Alcatel also wants a slice of the virtual reality pie that is why the newly announced Alcatel Idol 4S bound exclusively for T-Mobile will also ship with a free VR headset.
The Idol 4S sports a design language dominated by glass with flashes of metal in gold coloring. The premium construction should be an exciting news for fans of this brand especially when the flagship-worthy handset gets a reasonable $470 price tag.
Alcatel has opted to use the Windows 10 operating system for the Idol 4S. That is quite unconventional especially with the recent release of several VR-capable handsets running the Android system. The VR content in this ecosystem is also expected to expand fast especially with the early rollout of platforms such as Google Daydream.
Alcatel, however, seems to be gunning for a different target market for the T-Mobile Idol 4S. Based on its promotional video, the device is being marketed to consumers who also want greater productivity in their handsets. From this standpoint, the Windows 10 mobile operating system makes sense, particularly with respect to how it seamlessly works with the entire Microsoft productivity solutions and features such as the Office tools and Microsoft cloud services.
"Enhanced security and enterprise-level productivity solutions are key features within Windows 10, but there have been few options in the U.S. market that combine this operating system with a powerful, experience-rich smartphone," Steve Cistulli, president and general manager for Alcatel North America, said in a press statement. "We're proud to collaborate with T-Mobile and Microsoft to launch the IDOL 4S with Windows 10, delivering a value-packed smartphone experience that is unmatched in the U.S. market."
It is also worth noting that Microsoft's VR ecosystem is not too shabby at all. It is one of the pioneers in the field with its HoloLens initiative. Recently, it also announced a slew of low-cost VR handsets developed in collaboration with several smartphone manufacturers. This latest development is expected to drive the expansion of the range of VR content available to the Windows platform.
Specs-wise, the Idol 4S is powered by the Snapdragon 820 processor. While the chip is not the latest from Qualcomm, it is still pretty powerful for a Windows device. Together with the X12 LTE modem, the handset promises unparalleled multitasking performance.
The 5.5-inch screen sports a 1,920 x 1,080 AMOLED display. Along with the Adreno 530 GPU and the 4 GB of RAM, the Idol 4S should be able to satisfy the video processing requirements when consuming VR content. The device has a 21-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 3,000 mAh battery.
It is important to note that, aside from the free VR gear, the processor and display quality set this handset apart from the Idol 4S variants running Android today. Most of these are outfitted with Snapdragon 652 chipset and a QHD screen.
The Alcatel Idol 4S will start hitting T-Mobile stores on Nov. 10.
