I can recall when, a few years ago it was all the rage to get a smartphone. I had the typical flip phone, did not do any sort of texting and I certainly never thought about having a data plan. Even when my hubby suggested the new iPhone as a gift I said “no, thank you.” The thought of having to learn to use this contraption was too much and a waste of my time. Or so I thought. Fast forward a few years and I could not imagine life without a smartphone. Could you?
I do still have one giant pet peeve when it comes to this fabulous tech we have come to love and that is the cost. It is outrageous! I did a little checking and do you know that if you want to purchase a new iPhone 6 it will cost you between $800 to $1,000?! Seriously, that is crazy! Yes, you can lower the cost with a monthly package, but with that comes a contract. If you figure out the cost during the life of the contract you are still paying hundreds more than you should. Luckily Canadians now have a new option that makes owning a smartphone affordable and we got to check one out! Meet the Alcatel OneTouch Idol 3!!
This budget friendly smartphone has features galore that will please everyone on your gift giving list. The Alcatel OneTouch Idol 3 makes it an affordable option to get your teen a new smartphone for that special gift. I can’t tell you how many of my daughter’s friends have a smartphone at the top of their wish lists this year. Parents, you can feel good about this purchase, trust me.
As an iPhone user I was a little hesitant to even try out the Alcatel OneTouch Idol 3 as I have never used an Android before, but I shouldn’t have worried. The Idol 3 has that familiar design and feel to it, with the touch screen access I love. The screen comes in two sizes, 4.7″ and 5.5″. My aging eyes prefer the larger screen so that is what I went with. The large HD screen is bright and clear with a resolution up to 1080 pixels. I am not the best with this technical stuff, but I know what I like when I see it. Add in the fully reversible interface, meaning you can view it from almost any angle (and take a call) and right from the first glance you will love the Idol 3. 
My hubby was impressed (okay, so was I) that the Idol 3’s energy-efficient performance is courtesy of it’s processor, the 64-bit, 8-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 615. It is teamed up with the Adreno 405 graphical processor to ensure crisp video playback and a smooth, fluid graphics performance. Add in the long battery life and you are good to go. This makes the Alcatel OneTouch Idol 3 a great choice for a student on the go or a even a soccer mom on the run.
And who doesn’t want a smartphone that takes a great selfie? The Idol 3 comes with a 13MP main camera and a wide-angle 8MP front camera with features that include HDR, time-lapse, panoramic and manual mode. I found the camera easy to use and love that it has the fast Face Focus feature, which means it zeros in on every face in your photo in less than half a second! Now everyone will look good!
I can tell you with complete honesty that I do not have music on my current phone. Don’t get me wrong, I love listening to music, but it never seemed worthwhile to have it on my phone. The sound isn’t the best, I would have to flip through several screens to locate it. It just was not worth it to me. But now that the new Justin Bieber CD is out I thought I would test out the audio features of the Idol 3. Wow, I love the surround sound experience you get with the dual front-facing speakers from JBL audio that includes Clari-Fi technology by Harman. Want to have an even cooler musical adventure? You can actually mix your own beats with the ONETOUCH Mix app! Now that’s cool!
The Giveaway:
I am so excited to share that one very lucky MapleMouseMama reader is going to win their very own Alcatel OneTouch Idol 3 SmartPhone!! Whoot whoot!! Keep it for yourself or gift it to someone you love; either way someone is winning a fantastic prize! Check out the Rafflecopter below to enter. This giveaway is open to Canadian residents over the age of 18, excluding Quebec. Please read our giveaway rules before entering. Please note that with the busy holiday season there is no guarantee the prize will arrive before Christmas, but we will do our best! This giveaway will end on December 20th, 2015. Good luck!
What is your most favourite feature of the Alcatel OneTouch Idol 3 smartphone? Check out their site to learn more.
FT&PD
Suz
∗∗ For more holiday gift giving ideas check out the #MMMGiftGuide! We have giveaways as well.
Disclosure: I was provided with an Idol 3 to review. All opinions expressed are my own (although my hubby might have helped me with the technical jargon. 
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Definitely the camera…13mp is awesome.
I will admit, I love the audio features,.. gotta have my music!
The camera with the Fast Face Focus feature is probably my favorite feature!
The camera would be the best feature for me.
You’ve given a great review and mentioned a lot of the features that this camera offers — my favourite has to be the camera!
The camera sounds amazing. A 13MP main camera and a wide-angle 8MP front camera with features that include HDR
I like the fast Face Focus feature on the camera.
The camera, you have to have a great camera on your phone
the 8-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 615, wow, that’s fast
The camera is my favourite feature; I love taking photos.
Ever cool how it is reversable. Never thought about that before, but sometimes you do have to flip your phone to make a call with the buttons on the bottom (android)
My favourite feature would have to be the camera!
My favourite feature is the great camera!
My favorite feature would be the camera.
I love the 13MP camera!
My fave features are the audio ones! My grandson loves to listen to music from my phone
Loving the dual front-facing speakers from JBL audio that includes Clari-Fi technology by Harman!
Wow, that camera is the highlight of this smartphone, no doubt about it. The long battery life is also a super feature. A great review too, thanks.
the camera is my favorite feature
I like the dual front-facing speakers.
I think the camera functions sound great – that would be important in a phone to me.
Loving the camera part
I really like the Fast Face Focus camera feature.
I haven’t used a mobile phone in more than a decade, and I’m not even that old! Just tech-inpaired. But lately I’ve been wanting one so I can take pictures while out, and for when I get lost. My favorite feature of the Alcatel OneTouch Idol3 is the dual cameras, and I like the music features you mention- that would be great to have in a phone!
my favorite feature is the camera! i love taking pictures of my girls while we are out and about so the quality of the camera is key
the camera. my mil told me that’s it fantastic!
The camera looks great.
I love that it is reversible. How cool, fun and convenient that you can hold it either way and it works!
OH THE CAMERA FOR SURE…I WOULD USE IT ALL THE TIME
the camera. thanks
My favourite feature is simply that it is a smart phone! I currently use an old flip phone, and would love to upgrade! I love too that you can get a bigger screen – I would go for that for sure! And how cool that I could have a phone with a camera – mine currently has nothing!!
I like the 13MP camera the most.
The 13MP main camera and a wide-angle 8MP front camera is the most appealing to me because I need all the help I can get while taking photos.
My most favourite feature of the Idol 3 is the awesome camera
I like the amazing camera.
My favorite feature is the 2 powerful speakers offering 3D Hi-Fi sound. I play my music on my phone.
I like how it has 13MP main camera and a wide-angle 8MP front camera
Wow! The camera to take pics of my Great Grandchildren! TY for this opportunity.
The camera is my favorite don’t have a camera on my phone it’s so old.
I love the camera because I tend to take a lot of pictures.
I like the camera feature
I like how the screen comes in two sizes
Ok, you had me at cost! I need to upgrade but the astounding $$ of an iPhone 6 is, well, astounding!
I like that it has quality audio for music playing.
For me the long battery life is very important.
The camera is my favorite feature especially with face focus.
I like the fast Face Focus feature on the camera.
My most fav feature of the Idol 3 is the 3D Hi-Fi sound.
I like that you can see the screen well even in the sunlight.
The camera, my daughter would love it with all the selfies she takes.
The camera is amazing !
The camera
I really like the fast Face Focus feature on the camera
The fast Face Focus feature sounds great
The camera with the Fast Face Focus feature
I like the large HD screen.
I like the dual front-facing speakers.
Love the camera on the phone would come in handy to capture those precious moments.
the camera
What I really LOVE is the long battery life.
I like the Fast Face Focus camera feature.
the camera~
I like the idea of reversible interface.
I like the wide-angle 8MP front camera.
The wide-angle 8MP front camera has got my attention!!
Love the camera ! I am always taking pics of the kids so this is an important feature for me
I like the reversible interface and that it can take great quality photos.
the camera is my favourite feature
the fast focus feature
I like the large screen.
Definitely the camera, it would be great to finally have a cell phone that would take a decent picture.
Audio is very important to me, so the front-facing speakers from JBL audio that includes Clari-Fi technology by Harman is very exciting!
The dual-facing JBL stereo speakers. I don’t admit it often but I miss calls because I cannot hear my phone ring.
My favourite feature is the Camera. Thank you for the chance.
I love that the camera comes with a 13MP main camera and a wide-angle 8MP front camera with features that include HDR, time-lapse, panoramic and manual mode.
The great camera feature is my fav,,I love this,,sounds awesome!!
Fast Face Focus feature on the camera is my favourite
I have done a lil research on this phone and im impressed with the battery life on it , my current phone seems to die just too quickly
The camera for sure!
I love the fast face focus feature
Definitely the good speakers – it’s hard to find a phone that’s decent on speakerphone and playing music!
I love the 5.5″ screen and camera!
for me the cost is standing out the most also the long battery life i
The camera
I love the cost efficient and energy-efficient performance because of processor, the 64-bit, 8-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 615!
the camera
the camera
I love the camera!
The camera:)
The 13mp camera is the feature I like the best!
I love that it has a 1080 pixels for clarity and sharpnesss, I love that it has a 13mp main camera and an 8 mp front camera as well!
I’d say the camera
I love the fast focus feature!
As a fellow food blogger the camera is super important for me!
The fast focus is great, with 3 little ones, its hard to get them to pose for longer that 2 seconds!
the camera is the best and most important feature
The camera! It’s as good as my camera – camera!
The camera! Looks like a high quality one! Can only mean one thing: Lots of selfies!
I love the 1080p HD screen!
The Face Focus option is an exciting new feature of the Alcatel OneTouch! And I love the 1080p screen for crisp resolution.
I like the screen size – nice and large. The long battery life is a bonus as well.
My favourite feature is the camera.
I would say the best feature would be the camera.
THE CAMERA FOR ME LLS, NEEDED TO CHANGE MY PHONE BADLY
The camera! It would be awesome to be able to take decent pictures with a phone!
The longer battery life is amazing. I hate being out with a dead phone and unable to be reached!
The camera is defiantly my #1
First and formist I live the screen size. Next I love the 13 MP camera! Over all I think this is an awesome phone !
The 8 mpm selfie camera. I never use the selfie cam on my smartphone because it’s only 2 mpx and pics look terrible. So I always try to turn my phone around and take selfie with the regular camera.
My favourite feature is the camera.
I love the long battery life feature!
i love the long lasting battery
I like the large screen size.
I like battery life feature
The camera feature sounds perfect!!
The 13 MP main camera is my favorite feature
Fast face focus is what I need,
The battery life is the kicker for me. I need something that lasts through my tweets!
The long battery life! My current phone seems to need to be plugged in every few hours
Definately the camera!! The pictures I could take…
I love that it has long battery life. I hate when my phone dies on me!
like the large screen
my favourite feature is the 13 MP camera
Definitely the camera! I take all my photos on my phone lately!
Sorry this is late. I just noticed it was hanging in my browser.