offered at different prices, depending on the country of sale. In the USA, for example, it will cost $ 250, while for Russia the "start" is at around $ 320. Apparently, in this way the developer wants to promote the device in a more attractive field more successfully due to a competitive price.

Be that as it may, but from attempts to unravel the thoughts of people promoting the product, let's move on to its direct characteristics, in order to independently figure out what it is.

Appearance

Regarding the design of the device, I would like to note that it cannot boast of anything special. This is a simple “brick” with highly blurred shapes and softened edges. We got a black model for review, although at the time of the device's debut, the developer promised to provide an opportunity to choose color combinations for Alcatel Idol 3 buyers.

In the specified device, the entire front side is covered with dark glass, which protrudes somewhat above the surface. Due to the same color, it is difficult to tell where the screen ends and the frame surrounding it begins. By the way, this method is often used by many phone developers.

The pseudo-metal body is made in such a way that the user loses the sense of symmetry. Loudspeakers and microphones on the front side of the device are paired, which allows you to talk on the phone even “upside down”. There are no physical keys on the front of the device - all navigation is done with system buttons.

The back cover is adorned with a camera located in the upper left of the smartphone, under which there is a flash. In the center there is the Idol inscription, and you can also see the manufacturer's logo.

On the side faces there are also keys for controlling the sound and turning off the smartphone.

Generally speaking, due to the materials of the case with a matte texture, as well as due to the smoothed angular edges, the phone is quite comfortable in the hand.

Screen

Alcatel Idol 3, as already announced, comes in two sizes - 5.5 and 4.7 inches. Their resolutions are different and are 1920 x 1080 and 1280 x 720 pixels, respectively. The density of the picture due to such a matrix of the screen is quite high. From a practical point of view, for this class of devices the screen is quite high-quality and is capable of perfectly reproducing multimedia.

I would also like to positively note the work of color transfer on a smartphone. If we compare the two Idol 3 models with each other, then the version with a large screen is able to convey the saturation of the image better - the picture itself turns out brighter, and it is much more pleasant to work with it in the sun.

Nothing is said about display protection. We only know that there is no air gap under the glass, which makes the phone thinner. At the same time, we are not talking about some more stable coating.

Autonomy

The batteries installed on different versions of the Alcatel One Touch Idol 3 also differ in their capacity. Thus, the battery capacity of a 4.7-inch gadget is 2000 mAh, while a 5.5-inch device is equipped with a 2900 mAh battery, which is quite logical. A large screen uses up the charge faster, so to ensure a longer smartphone operation, you need to take care of the increased capacity of nutrients. This is exactly what the developers did.

Also, the manufacturer went to some additional measures that can positively affect the operating time of the smartphone to one degree or another. For example, these are: selection of a charger capable of renewing the battery in 2.5 hours (on average); creation of a special economy mode, with the help of which (after the charge drops to 30%) Alcatel Idol 3 5.5 begins to independently deactivate unclaimed services running in the background.

Performance

Depending on the screen size of the device, the manufacturer has installed two fairly strong processors: (4.7-inch) and Snapdragon 610 (5.5-inch). The first is based on 4 cores, while the second is an 8-core solution. The clock frequency of the elements of the first reaches 1.2 GHz, the second - 1.7 GHz.

As practice shows, a device with a smaller screen works slower, and sometimes it can "slow down" when there is an excessive load on the hardware. In the case of a 5.5-inch gadget, such problems do not arise. The phone responds quite quickly to user commands, and the processor works with a large margin of power.

The RAM version 4.7 is 1.5 GB, and the version with the 5.5-inch screen is 2 GB. This volume is quite enough to ensure the required speed of the device.

Camera

Of course, each of the versions of Alcatel Idol 3 (LTE) described above has two cameras. There are both main and frontal. In the case of the "baby", their resolution is 13 and 5 megapixels, respectively, while the larger device has an additional 8-megapixel matrix. The quality of the pictures taken with the main camera is identical on the devices, but the selfies on the 5.5-inch smartphone are better.

The software settings that are in the Alcatel One Touch Idol 3 5.5 version, and at the same time are absent on the 4.7 modification, allow you to create better photos using the same equipment. There are also various optional features such as color stabilization, auto focus, and white balance.

Even the professionals who made up the initiate were surprised at the high quality of the images obtained with this phone. One should not expect such from models of top manufacturers at the same price, as, indeed, from competing Chinese smartphones.

Connection

Both devices, which represent the Alcatel Idol 3 smartphone, are simply overflowing with communication possibilities. If you do not take into account the typical set consisting of a GSM receiver and Bluetooth, then you can also remember the NFC chip, which is not available on all models at all.

As the reviews show, there are no problems with the work of the communication component on the smartphone. This can serve as a confirmation of the high build quality and the proper level of optimization of the device by the manufacturer.

Software basis

It is hardly worth reminding that both Alcatel Idol 3s (which we are reviewing) operate on the basis of the Android operating system. Since at the time of the presentation the Lollipop modification (5.0) was the current version, it is exactly this version that is presented on this device.

As for the interface working on the device, it has undergone not so significant changes. The developers have slightly changed the design of the system, added a number of their own innovations. For example, these include the OneTouch Steam module, which displays news, weather, some events that may be of interest to the user.

In fact, as the reviews show, this system is somewhat useless, since the owner of the device is not given the opportunity to make changes to the set of media from which updates should come. Therefore, working with this module is not so easy.

In general, we have before us the classic Android 5.0, which, if you launch the device now, will be updated to a more up-to-date modification - 6.0.

Retina recognition

The manufacturer, having decided to surprise the buyer of his device with something, decided to implement an innovative, unusual system for recognizing the user using the retina. To do this, as in the case of a fingerprint on Apple and Samsung, you need to give your smartphone the opportunity to take a “sample” of the picture, that is, scan your face, after which it will receive information that you are the owner. The system was named Eye-D and, according to those who have already had a chance to work with it in practice, it does not work as efficiently as we would like. There are several problems with her. Firstly, the phone takes too long to recognize your appearance, the scanning process itself takes quite a long time (it's easier to enter a password or draw a pattern). Second, the system is still not perfect and often crashes.

However, be that as it may, the Alcatel brand is already trying to be innovative in this area, which in itself deserves praise.

If Alcatel cannot be called the leader of the mobile market, then there is no reason to argue about the recognition of this brand. The company has long been involved in telecommunications and computer equipment, including mobile devices.

advertising

We have been in our laboratory more than once with Alcatel products, so we will not delve into the history of the brand. But it is imperative to talk about fresh news, since they are often very interesting.

At the 2015 Barcelona show, Alcatel unveiled two new smartphones with the same name but different specifications. The new Alcatel OneTouch Idol 3 hides two modifications with different screen sizes and hardware. The devices also differ in price. We tested a more affordable, simple and compact version with a screen diagonal of 4.7 inches.

Idol series smartphones combine functionality, interesting design and many useful solutions that are unique for the company. So let's not delay and get down to exploring the Alcatel OneTouch Idol 3.

advertising

On sale, the 4.7-inch smartphone will be available in two versions: with 8 GB of internal memory for data storage in the version with one SIM card slot and 16 GB of internal memory in the version with two SIM card slots. OneTouch Idol 3 is officially delivered to the Russian market and is accompanied by local support. There are dark gray, silver and golden body colors. We're testing a dark gray version.

The price of OneTouch Idol 3 is currently around 14 thousand rubles. The device is still presented only in a few stores, but soon the new product should be widespread.

A couple of years ago, the Alcatel company decided to radically reconsider the positioning of its gadgets and abandoned a whole army of devices with the Idol prefix. As a result, only two devices from this line remained on the market, differing from each other in screen diagonal - Alcatel Idol 3 6045y (5.5 ") and 6039у (4.7"). The latter will be discussed in our article.

The company adopted the moves of Apple, which also brought out at the same time two almost identical devices with different screen sizes. Gone are the little-demanded Alcatel Idol 3 mini, Idol X, etc. For the brand, this is a vital step, because it is much more important to focus on better offers and make them even more accessible to the consumer. It makes no practical sense to spray on an assortment of gadgets that are similar in many respects, like the same Alcatel Idol 3 mini and the 6039u series, so many experts consider the company's course taken to be correct. Moreover, a clear increase in user interest in new models can be seen in sales statistics over the past couple of years.

Positioning

Models of the Alcatel One Touch 6045y Idol 3 and 6039y series have become the optimal solution in terms of price and quality: a sensible Android platform version 5.x., a normal screen, good speakers and acceptable performance. In general, over the past few years, Alcatel gadgets have distinguished themselves not only by their good functionality, but also by their pleasant design. The main task of the company is the production of devices for the mass consumer who cannot or does not want to buy gadgets of venerable brands - he only needs calls, a sensor, at least some kind of performance and durability of the device.

Despite the modest demands of the segment, the Alcatel company began to complete its devices with “loud” technologies in order to feel more or less comfortable among the first-tier manufacturers. This includes intelligent software and excellent speakers from JBL, and the screen has TCE class settings (Technicolor Color Enchance). So in the new models of the company (Alcatel Idol 3 6045y and 6039y), the acquired values are clearly visible as a result of cooperation with other brands. If Alcatel will also competently approach subsequent models, then it is quite possible that in the near future we will see premium gadgets from the region “for 30 thousand rubles with all the bells and whistles”.

So, the subject of today's review is the Alcatel Idol 3 smartphone. Reviews, characteristics, comparison with competitors, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of the model can be found below. Consider the most popular representative of the series - the 6039u model with a 4.7-inch display.

Contents of delivery

The device comes in a simple cardboard box familiar to Alcatel devices. It shows the most "delicious" characteristics of the gadget, awards at some exhibitions and other information that attracts the user.

Inside the box, you will see:

the smartphone itself Alcatel Idol 3;
mains charger;
USB cable for charging and synchronizing with a PC;
JBL branded stereo headset;
a small tool for extracting a SIM card;
manual in Russian.

The package bundle can be called average, because all kinds of covers, films and other entourage were not put in the box. But it may be for the better, since each additional accessory is a significant increase in the price tag, and most users prefer to buy some "chips" separately, as they say, according to their taste and color.

Appearance

The appearance of the device can be called usual and customary for the Alcatel brand. The only design move that distinguishes the model from other series is a slightly protruding screen, where branded speaker grilles from JBL are conveniently located on both sides. It is also worth mentioning that the Alcatel One Touch Idol 3 is one of the few gadgets where speakers are combined with two microphones. This means that you can take the device as you like: horizontally, vertically, or even upside down, this is absolutely unimportant, because you will not block the sound supply. In general, the only element that is not visually paired is the front camera (5 MP).

The case of Alcatel Idol 3 6039y is non-separable, so many users in their reviews mark this point as a drawback. But on the other hand, the manufacturer got rid of many of the shortcomings of the previous series, such as backlash, squeaks and other crunches while working with the device.

There are three color solutions on the market for the Alcatel One Touch Idol 3 6039y line: dark gray, black and mustard. The gamut is quite pretty and does not give the impression of being cheap or neglected.

Interfaces

The rear panel of the smartphone houses a 13 Mp rear camera of the Exmor class from Sony, which is good news. There is also an LED flash, which, unlike the previous generations of Idol, works as it should.

At the top end we will see a mini-jack for headphones, and at the bottom there is a micro-USB interface. On the left side of the device is a tray that opens with a special tool that comes with the kit. If you have a version with one SIM card, then the second slot will be for an SD-drive, otherwise it is a double-SIM. On the right side there is a double rocker for volume control.

With its practically optimal dimensions - 135x66x7.5 mm - the device fits perfectly in the hand and meets basic ergonomic standards. If we compare the Alcatel One Touch Idol 3 with Nokia's Lumia from the 630 series, the latter is slightly wider and longer, which means that users with a small palm may have problems with one-handed operation. Other devices in this segment, like Samsung or Ixperia, have similar dimensions, only slightly differ in body thickness, so there should be no problems with migration.

Display

Diagonal Alcatel Idol 3 - 4`7 inches with a resolution of 720 by 1280 pixels. The IPS-matrix with 312 pixels per inch is perceived very well. Add here a sensible Technocolor Enchance profile, OSG technology, no air gap and we get a pretty decent display.

The owners in their reviews quite warmly perceived the capabilities of the matrix: wide settings for adjusting the backlight, a high-quality picture, acceptable viewing angles and a good color balance. In general, a good display, but not very different from the crowd of competitors, is a typical solution for an inexpensive device.

If we compare it with the same 630 "Lumiya", then here our gadget loses a little. Saving energy is, of course, good, but the insufficient brightness of the backlight does not allow you to work normally in outdoor conditions, especially on a clear sunny day. Indoors the device more or less copes with fluorescent lamps and ordinary incandescent lamps, but those who are accustomed to brighter gadgets will miss the backlighting of Alcatel Idol 3 (5`5 ", 4`7").

For a budget model, the characteristics of the matrix are typical, but for mid-range devices, alas, it is too modest. This is especially noticeable if you are switching from any "Xperia" or NTS.

Performance

Alcatel Idol 3 6039y is equipped with 1.5 gigabytes of RAM and 16 GB of internal memory, and the user has only 7 GB available for his needs. You can expand the volume using external SD-drives up to 127 GB.

Responsible for performance is a very modest processor from "Snapdragon" from the 410 series on four cores, working in tandem with the graphics accelerator "Adreno 306". The cost of the device did not allow to deliver something faster, but at least thanks for the support of LTE protocols. If we compare similar models of the segment, then the picture for Alcatel Idol 3 is not the most favorable, because most competing devices have eight-core processors on board.

Nevertheless, no critical friezes or "brakes" were noticed while working with the interface. The device cannot be called slow, but you cannot call it super-responsive either. Do not forget that we have in our hands the company's budget solution, and not the middle class of gadgets. As for games, it is better not to touch modern gaming applications, and the 2010-2015 generation starts and works without problems.

Cameras

As mentioned above, the main camera of the Alcatel Idol 3 has a 13-megapixel camera built on Sony's Exmor technology. Therefore, the user has the opportunity in real time to apply any special effects such as retouching, chrome and hide imperfections of the skin, as well as shoot video in HDR mode.

Of the useful functionality, we can note the presence of manual adjustment of exposure, white balance and ISO (100/2400). This moment allows you to calibrate the images that the Alcatel Idol 3 camera did not handle. In addition, many users in their reviews perfectly perceived the presence of a QR scanner in their phone.

Among the minuses, one can note a very weak and some kind of buggy camera software like flaws with focusing (aiming goes to the light source, and not to the desired object). That is, if you are shooting during the daytime and the matrix "captures" any light source, then the entire frame will be darkened, with one bright spot. This is clearly a software problem, so let's hope that it will be solved in future firmwares. By the way, amateur stocks are already on specialized forums, so if you can't stand it, you can download from there, of course, at your own peril and risk.

As for the video, there are no critical remarks: nothing outstanding or supernatural - everything is standard for its class.

Platform

The Alcatel Idol 3 smartphone runs on the classic Android 5.X.X Lollipop platform. The company does not seek to somehow change the usual shell, but it nevertheless introduced some changes. If in previous generations mini-windows appeared on the icons, here this "feature" has become more elaborated in terms of scale: large windows and a pop-up submenu. If you want to open such information about the application - just click on the icon again.

The standard interface has been redesigned, but not as much as other brands like Sony do with their Xperia. The shutter is familiar, the scrolling mode is accompanied by news from Alcatel Stream (weather, news, application feed, etc.). Some users in their reviews consider such a stream to be absolutely useless, and even more so impudently licked off from the NTS gadgets. For the most part, such functionality is simply not needed, because you cannot edit the feed source, but to see, for example, news from space for an animal lover - why is it?

Among the basic applications, there is a classic FM receiver, calculator, compass, voice recorder and other entourage that comes with most smartphones. The "Mix" application acts as a music player, which allows you not only to listen to the selected compositions, but also to mix them, that is, to apply all kinds of effects. Young users may be interested in such functionality, but it's still a toy - you won't make a DJ, because the set of tools is too small, but at least some idea of this direction can be formed.

It is also worth noting the presence of an interesting function for unlocking the screen such as Eye-D. The system scans your retina and then gives you access to your desktop. The method is not the most reliable, and far from fast, but it will do quite well as an interesting addition. In addition, you can replace this method with more familiar ones, such as tapping the screen or classic gestures at dots.

Battery life

The Alcatel Idol 3 is equipped with a 2000 mAh Li-ion battery. The set of chipsets leaves much to be desired, so the load on the battery is small. In standard modes and in normal load (calls, SMS, Internet), the phone lives quietly all day. If you use the gadget only as a dialer, then you are guaranteed two days of work. If you love playing games and watching videos in high definition, be prepared for the device to start asking for a power outlet in four to five hours.

The built-in functionality for working with the battery will help save a certain amount of charge, if you do not forget to turn it on. The disadvantage of this application is that it is integrated into the basic Android platform, and this is essentially a regular add-on utility that will not give you a serious gain in savings. It is better to download a more serious program from the same Play Market.

The smartphone is charged, in comparison with competing counterparts, the usual time for many, in about an hour and a half. If you additionally buy a sensible charger, then you can reduce the make-up time up to 30-40 minutes, although experts do not advise doing this (the battery efficiency decreases).

Competitors

Our respondent costs about 8,000 rubles. To assess the feasibility of a purchase, let's look at the closest competitors of Idol.

Let's start with the representative of the Celestial Empire - the Huawei Honor 4C series. The gadget has a 5-inch screen, an eight-core Kirin processor, 2GB of RAM / RAM and an 8GB hard drive. Cameras similar to the "Idol" - 13 and 5 megapixels, but the battery capacity is slightly larger - 2550 mAh. Among the critical disadvantages of the model are the obviously outdated Android platform of the fourth version and the lack of support for LTE protocols. In principle, "Idol" looks much more advantageous here, especially for fans of high-speed Internet and a responsive interface.

Next up is ZTE's Blade S6. The set of characteristics is slightly better: more RAM - 2 GB, better matrix and higher battery capacity - 2400 mAh. But the gadget is much more expensive, which is not the last factor for the domestic consumer to buy, so Idol wins here again.

Go ahead, Lenovo S60 series. The characteristics are almost similar to our device, with the only difference that there is a little more RAM - 2 GB. But the S60 clearly wins in terms of design, ergonomics and overall aesthetics. The smartphone literally copies the sixth version of the iPhone. Good or bad, let the lawyers of the companies figure it out, but the model turned out to be really beautiful, comfortable and pleasant in many respects, especially since the prices for Idol and S60 are on the same level.

Summarizing

In general, we have quite a workhorse with support for LTE-protocols, branded speakers from a venerable brand, average performance and normal battery life. Looking at the price (8,000 rubles), we can say that the model is a success.

The only thing that Idol loses to its competitors is its appearance (to the handsome Lenovo S60) and performance (four cores for modern applications and 1.5 GB of RAM are clearly not enough). For the rest, we see an ordinary and unremarkable device, of which there are hundreds on the mobile market.