The Minimal Phone 2 adds an AMOLED display and 5G connectivity without losing its old-school charm

A smaller, aluminum-bodied sequel with a full OLED panel, 5G connectivity, and an upgraded keyboard.

By Shikhar Mehrotra Published August 10, 2026

Electronics, Mobile Phone, Phone — Minimal Phone 2

The original Minimal Phone built its entire identity around an E Ink screen that made scrolling annoying on purpose. The black-and-white E Ink screen intentionally made watching videos or scrolling through social media posts look less colorful or appealing to the human eye.

So, when The Minimal Company announced its successor with an AMOLED display that supports a higher refresh rate, I was a bit surprised. I wasn’t expecting the company to walk back the hardware choice that made it quite interesting. But that doesn’t mean that the Minimal Phone 2 isn’t worth a look.

Why ditch the display that defined the brand?

The Minimal Phone 2 trades its e-reader-style E Ink panel for a 3.92-inch 90Hz AMOLED screen. While E Ink displays are slow, sluggish with animations, and genuinely painful for anything beyond text, the AMOLED display gives the phone a modern look and appeal.

Recommended Videos

Isn’t it ironic: Minimal Phone with an AMOLED panel? Anyway, the rest of the redesign feels quite necessary, at least to me. The blocky, sharp-edged shell is gone, and in its place, the company has used a curved aluminum body.

It ships in Black or Silver colors. The physical QWERTY keyboard sticks around as well, with a tactile QWERTY layout that uses metal dome switches, remappable keys, and long-press shortcuts. For use in darker environments, the keys are backlit as well.

Does 5G change the calculus?

Buyers also get a physical silent switch at the top, alongside a 3.5mm headphone jack, which goes with the overall old-school vibe and feel of the phone, which, to be honest, reminds me of classic BlackBerry.

Unlike the original Minimal Phone, the latest iteration gets 5G support, which also implies that the company has used a new chipset inside. Although it’s not confirmed yet, a tipster claims that it could be the Dimensity 8300, paired with 8GB of RAM and either 256GB or 512GB of storage space.

Although the company mentioned that more details about the phone will be revealed on August 10, 2026, the Kickstarter landing page suggests the crowdfunding will remain active for another 29 days. The project has already reached its goal, though, which means that it’s almost certain that the brand will move forward with a commercial launch.

Shikhar Mehrotra

News Writer

For more than five years, Shikhar has consistently simplified developments in the field of consumer tech and presented them…

Topics

Phones

Xiaomi 18 Fold has me questioning what a compact phone should look like, or even cost

I love compact phones, but these wide foldables have me rethinking the whole concept now

Xiaomi 18 Fold at IFA 2026

The best part of my job is the access to some of the coolest gadgets, especially the latest and greatest smartphones. Even then, I often found myself gravitating towards compact phones. At this point, I'd even skip a premium foldable just so I could have something a little more handy.

But every now and then, a larger phone would have this one feature or show me why a bigger phone is still so popular. I also want to play games, watch videos, and occasionally keep two apps open without fighting for every inch of screen space. A smaller phone makes many parts of my life easier, but the compromises aren't nonexistent. Simply making the phone wider may solve those problems, but eventually it becomes harder to handle again.

Phones

Xiaomi’s latest foldable has me convinced this design is here to stay

The Xiaomi 18 Fold pairs an unusual wider design with a surprisingly large battery, homegrown silicon, and flagship cameras, all packed into a 219-gram body.

Electronics, Mobile Phone, Phone

September is becoming a very interesting month for foldable phones, and Xiaomi has just added another to the pile. The Xiaomi 18 Fold has launched in China with a shorter, wider shape that looks a little like a passport when closed. It’s quite a departure from the tall and narrow book-style foldables we’ve become used to, but Xiaomi isn't alone in thinking this might be the way forward.

Samsung already went down a similar road with the Galaxy Z Fold 8 in July, giving it a shorter, wider footprint and a 4:3 display when unfolded. Apple is expected to reveal its first foldable iPhone on September 9 — just two days after Xiaomi's launch — and rumors have repeatedly pointed toward a similar passport-style design. Then there's Huawei, which launched the Mate XT 2 today as well, although it is taking things in an entirely different direction with a tri-fold design.

Phones

Huawei’s latest tri-fold can take an ECG, and it’s like the old Galaxy era is back

This Samsung Galaxy S5 feature is getting revived for Huawei's $3000 tri-folding phone

Electronics, Phone, Mobile Phone

Huawei just dropped its new tri-fold as a spectacular piece of hardware. The redesigned Mate XT 2 has a 10.2-inch folding display, a tougher inward-folding mechanism, and a jaw-dropping price tag. But now that Huawei has revealed the full specifications, one of its most interesting features has little to do with the screen.

The Mate XT 2 can record an electrocardiogram, or ECG, using electrodes built into its metal frame. So if a user unfolds the phone and holds the two sides with both hands, the device can capture a 30-second reading. The accompanying software then generates an ECG report that can flag sinus rhythm, atrial fibrillation, premature ventricular contractions, and premature atrial contractions in adults.