This upcoming E Ink gadget might be the last word dumbphone

After I tried Boox’s Palma and Palma 2 a couple of months in the past, I could not fairly match both machine into my life. For essentially the most half, sure features of the friction so many people appreciated felt like an excessive amount of of a problem. Nonetheless, it looks as if the China-based firm might be engaged on what may find yourself being the primary dumbphone price shopping for.

At IFA in Germany, Boox confirmed off an upgraded Palma with a colour E Ink show, which after all, is a welcome improve over the primary and second era’s black and white E Ink display, however the important thing new function that caught my consideration is 4G+/LTE mobile connectivity (hopefully, it has a bodily SIM card slot and never simply eSIM). Because of this the subsequent Palma can much more simply work as a primary Android smartphone with deliberately restricted options.

Whereas I loved my time with the Palma 2, one in every of my key points with the E Ink pill is the truth that it relied solely on Wi-Fi connectivity. This meant that if I took it out on the go together with me, I wanted to both tether it to my smartphone, defeating the aim of how I wished to make use of the Palma within the first place, since I wanted to deliver my iPhone 16 Pro, or connect with public Wi-Fi.

And should you’ve ever tried to make use of the web on a Palma, you will know that it’s kind of of a nightmare, notably when attempting to maneuver by means of finicky Wi-Fi authentication screens at Starbucks. Because the Palma and Palma 2 aren’t technically smartphones and had been as an alternative designed to be pint-sized e-readers, this is smart, however a typical statement I’ve seen relating to the E Ink pill is how rather more succesful it might be if it featured an information connection. It seems like lots of people purchased the Palma to make use of as a smartphone alternative, moderately than an e-reader, and it looks as if Boox seen that.

The following-gen Palma might be the dumbphone I have been ready for

It is unclear when Boox plans to launch it, although

In fact, the brand new Palma will nonetheless be terrible at doomscrolling social media, notably with video-focused platforms like TikTok, however that is the purpose of a dumbphone. The addition of an information connection lets me simply obtain Google Chat messages from my companion or Fb Messages from my family and friends, permitting me to maintain tabs on issues which can be necessary to me, whereas nonetheless that includes sufficient friction to stop me from aimlessly browsing the web. In principle, I might even take a fast name from this Palma if I wanted to. Because of this I am nonetheless in a position to take a wholesome break from the siren name of my smartphone, however I am not that disconnected.

This upcoming Palma might be the primary dumbphone that works for me, whereas constructing on what different comparable telephones just like the Light Phone III began. The brand new Palma appears just about similar to the unique Palma and the Palma 2, however there are a couple of upgrades underneath the hood. First off, the e̶-̶r̶e̶a̶d̶e̶r̶ dumbphone options an improve Kaleido 3 colour e-paper show, and it will most likely run on a brand new model of Android, probably Android 14 or Android 15, giving it entry to extra apps in Google’s Play Retailer. The demo version at IFA ran Chinese firmware that does not have entry to the Play Retailer, however that most likely will not be the case with the North American model of the third gen Palma.

Take a look at the video above from YouTube channel Kit Betts-Masters for a glimpse on the upcoming machine. Boox hasn’t formally introduced the third era Palma — it does not have a launch date or an official title but, both.