By Brian Yalung
There are plenty of budget-friendly phones out there, each defined in a different way. There are brands that have made a jump through the years and Alcatel has its share of humble offerings that make sense for the cost-conscious consumer.
The Alcatel 5 is one of the variants a price-sensitive consumer will come across the market. But the better question is on whether this gorgeous mobile phone is worth getting? The best way is to check out the internal specs to see if it meets one's needs.
On the outside, the Alcatel 5 adapts to the current trend of gadgets sporting bezel-less displays. Despite categorized as a budget phone, it does offer a snazzy look. It comes in a thin mold (6.00 x 2.80 x 0.33 inches), lightweight (144 grams) and pretty comfortable to hold.
It houses a 5.7-inch HD IPS display (1440x720 pixel, 18:9 aspect ratio), more than enough considering it is in the budget-friendly niche. Other notable things one can see from the outside include the usual power and volume buttons on the right side and the USB Type-C 1.0 reversible connector.
While its alluring extremities are impressive, the real story lies inside. The Alcatel 5 draws its power from an octa-core (4x1.5 GHz Cortex-A53 & 4x1.0 GHz Cortex-A53) Mediatek MT6750 (28nm) SoC backed by 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of internal storage (expandable up to 128 GB via microSD). There is also a 3 GB RAM version with 32 GB of ROM available.
Other notable specs include a Mali-T860MP2 GPU, a 3.5 mm jack and a non-removable 3,000 mAh Li-Ion battery. It does not fall on biometric security features as well since it comes with a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor and Face key that allows owners to unlock the phone using facial recognition.
Like most phones, budget or not, the built-in cameras are always of concern. The Alcatel 5 comes with a 12 MP main camera with dual-LED dual tone flash and a dual front-facing selfie shooter (13 MP + 5 MP). These are decent specs for a budget-friendly device, enough to appease any user who do not pay particular attention to image-capturing issues (i.e. dynamic range, average capturing time, lighting conditions).
The Alcatel 5 offers phone buyers a decent choice when faced with a set budget. It is a classy mobile phone to carry around although expectations should not be set so high. It should suffice for everyday use, some minor gaming, photo/video captures, and social media itineraries - nothing more, nothing less.