Minimal Phone 2 ditches E Ink for OLED — but keeps the QWERTY keyboard
Minimal's second QWERTY smartphone has landed on Kickstarter, and the biggest change from the original is a switch from E Ink to a full-color OLED screen. The crowdfunding campaign has already pulled in over $800,000 from more than 1,200 backers — eight times its $100,000 goal. For anyone who misses the feel of a physical keyboard, this is one of the very few modern phones that still offers one.
The look and the hardware
The Minimal Phone 2 keeps the BlackBerry-style layout: a physical backlit QWERTY keyboard sits below the display, housed in an aluminum body measuring 122.6×72×9.48mm. The screen is a 3.92-inch AMOLED panel at 1080×1240 resolution with a 90Hz refresh rate. Under the hood sits a MediaTek Dimensity 8300 chip paired with either 8GB or 12GB of RAM. There's a 50MP rear camera (f/1.8), a 20MP front shooter, a 3,000mAh battery with 27W wired and 15W wireless charging, and — notably — a 3.5mm headphone jack. The phone also supports Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.4, NFC, a side-mounted fingerprint scanner, dual SIM (physical + eSIM), and DisplayPort video output over USB-C.
The Minimal Phone 2 retains its physical QWERTY keyboard below a new AMOLED display.
The OS is Minimal's own Android-based shell, called Minimal OS. Details on its app curation policy — whether it restricts certain apps to reduce screen time — remain sparse, so take the "distraction-free" pitch with some caution until more is known.
Backlit metal-dome keys are a key selling point for tactile typists.
The price and the catch
Three tiers are available on Kickstarter. The base 8GB/256GB model starts at $599, the 8GB/512GB version goes for $675, and the Founder's Edition (12GB/512GB, exclusive Ember colorway) is $899. Standard models come in Onyx or Pearl.
That starting price is around $150 more than the original Minimal Phone's street price — and that gap reflects the OLED upgrade. Whether a color screen undercuts the whole "minimal" premise is a fair question. The E Ink display was the most distinctive thing about the first phone; without it, this is essentially a mid-range Android with a keyboard attached.
Shipping is expected in December 2026, and there are no carrier partnerships or retail pre-orders announced yet — it's a crowdfunding campaign, which carries the usual delivery risks. If you're genuinely interested, Android Authority and The Gadgeteer both have solid breakdowns of where the hardware lands against its niche competitors.
Worth backing?
For keyboard enthusiasts — a small but passionate crowd — the Minimal Phone 2 fills a gap that no mainstream manufacturer bothers with. The OLED upgrade makes it more practical as a daily driver. But at $600 minimum, with December 2026 delivery and no safety net if production slips, this is a bet on a startup, not a sure thing.
