Yota Devices, which was showing a dual-screen Android smartphone at Mobile World Congress last year, has unveiled its new YotaPhone today.
Last year’s device had a conventional 4.3-inch screen on one side and a 4.3-inch ‘e-ink’ display on the other. The new phone has larger screens and has added touch-control to the e-ink side, offering more interactivity. It means users can receive notifications when the main screen is off - and can then respond to them.
The advantage of ‘e-ink’ (or ‘e-paper’) technology is that it can remain always on for notifications without affecting battery life as dramatically as a standard colour screen. In fact, this new YotaPhone comes with a ‘Smart Power Mode’ that lets users save power by turning off the colour screen and using the e-ink display for making phone calls.
Vlad Martynov, CEO of Yota Devices, said “YotaPhone’s arrival on the market last year marked one of the first game changers in smartphones in many years. Yota Devices proved that there is an antidote to the always-dark smartphone screen. The future of smartphones is always-on displays allowing users to stay connected without turning off the real world and disrupting the people around you. The next generation YotaPhone takes this totally innovative concept in smartphones and makes it even better. Now, with two full-touch displays, the next generation YotaPhone is twice as smart, twice as useful and twice as beautiful.”
The next-generation YotaPhone will go on sale in EMEA and Russia by the end of 2014. Customers who purchased the earlier version will be offered a discount.