The YotaPhone, an odd experiment at dual-screen compatibility, is finally going to see a launch. Set for December of this year, Russian OEM Yota is set to bring the two-faced device to the world. The launch will be “international”, and the YotaPhone will come out before Christmas.
The device pairs a run-of-the-mill color screen on one side, and a Kindle-esque eInk display on the other. We first saw the device at CES this year, then again at MWC in Berlin. Now that Yota has lined up their supply chain, it seems they’re ready to bring the YotaPhone to the masses. While we’re excited to see if the concept has real-world merit, we’re not excited at the potential price. Early estimates put it at about 500 Euro, or $750.
If you’re looking for a spec-heavy monster, the YotaPhone won’t help you. It’ll sport a dual-core 1.7GHz chipset on the back of 2GB RAM. The main screen (color) is a 4.3-inch 720p display, and the battery is a disappointing 1,800mAh. With such a diverse set of hardware, we wonder why — or how — it’ll keep up with itself. Clearly meant for lesser tasks, the price tag doesn’t seem to make the stretch worth it.
We’ll hold out judgement until we get a look at it, but even with all that Android can do for lesser devices, we’ll have to see just what this is capable of. The dual screen throws us off a bit, but mostly because we wonder why it’s there, and what we would want to do with it. More to the point, what apps or services can use it? Even with today’s confirmation, we’re still confused by the YotaPhone.
Damn, I was looking forward to this, but not at that price, and not with those specs.