Quick Alcatel Flash 2 Review - A Promising Budget Phone!

Alcatel Flash 2 is one of the most highly anticipated phones today due to its great specs to price ratio. It also aims to erase the horror we got from the custom UI of the Alcatel Flash Plus by incorporating a near stock Android experience here. Let's see if they were really able to nail it this time in this quick review.

Alcatel Flash 2 quick review

Alcatel Flash 2 Specs

Display: 5 Inch HD IPS 1280 x 720 resolution at 294 ppi

CPU: 1.3 GHz 64 Bit MT6753 octa core processor

GPU: Mali T720

RAM: 2 GB

ROM: 16 GB expandable via micro SD card slot up to 64 GB

Back Camera: 13 MP f/2.0 Samsung S5K3M2 sensor w/ dual tone flash

Selfie Camera: 5 MP f/2.2 w/ LED flash

Battery: 3000 mAh

OS: Android 5.1 Lollipop (Upradable to Android 6.0 Marshmallow)

Connectivity: WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, 3G, HSPA+, LTE Cat 4, Bluetooth 4.0, FM Radio GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, Dual SIM

Others: Dedicated camera button

Price: 6,190 Pesos

Unboxing / Accessories

The box

For a phone priced this low, the Alcatel Flash 2 did something terrific. The packaging was jam-packed! It comes with a flip cover case, 1 A wall charger adapter, earphones, screen protector, cables and warranty papers. The only downside here was the flip-cover isn't working the way it should work. This is one of the rare times I've seen this type of package from a budget phone.

Accessories included

Build / Design

Compared to the build quality of the Alcatel Flash Plus, Alcatel improved on the overall feel and build of this phone. It's now more premium looking, made out of better materials and looks better overall. What I like here is the texture of its back cover where it is using some sort sandblasted type of material that gives you a better grip of the device.

Back of the Flash 2

I also quite liked the way they design this device that reminds me of the old Xperia phones. They added a rare dedicated camera button and all the buttons are placed on the same side which will make it easy to locate. So far the only thing I don't like with this phone is its chunkiness as it's thicker than most of the modern phones in the world today.

The buttons of the phone from power button. volume rocker and dedicated camera button

On a lighter note, the thickness is due to the 3,000 mAh battery included here which is HUGE for a 5 inch phone with just HD resolution and an SoC that isn't power hungry. That might make this phone last for a whole day of heavy usage.

Microphone and micro USB port

Display

The Flash 2 features a regular 5 Inch HD screen with 1280 x 720 resolution. The colors is much improved compared to Alcatel Flash Plus which isn't yellowish anymore. Overall, I'm fine with everything I'm seeing with this phone from viewing angles, color reproduction and not that thick bezels. Thank God that Alcatel made its display a lot better.

Camera

This device is touted to be a killer camera for the price due to the use of a 13 MP f/2.0 Samsung S5K3M2 sensor w/ dual tone flash and a selfie camera that features a 5 MP f/2.2 sensor with LED flash. However, due to the limited time I wasn't really fully able to test the features they're touting with the camera of this device like the: super fine mode, track mode, multi angle, live photo, pip mode and face beauty.

For now here are the sample shots that I was able to take...

Dim light food shot

Auto mode vs HDR ( a bit overexposed)

Sample outdoor selfie

Sample selfie shot with LED flash

So far I'm happy with the quality of the photos I was able to take. You just need to focus it properly as it's shutter speed is not the fastest out there. The rear camera was able to satisfy me so far as advertised, but the front camera also lacks in quality compared to other phones I've tried. Fortunately, it has a front facing flash which can help you take decent selfies in the dark.

Performance

Based on my initial impressions, the Alcatel Flash 2 runs as smooth as I expected from a near stock Android 5.1 device. It's fast, snappy and doesn't really lag unless you force it to lag. Opening and closing of apps is pretty easy and the navigation is pretty easy due to its familiar UI. I also like that it has smart gestures and a near full double tap to wake function. I said near complete as you can double tap to wake and double tap to sleep, but you cannot double tap to sleep when you're on the lock screen.

Antutu score of Alcatel Flash 2

In general, I'd like to laud Alcatel for taking down notes from the weaknesses of the Flash Plus especially from the mistake of using the LEWA OS.

Pro's - Fast and responsive performance, good build quality, promising rear camera, dedicated camera button, front camera flash

Con's - Chunky design, hard to locate backlight keys

As of the moment

It's impressive so far. I love most of the things I've seen here from texture of the back cover, glass display and midrange worthy experience at an entry level price. That made the Alcatel Flash 2 a clear improvement over the buggy Alcatel Flash Plus in overall smoothness, build and performance. The camera is also pretty capable under in some conditions even if it has some inconsistencies. For the price of 6,190 Pesos, I cannot really complain.

Hope to be able to test this device further to see how it fairs in gaming, multimedia, audio, connectivity and further examine the capabilities of its camera.

Where to buy this: Click Here!