Minimal Phone: Low-priced smartphone with E Ink display and complete keyboard
Minimal Phone: Low-priced smartphone with E Ink display and complete keyboard
The Minimal Phone is a smartphone with an E Ink screen instead of a conventional LCD or OLED screen. It also features a physical keyboard.
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Why do these phones always miss the mark?
Expand on that thought...
I'm just annoyed that they sell uncomplicated phones, but they are always hundreds of dollars. Just put an eink screen on a cheap SOC price around $40.
$40 is way too low. Economics of scale do not apply for such a niche product. $140-180 should be doable.
The problem is that e-ink is a patented technology and the patent owner charges insanely high royalties for using it in your product.
You can't even buy a standalone e-ink display panel for $40.
Their patent is expiring soon so prices will come down but that isn't the current market.
Making a product made to discourage usage is always going to fail. Palm phone had everyone excited because we wanted a good small phone. Instead they made an intentionally bad small phone and wondered why no one wanted it.