Archos is mainly known for bringing affordable hardware to the table, and that trend looks to continue with the recently announced 50d Helium smartphone.
Powered by Android 5.1 Lollipop, the 50d Helium packs a quad-core 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 processor alongside 1GB of RAM. Keeping the lights, and the 5-inch, 1,280 x 720 IPS display, on is the 2,100mAh battery, which will hopefully provide all-day battery life. Even though the removable backplate isn’t exactly a notable feature, Archos will include two soft, “stone finished” interchangeable backplates that come in Storm Blue and Stone Grey color options.
Around the back is a 13-megapixel camera, while the front includes a 5-megapixel variant, which should take up the majority of the meager 8GB of internal storage if you’re someone who takes a lot of pictures. With that said, you can expand the storage through the included MicroSD card slot up to 64GB, which you’ll want to take advantage of if you’re not one who likes to have things stored locally. In addition, there is dual SIM card support, with at least one of the slots providing 4G LTE functionality.
As with any Archos device, however, the main attraction is the price, and the 50d Helium doesn’t disappoint with its $129 price point. At such a price, the 50d Helium looks to put the $120 3G-only Moto E to shame, since the latter includes a lower-resolution display and cameras. You can get the Moto E with 4G LTE, though you’ll end up paying $30 extra. Of course, one can argue the Moto E will be better supported, in terms of software, but as far as on paper goes, the 50d Helium looks to provide more bang for your buck.
The 50d Helium is set to launch sometime in July, though no specific date was given.
