Startup Minimal decided to launch a smartphone in the style of BlackBerry models that were popular before the iPhone appeared. The Minimal Phone smartphone has been given an E Ink display (apparently touch-sensitive) and a physical QWERTY keyboard. The device is unlikely to be suitable for games and watching videos, but it can be used to view text files and sites, work with e-mail and, of course, calls and messages. The message the company wants to convey with the launch of Minimal Phone: “Live more, scroll less”; In other words, users are recommended to look at the screen less and enjoy real life more.

Minimal Phone’s e-ink screen is black and white and is very economical in terms of power consumption. The manufacturer promises that the battery with a capacity of 4000 mAh will be enough for four days of autonomous operation of the smartphone on a single charge. The device runs the Android operating system, or rather its version optimized for low-power, high-contrast E Ink displays with a low refresh rate. There is also support for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and 4G cellular networks (5G may be added in the future). The dimensions of Minimal Phone are 120x72x10 mm.

The retail price of the smartphone is expected to be around $ 400, but there is no information yet about the start of sales: only the crowdfunding campaign will start in February. Perhaps members will be able to get a discount on their purchases when (or if) the device is released.