The Back of
This Phone Is a Touchscreen e-Reader
BARCELONA — On its front, the YotaPhone 2 looks like any other
smartphone here at Mobile World Congress. But on the rear of the device, where
most phones show little more than the logo and information from the FCC, this
phone has managed to fit a whole second display.
As with its predecessor, the back of the YotaPhone 2 — a sequel to
the innovative YotaPhone — is all E Ink. The idea on the first device was to
let users receive notifications, read text and perform other tasks on the
battery-saving E Ink display. E Ink, the technology on the display of the
Amazon Kindle and several other e-readers, sucks up much less battery power
than does an LCD or LED screen, like those found on most popular
smartphones.
And as anyone who’s ever owned a Kindle will tell you, there are
other advantages to E Ink: It’s easier on the eyes for long periods and works
much better in direct sunlight.
The first YotaPhone had major issues. You couldn’t actually
interact directly with the E Ink display — it was not a touchscreen — so you
had to rely on the phone’s LCD display to pull up the information being shown
on the rear. This got in the way of the battery-saving aspects in a number of
scenarios.
For things like reading, there was a small touch panel beneath the
screen. It was a bit of a clunky solution, but at least it meant you didn’t
have to turn on the front screen every time you finished a page.
The second YotaPhone addresses the issue with a full E Ink
touchscreen on the back. That means you can flip through pages as you read a
book or tick items off a to-do list. In fact, for a number of activities, you
don’t have to rely on the front screen at all.
E Ink still tends to be slower, clunkier and generally less
versatile than tablet and smartphone touchscreens. You’re not going to want to,
say, play Angry Birds on the back of this device, so the battle between casual
gaming and battery life will continue to rage on.
The company is bumping up some other specs for the YotaPhone, too.
The front display, for example, was upgraded in clarity from LCD to AMOLED.
Both screens are increasing in size, with the front now at 5 inches and the
rear at 4.7 inches.
The phone also has a faster processor and NFC for things like
wireless payment. The version being shown off at the show is still an early
prototype, so we weren’t even allowed to touch it. But the final version should
start shipping in the last quarter of this year to select markets, with a U.S.
version arriving a few months later.
No price was announced. But anyone who picked up the first
YotaPhone can pick up its predecessor at a steep discount, according to a
representative.
Posted
By : Muhammad usman
Source:yahoo
news
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