Novelty Phones – A novelty phone is an unusual take on a smartphone. Whether they’re quirky, quaint or ever so slightly bonkers, these phones are a great way to show off your style.
Often these phones are released as a promotional device to promote brands or products. They’re also popular with collectors.
YotaPhone
The YotaPhone is a 4.3-inch Android smartphone with a difference. Its rear display is an e-ink screen that’s like the one you’d find on a Kindle.
It’s a novelty phone from the Russian company Yota Devices that first came on sale last December in Russia, Austria, France and Spain. Now it’s heading to the UK.
The idea is that users will transfer things like notifications and the time to the e-ink screen when they’re not using them, helping with battery life. However, it does take some getting used to and it’s not as responsive as the front AMOLED touchscreen.
Nokia 9 PureView
The Nokia 9 PureView is a novelty phone that’s designed to appeal to photography enthusiasts. The device features five camera lenses, all 12 megapixels, that work together to capture more light than a traditional single-camera smartphone.
The images are rich with information, with exceptional detail in both the shadows and highlights of each shot. This is achieved via a computational camera that uses Light’s software, allowing users to tweak contrast, exposure and white balance and control depth-of-field.
Ericsson 688
GH 688 was released in 1996, and it’s a GSM mobile phone. It weighs 160 grams, and it measures 130 x 49 x 23 mm.
It has a 3 x 12 character display, and it offers talk time of up to 240 minutes. It also has a memory card slot.
The GH 688 is a good choice for those who want to buy a smartphone without having to spend too much money on it. It has a powerful battery, and you can get it for a very low price.
Nokia 7380
The Nokia 7380 is a mirrored art deco handset that was designed to make you stand out from the crowd. It’s a collectible phone that looks fantastic, but it has several issues when it comes to usability.
Unlike most other mobile phones, the 7380 doesn’t have a keypad, instead it relies on a multipurpose scroll wheel for all your text entry needs. This can be a frustrating experience, especially for those who aren’t used to using scroll wheels.
C91 Golden-Buddha
In 2009, C91 released the Golden-Buddha phone that had a luxury gold build and Buddhist stylings centred around a swastika as a symbol of divinity and spirituality. Despite its odd looks, it was a pretty decent phone on paper and had a 2-inch display, a 1.3-megapixel sensor, dual sim support and more.
Another novelty phone was the Serenata, a device created by Samsung and Bang & Olufsen that sported a slider-out speaker and music player that looked quite bonkers. Interestingly, it also featured voice command and voice dialing – which isn’t something you find in many modern phones.
Pen Phone
Pen Phones come with a number of features to help you do more with your phone. Among them are the ability to take a screenshot, use gestures, and jot down notes in your own handwriting.
You can also get a bit more creative with a pen, thanks to apps like Adobe Photoshop Sketch that allow you to zoom in on a picture or draw a cool three-dimensional shape. In addition, some phones also have a feature that lets you translate your pen’s handwriting to text.
Using a stylus on your smartphone is more accurate than typing and can save you from embarrassing mistyping errors. It’s also easier on your fingers and less likely to damage your screen.
Telson TWC 1150
The Telson TWC 1150 is a GSM phone that is designed to be worn on your wrist. It features a wristwatch, a phone and a digital camera all in one package.
It has a plug-in high resolution 330,000 pixel digital camera which can save up to 80 pictures. It also comes with a unique phone book which can store up to 200 entries with 4 numbers, email id and URL and photo caller ID.
This is a very fun novelty phone that is sure to impress. It’s also a very light phone, only 98 grams!
