Alcatel Idol 4S comes with VR headset for a box, but it’s still not enough to separate it from the pack

Alcatel is bundling its Idol 4S with a virtual reality (VR) headset as a box, but the VR headset alone is not enough to make it stand out.

According to Engadget, Alcatel is making it easier for everyone to embrace virtual reality by bundling it with its Idol 4S for US$399 ($533). The bundle is also available at US$350 ($468) if consumers pre-order the phone.

The Idol 4S VR Goggles is based on Google’s Cardboard Goggles and is comfortable and light enough to wear for longer periods. It differs greatly from Samsung’s Gear VR, which is the result of collaboration with Oculus.

The Gear VR, though, is more immersive than the Idol 4S VR Goggles. Pixel dots can be noticed on Alcatel’s VR Goggles, while consumers won’t see the dots on the Gear VR.

The Idol 4S VR Goggles also only has limited content available, as the Idol 4S is not compatible with Google’s Daydream mobile VR platform yet. Alcatel uses Littlestar, a third-party VR content provider, for the contents of the VR Goggles.

The Idol 4S smartphone itself is a capable smartphone that is fast, has a great screen and a reliable battery life. It is a very capable smartphone that has no real performance flaws or issues.

But according to The Verge, it still falls behind a bit to smartphones of the same price range, even if you include the VR headset.

The Idol 4S comes with glass and metal design that shows Alcatel’s new phone is not going to be their usual budget device. It also comes with a 5.5-inch AMOLED display that is bright, colorful and has great viewing angles. The HD resolution provides enough sharpness for VR purposes.

The smartphone also comes with a quick fingerprint scanner and powerful stereo speakers at the front that is even better than the Galaxy S7 Edge. Despite its great external hardware, the Idol 4S falls behind when it comes to internal specs.

Alcatel’s smartphone comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 chip and 3-gigabyte (GB) of RAM, falling behind its competition that usually has a Snapdragon 820 chipset and 4GB or RAM. The performance of the Idol 4S, however, doesn’t fall behind its competition, even if it has inferior internal specs.

Camera, on the other hand, is not the Idol 4S’ strong point as the smartphone’s 16-megapixel camera has a lot of noise and grain in its photos. The camera also lacks image stabilization. It’s not a bad camera, but there better alternatives out there.

The battery life on the Idol 4S is good, as the 3,000 mAh battery allows for a full day of work without charging. The smartphone also has a quick charging feature that also works with any Qualcomm-certified charger.

Looking at it Alcatel’s Idol 4S has a lot of good things going for it. It’s a good smartphone that performs well, has great speakers, and a good battery life. But for the price range, it doesn’t separate itself much from the competition, even if the Idol 4S is accompanied by a VR headset.