Back in January, we had a brief encounter with an entry-level Android smartphone from Alcatel – the Alcatel One Touch 993D that packs some low-end specs under a 4” device and retails for RM599 (at launch). Just to recall, the One Touch 993D comes with a 4” display with a resolution of 800 x 480. Powered by a single-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S1 chipset (1GHz) with an enhanced Adreno 200 GPU, the 993D packs 512MB of RAM and 4GB of internal storage expandable via microSD, 5MP rear camera, VGA front shooter, dual-SIM support and a 1,500mAh battery at the back.
We’ve been playing with the One Touch 993D for quite a while now so hit the break for the review.
Design
I must say, the Alcatel One Touch 993D feels pretty solid. Weighing at 150 grams, it’s not exactly the lightest or slimmest phone out there, but it does feel rather tough, unlike those light, slim, plastic-ky ones. With a display size of 4”, it is the perfect device to be used comfortably with one hand and slips into your pocket decently though, I wouldn’t do that if I were you. The speaker at the back is highly magnetic, who knows what damage it could cause to our body with prolonged contact.
The One Touch 993D uses normal SIM card but if you are currently stuck with micro SIM and do not have an adapter, fret not because with a bit of work, you can find the right position to put your SIM cards and it will work just fine. I had mine on for about 2 weeks and didn’t face any problems at all.
Performance
The One Touch 993D is the perfect phone for those who well, have two SIM cards of course and do not wish to carry around two separate phones, as well as for those who only use their smartphone for all the basic stuffs like making a call, snapping some pictures, light surfing on the internet and keeping connected on the social network.
Powered by a 1GHz single-core processor, don’t expect it to run all those fancy high-end applications. The phone can load up applications at a decent speed, however, it tends to lag a little every once in a while – killing all the apps and clearing the task manager is something you must do on a regular basis.
Since this is a dual-SIM phone, making a call takes one extra step – you need to pick from which SIM card to make that call from. Also just to note, SIM 1 supports 3G while SIM 2 does not support 3G connectivity so make sure you have your data SIM in the right compartment.
Camera
Despite a little lag when capturing an image, I must say I’m pretty impressed by the camera on the One Touch 993D. The camera does churn out some pretty fine pictures that are not the best you can find, but definitely not bad for a device this range; even under low light condition, it could still snap a pretty decent picture.
Indoor
Upclose
Flash
After grabbing an image, you can share it instantly onto various social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Picasa and more using Alcatel’s very own camera interface.
Unfortunately though while I’m pretty impressed by the camera, the lag to review an image is insane. It takes approximately two seconds to load up the gallery and you need the application plus all the preview images below to fully load before you can continue.
Conclusion
This is a very decent mid-range phone from Alcatel. Call me spoilt but I get frustrated with the lags I encounter, like swiping between the menu or even trying to open up an app. Being spoilt with higher end devices like the most recent LG Optimus G, the lag is very noticeable.
I guess for the price of RM599, the One Touch 993D is a pretty good deal that can score you an average device that supports dual-SIM.
Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or Telegram for more updates and breaking news.
