Alcatel Pixi 4 Review: A Bold and Stylish Smartphone

Alcatel has done a tremendous job with the Pixi 4, and it’s set a new standard for all budget smartphones to measure up to. The Alcatel Pixi 4 (6) smartphone was launched in January 2016 and released last month (June) across the world.

The device comes with a 6.00-inch touchscreen display with a resolution of 720 pixels by 1280 pixels (~245 ppi pixel density). It has a bigger screen than the Alcatel Pixi 3 4.5" of 480x854 pixels released in May last year.

Side view of Alcatel Pixi 4

Bold and stylish Alcatel Pixi 4

The software experience is very close to stock Android, with only a few touches of customization added by Alcatel. For the most part, this is a very clean version of Android, which is a big factor in allowing for a smooth performance overall, especially on the lower models.


We tried out the phone for three days and here are our observations:

Body     
The  Alcatel Pixi 4 comes with a body dimensions 165 x 83.8 x 8.3 mm (6.50 x 3.30 x 0.33 in). Its quite handy and not heavy. Though it wears a plastic body, it is a rugged phone for anyone not willing to pay so much for a entry-level smartphone in the market.

Display   
IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors. Android™ 5.1 (Lollipop): Fast, customizable, smooth.

Back view of Alcatel Pixi 4

Memory     
The Alcatel Pixi 4 enable users to keep their favorite music, videos and important files at fingertips. Slip in an optional microSD card to add up to 32GB of extra storage.

Specs & Hardware
The brain of the phone that powers everything is the Qualcomm MSM8909 Snapdragon 210 chipset. Processor-wise, its 1.1 GHz Cortex-A7 quad-core engine sounds pretty decent for its entry-level offering. It has 8GB internal storage which is quite fair enough for a entry-level smartphone. The RAM is at a standard 1GB.

The Alcatel Pixi 4 (6) is a single SIM (GSM) smartphone that accepts Dual SIM. Connectivity options include Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot; bluetooth - v4.1, A2DP; and GPS. Sensors on the phone include Accelerometer, Proximity sensor, Ambient light sensor.

A picture of a cup shot via Alcatel Pixi 4

Camera & Video     
Camera quality is one of the key features milennials who are the biggest market for smartphones look out for. Alcatel onetouch Pixi 4 packs a 8-megapixel primary camera on the rear and a 5-megapixel front shooter for selfies. It has autofocus and LED flash.

A picture of a wrist watch shot with Alcatel Pixi 4

Video in 1080p@30fps and has other features like geo-tagging, touch focus, HDR, and panorama.

Sound     
Vibration; MP3/AAC+/WAV player, WAV ringtones, MP4/H.264 player, Loudspeaker, and 3.5mm jack.

Battery - Removable Li-Ion 2580 mAh battery
This is a great improvement to  Alcatel Pixi 3 (4.5) which comes with 1780mAh. The Alcatel Pixi 4 (6) runs Android v5.1 (Lollipop) and is powered by a 2580mAh removable battery.  The battery can last up to 26 hours on 2G and up to 15 h on 3G hours of talk time from this long-lasting lithium-ion battery. On stand-by, it will last up to 650 h 2G and up to 650 h on 3G.

PROS

+ Fantastic phone at an incredible value
+ Fully operable in any orientation
+ FM radio feature
+ Solid battery performance

CONS

– It has no Java
– Fair camera performance, especially in low light
– Occasional slow performance/response especially when multiple apps are been launched 

Alcatel Pixi 4

Overall, the Alcatel Pixi 4 (6) is an amazing affordable entry-level smartphone. If you want a 6-inch value for money device, then Pixi 4 is for you.