Alcatel 3V Brings A Budget 18:9 Phone To The US

There is no longer any doubt about. 18:9 screens are the norm, from the most expensive flagship down to the cheapest entry-level phone. In India, Samsung just announce the Galaxy J6, so far its most affordable Infinity Display device. Now Alcatel is doing the same for the US market. Announced back at MWC 2018, the Alcatel 3V is the wallet-friendly member of Alcatel's revamped lineup and possibly one of the most affordable 18:9 screen phones in the market today.

Let's be realistic. With descriptions like "budget" and "wallet-friendly", you'll probably come to the expectations of a bare minimum Android phone. To some extent, that's pretty much what the Alcatel 3V though still a tier higher than the Android Go Alcatel 1X.

In practice, that translates to a MediaTek MT8735A 1.45 GHz quad-core processor, 2 GB of RAM, and 16 GB of storage. Considering the rather low hardware, the 3,000 mAh battery will last you a day or more. And while the 6-inch screen does have an 18:9 resolution, it is hardly that bezel-less. And what Alcatel calls 2K is what others all FHD+, in other words 2160x1080.

The Alcatel 3V does have a decent camera pair on its back. Yes, two of them, one 12 megapixel main sensor and one depth-sensing 2 megapixel camera. No wide-angle or telephoto magic here but you do get some nice bokeh.

The clincher here is really the price. At $149.99, the Alcatel 3V is one of the few 18:9 phones "under" $150. It will be available starting next week, only in Spectrum Black, first on Amazon, followed by Best Buy and Walmart in the coming weeks. The phone is unlocked and is compatible with AT&T, T-Mobile, Cricket Wireless, and MetroPCS. Sorry, no Verizon CDMA love from this one.