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Alcatel shows off new Firefox OS devices, including its first with LTE
It's been a year since we first got a glimpse of Firefox OS at MWC 2013, and unsurprisingly we're already seeing some more models show up once again in Barcelona. This time around, Alcatel is making a strong statement to Mozilla about its commitment level; the company's showing off a grand total of four devices, including a tablet concept. All still under the Fire brand, the trio of smartphones range from a budget-minded 3.5-inch device to a nicer quad-core model with 4.5-inch qHD display and LTE. First, let's tackle the latter. The Fire S (which stands for 'speed') is the company's first Firefox device with LTE built-in, and while we're not looking at top-of-the-line specs here, they're certainly better than most we've seen on a smartphone bearing Mozilla's B2G project. The handset features OS 1.3, a 4.5-inch qHD display, 8MP rear camera with a 2MP front-facing cam, a quad-core 1.2GHz CPU and even NFC. The other two in the trio aren't especially drool-worthy, but they're still notable for potential users in emerging markets -- obviously a rather large demographic for Mozilla. The Fire E (which stands for 'elegant') has the same 4.5-inch qHD display as the S, but it uses a dual-core 1.2GHz processor, 5MP rear camera and VGA front-facing cam. It also doesn't feature LTE, as the S does. The C (which stands for 'cost-conscious') has a 3.5-inch HVGA display, dual-core 1.2GHz processor, VGA camera and other basic goodies.
Geeksphone's Firefox-and-Android phone launches February 20th for 289 euro (update)
Spain's Geeksphone has been teasing the Revolution for a few months now, but today's the day we find out how much the thing will actually cost. The device, which can switch between Firefox OS and Android, will be priced at 289 euro ($395) when it lands on February 20th, just four days before MWC 2014 begins in Barcelona. If you're fast, however, the company has hinted that it'll offer the handset for 269 euro with an online-only early-bird sale. There's no word on how much more (or less) this one will set you back if it arrives over in the US, but we'll keep our ears close to the Iberian ground. Update: We've heard back from Geeksphone, with two more important details to share with you. There's no separate US price, it'll all be handled with the exchange rate, so the handset will currently set you back $395, as we said before. Secondly, despite being pitched as a multi-OS device, if you actually want to swap between Firefox OS (Boot2Gecko) and Android, you'll have to install the former on the hardware yourself. Bit disappointing, really.
