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John's Phone: a minimalist cell phone
- duncanj 16y agoI don't think I could survive very long without an electronic address book.
- atgm 16y agoIt does have speed dial, so you could put in the most frequently-used numbers.
- xd 16y agoIt appears to have a paper phone book in the back behind a flap .. awesome.
- jacquesm 16y agoWe'll talk about how useful that is when you're in a non-ideal lighting condition trying to find a phone number and typing it in on the front. I used to remember pretty much all the phone numbers of all my relatives and people I'm in contact with, even the international ones but with the coming of cell phones something else has happened: people switch phone numbers far more frequently today than they did in the past and the ability to re-program the phone but keep the mnemonic the same is actually far more useful than a piece of paper.
- netc 16y agoJohn's Phone: access your address book even when battery is dead.
- atgm 16y agoAmazing. I need to get one of these for my grandfather.
- hackermom 16y agoNovel design, although not something entirely new. Swedish telephony equipment manufacturer Doro has for several years had a number of "senior citizen" cellphones on the market in the same geist as John's Phone, some of them even simpler. A few models even include an assault alarm. This model's design is interesting in how clearly it speaks about what demography it's aimed at: http://www.doro.co.uk/products/Mobile-phones-and-accessories/334GSM/ http://www.doro.co.uk/products/Mobile-phones-and-accessories...
- scrrr 16y agoIt's good for old people and aggressive people that frequently like to throw their phones away, because they are cheap. Nobody else will buy it just because its got a "minimalist design". The iPhone has only one button.. seems even more minimalist.
- dagw 16y agoAlthough I won't buy that phone, I would be interested in a solid, beautifully designed phone that simple focuses on being a phone and doing that really really well. Think Vertu, but not crap and designed by someone with actual taste and not stupidly priced and...OK, so perhaps not Vertu.
- robin_reala 16y agoIf you can find one in good condition a Nokia 8910 might be for you. Titanium casing, well built, and old enough (2002) that it doesn’t have much beyond calling and txting.
- beoba 16y agoDo they still sell compatible batteries though?
- robin_reala 16y agoHmm, this might be a problem. Usually Nokia batteries are fairly compatible but it looks like the BLB-2 that the 8910 takes was only ever used in that. http://europe.nokia.com/find-products/accessories/all-accessories/power/batteries/nokia-battery-blb-2/compatibility http://europe.nokia.com/find-products/accessories/all-access... Shame! There are plenty of 'genuine' ones on ebay if you want to risk it.
- jacquesm 16y agoIt's not that cheap actually, compared to other 'cheap' cell phones. Typically those are around 40 euros, this one is twice that.
- Devilboy 16y agoI always wanted something like the old Nokia 7280 for a second (small) phone for times when I don't want to carry my expensive smartphone but I could never get myself to buy a second phone... http://www.livingroom.org.au/cameraphone/images/thumbnails/1_7280.jpg http://www.livingroom.org.au/cameraphone/images/thumbnails/1...
- paganel 16y agoIn terms of simplicity and resistance nothing beats Nokia 3310 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia_3310 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia_3310), for me at least. I even threw it against a concrete wall once, it all dissembled into several pieces, but after I had re-assembled them back it was as new.
- notthetup 16y agoAnd no SMS.. :( Would have definitely considered if it had SMS...
- chriseidhof 16y agoI've seen them, and they are very annoying. Not having an address book is annoying, and not being able to receive text messages is just frustrating. It's an awesome idea, but not for use in real life.
- bmj 16y agoPerhaps not for use in your life. I'm not a smartphone user and don't do text messages. I really like the idea of this phone because it strips away all the crap that I don't need. Granted, if I did have a smartphone, or was a "power user" of my current phone, then perhaps I'd feel the same way as you do.
- chriseidhof 16y agoRight, but the problem is not so much about me as it is about the rest of the world. Not being able to write messages is fine, but people expect you to be able to receive text messages.
- jbm 16y agoI want one but I live in Japan. I swear, i never thought it would come tothat. Dunno why it won't work if my iPhone works :/
- jacquesm 16y agoThis is a very good idea executed poorly. SMS has become a way of life and you'll be receiving messages that you can not read, also a paper phonebook requires that you carry a pen with you. Play it again, John, this time with a pager sized (text) display and I'll buy one. edit: added the (text), it does have a display but can't display text messages.
- retroguy 16y agoI think this is a good idea and has been executed pretty well, I don't think this is necessarily aimed at the HN crowd, but possibly at the HN crowd's grandparents. I'm sure there are some pretty switched on grand parents out there, but I don't fancy the idea of sending my grandmother an SMS. I'd need to call her and no doubt visit her to explain the whole SMS thing. I have a friend with a parent who is getting on in years, she described a device very similar to this "If only something like this existed" - I've just sent her the link, I imagine a purchase will follow soon after.
- jacquesm 16y agoI can see it would have appeal for someone that would not use SMS but since the other side can't see that your mobile phone is not SMS capable you will be having a lot of confusion.
- FiddlerClamp 16y agoFor older folks, larger buttons and some visual signaling would help. Also, greater amplification (that said, I don't know how loud the ringer or speaker on this thing is).
- beoba 16y agoMy grandparents wouldn't get this; too expensive.
- rubidium 16y agoAgreed. Anyone who texts shouldn't buy this phone. However, I would say that it's not aimed at SMS'ers and as such is not executed poorly. Strikes me to have two major markets: (1) people who only want to talk to people via phones (e.g. some of the elderly) and (2) as a fashionable item. The gold one would be a head-turner and topic of conversation. Some people want to get rid of SMS from their way of life (or never adopted it in the first place), and hark back for simpler times. This phone appeals to that.
- rdouble 16y agoIt did not get a very good review from Engadget: http://www.engadget.com/2010/12/06/johns-phone-review-the-worlds-simplest-cellphone/ http://www.engadget.com/2010/12/06/johns-phone-review-the-wo...
- jacobolus 16y agoSeems like an okay review to me, if the purpose in buying the phone is to get something that can make phone calls: > So, how did it work? Well, to make and receive calls it worked fine. The ringer was suitably loud and the vibration was strong enough to get noticed in a pocket. The audio quality during calls was also decent -- not spectacular but not awful either.
- timrobinson 16y ago"Both these switches deserve a special place in Gadget Hell for the very worst in industrial design. Not only do they require a fingernail to operate, they also don't work most of the time." Even if the only thing you want to do with your phone is make phone calls, you still need to: 1. Turn the phone on when you want to make a call 2. Turn the phone off, or lock it, when you don't want to make any more calls
- scott_s 16y agoI think you skipped the conclusion: So is the John's Phone "The world's simplest cellphone." No. The fact that all three of the device's switches are so frustrating to use is simply unforgivable on such a basic cellphone that's supposedly rooted in "great design." We wish that the company had spent as much time on the phone's industrial design as it did on its slick promotional materials and cutesy graphics. Even then, you'd better be sure that the simplicity is worth the €70 - €100 price tag (depending upon model) -- for that you could take home a fully-loaded 3G featurephone from Nokia. A nod, perhaps, as to why the John's Phone exists.
- antihero 16y agoMore expensive than a phone that can do more? Laughable pretentious rubbish.
- dreyfiz 16y agoSimplicity is a feature. "Can do more" sometimes means "can't do anything because it's too complicated".
- antihero 16y agoI remember getting a £30 ZTE phone on 3 that did texts, calls, and had a fairly rubbish but workable browser. It wasn't complicated, it was small, light, and the battery lasted forever. It was a bit slow but for £30 it's a far better bargain than this John's Phone. I even made a handy contacts parser for it: https://github.com/radiosilence/ZTEcontactsparse https://github.com/radiosilence/ZTEcontactsparse
- scythe 16y agohttp://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/CamelsandRubberDuckies.html http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/CamelsandRubberDuckie...
- Simon1979 16y agoI like it, but mostly for the gimmick value. I think to be truly * usable* and simple it absolutely has to have a phonebook / speed dial of some kind. "If you love it simple" is their tag-line, but I don't really see anything simple about having to reference a piece of paper and then dial a 13 digit number each time I want to call home.
- lmz 16y agoIt has some sort of speed dial (not very simple to use though I suppose you can always pre-program it for your grandparents). From the quick manual at http://www.johnsphones.com/support/johns-manual/item57 http://www.johnsphones.com/support/johns-manual/item57 : "You can allocate 10 speed dial numbers, each under one of the ten digits. You can allocate a telephone number (in this case, 0612345678) to a speed-dial number (in this case 1) by entering: * * 1 * 0612345678#. Subsequently, hold down the ‘1’ button for two seconds to automatically call the telephone number entered. To delete the speed-dial number in the above example, enter * * 1 * #. If you wish to alter a telephone number allocated to a speed-dial number, simply write over it with the new number."
- spektom 16y ago> John’s Phone is 10.5 centimetres in height, 6 centimetres in length and 1.5 centimetres in width (4.1”/2.4”/0.6”). Weight: 95 grams. If it wasn't too big and heavy, I'd order it right now!
- pbhjpbhj 16y agoIf it wasn't big then you couldn't have oversized number keys. If it wasn't heavy then it wouldn't be suitable for people who need oversized number keys, light phones need more motor-skills to handle (up to a point). Also hardening and a large battery would increase weight (though I don't know if this is how it's heavy).
- fmavituna 16y agoThis is perfect for my parents. They don't use address book, they won't read or write SMS (need to click too many buttons) and they need to use glasses to see the buttons. I'm really tempted buy 2 for them. Although it's unnecessarily expensive considering I can buy a really good and light non-brand mobile phone for £5-£10
- liedra 16y agoI just sent a link along to my mother, who has been wanting a no-frills big-numbered mobile phone that has a long standby time. I think it's perfect for those, like my mother, who don't use SMS, electronic address books, or any other "fancy" features of modern mobile phones. The numbers being big so that she doesn't need to take her glasses out is also very good. The only down side I can see is the review on engadget that said the switches are a bit finicky. But then again, it's not like it's $400 either :)
- wakeup 16y agoThis sucks balls, and is expensive as hell. I can get something more stylish, more functional for 30 bucks.
- kachnuv_ocasek 16y agoI fail to see how this is minimalistic.
- beoba 16y agoI agree, the most minimalist thing is making do with what you already have.
- xenonite 16y agoLooks good - but: the battery indicator is very unintuitive: full battery: JOHN ...... low battery: J why is this? cant it just be "HIGH" and "LOW".
- 83457 16y agoJOHN is high
- seshagiric 16y agoAlready? so soon? I think people need some more time with their smart phones. I like it that my WinPhone7 pulls phone numbers from my Outlook (office email), Facebook or Windows live. Making an acquintance online and automatically having the number in my phonebook is natural and works. I think we need some more time with smart before simple gets niche again.
- damoncali 16y agoIt's a jitterbug for hipsters.
- angdis 16y agoI had thought that maybe the phone was intended for older folks who need clear, easy, familiar buttons on their phones. But it seems to be more of minimalist hipster gadget. As such it really does need some form display. I don't know anyone under 50 who doesn't SMS.
- nixy 16y agoI got my dad a Doro HandleEasy last Christmas. He is actually using it (which is amazing in itself). http://www.techpin.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/doro-handleeasy-330-and-handleeasy-326-easy-to-use-cell-phones-2.jpg http://www.techpin.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/doro-handl...
- joebananas 16y agoDo you wear bloomers as well?
- rman666 16y agoSlashdot effect in progress. Anyone have a mirror?
- ianl 16y agoIs there a mirror? Page seems to be down :(
- lwhi 16y agoThe phone looks like it has a mirror built in :) EDIT: Reminder to self - don't try to be funny.
- davidw 16y agoSeems like they have a rather minimalist web server as well:-/
- john2x 16y agoI'd buy one just for the name. :P
- ibejoeb 16y agomirror: http://www.johnsphones.com.nyud.net/ http://www.johnsphones.com.nyud.net/
- philthy 16y agowould be a lot nicer without the pen and paper + mirror combo, smaller too perhaps implement a solid text to speech service for converting texts to auditory messages
- zachahack 16y agothe large buttons appear to increase the chance of butt dialing.
- spacecadet 16y agoInteresting. I agree with the SMS comments. I almost entirely SMS. Mostly only business and family on Talk. Two years ago I did a "simple phone" concept. Mine was touched based. Never progressed it, to busy with other things. I find it funny that somebody did. Here was my rough design. http://bit.ly/fTz643 http://bit.ly/fTz643
- tjpick 16y agoafter you design something like this, how does one actually go about getting it manufactured?
- marknutter 16y agoWhat's funny is the phone calling functionality of my iPhone is the one feature I wish I could have removed. I just want internet, text, and iOS and I'm happy.
- epynonymous 16y agoso why not get an ipad with 3g? i wish they made 3g ipod touches, i also agree with you and would like a device like iphone without the calling functionality.
- deleted 16y ago[deleted]
- andrest 16y agoWhat my local operator is offering is this: ZTE S202 Specs: http://wwwen.zte.com.cn/en/products/mobile/mobile_detail_291.jsp?mobileName=ZTE-G%20%20S202 http://wwwen.zte.com.cn/en/products/mobile/mobile_detail_291... Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CClXKPRDzLI&feature=player_detailpage#t=94s http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CClXKPRDzLI&feature=playe... The price is 70 euros. The buttons have nice a tactile feedback, it has a screen and even looks okay. Sure, this thing has a better branding, nicer website but the product itself is inferior and costs more.
- slowpoison 16y agoWhere's the bump on the digit 5?
- slowpoison 16y agoWhere's the bump on digit 5?
- jasongullickson 16y agoThis would be perfect if it had an amazing antenna hidden in there. It would be the first cell phone I've had since my first car phone that was actually good at being a phone...which would be WILD!
- yason 16y agoWhere are all the phones that are minimalist in size? We used to have quite small phones in the turn of 90's—00's but now that the smartphones are everywhere, and even for non-smartphones everyone is assumed to want internet and lots of features, the current phones are so big and come with such a big screens that my first Nokia 1611 has stopped looking like stoneage in comparison. Something similar to MacBook Air but a phone would be cool. Thickness closer to 5mm than 10mm. Slightly larger than a USB stick. A clamshell design would be a must to make it long enough to reach both ears and proximity to mouth. Something that you can certainly lose in your pocket, something almost invisible. We could certainly manufacture those these days.
- bane 16y agoBetter yet, just fit a phone inside a USB earpiece and put a tiny dialpad on it (or perhaps shrink a rotary dial, turn it sideways like a volume roller and stick it in there). You should double purpose the roller as a selector for a minimal oled display showing just a couple lines of text so you could at least keep a phone book.
- brianwillis 16y agoIf size is really all that matters to you, consider the Motorola V3 RAZR. They're still possible to find if you look hard enough. I had one for a few years. Great hardware, solid build quality, tough as nails, but disappointing software.
- potatolicious 16y agoThere's a reason we don't have those anymore. I remember in '01-'02 there was a small war between manufacturers to get their phones smaller. What came out were ludicrously small phones that made dialing and usage a pain. There's a limit to how small phones can get before they get downright unusable. I remember back then some even had voice dialing to compensate, which was - and still is - just a plain bad idea.
- jessriedel 16y agoStill doesn't explain why I can't get a phone which is 4mm thick.
- dnsworks 16y agoAfter suffering through two miserable years of dropped calls on at&t with the iphone, my only question on any cell phone is: can it make phone calls?
- epynonymous 16y agoagree with most comments here that the pen/paper address book seems a bit out of place. i'd imagine that the swivel door to keep the address book is quite cumbersome and certainly this would add unnecessary weight. also i feel that the simplicity of the design is somewhat ruined with handwritten entries in the address book (see link below for a picture): http://www.johnsphones.com/store/johns-address-book/item89 http://www.johnsphones.com/store/johns-address-book/item89 i'm all for minimalist designs, this phone seems to segment a very niche user base that is only interested in using phones to call people, however small that is, i'm sure there's a market. though the price point conflicts with this as i feel people in this market segment are probably looking for low price as well. some additional comments, a video on the webpage would be nice showing the interface for navigating through an address book or adding contacts. i think the dial buttons are nice, but imho the slide buttons on the side of the phone are a bit arcane, perhaps individual buttons would be more modern. i'm actually quite attracted to the general design of the phone, the keypad is laid out quite simply, the lcd at the top is out of the way and quite utilitarian. i'm a smartphone user myself (nokia e72), but i'd love to have this phone if it included bluetooth and i'm quite curious as to the ease of use of the phonebook because i really hate storing numbers by keypad. based on the design, it'd be nice if you offered a higher end john's phone, let's say you added bluetooth, a 5 MP camera, and a micro SD storage slot, you'd have a pretty good shot at getting some premiums for people that are looking for something fresh in comparison to iphone/android.
- epynonymous 16y agobtw, what's the operating system on this baby?
- epynonymous 16y agoalso as to how these things are designed. i'd love to try hacking one together. perhaps i'll find some info on the blog.
- davidmat 16y agoAm I the only one thinking that the screen is on the wrong side and this is a very poor choice UX-wise?