Alcatel has just shown off four new smartphones under the OneTouch PIXI 3 line. Although they're considered affordable handsets, they're still really interesting primarily because they are being marketed as "OS-agnostic" and customisable.

The OneTouch PIXI 3 can run Android, Windows Phone, or Firefox OS. Alcatel is remaining quiet at the moment in regards to how one phone can run different operating systems, but it told Pocket-lint that consumers won't have to deal with the technical hurdle of switching between operating systems. It seems Alcatel's carrier partners will pre-load the phone with one of the three operating systems, depending on your preference.

Consumers won't be able to run all three operating systems at once nor will they be able to switch to a different operating system at a later time. They can only pick one operating system, for forever. It seems like Alcatel wants to reach the most amount of consumers just by making its new smartphone capable of running many different operating systems. It's a cost effective strategy for the company.

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But Alcatel also wants to give consumers multiple personalisation options beyond the operating system, so it's making the new OneTouch PIXI 3 available in our different sizes: 3.5-inch, 4 inch, 4.5-inch, and 5 inch. You can even choose between nine different backplate colors ranging from black to pink. During our hands-on time with the device, we were told the phones come with extra custom options for memory, Dual SIM, etc.

In all honesty, we think the OneTouch Pixi 3 could be a decent budget phone. Don't get us wrong: it's plasticky and thick, with most models coming in around 11.5mm or more thick, though the 5-inch model is 9.5mm thin, and the screen resolution is nothing to fawn over. The 3.5-inch model, for instance, has a HVGA (320x480) TFT 262K color display. But it'll do the trick and supposedly won't break the bank.

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Other specs include a 1.0GHz dual core CPU for the 3.5-inch model, while all the other handsets have the option to upgrade to 1.1GHz quad core, and each model features two cameras. As with all the other features, you can choose from various camera options per device model. You can get, for instance, either a 2- or 5-megapixel front-facing camera for the 4-inch model.

The idea is that consumers will be able to build their OneTouch PIXI 3 phone, from operating system to hardware features, and end up with a handset that suits them and their budget. Alcatel also seemed especially proud of the fact that these affordable devices, which don't yet have an official price or launch date, will support 4G LTE. That said, the 3.5-inch model will only offer a 3G data connection.

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Alcatel confirmed all four devices will be available globally through carrier partners, though it hasn't yet named which carriers.

READ: Alcatel OneTouch PIXI 3 lets you choose between Android, Windows Phone, or Firefox OS