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Alcatel A5 gives 'em the old razzle dazzle

Make the otherwise unremarkable Alcatel new A5 sparkly with a LED-covered case that can sync with your voice.

Kent German Former senior managing editor / features
Kent was a senior managing editor at CNET News. A veteran of CNET since 2003, he reviewed the first iPhone and worked in both the London and San Francisco offices. When not working, he's planning his next vacation, walking his dog or watching planes land at the airport (yes, really).
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Kent German
2 min read

Sometimes, it's not what's inside that counts.

Take the Alcatel A5. You won't find cutting-edge features that promise to change your life. No, the A5 is more concerned about accessorizing. Following the lead of the Moto Z phones, the A5 brings three modular accessories that expand how you can use the phone. There's an audio speaker, a battery pack that doubles its life and a case that will, ahem, light up your life. Snap it on and program the LEDs covering the back to light up when you get a notification, modulate with music, or sync to the sound of your voice. Just be warned that it draws power from your battery so go easy on the sparkle if you need your A5 to last through the day.

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The A5's guts make it fancier than Alcatel's other two Mobile World Congress announcements, the A3 and U5. The one exception is that the A3 has the most powerful rear camera. The A5's fingerprint sensor is one of its more notable features, but that won't make it into the US version. See below for the full list of the A5's specs, and those of its siblings.

Alcatel did not announce pricing availability. We'll bring you those details when we get them.

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Alcatel A5 specs

  • 5.2-inch display and 1,280x720-pixel resolution
  • MediaTek 6753 processor
  • 16GB internal of internal memory plus microSD card slot
  • 2G BRAM
  • Android 6.0 Marshmallow
  • 8-megapixel camera
  • 5-megapixel front with flash
  • 2,800mAh (battery pack accessory is 3,000mAh)

Alcatel A3 specs

  • 5-inch display and 720x1280-pixel resolution
  • MediaTek 6737 processor
  • 16GB internal of internal memory plus microSD card slot
  • 1.5GB RAM
  • Android 6.0 Marshmallow
  • 13-megapixel camera
  • 5-megapixel front with flash
  • 2,460mAh battery

Alcatel U5 specs

  • 5-inch display and 480x854-pixel resolution
  • MediaTeck 6737M processor
  • 8GB internal of internal memory plus microSD card slot
  • 1GB RAM
  • Android 6.0 Marshmallow
  • 5-megapixel camera
  • 2-megapixel front with flash
  • 2,050mAh battery