Meet Light Phone – The Most Minimalistic Smartphone So Far
Smartphones are one of the most ubiquitous pieces of technology today, thanks to their Swiss Army Knife-like properties of being able to do almost everything the user wants.
However, some believe that the smartphone’s multi-purpose abilities makes it a huge distraction when it comes to everyday life.
The founders of Light believe that to be the case, which is why the company has designed the Light Phone, a cell phone created with minimalism in mind.
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Initially launched as a Kickstarter project back in 2015, the Light Phone is a credit card-sized cell phone that can only do two things: making and receiving calls. The device itself comes with a numeral-only keypad and display, meaning you won’t be able to send or receive texts on this device.
Usability-wise, the Light Phone can store up to nine phone numbers, and it comes with a SIM card that operates on a 2G GSM network. Users who wish to utilise this SIM card will need to pay a 5 USD monthly fee for the service.
Apart from that, users can also forward calls from their smartphone to the Light phone by signing up for an account and downloading an app onto their smartphones.
While there is no denying that the Light Phone looks sleek and clean, it is the usability part that makes this device a rather hard one to sell. For starters, the phone’s ability to only support 2G GSM network means that the device would be rendered useless if local telcos decide to shut down their 2G networks, something that a few telcos around the world have already done.
On top of that, the Light Phone itself isn’t exactly cheap for what it is. With a retail price of 150 USD, you could potentially get yourself a 2G feature phone for just a fraction of the Light Phone’s price. Still, if you are enamored by the Light Phone’s aesthetics, pre-orders for the device are open and can be done here.