French-by-origin technology brand Alcatel made a return to the lucrative mobile phone market on Tuesday by announcing the launch of its new series of smartphones.
Though one of the oldies from the origin days of mobile phones in the nineties, this return after several years of absence – and a market that has changed beyond recognition, will make Alcatel as good as a fledgling newcomer in one of the world’s biggest, most cluttered and fiercely competitive phone markets.
The parent French technology company traces its origin back to the early twentieth century and has been retailing mobile phones since the late nineties, though it never did make a mark in a sunrise sector dominated initially by Nokia and later by the likes of Apple and Samsung.
The company went through a churn in ownership – first being taken over by Chinese company TCL, then being bought over by Nokia, which then licensed the trademark back to TCL for use in select markets like India.
In India, the company is making a return to the retail phone market after years. “Alcatel exited India during a time of market turbulence and shifting global supply chains,” it said in a statement. “Today, the brand returns with a sharper focus, stronger local alignment and a commitment to meaningful innovation tailored to Indian needs, backed by years of global experience and research,” it added.
Alcatel seems to have opted for taking an approach different from most of the rest of the market. The USP of the new phone is not some fangled new AI camera (like every other brand out there is claiming), but a new display technology that it claims is easy on the eye. It claims that the new V3 series of smartphones it launched feature India’s first patented NXTPAPER display technology, which it claims offers a visual experience that combines vibrant colour reproduction with paper-like readability and better eye comfort across all types of lighting. The display offers viewing modes like ink paper mode and colour paper mode, saying such formats will help in reading books and graphic novels. Is Gen Z listening?
There are 5 variants in the V3 line-up, ranging from the V3 Ultra 5G at 21,999 rupees to the V3 Classic 5G at 12,999 rupees, with additional discounts on Flipkart where the models go on sale from coming Monday (June 2).