Minimal Phone 2: first look reveals an OLED display, improved QWERTY keyboard, and 5G support

In 2024, Minimal Company announced the Minimal Phone as its first smartphone. Powered by Android and featuring an E Ink display and a QWERTY keyboard, it was described as a smartphone that helped minimize distractions by focusing only on the essentials. Now, the company is back with a successor that will be released as the Minimal Phone 2, and while it shares some features with the first gen model, it also has new ones.

Our first official look at the device comes via a YouTube video that shows what the phone looks like. The Minimal Phone 2 has been redesigned and is said to be smaller than its predecessor. Available in two colors, it still has a physical QWERTY keyboard, albeit an improved one according to the manufacturer. However, it swaps the E Ink display for an OLED panel.

This is a surprise as the E Ink display of the first gen made it easy to not waste time doomscrolling or watching YouTube shorts. Although the E Ink display also had its own issues as a couple of reviews complained about the frequent screen ghosting. Nevertheless, with an OLED display, users should have a much better experience but it also means they can now watch videos, play games, and spend time scrolling on Instagram, thus increasing the time you spend on your phone.

The Minimal Phone 2 also has its front-facing camera above the display rather than at the bottom below the Alt button on the Minimal Phone 1. The phone still has a single rear camera with an LED flash and also features an aluminum body. There are no specifications yet, so it is impossible to say whether the cameras have been upgraded, although that seems very likely.

The video shows the Minimal Phone 2 has ditched the audio jack. It also has its SIM tray on the right side now while the volume buttons are on the left. The phone also has a switch at the top of the frame whose function is unknown. Minimal has also revealed that the phone has support for 5G which means there's a new processor under the hood. The software is also reported to have been improved for a faster experience.

More details of the Minimal Phone 2 are expected to be released later today. So we should know what other new features it will be packing and how it compares to other phones with a QWERTY keyboard such as the Zinwa Q27, the Unihertz Titan 2 Elite, and the Clicks Communicator.