This Crowdfunded E Ink Qwerty Phone Isn’t Vaporware After All

When nan Minimal Phone was first announced this clip past year, you mightiness personification been forgiven for reasoning it was vaporware. But 1 twelvemonth — and galore delays — later, nan world’s first Android telephone pinch immoderate an E Ink show and a beingness QWERTY keyboard has begun shipping to backers.

In wide strokes, nan Minimal Phone looks a spot for illustration a BlackBerry, pinch a wide assemblage and a squat aboveground perched supra its streamlined QWERTY keyboard. We’ve seen phones for illustration this before. What makes it guidelines retired is nan aboveground itself, which is simply a monochrome E Ink expanse astatine a whopping 600 x 800 resolution.

Despite utilizing E Ink tech, nan Minimal Phone runs Android 14, truthful nan only apps you’re giving up are those that really can’t tally connected nan sluggish show and basal hardware — you won’t beryllium popping galore headshots successful CoD: Mobile, I fear. Access to each your Android apps mightiness put nan dishonesty to Minimal Company’s committedness of a “distraction-free” phone, but nan institution suggests that nan E Ink expanse still “encourages you to usage them overmuch mindfully.” On nan smartphone-sized Boox Palma e-reader we recovered astir Android apps “just atrocious to use,” which proved a neat measurement of removing their enticement to distract, truthful nan institution mightiness beryllium correct aft all.

While nan telephone is basal successful a less different ways — its 16 megapixel camera looks improbable to impress, and it’s constricted to 4G LTE connections — it packs a less unexpected perks too. NFC payments, a fingerprint sensor, and Qi wireless charging are each supported, and nan inclusion of dual-SIM support, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and expandable retention ticks disconnected astir of nan old-school smartphone nerd wishlist.

Originally group to alloy to Indiegogo backers successful August 2024, nan Minimal Phone slipped to September, past December, and yet started heading retired past week. The institution says it’s shipping phones successful nan bid they were purchased, moving “from now until March.” You tin too bid nan telephone now for proscription successful March, starting astatine $399, a $100 discount connected nan charismatic portion price.

Its main title comes from TCL, whose Nxtpaper phones coming a regular Android telephone acquisition pinch nan action to flip a move and alteration an E Ink-like monochrome mode. There’s nary beingness keyboard though, truthful unless Clicks keyboard cases turn to caller overmuch phones, nan Minimal Phone is nan only crippled successful municipality for those who petition QWERTY and E Ink successful nan aforesaid handset.