Unboxing Alcatel OneTouch Pixi 3- See What You’ll Get

Alcatel OneTouch has made a big intent to play in the Nigerian smartphone market, displaying expertise on phone manufacturing.

Thumb Up: It’s fair to assume it'll be competitive and an affordable route to owning a 4G LTE-compatible handset

Thumb Down: the screen resolution is shows a lackluster display.

Penultimate week, the ALCATEL OneTouch launched Alcatel‎ OneTouch 10-50D; pixi3 (4) and pixi (7) devices.

However, Pixi 3 smartphone deserves attention as an entry-level handsets where you can choose which operating system they run on. You can’t swap between the operating systems, but you – or more likely the phone networks – have the option of Android, Windows Phone or Mozilla’s Firefox OS.

Pricing is not likely to be the issue as it’s fair to assume it'll be competitive and an affordable route to owning a 4G LTE-compatible handset. While you may appreciate the prospect of having more say on the software, you'll be less enthused about the lacklustre hardware.

Summary of Key Features  
Body   Dimensions 141 x 71.5 x 10 mm (5.55 x 2.81 x 0.39 in)

SIM     Optional Dual SIM (Micro-SIM, dual stand-by)     

Browser: HTML; Java- No

Display: Type-TFT. Capacitive touchscreen, 16M. Colors- various. Size 5.0 inches (~68.3% screen-to-body ratio) Resolution 480 x 854 pixels (~196 ppi pixel density) Multitouch-Yes. 

Platform: OS is Android OS, v4.4.2 (KitKat) / Android OS, v5.0 (Lollipop) - 4G model and Chipset Mediatek MT6570 (3G model); Qualcomm MSM8909 (4G model) CPU Dual-core 1.3 GHz Cortex-A7 (3G model) and Quad-core 1.1 GHz (4G model).

Memory Card slot microSD, up to 32 GB; Internal 4 GB, 512 MB and RAM 8 GB, 1 GB RAM (4G model).
Sound Alert types Vibration; MP3, WAV ringtones Loudspeaker Yes 3.5mm jack Yes.
Battery   Li-Ion 1800 mAh battery (3G model) Stand-by Up to 510 h (2G) / Up to 450 h (3G) Talk time Up to 11 h (2G) / Up to 9 h (3G)   Li-Ion 2000 mAh battery (4G model).

Camera
At the bottom end of the scale is the 3.5-inch Pixi 3, which is the only handset in the range to not support 4G LTE connectivity. It’s a chunky phone as well at 11.9mm thick, and the display has a pretty average 320 x 480 resolution. A dual-core CPU powers things alongside 512MB RAM, while taking photos is covered by a 5-megapixel rear camera and VGA front-facing camera.

Screen Resolution
Moving up to the 4-inch Pixi 3, the appearance maintains its consistency. Although, the screen resolution has been bumped up to 800 x 480; it’s still a pretty monotonous WVGA display, but sufficient for basic tasks.

You do have the option of a quad-core 4G LTE setup with an identical camera array to the 3.5-inch Pixi 3.

Up next is the 4.5-inch Pixi 3, available with or without 4G and sporting an 854 x 480 WVGA display. Again, the camera and connectivity outlay isn't too dissimilar from the 4-inch Pixi 3.

Last up is the 5-inch Pixi 3, the slimmest of the bunch at 9.95mm thick, again packing an 854 x 480 WVGA screen and available with a dual- or quad-core CPU.

A slightly more impressive 8-megapixel main camera is in tow, and there's also a dual-SIM version for travellers.

First Impression
It is understandable that Alcatel OneTouch is keen to play big in the market, but it's difficult to get excited about the Pixi 3 smartphone range; not yet. The price could be pocket friendly, even upgrading to the 5-inch model, but if Alcatel can get the pricing right, it could be an affordable 4G phone option for kids or someone who needs a backup for their main phone. No doubt, Alcatel OneTouch with over 20 years presence in the market will get it right.