Secret ad deal with MasterCard lets Google track shoppers’ retail purchases

Josh Edelson/Getty Images

In a secret deal estimated to be worth millions of dollars, Google paid MasterCard to track whether online ad clicks translated to sales inside retail stores. According to Bloomberg, Google has for the past year used its access to MasterCard data to gain insight into how online ads affect retail spending in an effort to bolster its $95.4 billion ad business.

When you click on an ad while logged into your Google account, your action is recorded — even if the click doesn’t convert into an immediate online sale. Many users opt to research for a product online before making the purchase at a retail store. Based on the MasterCard deal, when you head into a store to buy the item, Google will be able to link your ad click to your transaction by using MasterCard’s data, connecting the email address that you’ve shared with the store to obtain a digital copy of your receipt, or through third-party payment processors.

“Alphabet Inc.’s Google and Mastercard Inc. brokered a business partnership during about four years of negotiations, according to four people with knowledge of the deal, three of whom worked on it directly,” the publication reported. “The alliance gave Google an unprecedented asset for measuring retail spending, part of the search giant’s strategy to fortify its primary business against onslaughts from Amazon.com Inc. and others.”

In the past, Google tried to make connection between online ad clicks and sales in physical stores by relying on Google Wallet, beacons, and location data on users’ phones, but this partnership with MasterCard provides the ad giant with the most direct correlation data to confirm ad conversions.

Google also shares some of its users’ shopping data with advertising partners through its Store Sales Measurement program. Google claimed that it had access to approximately 70 percent of U.S. credit and debit cards, but it’s unclear if Google has deals in place with other credit card issuers outside of MasterCard.

With access to spending data from two billion MasterCard shoppers, the deal poses privacy concerns on how online and offline information is shared and what information Google needs to disclose to its users.

“Google is testing the data service with a ‘small group’ of advertisers in the U.S., according to a spokeswoman,” Bloomberg reported. “With it, marketers see aggregate sales figures and estimates of how many [sales] they can attribute to Google ads — but they don’t see a shopper’s personal information, how much they spend, or what exactly they buy.”

According to Future Privacy Forum, a nonprofit that receives funding from Google, Google had created an encryption method to separate data that it collects online and offline so that neither Google nor its payment partners have access to each other’s data, to mitigate privacy concerns and minimize risks if the data was leaked.

Ad agencies, on the other hand, always want to know more information, and they have been actively talking to Google to try to access such data as how much users spend and the specific time of day purchases are made.

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Apple reportedly hiring augmented reality team to work on Maps app

Apple has made some investments and a big bet on AR in recent years, and we’ve seen some of its early work in this space on products like Animoji, Memoji, and the Measure app on the iPhone. Now, according to recent job postings, it looks like the next Apple product that could get transformed by augmented reality will be the Maps app.

An examination of Apple’s career site by Thinknum reveals that Apple is looking for a number of AR applications engineers at various levels, along with a technical artist, FX artist, and UI artist. These AR-related job postings span from August 10 through August 22, and Thinknum posited that these jobs may have been created to support the Apple Maps team. In July, the Apple Maps team was searching for a product architect, and interestingly, augmented reality was one of the areas highlighted in that job description.

“Digital maps have become essential tools of our everyday lives, yet despite their ubiquity, they are still in their infancy,” Apple said of the Apple Maps product architect job. “From urban mobility to indoor positioning, from Lidar to augmented reality, advances in technology and new kinds of data are powering innovations in all areas of digital mapping. If you love maps and are passionate about what is possible, you will be in great company.”

Another Apple job posting from June for the position of iOS/MacOS engineer may give Thunknum’s hypothesis even more weight. Among some of the requirements for this job, Apple is looking for someone with a “familiarity with maps” and “familiarity with augmented reality APIs.” The mention of mapping and AR connects this June position to Apple’s efforts in AR and maps in the job postings for July and August.

Earlier this year, it was reported that Apple was looking at completely rebuilding Apple Maps. Apple is striving for better accuracy in this new version of Apple Maps, and the company has been collecting its own mapping data as part of this effort. If Apple adds augmented reality to Maps, it will  be able to compete against Google Maps and others in this space with more accurate maps. On phones, AR could help tourists get acquainted, navigate, and understand a new city better.

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Apple Launches iPhone 8 Logic Board Repair Program

Apple today announced the launch of a new logic board repair program, which will see the company offering free repairs for iPhone 8 models that are affected by an issue that can cause restarts, freezing, and unresponsive devices.

According to Apple, a “very small percentage” of iPhone 8 devices have logic boards with a manufacturing defect that are eligible for a free repair.

To check if you have an iPhone 8 that can be repaired under this new repair program, Apple has created a website where your serial number can be entered.

Apple says that affected units were sold between September 2017 and March 2018 in China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Macau, New Zealand, and the U.S.

The problem does not affect the iPhone 8 Plus or other iPhone models, so it’s just select iPhone 8 models that are eligible for a free fix.

Customers who do have an eligible device can make an appointment at an Apple retail store, contact an Apple Authorized Service Provider, or arrange for mail-in service through Apple Support.

Apple says that repairs may be restricted to the original country or region of purchase, and customers who are affected are recommended to back up their iPhone to iTunes or iCloud before seeking a repair.

An iPhone 8 that has damage that impairs the ability to complete the logic board repair, such as a cracked screen, will need to be fixed prior to Apple providing service.

The new iPhone 8 Logic Board Repair Program covers affected iPhone 8 devices for three years after the first retail sale of the unit.

Related Roundup: iPhone 8Buyer’s Guide: iPhone 8 (Don’t Buy)
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Apple Autonomous Test Vehicle Involved in Accident on August 24

Apple is testing its self-driving vehicles in a number of Lexus SUVs out on the roads of Cupertino, and on August 24, one of those vehicles was involved in an accident.

Apple is required to disclose autonomous vehicle collisions to the California DMV, and the information on the accident was published on the DMV’s website.

According to the accident details, the vehicle in question was in autonomous mode at the time, and sustained moderate damage in the crash, but it does not appear that Apple was at fault for the collision. From the accident report:

On August 24th at 2:58 p.m., an Apple vehicle in autonomous mode was rear-ended while preparing to merge onto Lawrence Expressway South from Kifer Road. The Apple test vehicle was traveling less than 1 mph waiting for a safe gap to complete the merge when a 2016 Nissan Leaf contacted the Apple test vehicle at approximately 15 mph. Both vehicles sustained damage and no injuries were reported by either party.

Apple has been testing its self-driving software in Lexus RX450h SUVs in Cupertino, California and surrounding areas since early 2017, but this is the first time an Apple vehicle has been involved in a crash.

Apple’s test vehicles are outfitted with a host of sensors and cameras, and while they are autonomous, each one has a pair of drivers inside. At the current time, Apple is testing its software in more than 60 vehicles.

It’s not yet clear what Apple plans to do with its self-driving software, but it could be added to existing cars and there are still rumors suggesting Apple is working on its own Apple-branded vehicle that could come out by 2025.

Apple is also working on a self-driving shuttle service called “PAIL,” an acronym for “Palo Alto to Infinite Loop.” The shuttle program will transport employees between Apple’s offices in Silicon Valley.

Related Roundup: Apple Car
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New tech blocks noise disruption faster than the speed of sound

We’ve all been there: You finished checking social media and are finally ready to get down to some serious work when a construction crew starts drilling a hole in the sidewalk or your neighbor decides to mow their lawn. Sure, there are noise-canceling headphones available, but they’re kind of bulky and not necessarily things you want to wear for a long period of time. Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a smarter solution that takes advantage of cutting-edge Internet of Things connectivity?

That’s the mission researchers from the University of Illinois’ Coordinated Science Laboratory have been working toward. Looking for a less bulky, intrusive solution to the problem of disruptive noise, they are busy developing a wireless network that can act more rapidly than sound travels.

“We spread a few IoT devices in the environment, each containing a microphone and a wireless transmitter,” Sheng Shen, a researcher on the project, told Digital Trends. “Their job is to listen to the noisy sounds much earlier than us, and send the signals to our ear-devices [wirelessly]. Because wireless signals travel 1 million times faster than sound, our ear-device gets to know the noise samples much earlier before they actually arrive at our ears.”

University of Illinois

Leveraging this “speed difference,” the team’s system achieves much better noise-cancellation performance, which kicks into action by playing an anti-noise signal only when it’s necessary. At this point, it uses the same noise-canceling waveform technology as regular noise-cancellation devices, creating a wave 180 degrees out of phase with the ambient noise. This works like an eraser for the noise in question: scrubbing it out so you no longer have to listen.

While the University of Illinois’ approach still requires an earpiece of some kind — either over-the-ear headphones or earbuds — these don’t need to entirely block the ear canal. Because they don’t have to be made of materials that absorb sound, they can also be made more comfortable to wear.

The system isn’t perfect, though. For one thing, you need to have multiple connected microphones around you to cover the possibility of sound from any angle. Nonetheless, when the completed setup is achieved, participants testing it rated it more favorably than the results achieved by even the current leading noise-canceling headphone makers.

Coming soon to a smart home near you. We really, really hope.

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Get the most out of your S Pen! 12 apps to use with the Galaxy Note 9

Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends

If you own a Galaxy Note 9, you’re probably wondering what else you can do with the S Pen to get the most out of it. We’ve already laid out everything you can do with the S Pen on the Note 9, and now we’ve rounded up some of our favorite apps that work with the stylus, including some for artists, note-takers, doodlers, and gamers.

These apps aren’t limited to the Galaxy Note 9, as most will work with older Note devices and the S Pen. Since they’re all on the Google Play Store, you can even use them with other Android phones and a third-party stylus.

Apps for illustrations, drawings, and doodles

Colorfy

Therapeutic coloring is the new meditation, and it’s effective at reducing stress and letting people unwind after a long day. With the S Pen (or any stylus), it’s easy to get coloring on your smartphone thanks to apps like Colorfy. Named one of the “Best Apps of the Year” by Google in the “Most Beautiful” category, Colorfy provides access to a bunch of drawings that you can color with just a tap. The free version of the app is limited, and you’ll need to watch ads to claim your free image of the day, or you can pay for access starting from $40 a year. Unfortunately, there’s no option to color without just tapping, but if you enjoy your coloring, this is a great app to give your S Pen a workout.

Download now from:

Google Play

ArtFlow

Drawing with the S Pen is fun, and ArtFlow is one of the best apps for artists. The settings are varied and offer lots of choice in terms of brushes, color palettes, pencils, and more. The app supports layers, so you can add or delete layers as you go. It’s easy to hide the menus when you want a blank canvas to draw on, but a tap in the corner on the little circle brings them back up quickly. ArtFlow is perfect for Note users who want to sketch on the go or even create small masterpieces.

Download now from:

Google Play

Autodesk Sketchbook

Another excellent choice for artists is Autodesk’s Sketchbook app. The interface is simple, there are layers, and you have lots of control over the tools you use to create your masterpieces. It used to be that getting the full experience from Sketchbook would set you back a fee per year — but that’s recently changed, and you can now get the entire app — including its massive repertoire of tools, pencils, pens and more — completely free.

Google Play

Apps for note-taking, ideas, and general writing

Squid

Taking handwritten notes should be easy, and Squid makes it so. It’s one of the best apps around for an all-in-one handwriting experience, and includes the ability to take notes on PDF files, draw over images, and cast with Google Chromecast — all in addition to just being able to take notes. You can customize your paper type on screen if you need specific lines, or set it to a certain size. Best of all, if you make a mistake, you can erase it with a finger, so you don’t need to tap anything to erase and keep going. It’s free with unlockable extras, but you can subscribe to Squid Premium to unlock everything at once.

Download now from:

Google Play

OneNote

Writing notes by hand is definitely the way to go when you have a Note 9, and OneNote is one of the best note-taking apps around. You can handwrite your notes with the S Pen, and save them to the cloud. Once your notes are in the cloud, you can access them on any device that has OneNote onboard, whether it be your PC, tablet, or Note. There’s even a highlighter to mark the most important things. OneNote includes an option to pin specific notes to your home screen, too, for when you need quick access to your notes.

Download now from:

Google Play

Inkredible

If you want a more old-school calligraphy experience, Inkredible’s fountain pen will make your day. The notebook is even ruled, so you feel like you’re writing on actual paper. The app has palm rejection, so you can rest your hand on the screen, too. You’ll have some control over your pen’s thickness, but if you want other pens, you’ll have to pay $2 for them. Additional in-app purchases include unlimited notebooks and different kinds of paper, all of which cost between $2 and $3. You can share your notes as PDFs via email.

Download now from:

Google Play

Utility apps

Google Handwriting Input

Just because you’re using a messaging app doesn’t mean you have to put your S Pen away. Google’s Handwriting Input app enables users to write on their screen, instead of tapping on a keyboard. Once installed and activated, you’ll be able to write a word at a time, which will then be “read” by the software and translated. It can be a tad sluggish, and might not keep up with your writing from time to time, but it’s still a great app to check out if you never want to put your stylus away.

Download now from:

Google Play

S Pen Keeper

The S Pen is a great piece of kit, but in a busy and constantly changing world, it’s ever so easy to pop it down for a moment and lose it. That’s why you need this app. All S Pen keeper does is keep an eye on your precious S Pen, and notify you if you move away from it. It does this by tracking your motion when the S Pen is outside of its holder. It can be toggled off if you’re using it while walking, or some similar circumstance. The Galaxy Note 9 already has this feature built into the phone, but it’s handy if you have other, older Note devices.

Download now from:

Google Play

SignEasy

Signing documents with your finger just doesn’t cut it. Although the Note lets you sign PDFs easily already, SignEasy will save your signature, so you can apply it to any document. You can import documents that you need to sign from your email, Dropbox, Google Drive, or even Evernote. The app shows you documents you’ve signed in a library for quick access. Signing with the S Pen is a breeze, and people will actually be able to read your signature. It beats printing it out, signing it, and scanning it to send a digital copy.

Download now from:

Google Play

Apps for fun and games

‘Scribble Racer’

Styluses might not scream fun, but thanks to Scribble Racer, you can have a blast with your S Pen. The game asks you to navigate a road with your stylus. You pick up fruits and prizes along the way to boost your score, but be careful not to ram into the wall — or else you’ll be dead. Scribble Racer is free, but with ads, so if you want them to disappear, you’ll have to pay $1, which isn’t so bad. It’s a super-fun game that’ll take you back to your arcade days.

Download now from:

Google Play

‘Fruit Ninja’

Fruit Ninja may be a few years old, but that doesn’t make it any less fun. You probably played Fruit Ninja with your fingers, but add a stylus like the S Pen to the mix, and the game becomes a lot more interesting. Instead of using your fingers to slice the fruit, you can use the stylus, which gives the game a whole new feel. You can download the game for free from the Google Play Store.

Download now from:

Google Play

‘Draw Rider’

Draw Rider is somewhat of a classic and was known as a computer game before being ported to Android. The only issue with not using a stylus is that it can be a little hard to draw accurately. If you want to create your own stages for the game, using the S Pen will make things a whole lot more precise. Even if you didn’t play the Draw Rider computer game, this app will appeal to you.

Download now from:

Google Play

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MSI targets pros with a thin and light laptop packed with GeForce Max-Q graphics

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MSI introduced the P65 notebook, which targets content creators and professionals, during the IFA 2018 convention in Berlin. Buyers will have two options: A White Limited Edition model and a Silver Edition version. Both will be similar yet offer slightly different discrete graphics configurations and ports.

According to MSI, both versions will sport a 15.6-inch IPS screen with a 1,920 x 1,080 resolution and support for 100 percent of the sRGB space. They will be powered by an eighth-generation Core i7 “Coffee Lake-H” processor, although MSI doesn’t specify which chip the laptops will use: The Core i7-8850H or the Core i7-8750H, both of which are six-core CPUs.

Other ingredients poured into both laptops include up to 32GB of DDR4 memory clocked at 2,666MHz (2x 16GB), two M.2 SSD storage devices, a backlit keyboard (white only), a fingerprint scanner, and a 82WHr battery promising up to 9 hours of normal use. Both will ship with a 150-watt power supply.

What separates these two P65 laptops apart is their discrete graphics configuration. The White Limited Edition model will sport Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 1070 Max-Q chip, meaning you should get some really good, high-quality gaming time while the boss isn’t looking. Meanwhile, the Silver Edition model can be configured with the GeForce GTX 1060 Max-Q or the non-Max-Q GeForce GTX 1050 Ti chip.

If you’re not familiar with Nvidia’s Max-Q discrete processors, they’re variants of the company’s GeForce GTX 10 Series for notebooks. While Nvidia’s non-Max-Q GPUs require large fans and bulky laptops to keep them cool, Nvidia retooled its “Pascal” design to offer the best performance in laptops with thin form factors. While they won’t match the performance of non-Max-Q chips, these discrete GPUs are the best you can find in thin and light laptops.

What also sets these laptops apart is their port complement. The White Limited Edition model features a Thunderbolt 3 port, three USB-A ports (10Gbps), one HDMI port, one Mini DisplayPort, one SD card reader, one Ethernet port, and one audio combo jack. For the Silver Edition, MSI merely swaps out the Thunderbolt 3 port for a general USB-C port running at 5Gbps. The three USB-A ports will be dialed down to 5Gbps as well.

Finally, the wireless aspect will be handled by Bluetooth 5.0 and Wireless AC connectivity. Both will have dual two-watt speakers and one digital microphone although the White Limited Edition model will include high-res audio while the Silver Edition will not. Both weigh a mere 4.14 pounds and measure 14.11 x 9.75 x 0.69 inches.

“With the P65, we’re investing deeply in professionals and content creators, bringing them high performance for all of their everyday tasks,” said Sam Chern, MSI assistant vice president of Global Marketing. “We have taken the lessons we’ve learned from our years of experience in making gaming hardware and used it to create a beautiful, professional notebook that is more powerful than any laptop in its class.”

Unfortunately, MSI did not say when these laptops will ship, nor did it provide starting prices.

Editors’ Recommendations

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MacRumors Giveaway: Win an Aluminum Slim Wireless Keyboard From Satechi

For this week’s giveaway, we’ve teamed up with Satechi to offer MacRumors readers a chance to win an Aluminum Slim Wireless Keyboard.

Satechi’s keyboard, priced at $74.99, is a simple wire-free keyboard that connects to your Mac or iOS device via Bluetooth.

It’s available in silver with white keys or space gray with black keys to match Apple’s silver and space gray devices. It’s also been designed with diamond cut chamfered edges for a design that rivals Apple’s own Bluetooth keyboard.

The Aluminum Slim Wireless Keyboard was created specifically with the Mac in mind with function hot keys, a full numeric keyboard, and a USB-C port for recharging. It connects via Bluetooth 3.0 and has a range of 33 feet.

You can connect up to four devices at once to the keyboard, and switch between them with a button press on one of the four Bluetooth keys. Compatible devices include iMac Pro, iMac, MacBook Air, MacBook, MacBook Pro, iPad Pro, and iPhone.

We have seven of Saetchi’s Aluminum Slim Wireless Keyboards to give away. To enter to win, use the Rafflecopter widget below and enter an email address. Email addresses will be used solely for contact purposes to reach the winners and send the prizes. You can earn additional entries by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, subscribing to our YouTube channel, following us on Twitter, or visiting the MacRumors Facebook page.

Due to the complexities of international laws regarding giveaways, only U.S. residents who are 18 years or older and Canadian residents (excluding Quebec) who have reached the age of majority in their province or territory are eligible to enter. To offer feedback or get more information on the giveaway restrictions, please refer to our Site Feedback section, as that is where discussion of the rules will be redirected.

a Rafflecopter giveawayThe contest will run from today (August 31) at 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time through 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time on September 7. The winners will be chosen randomly on September 7 and will be contacted by email. The winners will have 48 hours to respond and provide a shipping address before new winners are chosen.

Tags: giveaway, Satechi
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Nanoleaf Previews New ‘Canvas’ Square Lighting Panels That Work With HomeKit

Nanoleaf, the company known for its HomeKit-enabled triangular Light Panels, is expanding into new shapes with the Nanoleaf Canvas.

Nanoleaf Canvas features square-shaped touch-enabled panels that can be set to hundreds of different colors. With just a touch, you can activate the light panels, increase or decrease brightness, or change them to another color.

Nanoleaf’s Canvas panels were initially shown off at the 2018 Consumer Electronics Show in January, but they also made an appearance at the IFA trade show in Berlin this week, where the company offered up new details on the product.

Both CNET and Digital Trends were able to get some hands-on time with the upcoming light panels and have shared some thoughts.

According to Digital Trends, the Canvas is “more versatile” than the current triangular light panels, with touch “[elevating] the product to a whole new level.”

Like the existing Nanoleaf Light Panels, the upcoming Canvas panels are HomeKit enabled and can be controlled using the Nanoleaf app or various Siri voice commands. They can also be incorporated into scenes with other HomeKit products.

The Canvas attaches to walls, the ceiling, or furniture using adhesive pads, much like the current Light Panels, and users can arrange them in any desired pattern. Connectors join the squares together.

Up to 500 panels can be connected to a single base station with the Canvas, allowing for entire wall setups outfitted with the lights.

CNET was told that while the original plan was to get rid of the cross-shaped divider in the middle of the panels, the feature is now going to remain in place in the launch version of the device.

Caught up with @Nanoleaf CEO Gimmy Chu at #IFA2018 last night. The new, touch-sensitive Canvas panels are set to arrive December 1st. Here’s a peek at the latest design, with new base station controls like a shuffle button built right into one of the panels itself. pic.twitter.com/cmw5HtPIMw

— Ry Crist (@rycrist) August 31, 2018

There will be no more dedicated control accessory, with one of the panels in the starter kit instead offering touch button icons along the bottom edge. An on/off button will be included, as will a new shuffle button that will change the colors of the device.

Nanoleaf has also added a button for selecting favorite presets and turning on an included microphone so the panels can connect to the music you’re listening to.

Canvas will launch on December 1, with Nanoleaf planning to sell a 9-panel starter kit for $199. Interested customers can sign up for a pre-order invitation list on the Nanoleaf website.

Tags: HomeKit, Nanoleaf
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Alcatel 7 review

As phones continue to get better, we’re seeing some compelling options at the cheaper end of the market. Companies like Motorola have made a statement by producing very nice devices that can be had for the price of a nice steak dinner with the family.

Alcatel, much like Motorola, has plenty of experience making “cheap” but good devices. We’re now getting our first look at its newest “flagship” device the Alcatel 7. This isn’t a flagship in the normal sense, but it is the best and most expensive phone Alcatel released in 2018.

Alcatel sent over its Alcatel 7 for us to take a look at; we’ve used the device as a daily driver for the last few weeks. During this time, we’ve been using it on the MetroPCS network since the 7 is a Metro-exclusive device. You can walk into a store right now and pick one up for under $200.

Hardware

The Alcatel 7 is a bit of a trip down memory lane. While many companies work to put as many so-called premium materials in their devices today, the 7 doesn’t feature any. We’re reminded of the shiny plastic Samsung Galaxy S4 when we pick the device up.

The smooth plastic back is definitely a throwback and won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. Sure, some will overlook the device for not featuring enough glass, but others will appreciate how durable this makes the device. We’ve seen enough of our share of problems with glass-backed phones to make us appreciate that this one can survive a fall.

One of the biggest issues we’ve had with the Alcatel 7 related directly to that plastic back. This thing is incredibly slippery. We have seen some devices that are worse in this respect (the Samsung Galaxy S6 comes to mind), but you will definitely want to grab a case for this phone if you want to avoid is slipping onto the floor. It didn’t really matter where this phone sat, it was always trying to slide.

The back of the device is dotted by a fingerprint scanner just below a dual camera sensor. The scanner is rougher than we’ve seen in other devices and threw us for a bit of a loop. It’s something we got used to eventually, but we never did get used to how painfully slow it is. After using Pixel and Huawei devices with lightning-quick scanners, this one felt like we were puttering along in the slow lane.

The camera, which we’ll touch on more in a little bit, is a dual 12 MP f/2.2 + 2 MP f/2.4 affair. It can record up to 1080p video at 30 fps, but that’s about it. It is flanked by a dual LED flash that does a pretty respectable job of lighting up a room. We’ve definitely seen worse.

Around front, things get a little more interesting. We’re treated to a 6-inch, 1080p display. The display follows the popular new 18:9 display ratio we’ve seen on phones for the last 18 months or so. We were really surprised at what a really nice display the Alcatel 7 has.

For this generation of devices, Alcatel went with its own in-house displays to cut down on some costs and it was a great move. Sure, you’re not going to be blown away like you would be on the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 (a phone 5x its price!), but considering this is a $180 device, we were impressed.

Colors look fantastic and pop right off the screen. Where some cheaper displays appear to have the display far below the digitizer, images felt forward and right in front of our eyes with the Alcatel 7. The only time we could really tell we were looking at a budget panel was some slight color shifting when looking at the device off-axis. Though that being said, the phone does get very bright outdoors and is very usable on all but the brightest of days. Low light scenarios were a bit different. We wish the display was able to get a little bit darker so it was a little easier to use late at night or first thing in the morning.

Above the display sits your normal selection of sensors and the front-facing camera. We really enjoyed front-facing flash for selfies, something that is bound to be a popular feature with younger individuals looking for a solid phone. Just beware, this thing gets BRIGHT and will leave you blinking for a few minutes after. Still, it’s a nice touch.

Another nice feature we’re seeing in more devices is fantastic buttons. The Alcatel 7 has wonderfully clicky buttons and a textured power button. Nothing ruins an experience quicker than mushy buttons that you have to think about when pressing. Alcatel’s choice of buttons here is great. They’re tactile, have great travel, and almost no wiggle. Sure, this might be a small thing, but its this attention to detail we really appreciate.

The top of the device hides an IR blaster that you’d be forgiven for forgetting about. It was trendy to stick these devices back in the HTC One M7 days, but that quickly died out. We love to see Alcatel keeping the idea alive here. It’s convenient to grab our phone, open up an app and have control over our cable box, television, or window-mounted air conditioning unit.

The opposite end of the device holds the USB type-C port and a speaker. We weren’t blown away by the sound quality of the speaker, but it was fine for a speaker call in a moderately loud situation. You aren’t going to stun anyone with how awesome music sounds coming out of this thing, but it’ll get the job.

And speaking of music coming out of this thing– yes– it does have a 3.5mm headphone jack!

Software

Cheaper Android devices are a mixed bag in terms of software. We see some like Nokia embracing stock Android. But, equally as often, we see others like Blu put really ridiculous skins on the phone.

Alcatel tries to walk a fine line here and does a pretty decent job.

After you get through the initial setup, you’re greeted by a launcher and icons that will make you roll your eyes. But, upon further inspection, there’s a lot to like here. Yes, the Joy Launcher is terrible and the icons are laughably bad but those are easily replaced. And hey, at least the Google pane is to the left of the homescreen, something we’d like to see more often.

The rest of the device is left unmolested by customization by Alcatel. Notifications, settings, and other important system apps look just like they would on your Pixel device. There are some added settings like Face Unlock (which I was never able to get to work despite repeated efforts), but you’ll feel at home here if you’ve ever owned a Nexus or Pixel device.

Where Alcatel and Metro go wrong is the apps it has included with the system. We’ve seen devices that have included more, but this definitely on the high side. The phone is loaded down with apps like Metro’s own “App Store”, MetroZONE, Lookout, Device Unlock, Hotspot, Name ID, myMetro, and more.

Metro PCS’ App Store application is nothing more than an advertisement. The app gives users links to suggested and promoted applications and does nothing more than link to the Play Store listings for these apps. It’s like Metro asked “How can we make some money?” and came up with this. It’s terrible and shouldn’t exist in the first place.

Another pretty terrible inclusion is the MetroZone app. The app aims to be a one-stop shop for all of your local news, movie times, events, gas prices and more.

I wish I had never opened this app.

The Alcatel 7 unit we have for review is now taken over by advertisements because of the MetroZone app. Every time we open up the device, we see an ad. They appear full screen until you close them, which doesn’t sound like a big deal until you quickly need to get some info from your device. It feels like I’m using Internet Explorer in 2007 without a popup blocker.

I think what honestly bugs me the most is this app doesn’t give me any information I didn’t already have access to. Weather applications are extremely popular. So are apps for gas prices and movie times. And then there are the sponsored blog posts it tries to get you to click on….

Ugh.

One addition that we did like is Alcatel’s Smart Manager. This app allows you to keep an eye on which apps are opening on startup and which apps are deep in hibernation. I’m not sure how useful it will be to most people but giving users more control over their devices is never a bad thing.

We also appreciated the power saving modes included. Most Android OEMs include some kind of lower power mode, but the Alcatel 7 has two. We have our normal power saving mode that kicks on when your battery gets low and limits background activity, throttles down your processor speed, and dims the screen.

Then we have an even more powerful mode that turns the wallpaper black, limits which apps can be launched and is designed to get the absolute most out of your device.

We love this restrictive power saving mode, but there seems to be a problem with its implementation on the Alcatel 7. Our unit constantly reloaded the power saving mode and therefore wouldn’t let us access anything. It took a full power cycle get out of the mode and we came away with a bit of a bad taste in our mouth. If we had been in an emergency situation with a dwindling battery, this could make the difference between getting help and not.

There are a ton of little quirks with the Alcatel 7’s software, but at its core, it sticks pretty close to stock. If you replace the launcher and disable some of the built-in apps, you could probably enjoy your time with the Alcatel 7 a little bit more than we did.

Performance

The Alcatel 7 is a budget device through and through. It features a MediaTek Helio P23 SoC clocked at 2.5GHz. The octa-core chip is not the fastest or most powerful out there and it shows in the day-to-day performance of the Alcatel 7.

We found tasks like opening apps or scrolling through lists frustrating. There is lag in almost all areas of the device. The system routinely drops frames during animations which leads to stuttering and a choppy feel. Android is heavily dependant on the device being able to render graphics and animation smoothly for an overall pleasing software experience and the Helio P23 really falls flat here.

But, it’s not all bad news. The Alcatel 7 reminds us a lot of that older car that takes a few cranks to get going, but once it does, is completely fine. We saw a ton of dropped frames and sluggish behavior after waking the phone up from a deep sleep, but once we used the device for more than a minute or so, we were good to go. Scrolling through Reddit or browsing Instagram was completely fine. It’s a weird issue, but one we were able to reliably produce.

Unfortunately, the bad news doesn’t stop there. The phone isn’t properly able to support the camera app because of how much lag is in the system. Remember the front-facing flash we mentioned? Well, almost every selfie we tried to snap with the flash enabled failed. The flash would light up, go dim again and we’d still be waiting on the camera shutter.

It is ridiculous for a phone in 2018 to behave like this. If Alcatel’s key demographic for this device is younger individuals looking for an inexpensive phone, it is really shooting itself in the foot with this terrible experience. I’m not sure if you’ve heard, but people like to take pictures of themselves and their friends with the front-facing camera and they don’t like to be embarrassed by terrible phone performance.

The Alcatel 7 features just 2 GB of RAM and this initially gave us pause going into this review. We routinely review devices with double or triple that amount of RAM and we were interested to see how full-fledged Android would perform with just 2 GB of RAM.

We have to say that we were pleasantly surprised. There were definitely apps that got pushed out of memory before they would on other devices with more RAM, but we never encountered an app being killed while used. We were also surprised to pick up the phone after a while and find some of our social media apps still in memory. Games are another story and die almost immediately, but that is to be expected.

If performance is somewhat disappointing, then battery life is the standout. The Alcatel 7 features a 4,000 mAh battery and supports quick charging. We were able to get well over a day’s worth of use with 40% to 50% of our battery left at the end of the day. The large battery capacity coupled with a weak processor and average display resolution really lended to some fantastic battery life. If you’re a regular user, we could easily see two days of battery life here.

Camera

Most people aren’t going to expect a camera experience that rivals a Samsung flagship on a $180 device. And they’d be right to temper their expectations.

The 12 MP + 2 MP main camera is nothing to write home about. Dynamic range is weak, auto-focus can be hit or miss and we see a lot of colors that are misrepresented. Not only that, pictures with bright light sources routinely look blown out, destroying many lovely outside shots.

Is it possible to take a good picture with the Alcatel 7? Sure. But, you’re going to have to adjust with the included Pro mode, and even then, we’d suggest just sticking them on social media. If you’re looking to pick this device up for your kid as their first device, you probably aren’t going to hear much complaining. But, if you’re used to higher end devices, you will probably be frustrated here.

Click here to view an album of Alcatel 7 camera samples on Google Photos

Conclusion

During our review period, I asked several people for their thoughts on the Alcatel 7. Almost universally, people thought the device felt pretty cheap. On its face, that’s not a great sign. But, when I asked those same people how much they thought the device would retail, I didn’t get any answers under $300. Sure, it might not feel premium, but Alcatel isn’t asking for a premium price either.

One area where the 7 shows its value is the display. We really can’t say enough how impressed we were with the panel on this device. We’ve seen devices that cost two to three times more with inferior displays. Since we spend our entire lives looking at screens now, it makes sense to pick a phone with a quality display and the Alcatel 7 won’t disappoint.

Unfortunately, the Alcatel 7 disappoints in enough areas that we’d suggest holding off if you’re used to the flagship lifestyle. The MediaTek processor in the Alcatel 7 just isn’t good enough to get the job done. We found the experience of using this phone very frustrating due to slowdowns and lag.

We’re also disappointed in the apps Metro and Alcatel loaded on the device. Some are pointless while some almost feel malicious like MetroZone. Sure, there aren’t a ton of these apps (and far less than you’d expect to see on a Samsung flagship), but they’re just plain bad. If you do decide to pick this phone up, I’d avoid these at all cost. Uninstall or disable where you can.

But these trade-offs aren’t enough to avoid this phone. There are few devices in a carrier store that carry a price tag under $200 and that makes the Alcatel 7 very attractive. If you’re picking this up for your kid or perhaps an older family member that needs a first smartphone, they’ll probably be fine with this.

Alcatel has a long history of making quality devices and they’ve done so here again. The Alcatel 7 certainly isn’t perfect, but it gets the job done.