It’s now becoming a tradition for Archos to announce new phones just a few days before a major tech event. This year, it has announced three new smartphones just ahead of IFA 2015 in Germany.

The trio include the Archos 50 Cesium, 50e Helium and Diamond S. The Helium and the Diamond S will both be running on Android while the Cesium will run on Windows 10.

The Cesium and the Helium are packing identical specs which include a 5-inch HD display, an 8MP+2MP camera combo, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 210 chipset with a 1.1GHz quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM and 8GB of expandable storage. Both phones will also have a 2100mAh battery as well as support for 4G LTE connectivity.

On the other hand, the Diamond S is a slightly more powerful device with a MediaTek MT6753 chip featuring a 1.5GHz octa-core processor, 2GB of RAM and 16GB of expandable storage.

The camera of the Diamond S will also be bumped up, which is now a 16MP sensor at the back with LED flash and an 8MP sensor at the front for selfies. The battery is rated at 2300mAh and just like the Cesium and the Helium, the Diamond S will support 4G LTE connectivity.

We expect all three phones to make an appearance in Germany next week though the company has already provided pricing and shipping information beforehand.

The Archos 50 Cesium and 50e Helium will be available starting November for $154. The Archos Diamond S will also be available starting November at $240.

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Looking for affordable LTE-enabled Android 5.1 handsets? Archos has got you covered with its two newest Helium models – the 50 Helium Plus and the 55 Helium Plus. 

The two models are almost identical with the exception of the screen size and battery capacity. With the 50 Helium Plus getting a 5-inch 720p display (~293ppi) while the 55 Helium Plus sports a 5.5-inch 720p display with a screen density of 267ppi. On the battery department, the 50 Helium Plus and 55 Helium Plus will get a 2400mAh and 2000mAh power packs respectively.

As for the rest of the specs, both models will get a 64-bit MediaTek MT6735P chipset with a 1GHz quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM and 8GB of expandable storage. There’s also a 13MP camera at the back, and a 5MP selfie-snapper on the front.

The two phones will also have Cat 4 LTE, Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi, GPS with A-GPS and dual-SIM functionality. Archos will start shipping the phones next month with the 50 Helium Plus going for $109 while the 55 Helium Plus to sell for $139.

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Archos seems to be making it a habit to release three new devices simultaneously in certain events. Back in CES the company introduced three budget smartwatches and just a month later it announced three smartphones at Mobile World Congress.

And this year at IFA, it’s keeping up with the trio tradition with three new devices that are again named after some element in the periodic table. The first two handsets are powered by Android – the 50b Platinum and the 45c Platinum. The two devices are almost exact copies of one another and differ only in a few components. The 50b Platinum comes with a 5-inch IPS display with qHD resolution while the smaller 45c Platinum bears a 4.5-inch IPS display with FWVGA resolution.
Both handsets come with a 1.3GH MediaTek MT852 chipset, a Mali-400MP2 GPU and half a gig of RAM. The bigger 50c comes with an 8MP+2MP camera combo, 4GB of internal storage which can be expanded via a microSD card and a 1900mAh lithium polymer battery. The smaller 45c on the other hand will come with a 5MP camera at the back and a 2MP front-facing snapper. The battery has also been downgraded to 1700mAh.

The odd one out from the bunch would be the Archos 40 Cesium. The phone has a 4-inch display, a Snapdragon 200 chipset with a quad-core processor and will run on Windows Phone 8.1.
All three phones will start shipping this September with the Archos 50c and 45c Platinum retailing for $200 and $165 respectively. Meanwhile the Archos 40 Cesium will be offered for around $130.
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French consumer electronics manufacturer Archos is one of many not-so-popular brands in the country with a budget Android tablet in the market. And although it’s not as high-profile as Samsung or Sony, it doesn’t mean that this company won’t need to invest on the current trend in the tech space, right?

That’s why this company recently announced three upcoming smartwatches that just like its tablets are meant for budget-conscious consumers.

The top dog in the trio is the $130 model that comes with a 1.8-inch aluminium encased curved display that uses e-ink technology (just like the one on the Pebble Smartwatch) and comes with a battery life of about 36-48 hours. There’s also a $100 model that is equipped with a capacitive display and features swappable bands for those who like to give their own personality to their watches. And lastly, there’s the $50 version that has a 1.55-inch black-and-white display and a battery that should last for 7-14 days.

All models are designed to be an accessory to your smartphone, providing users with playback controls and notifications of incoming calls, text, etc. There’s no word yet if Archos would open the watches to third party app development but it would be wise for the company to do so. Moreover, pricing and international availability are yet to be announced, but Archos plans to release the watches in different times, with the $50 model going out first, shortly followed by its higher end models.

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Okay, so our almost three-week vacation is finally over, and we’ve missed out a few announcements from all around the globe. But we’re now catching up. So in case you also missed them because you were busy munching on those holiday treats, here’s a quick refresher post for everyone.

Archos Unveils Two Helium Smartphones

French consumer electronics company recently announced two Android-powered handsets just a few days before CES. The 50 Helium 4G and 45 Helium 4G are two mid-range handsets that are equipped with quad-band 4G/LTE radios providing faster connection speeds to entry-level and mid-range consumers.

In terms of design and performance, the Helium 45 and Helium 50 are not that far apart. Both models boast a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 chipset with a 1.4GHz quad-core processor, Adreno 305 GPU and 1GB of RAM.

The difference between the two comes in the internal storage, battery and camera departments. The Helium 50 packs 8GB of on-board storage with a microSD card slot, a 2000mAh battery and an 8MP+2MP camera combo. The Helium 45 on the other hand gets 4GB of internal storage (with microSD card slot), a 1700mAh battery and a 5MP+VGA camera setup.

The Archos 50 Helium 4G and the 45 Helium 4G will retail for $249.99 and $199.99.

ZTE Unveils a Fleet of Android Smart Devices

Chinese manufacturer ZTE has already announced a number of devices ahead of the opening of CES in Las Vegas. Leading the announcements is the update to the Grand S – the Grand S II. The company’s new flagship smartphone will reportedly pack a 5.5-inch 1080p display and a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 chip. Other details are yet to be disclosed.

ZTE has also announced the Nubia 5S and the Nubia 5S Mini. Both smartphones will use Sharp’s IGZO displays and quad-core Snapdragon chipsets. The Nubia 5S will sport a 5-inch display with 1080p resolution, a 13MP camera with Sony’s Exmor RS sensor and a f/2.0 aperture and will be capable of recording 4K videos. The Nubia 5S Mini on the other hand will have a smaller 4.7-inch display.

Also on the Chinese manufacturer’s list is the ZTE Iconic phablet. The device is said to have a 5.7-inch display (probably with 720p resolution) with Corning’s Gorilla Glass on top. The phone will be powered by a quad-core processor that is said to be able to run two apps side by side on the screen. The phablet will also have Dolby digital and wireless charging capability.

Lastly, there’s the company’s first entry into the smartwatch arena – the BlueWatch. The device will be able to connect to a smartphone using Bluetooth and will be able to control calls, display Facebook and Twitter updates and control photography (probably as a remote shutter). It will also feature a pedometer for exercise apps.

Acer Announces Liquid Z5 Smartphone

Acer has added another member to its line of Liquid smartphones. The Z5 which packs a 5.0-inch FWVGA TFT display is powered by a MediaTek chip with a 1.2GHz Cortex-A7 dual-core processors. It also has a Mali-400 GPU, 512MB of RAM and 4GB of on-board storage.

The phone also gets a 5MP rear camera, a front-facing VGA camera, a 2000mAh battery, 3G connectivity with HSPA+, Bluetooth 3.0, Wi-Fi and an FM radio. The smartphone will run on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean and will be available initially to European markets including Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and the UK for €169.

Alcatel Announces Octa-Core Idol X+

TCL, the Chinese company behind Alcatel smartphones has also announced a new handset in China during the holidays – the Idol X+.

The smartphone’s most interesting feature is its 2GHz octa-core chip courtesy of MediaTek. The chip also brings in support for 2GB of RAM and a 13MP camera. The phone also has a 2500mAh battery.

TCL has also added a Boom Band in the package, which connects to the smartphone via Bluetooth. The band allows users to track their performance with exercise and fitness applications or use it as a proximity alarm in case the phone gets stolen or separated from the user. The Alcatel Idol X+ will be available starting January 15^th in China for $330.

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