I really like the idea but why the fuck is it $400
this post was submitted on 07 Jun 2025
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Android
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What do you expect a low-volume phone with an alternative e-paper display to cost?
Because of economies of scale
Really sketchy company so far. My order hasnt come after 4 months
They seem to spend a lot on magazine coverage and little on fulfilling orders in time!
This one seems better: https://mudita.com/products/phones/mudita-kompakt/
Example of setup: https://old.reddit.com/r/dumbphones/comments/1kszt14/my_current_set_of_minimalist_apps_on_the_mudita/
Thanks for the idea! But I need my open source apps
You can install F-Droid and any open source Android app.
I just want an acceptable phone with a keyboard god damn it, not some gimmicky shit with a crap screen!
You mean a physical keyboard?
Yes. Unihertz have a couple I'm aware of but their software is dog shit, fx tec pro is out dated and over priced. The blackberry keytwo was the absolute best phone I have ever owned but that is now too old for security updates too so really isnt the best thing to have as your main phone.
Would be happy to hear of some others I may have missed. I backed the planet computers astro slide on indiegogo and they only delivered around 2000 units before stealing everyone elses money. Fucking cunts they are.
Maybe a phone with a clicks case? Iβve been contemplating getting one for my iPhone, but I think it will be way too top heavy. Theyβve also now done one for the moto razr series foldables, those lend themselves a bit better for the extra length of a keyboard
Looks interesting, thanks for replying, I hadn't heard about this. I wonder how it compares to a blackberry keyboard to actually use. A bit too expensive for me as I would have to buy a new phone and all the options currently available are quite expensive phones but I'm definitely going to keep this on my radar and maybe try and get one to try when I can get a second hand pixel 9 for a good price maybe.
Yeah thatβs keeping me from it as well. And maybe the fact that I use a keychron at work that I can just connect via bt to my phone for some lengthier chats
There is also this "Fairberry" project that is basically building the same thing but with a blackberry keyboard that I have had saved for years now I just don't really feel confident with being able to put it together myself and also don't have access to a 3d printer to make the case part or the skills to modify it for my phone.
I have wanted to look into getting someone to make it for me but when the cost of materials and then paying someone to construct it is going to start costing a similar amount to what I paid for the phone it becomes harder to justify.
I have seen it before! Also not confident enough for it haha
I was looking into getting one of these. Saw a clickbait thumbnail along the lines of 'black and white mode for free?' and I realised, I can make my current phone less addicting for free with monochrome mode. And it works. (My screen time has no moved to my PC, but no more endless scrolling.)
I think the general idea of these phones has legs but the addition of a physical keyboard on the Minimal Phone puts it into an extreme niche. It feels more like a passion project designed specifically for the use of the company founder than something tailored to the market, and is stuck between the practicality of the smaller Mudita Kompakt and the performance of the Bigme HiBreak Pro. If the Minimal Company makes a Minimal Phone 2 I'll be interested to see how different the design is.
I mean, when Blackberry existed, it seemed like everyone had one, and the physical keyboard was what people loved about it.
You could say that for any piece of old and irrelevant technology. I'm sure people thought rotary dial telephones were amazing too before something better came along.
Phones with on-screen keyboards existed at the same time. People stopped buying Blackberries because they stopped being available, not because phones with on-screen keyboard were better or more technologically advanced.
Yes, and landline handsets with buttons existed at the same time as rotary dials...what's your point?
My original point is that I don't think a phone with a physical keyboard appeals to only a niche group, based on its wild popularity when it was last available for purchase.
Wild popularity? BlackBerry had the entire physical keyboard mobile market to itself and still failed catastrophically. Its only successful period was prior to the existence of the iPhone. As soon as that was on the market, with its touchscreen keyboard, BlackBerry sank like a brick. What does that say about the popularity of the physical keyboard? Its last release was nearly 8 years ago at this point - it's a dead, irrelevant brand and its major selling point, the physical keyboard, is an extreme niche in today's market.
I mentioned the brand as an example of the feature's popularity. People stopped buying them because they stopped being made, not the other way around. Like other physical controls on cellphones disappearing, I suspect it's a reflection of the cost to produce rather than any technical benefit or a statement of what people want. That's why so many people still use their decades-old phones today.
Nah. I love my palma 2 and can do plenty with it if you accept no cell phone capabilities it's great. I don't see the appeal of a device with worse refresh rate, a keyboard that needlessly eats screen space, and UI that doesn't trust you as a user.
Edit: I suspect people are reacting without knowing wtf a palma 2 is, lol.
What all do you use your Palma for? Can you get any third party apps on it? I have a Boox tablet from a few years ago and it's great for taking notes, but a palm sized eReader has been pretty alluring to me for a while.
I use Aurora store and Fdroid on it. Funny considering direct play store is a selling point of theirs. I mostly use it as an ereader but it's also my work phone since intune doesn't play nice with grapheneos. Being able to fit my ereader in a pocket has been amazing. I rarely leave home without it
You ever try any Spritz reading apps on it? Spritz is an e reading software that displays one word at a time at whatever words per minute you choose. Good for speed reading, but for some reason it's controversial amongst my reading friends lol. My Boox Nova 3 can play videos, so I'm sure the Palma has the refresh rate
I bet the frame rate is fine. Response time is the potential issue. I bet it'd reel like frequently pausing an audiobook with old bluetooth earbuds, which is to say vaguely usable.
Lots of down votes here, but not a lot of discussion... Bots?
I could downvote because we've seen this a lot: underpowered phone that does nothing and costs as much as my Pixel that does everything. Its not technically a scam, but it feels like those magical paper notebooks that supposedly boost your productivity for some reason.
I read the article: $500 and the same battery as my phone. Definitely a scam. I would get one at $100 though.
I meant in the comments. At the time I posted there were only two other comments and both in the negatives, but nothing else. The post was, and still is, decently upvoted.
Oh I understand. I guess bots but its pretty limited by the lack of karma. It could destroy accounts on reddit but not here.
That's not what the Downvote button is for