Hasta La Gadget!

E Ink — the tech behind a large number of e-readers on the market today — is starting to make its way onto smartphones. We’ve seen it on reference phones as well as devices like the YotaPhone and even the iPhone and Galaxy Note II (in the form of a case), and now a largely unknown company is rather unexpectedly seeking to harness E Ink tech for its latest flagship. That manufacturer, interestingly enough, is Alcatel OneTouch. Taking advantage of the magnetic docking ports on the back of the brand new 6-inch Hero, the company has designed a prototype flip cover with an E Ink screen on top. This offers the obvious functionality of reading e-books in traditional fashion without having the display drain massive amounts of power, but as you can see in the image above, its engineers are exploring other use cases such as a full lock screen with a dynamically changing weather widget, and we figure the sky’s the limit. While press releases seemed to indicate that the accessory will see the light of day, company reps told us that it is still just a prototype and they’re not certain if it will make it out to the market. Whatever may happen down the road, it’s great to see E Ink coming alive on smartphones in different ways. Check out our gallery and a brief video below.

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Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile

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Pico projectors are swell, but they’re not wildly popular. Very few smartphone manufacturers can find a way to embed them into devices without making them incredibly thick and expensive, and without sucking the battery dry in no time at all — the Samsung Galaxy Beam comes to mind regarding all of the above concerns — and carrying around a separate accessory is just plain impractical and expensive. (Plus, most devices can wirelessly mirror content onto TVs and monitors anyway, making the actual market even more limited.) But what if you could find a clever way of incorporating it into another useful accessory while keeping it small, simple and inexpensive? Well, we’re not sure about the latter qualification, but Alcatel OneTouch is at least keeping an eye on this niche with a new docking station that doubles as an aforementioned pico projector. It’s a prototype accessory that’s compatible with the OneTouch Hero, thanks to its set of magnetic docking contacts on the back — all you have to do is clip it on and the phone recognizes that it’s been attached. The projector is 12Lm, which is a little dimmer than we’d prefer (we were told that the final product may actually be brighter than this, but they can’t confirm for now), and the company claims it can show a screen larger than 70 inches.

Company reps tell us that this nameless accessory isn’t officially coming onto the market just yet, and they’re trying to determine how best to proceed (the Hero’s press release suggests that this for sure will be available later, however, so we’ll take it with a grain of salt at the moment). It’s a clever idea that could come in handy for a number of business travelers who need to carry on impromptu presentations, but price (of both the projector and the phone itself) will be a key factor in its success. Check out a few images below that show off the prototype in all its miniature glory.

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Filed under: Cellphones, Peripherals, Mobile

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In what must be IFA 2013′s best candidate for “Jack of All Trades” smartphone device is the ALCATEL ONE TOUCH HERO (all in caps, to be proper), with a built-in stylus, E Ink cover, and Pico Projector accessory. This device is like a cherry-picked do-it-all smartphone made to take on every odd ability smartphones have […]

Alcatel’s pen-toting One Touch Scribe HD now has a larger counterpart: meet the One Touch Hero. The new Android 4.2 smartphone upgrades to a 6-inch 1080p LCD, and gets a raft of optional cover accessories that augment the giant display. An E Ink cover lets owners read books without using the power-hungry main screen; there’s also a wireless charging cover and a MagicFlip cover with LED notifications. Even without those extras, the Hero is overall more powerful than its Scribe HD ancestor. It carries a faster 1.5GHz quad-core processor with 2GB of RAM, a sharper 13-megapixel rear camera, an improved 2-megapixel front shooter and either 8GB or 16GB of expandable storage. Should you be intrigued, the One Touch Hero will be available in October for a “high-end” price. Alcatel will also sell a Bluetooth phone accessory (much like the HTC Mini+), a TV Link video adapter and a pico projector that doubles as a stand. %Gallery-slideshow77141%

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Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

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Source: Alcatel

Unlike babies that wail when they’re born, the three new members of Alcatel’s One Touch family have silently slipped into the company’s website. The two handsets, the Idol S and the Idol Mini, follow the original trio revealed at CES this year, sharing similar elements despite the difference in size. Both run Android 4.2, can read microSD cards up to 32GB in capacity and support quad-band GSM, as well as some UMTS (3G) bands, depending on the model.

Idol S, the larger of the two weighs 110 grams, has a 4.7-inch 1,280 x 720-pixel screen and DC-HSPA data connectivity. It’s powered by a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, has 4GB of internal storage, 1GB of RAM and an 8-megapixel rear / 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera. On the other hand, the Idol Mini has a smaller 4.3-inch 854 x 480-pixel display, weighs 96 grams and comes with HSPA+. It’s equipped with up to 8GB of internal storage, 512MB of RAM and a 5-megapixel rear / VGA front camera.

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Mobile

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Via: GSM Arena

Source: Idol Mini, Idol S, One Touch Evo HD