First E-Ink Smartphone With QWERTY Keyboard Keeps You Connected Minimally
Image via Minimal Company
Is the social obligation of glaring at a bright screen to keep up with your loved ones wearing you out? The Minimal phone might be your knight in shining (or should we say, e-ink) armor. Designed by the Minimal Company, this unique smartphone ditches the typical vivid display for e-ink, allowing for comfortable reading even in direct sunlight—perfect for catching up on articles or novels on your phone.
Apart from its 3.5-inch, 300 PPI E-Ink display that keeps eye strain at bay, the Minimal phone sports a full physical QWERTY keyboard, bringing back the satisfying clickety-clack of tactile typing à la the classic BlackBerrys.
Image via Minimal Company
Despite the throwback vibes, the Minimal phone is no slouch under the hood. It runs a customized version of Android 13, so you can still access essential apps like navigation, ride-sharing, and even some social media. This isn’t one of those “dumbphones,” after all.
The battery life is also impressive, thanks to the power-efficient e-ink display and 4,000mAh battery. Estimates suggest you can expect up to four days of use on a single charge—a far cry from the constant top-ups most smartphones demand.
Image via Minimal Company
Image via Minimal Company
The model also supports Qualcomm 18W wireless charging for added convenience, modern amenities such as NFC, GPS, a fingerprint sensor, and face unlock, and is compatible with major networks like AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon. There’s an MTK 6769 CPU, 4GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage too.
Needless to say, there are some trade-offs. With an e-ink display, you can forget about watching videos at their optimal quality or playing graphically demanding games. The screen also refreshes slower than a typical smartphone display, so scrolling might feel less fluid. Additionally, app selection could be limited compared to mainstream smartphones.
If you find yourself constantly glued to your phone screen and yearning for a more digital detox-friendly experience, the Minimal phone is definitely worth a look. Currently in its prototyping stage, the device has reaped 67% of its US$500,000 goal on Indiegogo as of the time of writing.
Image via Minimal Company
[via Yanko Design and Good e-Reader, images via Minimal Company]
