Alcatel seems to have found its niche
Their Idol, and some other lines as well, are not the main technological flagships in the industry, not super-luxury-luxury-all-metal-premium, they are relatively simple smartphones for young people.
That year, Idol won over with a very pleasant (and most importantly, almost unique) design, low price and some interesting, albeit not very useful, features. He, for example, was completely symmetrical. Turning the device over, it was impossible to determine where, in fact, the top, and where the bottom.
Idol 4S is an upgraded version of Idol 3. Which is good and bad at the same time.
In terms of design, a lot has changed. Outwardly, the smartphone is the same cute "Idol". Only now there is an aluminum frame and glass in the back cover. Behind Idol 4S - the spitting image of Galaxy S6 of the Samsung, even square peephole camera also extends from the housing. Idol took over the same ailment from the Korean flagship: the glass gets smeared with fingers after a couple of minutes.
In general, the design is still pleasing to the eye, but the smartphone has become much more bulky and heavy.
But Idol gets a big plus for the screen. Local AMOLED with Quad HD resolution evokes a lot of positive emotions: traditionally infinitely deep blacks, exorbitant contrast, very good brightness. If you shift the display gamma to "warm" colors in the settings, the color rendering will also please, although, nevertheless, the colors on the screen are somewhat oversaturated. Personally, I like this approach, we don't look at a professional monitor.
© alcatelonetouch.eu/en
But what is bad is the viewing angles: the display starts to turn green at the slightest turns. This is not very annoying, since you will mostly be looking at the screen at right angles, just the top AMOLED displays are almost devoid of this problem. However, the display here is definitely better than the Nexus 6P - and that says a lot.
Powered by Idol 4S on a Snapdragon 652 processor, Qualcomm. Not a top-end, but quite powerful chip. The smartphone works relatively quickly, although scrolling of web pages is not the most comfortable here. Plus it gets pretty hot and doesn't seem to be particularly energy efficient. Together with the gluttonous Quad HD-display, it actively "eats" the battery: if you use your smartphone too often, it may not survive until evening.
With the shell Alcatel did not become particularly wise. This is almost "native" Android Marhsmallow with some modified animations and a certain number of pre-installed (and, of course, not particularly necessary) applications. Not as big a problem as with Chinese smartphones - most of the programs can be removed.
Boom!
The main feature of the new Idol 4S is the so-called Boom key.
The idea is interesting: depending on the context and the running program, this key performs different commands. When listening to music through the speaker, pressing it adds volume and bass to the sound. Watching a movie - the button turns on the surround sound effect. You shoot a video - it will start broadcasting the video to the network.
© alcatelonetouch.eu/en
Funny, but not very useful. Take, for example, the "musical" functionality of the key. Why couldn't you make your smartphone sound normal right away? You still press the button every time. And one extra action was added.
And everything would be fine, there is this button and there is, sometimes you can indulge, if not for one "but", which at first can really get mad. The Boom key is where almost all modern smartphones have a lock button. On the right, at the end, right under your thumb. Very convenient, I admit it.
But the unlock button itself is placed on the upper left side of the smartphone. Since the smartphone is large, it is impossible to reach it in a normal way (one that does not require you to practice stretching your fingers). The smartphone simply cannot be locked with one hand, no way. So it turns out that the not-so-needed button took the place of the really needed key. Well, how to love her after that? Idol 4S, without much competition, ranks first in the ranking of the most inefficient smartphones of our time.
But in terms of sound quality it boldly enters the top ten: the audio chip produces clear, loud sound, both in headphones and through the speakers, which here, thanks to two power amplifiers, are also indecent (or rather, decently) loud.
Welcome to VR
Virtual reality glasses are included with the smartphone. Not the Oculus Rift, of course, but they will definitely be able to drag you into VR for a couple of hours. In fact, this is the same Google Cardboard, only better. With a cute plastic body, comfortable straps and a comfortable fit on your head. A special application is preinstalled on the smartphone, which will help you navigate the content for virtual reality: there you can watch a couple of videos, play simple games and examine objects in panoramic shots in all details.
Glasses are like glasses - a nice addition to a good smartphone and another reason for young people, who are aimed at Idol 4S, to buy it.
The cost of Idol 4S is 30 thousand rubles, and this is somewhat discouraging. The smartphone is certainly good, but it doesn't have any really noteworthy features. A device with approximately the same functionality can be bought for less money, and for the same - for example, the Galaxy S6, not to mention the LG G4, which, in all honesty, are better in almost everything.
On the other hand, friendly design and a bundled VR headset will be the defining factors for many.
Idol 4S may not be a smartphone idol, but it does not seek to seem bigger than it really is.>
