Getting an E-ink phone

Recently, I have been having trouble with overuse of social media again, the same problem I faced 5 years ago.

At the time, I dealt with it by using lots of digital minimalism practices, including but not limited to: removing social media apps on phone, forcibly limiting screen time per day for certain apps (for example, using iOS’ Screen Time feature), using the Forest app to block social media during certain time, etc. These used to help me massively reduce screen time on my phone, which I can re-allocate to other activities – most notably to reading books using a Kindle I bought around the same time. If you aren’t familiar, the Kindle is a device that uses black-and-white e-ink screen which doesn’t emit light at all, looks extremely crisp and easy on the eye (as opposed to the LCD/OLED screens on phones which work by emitting light which can cause eye fatigue), and it does nothing other than displaying the books (which means there’s absolutely no distraction such as notifications). Not to mention, the battery lasts for weeks.

Things changed during the time I lived in Singapore. Factors such as increased stress and mental fatigue, and too much dead time [including 1h30 two-way commute everyday], caused my mind to wander towards social media during my down time again. I did try to substitute this with reading, but bringing the Kindle put on too much weight to my backpack (which was already heavy and I had to carry it around NTU’s huge campus every day), while reading on the phone’s screen was too tiring because I already spent 12+ hours looking at screens. Luckily, this did not affect my study & work too much, but still it ruined my mental state and I felt something needed to change. (I blame the fact that I have not finished a single book this year on this problem)

Being the minimalist that I am, I initially re-thought my usage of the tech devices (laptop, tablet and phone, for me) and the webs/apps I use on them. Long story short, it is impossible for me to stay off avoid using my phone and internet completely, but I needed to change how I use them. Our smartphones and laptops are very handy because they do lots of things: camera, music player, games, books, etc. but it’s a detriment to me because that’s just too much distraction. Some time I opened my phone up to listen to music but inevitably get sucked into some news article that popped up and then wasted hours going down a rabbit hole (not that rabbit holes are always useless, some are useful, but those are exceedingly rare).

That’s when I thought of replacing certain functions of these tech with analog and/or single-purpose devices instead (I was very much inspired by jvscholz, who makes videos about these devices and his mininalistic lifestyles). The Kindle is one example, others that I can think of are: iPods (remember those? with the 3.5mm jack?), camera, physical notebooks and pens, dedicated e-ink mo etc. Using these to replace the phone’s functionalities will help avoid distractions completely. I also think of them as more incentivizing to use, for example: getting the Kindle motivated me to read more books; by that logic getting an iPod would help me enjoy more music, etc. My main concern with this approach is the price, and that I would have to carry some more devices around and worry about charging them (the iPods, for example, existed before USB type-C was universal) – which ironically is the opposite of what a minimalist would want.

Fortunately, last week I came across these devices: android phones with e-ink screens, notably the Boox Palma and Hisense lines (not sponsored btw, just what can find). They function exactly like an android phone, just with e-ink screens like e-readers. To my surprise, some of them have high-quality 3.5mm jacks that can play good music (I’m not an audiophile so I’d just appreciate any 3.5mm jack). I actually first saw these many years ago when looking to buy e-reader, but decided that they weren’t as good as the Kindle due to the small, lean form factor (the Kindle with a square-er shape plus bigger screen is better for reading). Moreover, they are more expensive because they are full-fledge smartphones [Kindle PPW5 costs $139, Books Palma 2 $279, Hisense A5 $170]. It doesn’t make sense to replace my phone with these either, as I need to use some apps (Maps, banking, etc.), most which are compatible with e-ink screens.

But, if viewing them as secondary – hell, tertiary devices (after my phone and Kindle) – they make a lot more sense. The pocketable size would make them easier to carry around – perfect for using on the bus. They also combine the MP3 player, e-reader and android phone into one device. I don’t need any other functionality other than that they can run the Kindle and Spotify android apps, which they can.

The Hisense A5 in my hand. The screen looks dark because it's not emitting light in this image. (It does have backlight for reading in the dark).

Luckily for me, I found an used Hisense A5 on Shopee for just $100, which is reasonable enough that I decided to give it a go. The only downside with this device is that it’s for the China region – so no Google Play Store and therefore not a lot of app support. But remember, it’s Android so apps can be easily installed from external sources (i.e. APK files). But given such limitations, it should only be considered by those who have experienced tinkering with android phones. I happened to have experience rooting [jailbreaking – for iOS crowd] android phones when I was in high-school. So far, the device has been great in that it does exactly the two things I need it to do (Kindle and Spotify - although it did take some tinkering to get them installed) and the e-ink screen looks awesome. The battery should last a few days (not as great as a Kindle, but still impressive).

It’s so fun to use and hold in the hand that I’ve read 100 pages in the one day that I’ve had it (equivalent to the entire previous month). And because it feels like holding a phone, I don't bother reaching for my phone anymore. So yeah, I’d consider this as a total win.