Alcatel took the wraps off the Idol 4S at the recent Mobile World Congress held back in February. Now the smartphone maker has announced that preorders for the handset are about to kick off on July 15, and it's going to be bundled with a VR headset.
To make it even more appealing, it will also come with an Incipio-branded protective case, a tempered glass screen protector and JBL headphones. That means the mobile will have practically every accessory to make the most out of it right off the bat.
"Idol 4S represents Alcatel's commitment to offering more than just great hardware; it is our commitment to providing a richer, experience-driven value that offers a more emotional connection to how consumers use and enjoy mobile technology in their lives," Steve Cistulli, Alcatel of North America president and general manager, says.
Looking at the hardware specifications really quick, no one should expect to get a flagship competitor that can go toe-to-toe with the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S7 and anything else among the current brood. However, the Idol 4S does have the right stuff here and there, including Android Pay support, a fingerprint reader and Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow with a promised Android 7.0 Nougat upgrade — anybody's guess is as good as everyone else's regarding its release date, though.
As for the rest of the nitty-gritty details, it sports a 5.5-inch AMOLED display with a 1,440 x 2,560 resolution. Under the hood, it's loaded with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 652, 3 GB worth of RAM and 32 GB of internal storage that's expandable up to 256 GB with a microSD card via the SIM 2 tray. It also features a 16 MP rear-facing camera and an 8 MP front snapper.
With that recipe, it's a pretty A-OK deal, and it just gets even better with its metal and glass design, but it's only going to work with GSM networks such as AT&T and T-Mobile, to name a few.
Now, as mentioned earlier, it'll be up for preorder at the Alcatel website on July 15 at 8:00 a.m. PT, and it'll be slapped with a $349.99 price tag and shipped out in early August. It's also available under a financing option that'll hold consumers back by $37 per month, but how long that'll last wasn't exactly specified, and that should really be cleared up before anyone signs up.
Considering that it'll be packaged with a wearable tech and a lot of other goodies, that's a solid bargain, but it won't last, as the price will go up to $399.99 on Aug. 3, which costs the same as the flagship killer that is the OnePlus 3, not to mention that it'll no longer come with the extra stuff by then.
To boil things down, those who get in on the action will get a midrange smartphone and a couple of accessories to get them set for a decent experience with what modern technology has to offer, but after the presale promo is over, it seems like they'll be better off scouring the market instead.
Are you going to get your hands on the Idol 4S and VR headset? If so, feel free to let us know in the comments section below.
