Just when it felt like smartphone designs had hit a plateau, something genuinely different shows up. A new device from Bigme is making waves for combining two completely different display technologies into one phone.
And no, this isn’t a gimmick flip screen or a folding panel. Instead, it’s a mix of color e-ink and a traditional LCD, and the idea is surprisingly practical.
A smartphone with two displays that serve very different purposes
The newly spotted device is being touted as the first smartphone to feature both a color e-ink screen and an LCD panel in a single body. The LCD acts as the primary display for regular use, such as apps, videos, games, and the usual smartphone stuff. Meanwhile, the color e-ink panel is designed for low-power tasks like reading, notifications, or even light browsing.
To be fair, this isn’t entirely new in concept, as phones like the YotaPhone experimented with dual displays before. However, the addition of color e-ink changes things. Instead of a grayscale secondary screen, users get a more visually usable panel that can handle content in a way that feels less limited.
As you’d expect, the biggest advantage here is battery life. E-ink displays consume significantly less power, especially when showing static content. So things like reading articles, checking messages, or viewing always-on information could barely dent the battery compared to using the LCD.
There’s also the comfort factor. E-ink is easier on the eyes, especially for long reading sessions, making this setup appealing for people who treat their phones like mini e-readers.
Why this idea might actually stick this time
Dual-screen phones have been tried before, but better timing makes this one more relevant. With people using phones for reading and long-form tasks, a low-power, eye-friendly color e-ink screen feels genuinely useful rather than experimental.
Ultimately, though, it all comes down to execution. Considering that most e-ink smartphones suffer from being relatively slow, this has plenty of challenges laid out ahead already. But if done right, this could quietly fix real problems like battery drain and screen fatigue.