Lumia 950 or Alcatel Idol 4S?

[deuce01]

I need to buy my 15 y/o son a new phone and I'm forcing him to stick with a Win10 phone because the MS Family controls are better than Android or iOS. I can get an L950 used on eBay for about $75 or I can get the Idol 4S from the MS website for $99. I have a 950XL and my wife a 950. Both are OK but are a bit buggy at times. I have no experience with the Idol 4S. The main points are durability, battery and camera. Any thoughts on which one will be the better phone?

Thanks!

 

[Elky64]

Depends on your priorities, camera or everything else. Think for the price the Idol 4s may be the better deal, faster SoC (820vs808vs810), more internal storage (64vs32), more RAM (4vs3). Haven't tried one myself but knowing how 10 runs on my 950 I'd think it should be a fair bit better on the Idol due to the higher specs. Do lose camera quality and no OIS, no removable battery, no wireless charging just to name a few. Hear the Idol has better battery life though.

Best to weigh the pros and cons for each, your sons intended usage, and go from there. Is a steal at $99 though. Almost bit the bullet myself but couldn't justify buying a 9th phone LOL

Update: Just check the online stores for the Idol 4s (US/CAD) and they are both OOS so not sure if you'd be able to find in a physical store.

 

[deuce01]

Well...guess that answers it for me then. I expect it'll be off the website in a day or so as I doubt they'll get more in stock. Thanks for the feedback though. You make some good points.

Deuce

 

[Elky64]

Well...guess that answers it for me then. I expect it'll be off the website in a day or so as I doubt they'll get more in stock. Thanks for the feedback though. You make some good points.

Deuce

Should have mentioned the "Alcatel IDOL 4S + VR Goggles" shows still available but at a $100 more. Is another option and your son might like it. :winktongue:

 

[anon(7929613)]

Lumia 950 has an excellent camera, better display and it supports all the 4G bands.
Alacatel Idol 4s is better in other aspects.

 

[RumoredNow]

The main points are durability, battery and camera.

1. Durability: the Idol 4S is solidly built, but made of glass front and back with a thin (read dentable) metal edge while the 950 is based on the (oh too ugly for a flagship) plastic snap on cover that Lumia used on so many low to mid range models. Winner is Lumia 950. That design is actually very resilient. Drop the phone, the back pops off and the battery squirts out. This actually helps dissipate the kinetic energy of a drop making it less focused. Buy replacement covers from a wide array of colors and styles while you still can and stock a few up.
2. Battery: the Idol 4S and the 950 have the same battery capacity. Exactly the same. The Lumia has to drive more pixels, but the battery is replaceable. I never had a feeling the Idol battery was "weak" when I carried a 4S daily for months. I've never used my 950 as a daily, I just use it for a camera, but I'm not underwhelmed. Remember that 950 shipped with a loose fitting battery and this can cause reboot issues. I ordered two 3rd party replacements for my 950 and had no such issues with them. Likely a toss up?
3. Camera: Head and shoulders Lumia 950 stands over Idol 4S. Lumia 950 camera is the last inheritor of Zeiss/Pureview/OIS/DNG picture taking goodness. The end of an era. Idol 4S perversely relies on Qualcomm drivers for the camera rather than having purpose built drivers and they short changed an excellent sensor. At least that is the way I read it after delving into the Exif. Don't get me wrong, the Idol 4S can take some nice pictures, especially in favorable conditions. It just won't ever equal the imaging quality of the 950 across the spectrum of shots that users will take. And also the Idol 4S lacks the post process editing largess of DNG.

 

[fatclue_98]

The Idol is superior to the 950 in every facet except the camera. Although the 950 carries a QHD display, it's not nearly as vibrant as the Idol's and in fact, it's a bit dull. Unless you want to carry an extra battery, the 950 isn't very good in this area either. Both support fast charging so it becomes a moot point.

One item worth noting is what @RumoredNow mentioned and that's structural integrity. The ugly polycarbonate construction of the Lumia is decidedly more sturdy. The Idol will bend slightly due to a design flaw that put the volume buttons and the sim card tray laterally opposed leaving a very thin strip of metal responsible for keeping it true. If you don't carry your phone in your back pocket it may never be an issue but those glass panels could easily break.

If a good camera is at the top of your list, avoid the Idol or you'll be terminally disappointed.

 

[worldspy99]

I have the 4s which I got from Microsoft for $99.
I had the Lumia 950 as a daily driver till Jan 2017.
They Idol is really good in terms of snappy performance, great speakers, modern build. Battery life is quite reasonable as well but the camera, oh the camera is pure rotten garbage!

 

[ManofGod1000]

I have both and really like both. Right now, I am using the 950 as my main phone and decided to not worry about the connection with it and my Vivoactive 3.

 

[deuce01]

Wow! Thanks to everyone that took the time to post their experiences. Based on all of that, I think I'm going to go with a 950 for him. I am finding that my $75 estimate was off by about $30-50. But I think it'll still be worth spending the extra $$ for him to have a decent phone of MY choosing (since I pay the bill :wink

Deuce