Alcatel Idol 4S with Windows 10 Mobile headed to Germany in July

By Dan Thorp-Lancaster
published

The Alcatel Idol 4S with Windows 10 Mobile has been on the market in the U.S. for some time, but it sounds like those in Germany will be able to get their hands on one soon, too. As reported by German blog Windows United, the Idol 4S will land in Germany on July 1, albeit as the Idol 4 Pro.

It's curious timing, as T-Mobile stopped selling the Idol 4S here in the U.S. in April. The phone has also been rather limited in its release with very little global reach. That said, the Snapdragon 820-powered phone stands alongside the HP Elite x3 as one of the most powerful Windows phones currently available — though the stable is admittedly pretty small.

It's not clear if the Idol 4 Pro will come with the same VR gear that accompanied the Idol 4S in the U.S., nor is pricing clear. Windows United cites rumors of a €599 price tag, but that would be exceptionally steep, especially after the phone has dipped down into sub-$300 territory elsewhere.

We should know more on the German launch soon, but anyone still interested in the U.S. can pick up the Idol 4S with Windows 10 Mobile for $274 at Amazon.

See at Amazon (opens in new tab)

Dan Thorp-Lancaster
Dan Thorp-Lancaster

Dan Thorp-Lancaster is the former Editor-in-Chief of Windows Central. He began working with Windows Central, Android Central, and iMore as a news writer in 2014 and is obsessed with tech of all sorts. You can follow Dan on Twitter @DthorpL and Instagram @heyitsdtl. 

56 Comments
  • snapdragon 820*
  • Nice!
  • Snapdragon 920 :)
  • All companies launching stuff in US that no one buys. Launches in Europe more than half a year later at triple the price. *Logic*.
  • It's worse than a price hike. They piddled around for ages, not giving any clues as to whether this phone would ever get free of America, so long did this silent fannying about take that the only approach upgrading customers could go with was to assume never. So, MS have been aggressively selling off the 950/XL stock cheap and all those WP fans looking to update had to choose to jump now or wait for some miracle. Most jumped, so much so that WP sales actually increased enough in some places (UK I know about) to trouble the stats! Now, after everyone who was going to has bought an updated handset, Alcatel start to (slowly...) look like they might roll out to Europe, and at a ramped up price. Great, so Alcatel make an excellent partner for MS. They have the same marketing nouse! {Slaps forehead...} I predict poor sales. What a shame. This could have been good. Please, US companies (which Alcatel seems to be too these days?), hire some British PR men and marketing gurus. One thing we can generate better than almost any other nation on earth is rhubarb. It's one of our proudest exports. ;-)
  • *Logic*.=covfefe
  • What is covfefe?
  • You should be banned. Stop your hate speech with your icon.
  • He's still using an Icon? Right on! A man who loves his WP8.1! Don't ban him for that.
  • This must be the slowest roll out know to mankind.
  • Nope. The Surface Phone beat 'em all.
  • Still thinking of getting one...the only thing holding me back is the sound quality when it comes to music...
  • Most owners state that the music quality is pretty impressive 🤔
  • I have the Idol and love the dual speakers. Best phone I've ever owned too. Most web apps are comparable to the native apps so the weak app ecosystem has barely bothered me lately.
  • You'd be hard pressed to find a phone with better sound.
  • Yep, the sound is what sells it. Thing is, if I'm listening to my device I'll either use headphones or I'll have a BT speaker to hand (or a TV with Continuum). All solutions above are better than any phone speaker, so I'd never have a reason to use it. Considering the otherwise tempting CPU doesn't seem to allow the Idol to outpace the 950XL in real world reports I think I'd probably choose the 950XL (for my usage) as the other advantages of the 950XL such as the camera out weigh the Idol's situational benefits, all else being equal. Folks with other needs may have chosen differently, but all else is far from equal though. Once I factor in the large price difference, the Idol doesn't stand a chance. 950XL every time.
  • But you're talking about a phone that is getting very hard to find at a decent price.  
  • Easier to find than an Idol. That's only in one country with one more a possible. Plenty of 950XLs on sale in the UK at great prices. Amazon for a start, but they are very much not alone. They probably shifted the US stocks to trade overseas because Windows Phone customers don't generally live in the US. A fact that makes Alcatel's marketing technique even harder to comprehend. I'd be better off picking up an HP Elite on contract from carphone warehouse to spread the cost, considering the price of that Alcatel for what you get.
  • The camera should be what's holding you back...not the sound.  
  • Is it too late?
  • I am still hoping to get one this month, unlocked from Amazon U.S.A.
  • No chance. It's maybe one of the 2 newest Windows phones out but it's still a year old and should be a fraction of it's original price and certainly not dearer. Maybe if it was upgraded from the 4s with a Snapdragon 835 and improved camera..but it hasn't?
  • Try about six months old.
  • For the time being I am going to have an LG V20 on Android, saying goodbye to my Lumia 1520. Let's see what is next in Q4 that I may want to buy in 2018.
  • That's probably the only logical strategy until Microsoft figures out what they want they want to do about their home grown mobile OS. Right now, they're basically leaving W10M out there to twist in the wind, with the only hardware being released is a possible 'new' launch of old hardware, priced at new flagship prices. 
  • Well, to me it is rather clear. There will be full Windows on ARM architecture on devices in Q4. I.e. they will have Qualcom Snapdragon soc with all that a phone has today. Shure several will be pocketable devices. But let them have their child's diseases before I by in 2018 with reduced prices.
  • That's an extremely optimistic view.  Windows Weekly podcast were saying that nothing is really due to launch below the 6" screen size for a long time.  They got that straight from MS (Myerson)...they're going to start with a larger screen sizes first.
  • Then again, Thurott seems to think everything MS is cr*p and everything Google is a-okay... I really can't take WW seriously!
  • This site says spring 2018 at the earliest, even for 6" devices. No way the mobile CShell interface will be ready for fall.
  • OK, no pocketable devices in Q4 then. If it depends on cshell not being ready for Q4, then we will be looking at Redstone 4 in March/April 2018. 
  • This is really great news for those 4 potential customers in Germany. Alcatel shareholders will be excited as well. Jetzt geht's los!, Jetzt geht's los! Jetzt geht's los !!!
  • There are no shareholders, Alcatel not listed anymore . it's all chinese Huachin or Nokia now. Former shareholder ALE   
  • I thought it was dead. Why would anyone pay over 300EUR for this ? Am I missing something?
  • It's not dead.
  • I have one and as far Windows Phones go it's been the best one overall for me. The Lumia(s) and Blu Windows phones all came up short.
    The audio quality is only bested by my Nexus 6 but much of that is due to the music app support through Google's app store versus using Groove on the Idol. But I can say that the Idol 4S is better then my dedicated Shanling M1 Digital Audio Player.
    Continuum is pretty nice to when in a pinch, just wish the Microsoft dock wasn't as heavy as a brick and HDMI only.
    I agree with the pricing but then again you really don't have much of a choice if you want/are sticking to WM10 phones at this time. I think Microsoft really hurt their mobile fans.
  • You're having a better experience than most then...  Camera has massive white balance issues, and I'm lucky if 75% of the photos & videos I take actually save to the phone.  Camera app crashes all the time as well.  Without some updates, I'd take a 950/XL over this if photos are important.  (Or...Elite X3).
  • I have both. Both are good, but Elite is my preference.
  • If the phone comes to india i would love to buy it
  • Haven't heard "Wen in India?" for quite a while.😁
  • Make a friend in America if you want to buy one at a cheaper price!
  • I think Alcatel has squandered a great opportunity with this phone. It should ahve been released world wide when it was released in the U.S.
  • So it could not sell worldwide instead of just not selling in the US?
  • Too little,
    and way too late.
  • I'd buy that for €250.
  • Wtf? As if anyone is going to buy a phone running an OS that has been abandoned by its owner, developers, businesses and most loyal windows mobile users. And I can't believe the manufacturer thinks they will actually sell enough to make some money.
  • The bigger issue is trying to sell this for 600€
  • It's a great phone that is perfectly capable with W10 as a daily driver.
  • Microsoft won't support it just like they didn't on T-Mobile and let them discontinue it. I see why US carriers won't show them any love. Gotta give a little to get a little!
  • T-Mobile does that all the time. Nothing to do with MS.
  • Too late unfortunately. I bought a Galaxy A3 2017 Duos in the meantime. It also runs some apps I need for my company and I would not go back to Windows 10m anymore...
  • Way too late, I pulled the trigger on a GS7 edge today. So sad that MS and their partners have pushed me over to Android which is something I really didn't think could happen only 2 years ago.
  • You should'nt feel bad, it's MS fault If anyone's😊
  • Looks good, hopefully available in Australia soon
  • Just get in from the US!
  • I will buy one and use it with one of my 3 SIM Cards (Other Two HP Elite x3 and iPhone 7 Plus).
    Maybe its expensive cause CPU is not the Newest but i still like W10M Over iOS and Android and get done nearly all things i need fine.
  • Good news for people in Europe! Great phone.