Full Review of the Minimal Phone with an E INK screen

The Minimal  Phone is a $499,  Android 14-based device designed to reduce screen addiction using a 4.3-inch E-Ink display and physical QWERTY  keyboard . It offers excellent battery life.

The Minimal Phone is a distraction-free smartphone with an E INK e-paper screen. It harkens back to the day when BlackBerry phones reigned supreme with full QWERTY keyboards. The Minimal phone has a full keyboard, making it easy to type, text your friends, and use apps such as WhatsApp. It runs on a skinned version of Android 14 called the Minimal Launcher. While the interface is limited to a text-only list on the home screen, it still allows users to install apps from the Google Play Store, giving them access to tools like maps, banking, and e-reading apps.

The Minimal Phone is priced at $399 and comes in Pebble, Onyx, and Fusion shades. On top of that, the 4.3-inch E Ink display has a 600 x 800-pixel resolution, which translates to a 230 PPI pixel density. The front-lit display with a 4:3 aspect ratio is well-suited for day-to-day tasks such as online research, catching up on your latest emails or other social media content, reading e-books or other office documents, etc.

The display is readable in direct sunlight, and the front light ensures you can continue reading even in the dark. The front light can be turned off to further conserve battery power. However, the slow refresh rate makes the display only suitable for static content and less suitable for videos, games, etc.

Under the hood is a MediaTek MT6769 processor, 6 GB of LPDDR4X RAM, 128 GB of internal storage, a 3000 mAh battery with 15W Qi wireless charging, and a 16 MP rear camera. The power button houses a fingerprint sensor, and a dedicated screen refresh button is also included. Underneath the display is a keyboard featuring 35 keys and a hotkey. The keys offer 0.15 mm of key travel. Connectivity options include WI-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5.2, 4G LTE, and NFC. The phone also has a USB-C port and a 3.5mm headphone jack. It operates on a 4G LTE network, purposefully lacking 5G to limit data-heavy usage. The dimensions are 142 x 78 x 8.6mm and weighs 165 grams.

Minimal is almost entirely plastic, feels lightweight, and feels a little bit cheap. Fingerprint smudges all over the back of the screen, but some 3rd-party D-Brand cases help eliminate them.

This phone came out in 2025 and has been on the market long enough that the software feels more polished than that of Bigme phones with black-and-white e-paper displays. It runs Google Android 14 and has full access to the Google Play Store, where you can download millions of free and paid apps.

There are a few downsides to the Minimal Phone. The 16-megapixel camera leaves much to be desired. The photos often come out looking grainy and blurry, not to mention the exposure issues. On top of that, placing the 5-MP selfie camera right next to the keyboard makes it easy to accidentally block while holding the phone. Plus, the large bezels are quite noticeable.

Wrap Up

The Minimal Phone is ideal for users seeking to break smartphone addiction without giving up essential apps. It is a high-quality, “boring” phone that successfully adds friction to daily, mindless consumption, but it is not recommended for those who value speed, high-quality photography, or smooth media consumption.