Alcatel OneTouch Idol 3 Review

The OneTouch Idol 3 is one of the earliest smartphones that Alcatel released this year. It boasts a 5.5-inch Full HD display, Snapdragon 615 octa-core processor, LTE connectivity, and Android Lollipop. Find out if its worth getting by reading our full review below.

Author’s note: We already have our first impressions of the device back in September. We will incorporate some of them in this review.

Design and Construction

The Idol 3 comes with some pretty interesting features that we have not seen before in any Android phone. The unit is thin and sleek, measuring only 7.4mm on the side. For a 5.5-inch smartphone, the Idol 3 is also very lightweight — just 141 grams compared to some of is contemporaries like the Zenfone 2 which is at 170 grams.

The flat design and rounded corners make it look simple at first glance but a closer inspection, one will notice that it has a symmetrical front design which means you can turn it upside down and there’s practically no difference (except perhaps in the placement of the 8MP front-facing camera). This allows you to use the phone at any orientation with similar user experience.

The display screen is also slightly raised from the front panel where the remaining area on both ends is where the front speakers are inconspicuously placed. This is almost the same execution as the HTC One where both speakers are positioned up front for maximum sound exposure.

The back panel is flat which slightly tapers toward the edges with the Idol markings right in the center, Alcatel OneTouch logo far below it, and the 13MP camera and LED flash at the upper left. The metallic silver trimmings around the sides add a bit of contrast from the dark brown brushed metal finish of the backside.

The power button is placed along the top left side, a rare placement that is kind of awkward at first until we discovered it’s accessible via the middle finger. Just below that is the micro SIM card and microSD card slot hosted on a single tray. The volume controls are on the right side at the same level as the power button, the 3.5mm audio port is up top and the microUSB charging port is at the bottom end.

Overall, the Idol 3 is well-built that it almost looks and feels premium. The thin and sleek design coupled with a light body makes it enjoyable to hold and look at.

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