Mudita pure: a classic “dumbphone” with e-ink screen(mudita.com)
mudita.com
Mudita pure: a classic “dumbphone” with e-ink screen
https://mudita.com/products/phones/mudita-pure/
19 comments
Seems a bit too pricy, $350!?! Does seem compelling though. Would love to see support for signal and other e2e encrypted messengers.
Looks very interesting, but I'd rather go with something based on Android maybe?
And what's up with the meditation timer? That sounds like bloatware, made me lose interest
At $351 this almost seems like a prank. Plenty of dumbphones on Banggood at $40 or less.
I wouldn’t be surprised if majority of that price is E-Ink licensing fee.
I expect they just buy the e-ink panel from someplace. Its cost will include any such fees. Small panels are expensive compared to alternatives, but not THAT expensive. Example: https://www.adafruit.com/product/4687
As with almost everything nowadays, it is about volume. If you're Apple and you're buying a million displays an order, then that's the tier 1 price which is where the price is dominated by the actual material costs and buyers are arguing about the cost of Indium or silicon that went into the package. At the complete other end is single unit distributors where the price represents the markup every other layer of distributor put in. The only time a single unit distributor is able to offer a good price is when some tier-1 buyer decided to dump an entire batch because it has some aberration that they can't tolerate but someone who's doing stuff by hand can.
Nice keyboard, but no T9 support? It's the most important hardware/UX question, but appears last in the hardware FAQ:
"Mudita Pure has a numeric keyboard that doesn’t support T9, which encourages people to type more slowly and really focus on what they’re sending. We call it ‘mindful typing’. Knowing the limitations of typing on a physical keyboard, we will also have a desktop app that allows you to type on your computer if you need to send a longer message. We prefer triple clicks, over imperfect predictions."
Crazy... (or maybe just cost-cutting?)
"Mudita Pure has a numeric keyboard that doesn’t support T9, which encourages people to type more slowly and really focus on what they’re sending. We call it ‘mindful typing’. Knowing the limitations of typing on a physical keyboard, we will also have a desktop app that allows you to type on your computer if you need to send a longer message. We prefer triple clicks, over imperfect predictions."
Crazy... (or maybe just cost-cutting?)
Interesting. Obviously anything after 2G cannot really be a "dumb phone", but they have made a good effort at hiding the usual functionality of a smart phone. I'm going to stick to my Nokia 105 for as long as 2G is kept alive where I am...
> Obviously anything after 2G cannot really be a "dumb phone"
Why? You can have a 5G modem and not use any of its APIs besides calls and SMS.
Why? You can have a 5G modem and not use any of its APIs besides calls and SMS.
How feasible is it to drive a 5G (or any G after 3) modem with a low-power microcontroller?
At £332, and without T9. I expect that I should never have to charge it.
I'd be willing to pay that, if it had T9 and an estimated battery life of around 10 weeks (with moderate to heavy use).
I'd be willing to pay that, if it had T9 and an estimated battery life of around 10 weeks (with moderate to heavy use).
They haven't listed talk or stand-by times... I wonder if those numbers are anything special. That is stand-by of at least week preferably a few...
"A phone with an ultralow SAR value,if you want to minimise your mobile radiation exposure."
bunk.
"Pure’s screen doesn't emit blue light directly into your eyes. Most smartphones dazzle us with a direct frontlight, whereas Mudita Pure has a special layer of reflective foil which guides the light directly onto the display."
No backlit display then?
"Researchers around the world have begun to question the influence that prolonged exposure to an artificial source of radiation has on our health. There are no clear answers yet but there are a lot of indications that electromagnetic fields are not safe for humans. To err on the side of caution, especially in some conditions (e.g. cancer treatment, pregnancy), doctors often advise to avoid cell phone radiation as much as possible."
Emphasis mine, weasel words abound
"Mudita Pure can serve as a data modem for your notebook or desktop computer. We decided to enable tethering via USB C cable so that Pure can be used as an external GSM modem. This was a decision made to further minimize the SAR value of Pure. We consciously chose not to equip Pure with a mobile internet browser as this device supports living an offline life."
All this patented SAR reduction they talk about is a layer of copper foil between the antenna and display. It's not a good shield, .5-2.5db attenuation according to the patent, but I wonder if it could effect connectivity when the phone's laying face up on a table.
I'm bashing them but it doesn't look like a terrible product, they're just selling it as a lifestyle choice that doesn't match how I live. Dual-sim, (presumably) long-life, lightweight and streamlined design focused on doing a few things well. No backlight on the display may be a deal breaker for me but I can see the appeal for this phone.
bunk.
"Pure’s screen doesn't emit blue light directly into your eyes. Most smartphones dazzle us with a direct frontlight, whereas Mudita Pure has a special layer of reflective foil which guides the light directly onto the display."
No backlit display then?
"Researchers around the world have begun to question the influence that prolonged exposure to an artificial source of radiation has on our health. There are no clear answers yet but there are a lot of indications that electromagnetic fields are not safe for humans. To err on the side of caution, especially in some conditions (e.g. cancer treatment, pregnancy), doctors often advise to avoid cell phone radiation as much as possible."
Emphasis mine, weasel words abound
"Mudita Pure can serve as a data modem for your notebook or desktop computer. We decided to enable tethering via USB C cable so that Pure can be used as an external GSM modem. This was a decision made to further minimize the SAR value of Pure. We consciously chose not to equip Pure with a mobile internet browser as this device supports living an offline life."
All this patented SAR reduction they talk about is a layer of copper foil between the antenna and display. It's not a good shield, .5-2.5db attenuation according to the patent, but I wonder if it could effect connectivity when the phone's laying face up on a table.
I'm bashing them but it doesn't look like a terrible product, they're just selling it as a lifestyle choice that doesn't match how I live. Dual-sim, (presumably) long-life, lightweight and streamlined design focused on doing a few things well. No backlight on the display may be a deal breaker for me but I can see the appeal for this phone.
It has been on pre-order for years now