First Windows 10 Mobile device from Archos targets entry-level shoppers, disillusioned Android users

Windows 10 Mobile is not even ready for prime time, as Microsoft is still working on it, but some vendors have already announced smartphones that will debut with the upcoming operating system on board. The latest is 50 Cesium, an entry-level device from French electronics company Archos, which is also its first Windows 10 Mobile device.

50 Cesium is the Windows 10 Mobile counterpart to the newly-announced 50e Helium (shown on the left), which is "almost identical" in terms of hardware design. The only noteworthy difference is that the latter runs Android 5.1 Lollipop out-of-the-box. According to the company, this was done in order to "allow the customer to focus on what they like on the inside: the user interface". This is not a new idea, having previously seen HTC, for instance, announce a variant of its Android flagship from last year, One (M8), running Windows Phone instead of Android.

Archos is among the few companies that simplify the decision-making process for customers who have not yet decided whether they should go with Android or Windows 10 Mobile for their new entry-level smartphone. Looking at the Windows Phone space, there are few smartphones in near-identical trim offered with either Android or Windows Phone 8.1 (or Windows 10 Mobile).

Archos could have probably gone a step further by introducing a single hardware design with an option to switch between Android or Windows 10 Mobile at boot, or perhaps allow customers to choose the platform that they want to use upon setting up the device and stick with it. Given that 50e Helium comes with Google Play -- the app store can only be pre-loaded with Google's approval -- this may be something Google could oppose.

Now, let's go through the main specs: 5-inch IPS display with a resolution of 720 by 1,280; 1.1 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 210 processor; 1 GB of RAM; 2,100 mAh battery; 8 MP camera with flash on the back; 2 MP camera on the front; 8 GB of internal storage; microSD card slot; 4G LTE cellular connectivity (Cat. 4, meaning download speeds of up to 150 Mbps and upload speeds of up to 50 Mbps); dual-SIM support; physical dimensions of 147 x 72.5 x 8.5 mm (weight is unknown at this point).

Archos says that both 50 Cesium and 50e Helium will be available from November at a price of just £99. That is about $154 at the time of writing this article, which does not sound like a bad deal given the specs. Windows 10 Mobile will manage fine with 1 GB of RAM, but I believe that the Android counterpart will struggle to perform as well given the same amount of RAM.

Microsoft has not officially said when Windows 10 Mobile will be released, but a November availability date for 50 Cesium sounds likely. The software giant should hope to get the new operating system out well before December, if it wants consumers to pay attention to Windows 10 Mobile devices in the busiest shopping season of the year.