First Impressions: Alcatel One Touch Idol X+. Dual-SIM Octa-Core Smart Phone at an affordable price

Looking at the current trend of smart phone launches, a new flagship device will be launched every 6 months. Just to keep up with the latest can be a rather expensive affair. For the regular joe, the latest processor and tech might not matter much. All they are looking for is a smart phone that has a decent display and powerful enough to support today’s top apps within a reasonable price bracket.

Alcatel which has been building its presence for affordable smart phones had just released something interesting in Malaysia. Seen as an upgrade to its existing Quad-Core based Idol X, they had just launched its first Octa-Core offering with the Alcatel One Touch Idol X+. The rest of the smart phone remains unchanged compared to the Idol X but they had made a couple of changes where it mattered the most.

The processor is the biggest upgrade with MediaTek’s 2GHz MT6592 True Octa-Core processor that’s mated with 2GB of RAM. As you probably know, the Samsung Galaxy S4 was the first smart phone to come with an Octa-Core processor but it runs with only 4 cores at a time instead of having 8-cores running simultaneously. Another advantage of its new processor is a 18% power efficiency improvement over older Quad-Core solutions while watching Full HD videos. Of course, it isn’t fair to compare MediaTek with manufacturers such as Qualcomm but it does provide decent processing power at an affordable price.

The front screen remains unchanged from its predecessor with a 5″ Full HD display that’s rather sharp. The colours are vibrant and has good viewing angles thanks to its IPS display. The overall build seems pretty solid with a metallic frame surrounding the device and you have flush cover flaps covering a SIM slot on both sides of the phone. The volume rocker is located on the right while the power button is placed at the top. Since this is a compact 5″ device, the power button is still reachable in a single hand. The back non-removable cover looks more sleek than the former Idol X but the glossy back can be a fingerprint magnet.

On-board there’s 16GB of storage and according to Alcatel, a 32GB version would be made available in Malaysia sometime later. There’s no way to expand storage as it lacks a microSD slot. Out of the box, it runs on a slightly older Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean which Alcatel claims is upgradable to KitKat but they didn’t reveal any roll out dates so far. The interface is rather basic but gets the job done. For taking pictures, it retains the same 13.1MP camera for the back and a 2MP shooter at the front. Both cameras are capable of shooting Full HD 1080p videos.

Connectivity wise, it lacks 4G LTE but it supports 3G HSPA+ up to 42Mbps which is still rather decent considering this is a dual-SIM capable device. In the previous Idol X, the 2,000mAh capacity battery is rather small for today’s standards and Alcatel has bumped up the Idol X+ battery capacity to 2,500mAh. With the bigger battery, the Idol X+ is slightly thicker at 7.9mm, which is a negligible 1mm thicker than the Idol X.

Priced at RM1,299, the Alcatel One Touch Idol X+ is rather affordable considering it has a Full HD display, a faster Octa-Core processor and supports 2 SIM cards. If you’re looking to stretch your hard-earned cash on a smart phone under RM1,500, the Idol X+ is definitely worth considering.

Also introduced during the launch is their fitness wearable which is called the One Touch BOOMBand. Basically this is a fitness tracker device which is similar to Sony’s SmartBand that connects via Bluetooth 4.0. It tracks sleeping pattern, activities and also acts as a notification with its built-in LED lights and vibration. The BOOMBand consists of a little removable dongle that fits snugly inside a rubberised wrist band.

The Alcatel One Touch Idol X+ now available nationwide across Alcatel dealers and for a limited time, they are bundling a pair of JBL earphones and the OneTouch BOOMBand fitness tracker.

Alcatel One Touch Idol X+ Hands-on Video

Alcatel One Touch Idol X+ Hands-on Photos

BOOMBand Wearable