Alcatel Mobile

Last updated

Alcatel
Company type Trademark
Founded1988;36 years ago (1988) (as Alcatel)
2007;17 years ago (2007) (as Alcatel Mobile Phones)
2010;14 years ago (2010) (as Alcatel OneTouch)
2016;8 years ago (2016) (as Alcatel Mobile)
Headquarters Nanterre, France
Shenzhen, China
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
George Guo (CEO)
ProductsTelecommunications devices
Owner Nokia
TCL Technology (licensed)
Parent Nokia
Website alcatelmobile.com

Alcatel (formerly Alcatel Mobile Phones and Alcatel OneTouch) (previously ALCATEL) is a French brand of mobile handsets owned by Finnish consumer electronics company Nokia and used under license [1] by Chinese electronics company TCL Technology. The Alcatel brand was licensed in 2005 by former French electronics and telecommunications company Alcatel-Lucent to TCL for mobile phones and devices, and the current license expires at the end of 2024. Nokia acquired the assets of Alcatel-Lucent in 2016 and thus also inherited the licensing agreements for the Alcatel brand. [2]

Contents

History

Former Alcatel One Touch logo ALCATEL onetouch logo.png
Former Alcatel One Touch logo

Alcatel Mobile Phones was established on 24 April 2004 [3] as a joint venture between Alcatel-Lucent (45%) and TCL Corporation (55%). [4] Alcatel originally started making mobile phones in late 1996.[ citation needed ]

In 2005, the joint venture was dissolved as TCL acquired Alcatel-Lucent's 45 percent share, and Alcatel Mobile Phones became a wholly owned subsidiary group of TCL. The brand name was licensed to TCL. [5]

In 2010, Alcatel One Touch became the corporate brand. In February 2016 after Alcatel One Touch being bought by Nokia, it was changed back to simply Alcatel and a new logo was introduced. [6]

Company structure

TCL Mobile Limited (former name: T&A Mobile Phones Limited) is a member of TCL Communication listed on Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKSE: 2618) which was established in August 2004 by TCL Communication and Alcatel. [7] TCL Mobile Limited manages three business units: Alcatel, TCL Mobile Phones and Brand Design Lab. TCL Communication was also the developer of BlackBerry devices from 2016 to 2020 when its contract with BlackBerry expired. [8] [9] [10]

Awards

In 2012, Alcatel won an International Forum Design iF design award for its One Touch 818 and the Onetouch 355 Play models. [11]

Models

One of the first Alcatel phone was Alcatel OT Easy HF, released in 1998. [12] Its battery standby time was up to 140 hours.

2014: Alcatel OneTouch Pop 7 was released. [13]

2015: Alcatel OneTouch Pop Fit was released. The Pop Fit could be strapped to a wrist. [14]

2016: Saw several releases: Alcatel Idol 4s, [15] Pop 4, Pop 4+, Pop 4s, and Pop 7 LTE.

2017: During that year's Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, TCL launched Alcatel A5 LED, purportedly the first Android smartphone with an "interactive LED-covered phone". [16] On 10 November, the company launched the Alcatel A5 LED and Alcatel A7 in India. [17]

2018: As demand grows for tablets that are compatible with keyboards and family use, TCL Communication is providing a tablet that can pull double duty with Alcatel 3T 8". [18]

2019: TCL Communication is introducing its latest Alcatel mobile devices, including the Alcatel 3, Alcatel 3L and Alcatel 1S smartphones, as well as the Alcatel 3T 10 at Mobile World Congress 2019. [19]

2020: TCL Communication Showcases Alcatel Mobile Product Portfolio With Fresh Design and Imaging Performance Milestones at CES 2020 [20]

2021: At MWC 2021 TCL is teasing an affordable 5G phone with its own brand, but the Alcatel brand is still around. The company introduced two entry-level Android Go 11 models 1L Pro and Alcatel 1 (2021) released at the end of year. [21] [22]

Early devices

2005–present

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nokia</span> Finnish multinational telecommunications, technology and electronics corporation

Nokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational telecommunications, information technology, and consumer electronics corporation, established in 1865. Nokia's main headquarters are in Espoo, Finland, in the Helsinki metropolitan area, but the company's actual roots are in the Tampere region of Pirkanmaa. In 2020, Nokia employed approximately 92,000 people across over 100 countries, did business in more than 130 countries, and reported annual revenues of around €23 billion. Nokia is a public limited company listed on the Nasdaq Helsinki and New York Stock Exchange. It was the world's 415th-largest company measured by 2016 revenues, according to the Fortune Global 500, having peaked at 85th place in 2009. It is a component of the Euro Stoxx 50 stock market index.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smartphone</span> Handheld mobile device

A smartphone is a mobile device that combines the functionality of a traditional mobile phone with advanced computing capabilities. It typically has a touchscreen interface, allowing users to access a wide range of applications and services, such as web browsing, email, and social media, as well as multimedia playback and streaming. Smartphones have built-in cameras, GPS navigation, and support for various communication methods, including voice calls, text messaging, and internet-based messaging apps.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TCL Technology</span> Chinese multinational electronics company

TCL Technology Group Corp. is a Chinese partially state-owned electronics company headquartered in Huizhou, Guangdong Province. It designs, develops, manufactures, and sells consumer products including television sets, mobile phones, air conditioners, washing machines, refrigerators, and small electrical appliances. In 2010, it was the world's 25th-largest consumer electronics producer. It became the second-largest television manufacturer by market share by 2019.

A mobile operating system is an operating system used for smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, smartglasses, or other non-laptop personal mobile computing devices. While computers such as typical/mobile laptops are "mobile", the operating systems used on them are generally not considered mobile, as they were originally designed for desktop computers that historically did not have or need specific mobile features. This line distinguishing mobile and other forms has become blurred in recent years, due to the fact that newer devices have become smaller and more mobile unlike hardware of the past. Key notabilities blurring this line are the introduction of tablet computers, light laptops, and the hybridization of the two in 2-in-1 PCs.

The form factor of a mobile phone is its size, shape, and style, as well as the layout and position of its major components.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alcatel One Touch 980</span> Smartphone manufactured by TCL Communication

The Alcatel One Touch 980 is a touchscreen slider smartphone manufactured by TCL Communication. The phone was announced on February 15, 2010 at the Mobile World Congress. The Alcatel One Touch 980 was the first Alcatel to run the Android operating system, running version 2.1 "Éclair". The phone has been noted to resemble the Palm Prē.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samsung Galaxy Note (2011 smartphone)</span> Android smartphone by Samsung

The Samsung Galaxy Note is an Android smartphone produced by Samsung Electronics. It was unveiled at IFA Berlin 2011 and first released in Germany in late October 2011, with other countries following afterwards. The Galaxy Note was distinguished by its unusually large form factor—later referred to using the term "phablet"—which straddled the size of the average smartphone at the time, and that of a small tablet: it features a 5.3-inch display, and is bundled with a stylus branded as the "S Pen", which can be used to navigate the device's user interface, and write or draw in supported apps.

Dragontrail is an alkali-aluminosilicate sheet glass manufactured by AGC Inc. It is engineered for a combination of thinness, lightness and damage-resistance, similarly to Corning's proprietary Gorilla Glass. The material's primary properties are its strength, allowing thin glass without fragility; its high scratch resistance; and its hardness – with a Vickers hardness test rating of 595 to 673.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Microsoft Lumia</span> Discontinued line of mobile devices by Microsoft

Microsoft Lumia is a discontinued line of mobile devices that was originally designed and marketed by Nokia and later by Microsoft Mobile. Introduced in November 2011, the line was the result of a long-term partnership between Nokia and Microsoft—as such, Lumia smartphones run on Microsoft software, the Windows Phone operating system; and later the newer Windows 10 Mobile. The Lumia name is derived from the partitive plural form of the Finnish word lumi, meaning "snow".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sailfish OS</span> Mobile operating system

Sailfish OS is a Linux-based operating system based on free software, and open source projects such as Mer as well as including a closed source UI. The project is being developed by the Finnish company Jolla.

The following is a comparison of high-definition smartphone displays, containing information about their specific screen technology, resolution, size and pixel density. It is divided into three categories, containing smartphones with 720p, 1080p and 1440p displays.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Android One</span> Line of smartphones that run the unmodified Android operating system

Android One is a family of third-party Android smartphones promoted by Google. In comparison to many third-party Android devices, which ship with a manufacturer's customized user interface and bundled apps, these devices run near-stock versions of Android with limited modifications, and a focus on Google services. Devices that run Android One receive OS updates for at least two years after their release, and security patches for at least three years.

Nokia is a Finnish multinational corporation founded on 12 May 1865 as a single paper mill operation. Through the 19th century the company expanded, branching into several different products. In 1967, the Nokia corporation was formed. In the late 20th century, the company took advantage of the increasing popularity of computer and mobile phones. However, increased competition and other market forces caused changes in Nokia's business arrangements. In 2014, Nokia's mobile phone business was sold to Microsoft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HMD Global</span> Finnish manufacturer of Nokia mobile phones, smartphones and tablets

Human Mobile Devices (HMD), formally HMD Global, is a Finnish mobile phone manufacturer. The company is made up of the mobile phone business that the Nokia Corporation sold to Microsoft in 2014, then bought back in 2016. HMD began marketing Nokia-branded smartphones and feature phones on 1 December 2016. The company has exclusive rights to the Nokia brand for mobile phones through a licensing agreement. The HMD brand was initially only used for corporate purposes and does not appear in advertising, whereas the name "Nokia Mobile" is used on social media. As it was launched, the acronym HMD stood for Hon Hai Mobile Devices. This was in reference to the main shareholder at the time of its creation: the Taiwanese group Foxconn. In January 2024, HMD rebranded to 'Human Mobile Devices', and will use their own branding on future devices alongside that of Nokia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BlackBerry DTEK</span> Android smartphone

BlackBerry DTEK is an Android smartphone co-developed and distributed by BlackBerry Limited, and manufactured by TCL. DTEK comprises two models: DTEK50 which is a modified and rebranded variant of TCLs Alcatel Idol 4 ; and DTEK60 which is a modified and rebranded variant of TCLs Alcatel Idol 4S. The DTEK models are the second and third Blackberry Android phones after the Blackberry Priv. Like the Priv, the DTEK Android operating system is customized with features inspired by those seen on Blackberry's in-house operating systems, and with hardware and software security enhancements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alcatel Idol 4</span>

Alcatel Idol 4 and Idol 4S are smartphones manufactured by TCL Corporation and marketed by Alcatel Mobile Phones. They were unveiled during Mobile World Congress in February 2016, and are a successor to the Idol 3. The Idol 4 and 4S are positioned as mid-range devices, with the 4S serving as a higher-end model with a faster processor, a larger 1440p display, and a bundled virtual reality headset which serves as the device's packaging.

BlackBerry Mobile was a trading name used by TCL Communication between December 2016 and August 2020 to manufacture and sell BlackBerry-branded devices worldwide, excluding the regions where BB Merah Putih (Indonesia) and Optiemus Infracom operated.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KaiOS</span> Mobile operating system designed for feature phones

KaiOS is a mobile Linux distribution for keypad feature phones based on the Firefox OS open-source project. It is developed by KaiOS Technologies Limited; a company based in Hong Kong, whose largest shareholder is Chinese electronics conglomerate TCL Corporation. KaiOS runs on feature phones or wireless home phones made with low-power hardware and low power consumption. KaiOS supports modern connectivity technologies like 4G LTE, VoLTE, GPS, and Wi-Fi. KaiOS runs HTML5-based apps. KaiOS supports over-the-air updates and has a dedicated app marketplace called KaiStore. Some applications are preinstalled onto the phone, including Facebook and YouTube. As of 1 April 2020, there are 500+ apps in KaiStore. The mobile operating system is comparatively lightweight on hardware resource usage, and is able to run on devices with just 256 megabytes (MB) of memory.

Android Go products were first showcased at MWC 2018 with six products: Nokia 1, ZTE Tempo Go, Alcatel 1X, General Mobile GM8 Go, Lava Z50, and Micromax Bharat Go. The Blu Vivo Go became the first Android Go device with Android Pie Go edition.

References

  1. "About Us". alcatel-mobile.com. TCL Communication. Retrieved 29 August 2021. TCL Communication designs, develops and markets a diversified range of mobile devices in more than 170 countries under the Alcatel brand [..] Alcatel is a trademark of Alcatel-Lucent used under license by TCL Communication.
  2. "#Nokia owns the #Alcatel brand. #TCL license expires in 2024". Nokiamob. 15 March 2017. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  3. "Alcatel place ses mobiles sous pavillon chinois". lsa-conso.fr. 29 April 2004.
  4. "Alcatel and TCL joint venture". gsmarena.com. 28 April 2004.
  5. "The Disillusion of TCL and Alcatel". Archived from the original on 7 January 2015. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  6. "Alcatel drops the 'OneTouch' in major rebranding". Android Central. 20 February 2016. Retrieved 22 May 2018.
  7. "TCL Company Profile". tclcom.com.
  8. "BlackBerry Gives China's TCL Rights to Use Its Brand on Phones". Bloomberg.com. 15 December 2016. Retrieved 22 May 2018.
  9. Mobile, BlackBerry (3 February 2020). "pic.twitter.com/jhcfVHjVqL". @BBMobile. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
  10. "TCL won't make BlackBerry phones anymore, sending the brand back into limbo". www.digitaltrends.com. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
  11. "About Alcatel". guzzle.co.za. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
  12. "Alcatel OT Easy HF". phonesreview.com. 3 February 2013. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
  13. D., Luis (15 April 2014). "Alcatel OneTouch Pop 7 Review". phonearena.com. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
  14. Chacksfield, Marc (25 February 2014). "Pop goes the Alcatel with new tablet and phone offerings". TechRadar. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
  15. "Alcatel Idol 4s". gsmarena.com. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  16. Curtis, Sophie (1 March 2017). "Alcatel wants to light up your life with A5 LED 'disco' phone launched at MWC 2017". The Mirror. United Kingdom. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
  17. "Alcatel A5 LED and A7 launched in India starting at Rs. 12999". www.fonearena.com. Retrieved 11 November 2017.
  18. "TCL Communication Introduces Alcatel 3T 8 Tablet". alcatelmobile.com. 30 August 2018.
  19. "TCL Communication unveils its latest Alcatel 3 and 1 Series mobile devices". alcatelmobile.com. 24 February 2019.
  20. "TCL Communication Showcases Alcatel Mobile Product Portfolio With Fresh Design and Imaging Performance Milestones at CES 2020". alcatelmobile.com. 6 January 2020.
  21. "TCL unveils Alcatel 1 (2021) and 1L Pro Android Go edition phones, a new kids watch". gsmarena.com. 25 June 2021.
  22. "Alcatel 1(2021)". gsmarena.com. Retrieved 29 August 2021.