Irvine, Calif. — Chinese smartphone maker Alcatel OneTouch has expanded its line of unlocked smartphones for North American consumers with the launch of the Idol 3 4.7, bringing the company’s unlocked selection to six.
The Idol 3 4.7 will be available unlocked via AlcatelOneTouch.us, AlcatelOneTouch.ca for Canadian consumers, and Amazon at $179 starting Aug. 14, making it the company’s lowest priced unlocked phone with LTE.
Other unlocked phones available from Alcatel OneTouch are the $124 OneTouch Idol Mini without LTE, $158 OneTouch POP C9 without LTE, the LTE-equipped Idol 3 at $249, the $268 Idol 2S with LTE, and the $298 Idol X+ with LTE. All operate on the AT&T and T-Mobile networks, the networks of many regional GSM providers, and the following MVNOs and prepaid providers: MetroPCS, Straight Talk, Walmart Family Mobile, Net10, Univision and Cricket.
The new $179 Idol 3 4.7 features Android Lollipop 5.0.2, 4.7-inch 720p display with 312 PPI, 1.5GB RAM, 1.2GHz quad-core processor, 16GB storage, 32GB MicroSD Card slot, 13- and 5-megapixel cameras, and dual front JBL speakers.
The step-up Idol 3 series phone at $249 features a 5.5-inch FullHD IPS Display (1,920 by 1,080) Qualcomm Snapdragon octa-core processor (quad 1.5GHz plus quad 1GHz), 2GB RAM, 128GB MicroSD Card slot, VoLTE, and 13- and 8-megapixel cameras.
Earlier this year, Alcatel OneTouch began supplementing smartphone sales to U.S. carriers and MVNOs with the U.S. launch of direct-to-consumer sales of unlocked phones, unlocked cellular-equipped tablets, smart watches and accessories through its web store.
