YotaPhone 2

[EarlyMon]

YotaPhone 2

Snapdragon 801, 2 GB RAM, stock Lollipop, 5" 1080p front display and qHD e-paper b&w rear display.

Rear display can run its unique widgets - or just anything, including a mirror of the main.

Make phone calls, do texts, email, read ebooks on the rear cover with the main screen off. The brighter it is out, the easier it is to see. Runs for days that way on a single charge.

Available in black or white, coming to the US via an Indiegogo project, out normally in 20+ other countries this year.

Tell me that this isn't way cool and you don't want it on your next phone.

http://phandroid.com/2015/05/13/yot...rice-drops-in-uk-with-new-white-color-option/

 

[El Presidente]

I'd love it.

However, none of the carriers over here stock it and I can't afford the £440 up front.

If my network did stock it, it would probably be my next phone.

 

[funkylogik]

I think it's genius. Hopefully some more manufacturer pick up the idea (or is it patented?)

 

[nboard11]

I'm sure others will follow. I'd love a rear screen on my note 4. Will be a good challenge for case makers like otter box

 

[funkylogik]

Cool point

 

[muchokihillary18]

Amazing phone, nice design

 

[codesplice]

I've been interested in YotaPhone since I read about their first version last year, and I've been keenly following the developments regarding the YotaPhone 2. I'm really really really digging that device.

I am, however, quickly growing tired of established, revenue-making companies using crowd funding platforms for launching their new devices. If you want to offer preorders, offer preorders. Just don't take advantage of a funding source designed for getting small startups and one-off projects up and running. You're a grown-up business; invest your own money in production, take your own risks. (Yes, I'm also looking at you, Canonical, and you, Pebble.)
/soapbox

 

[kate]

Interesting idea, it reminds me of the dual screen Android flip phone.

 

[EarlyMon]

The Kyocera Echo was the one that crossed my mind.

I tried to imagine all sorts of variations on that for e-ink but I've ended up liking the YP simplicity the best.

 

[Dchomiez15]

The back of the phone looks awesome. That's something different for sure!

 

[funkylogik]

Peeps were saying in a podcast lastnight (think it was Phandroid's mobile roar, either that or Android Central) that the eink part is very laggy which is a disappointment

 

[codesplice]

Peeps were saying in a podcast lastnight (think it was Phandroid's mobile roar, either that or Android Central) that the eink part is very laggy which is a disappointment

I kind of think that's the nature of e-ink. Used a paperwhite kindle? Same sort of display if I'm not mistaken.

Not really something I'd want to use for regular interaction, but it would be great for displaying static information - weather widgets, Google Now cards, music controls, notes, lists, etc.

 

[funkylogik]

Nope never used a paperwhite but good point mate

 

[EarlyMon]

The need for a high response panel just isn't there - and the whining about it by the blogosphere is kinda silly.

When they make high response color e-paper, we can stop using the present LCD and AMOLED technology almost altogether.

They don't, we can't, so it's no surprise - and not a real problem when you also have a high response screen anyway.

 

[codesplice]

and not a real problem when you also have a high response screen anyway.

This.

This is kind of key when discussing the YotaPhone's screen setup. It already has a responsive primary display. The e-ink display on the back is an added purpose-built secondary display specifically for those functions I mentioned earlier.

It's the best of both - a standard display for standard usage, and an always-on battery-friendly display for the sort of information or controls that you want to be always available.
It's quite brilliant, really. Money-grubbing crowd-funding soft launch aside, I may still have to pick one up.

 

[EarlyMon]

Blogosphere writers being condescending about this phone could create a negative, self fulfilling prophesy.

Influence the market by cutting it down and calling it quirky, report abysmal sales because it must not have been good enough, the idea fades from production, and is just another quirky phone.

And meanwhile continue to feed the debate over battery efficiency, battery size, and replaceable batteries.

How about this - stop using so much power and use your phone more often.

The basic specs put this pretty much the same as an HTC One M8 - a danged good phone.

Now remove the biggest cause of battery drain, the screen, and drop that part to almost zero to check time and weather, do emails and texts.

We have smartphones but the way we use them could be replaced with two devices - a PDA (or personal game player) and a feature phone.

Smartphone conveniently makes it so you don't have to carry multiple devices.

But your feature phone from years ago probably had better battery life than you've ever seen on a smartphone.

The back of the Yotaphone is a feature phone, the front is a PDA/game player.

Sheer genius is right.

 

[funkylogik]

Yup you guys are right the more I think about it.
Genius idea. True innovation

 

[Maikk_]

i feel im watching the future.

 

[Maikk_]

The lag of The display is because The eink has a 1 sec time to refresh. (Its like 1hz).
But look The bright side. With 1 core at 400 MHz you can read with no problem, so that is a possitive point to your battery. Thats why they say you can stay two or three days without charging it. Pretty tricky because 3g will kill tour battery in a day or so.
I dont really like The gadgets thing(because of the refresh thing) ,but is a good option anyways.

 

[G123456]

I like this one more -

 

[EarlyMon]

I like this one more -

It's a video from 2012, so good luck with that.

 

[Maikk_]

u have eink on a cellphone why? u have no media there, its like a nook, a small nook...

 

[EarlyMon]

u have eink on a cellphone why? u have no media there, its like a nook, a small nook...

I don't understand the complaint.

A lot of us use our phones for ebooks and other media.

The reasons why for e-ink are really simple and already mentioned in detail.
There were promises of color e-ink becoming widely available with Mirasol displays a few years back but so far as I know, that's only made it to a smart watch so far.

 

[Maikk_]

compare to the yoda i think:
ok, you have 2 screens, one is great if you just want to see any incoming message, or to save a picture (as the example of the map witch is great for saving battery). but i see no point on a cellphone with just an e-ink screen. you cant properly do lots of things :
min 6.50

(at min 1.30 you have color e ink.)
im not saying : you have an android phone you should play with it to angry birds.
but if you want to do something besides reading (messages mails or ebooks) the e-ink cant do it, at least that is my point. regarless i highly suggest using a ebook reader to read, they are great (i have the cheaper version of kindle and its great). also the adventages of only having an e-ink screen are not so great i think.

but its just my taste about the device. i think its great to extend what we have now and put it one screen at the back of the phone, like an extention, an improvement.

 

[funkylogik]

I think the whole point is that it isn't "just e-ink" it has a full LCD display on the front. The e-ink back is just an added extra built into normally redundant space