Budget phones get bigger with the Alcatel A3 XL

Budget smartphones are set to offer even more bang for buck in 2017, if Alcatel's newly announced A3 XL is anything to go by. The A3 XL is a 6-inch phablet that should hopefully sell for under $300 when it launches in Australia in the first part of this year.

Key specifications include a 6-inch 720p display, 1.1GHz quad-core MediaTek processor, an 8MP rear-facing camera, Android 7.0, 8GB of expandable storage, 1GB of RAM, a fingerprint reader, and a 3,000mAh battery. While the A3 XL is slightly underpowered for 2017, its still one of the cheapest options in its size.

No local pricing has been set yet, but the A3 XL will retail for USD$200 international, which converts to around $280 Australian dollars.

Alcatel says the A3 XL is the start of a new "A series" of smartphones that promise "affordability, functionality and, most of all, fun".

Alex Choros

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Alex Choros is the Managing Editor of WhistleOut Australia and an award-winning journalist. He's been writing about consumer technology for over a decade and is an expert on the Australian telco sector, to the point where he knows far too many phone and internet plans by heart. In addition to leading the WhistleOut editorial team, Alex is responsible for ruining the office Sonos with his troubled taste in music.

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