The YotaPhone 2 is a 2-year old smartphone packed with two displays that used to cost around $800, which was probably the reason as to why it didn't get that popular like the iPhone or Galaxy phones. But now, that $800 price tag has been reduced to $115, making it a device that you would want to consider buying once you get to know it.
The Design
The YotaPhone 2 has a body dimension of 5.7 x 2.3 x 0.35 inches and weighs 145 grams. The device itself is made out of plastic, so it doesn't really feel like a premium smartphone that you will find these days.
On the sides, the device features a power button, volume keys and a SIM card tray slot. On top, you will find a 3.5 mm headphone jack. And at the bottom you will find what seems to be like 2 speakers but is actually one speaker and one microphone. There is also a micro USB port that supports OTG which means it can read any USB stick plugged into it.
Speaking about its micro USB port, charging speed on this smartphone is not that fast. It takes about two and a half hours to charge from zero percent to full battery.
Displays
The YotaPhone has two displays. First, we'll talk about its front display. It features a 5-inch AMOLED display with a screen resolution of 1920 x 1080 and protected by a Corning Gorilla Glass 3. The display has deep contrast and the colors are nothing but vibrant, truly proving why it used to be a $800 smartphone back in the day. In addition, screen sensitivity is also great.
The other screen is a 4.7-inch E-ink display that has an always-on feature. Just like the front screen, it is also protected by a Corning Gorilla Glass 3.
What Can The E-Ink Display Do?
Aside from having an always-on feature, which sadly does not light up, it can display notifications and is highly customizable. It also mirrors the front screen, which means whatever you can do on the front screen, you can also do on the back screen. You can even do a back-selfie.
The E-Ink Display's Purpose
Well, back in the day, most smartphones could not last through an entire day with one charge only. So the company that build this device decided to add this feature on the YotaPhone 2, thus giving the device the capability of lasting over two days without charge - that is if you only you use the e-ink back screen.
Full disclosure though, back screen is that the resolution is not the best and the refresh rate is the worst. Basically, everything in the back display seems to happen in slow motion.
Platform And Memory
The Yotaphone 2 runs on Android 4.4 Kitkat and is powered by a Snapdragon 801 chip. It features 32 GB of internal memory storage partnered with 2 GB of RAM.
Regarding its software performance, using apps is fine although there are issues on Chrome, YouTube and even with games. Muli-tasking is also good, but you might not want to keep many big games running in the background because it will be closed - well, it is a 2GB RAM smartphone afterall.
Camera
First, let's talk about the 2 MP front-facing camera. As anyone would expect, it doesn't capture good quality pictures, even with day shots. As for its 8 MP rear camera, it is surprisingly good. Pictures taken under sunny conditions and artificial light were decent. Even the shots taken in low light conditions were good enough.
Battery
The Yotaphone 2 is powered by a 2,500 mAh battery. For its screen-on time using the front display, it will give you about 3 hours, while the E-ink display will give you around 2-3 days. As you may know, the charging speed of this device is not that great. However, this device supports wireless charging. So if you have a wireless charging pad, it should be compatible with the Yotaphone 2.
