Operator group Orange announced availability of the Alcatel OneTouch Pixi 2 smartphone across its Middle East and African markets, stating that its predecessor “rapidly became the most popular smartphone in Orange shops in Africa and the Middle East”.

Nearly 250,000 units of Pixi were shifted in six months, with “one out of every five” smartphones sold by Orange across Africa and the Middle East coming from the fast-growing Chinese player. Indeed, Alcatel OneTouch made a brief entry into the top-five mobile phone manufacturers, with the company standing out among its key Chinese rivals through its strength in international markets.

Pixi 2 is a 3G device with 3.5-inch screen and 1GHz dual core processor, running Android 4.2. It retails from $60 alongside supporting data, voice and SMS offers.

Yves Maitre, EVP connected objects and partnerships at Orange, said: “The smartphone landscape is rapidly changing – with high quality smartphones becoming increasingly affordable and accessible.”

Initial availability is in Kenya, Madagascar, Jordan, Cameroon, Egypt and Senegal and the device will be available in 15 other countries across AMEA in the future. Orange will also sell Pixi 2 in Armenia and the Caribbean.