The Yotaphone 2 is an Android smartphone with two displays: a full color screen on one side of the phone and a black and white E Ink display on the other.
The company behind the phone launched it in select markets in late 2014 and the Yotaphone 2 is coming to America soon through an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign that should launch in July.
Ahead of that planned US launch, the Yotaphone 2 is getting a few updates, including new software, a price cut, and a new color option.
The folks at Engadget got a look at a new version of the Yotaphone 2 with a white plastic body instead of black. The front of the phone is still black, but the sides and back are white and the volume and power buttons are now brushed metal.
Engadget also reports that the new model will ship with Android 5.0 Lollipop software, and an over-the-air update is rolling out which will bring Android 5.0 to existing customers for a while.
Yota is also updating its own software to improve the functionality of the E Ink display, which can either be used to either mirror the action of the color screen (even when that screen is off) to let you run any Android app, or to display a series of custom apps designed specifically for Yota’s dual-display devices).
The biggest news may be the price drop though: the Yotaphone 2 is now available in the UK for £440 and in other parts of Europe for €599.
That still makes the Yotaphone 2 pretty expensive (the UK price comes to about $690 US and the price in Euros converts to about $678), but Yota is now selling the phone for about £115 ($180) or €100 ($113) less than its original selling price.
It’s still too early to say how much the phone will cost when it launches in the United States. Phones tend to cost a little less here since taxes aren’t included in the sales price. But it’s unlikely the Yotaphone 2 will be priced like a budget device.
The phone features a Qualcomm Snpadragon 801 processor, 2GB of RAM, 32GB of storage, a 2500 mAh battery, 4G LTE, 802.11ac WiFi, an 8MP rear camera and a 2.1MP front camera.
It has a 5 inch, 1920 x 1080 pixel color screen on one side and a 4.7 inch, 960 x 540 pixel grayscale display on the other.
I like the look and concept of the Yotaphone 2, but the price is a real killer. Even the new price isn’t that great.
I like the idea of both a traditional screen and an E ink display but wonder how you keep from damaging the phone screens in day to day use. Should it have some kind of flap cover that can cover the screen you are not using? Better still would be having the two screens layered one over the other. When the full color screen is on the E ink display is off but when the color screen is turned off the E ink display comes on. Not sure if it is technically possible or how the quality of the displays would be impacted.
You know I was thinking about a cover for it as I was reading. It would have to be a three flap see through with the middle one being a bag-like enclosure. There, I laid out my idea. Lets see how long before they steal it and make money out of it…while I complain they stole my idea!…lol
The E ink display isn’t made of glass it is a tough plastic-like material. I have had mine for nearly a year and not a scratch in sight.
So it’s going to be 16 degrees and cloudy at 14:00 AM, right?