Light's new $299 flip phone has no apps and T9 texting, but aims to connect people

flip phone has no apps and T9 texting, but aims to connect people">

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Light, the company that made the "premium dumbphone", just announced the latest device to its lineup: the Light Flip , a $299 flip phone with the same minimal aesthetic but with trade-offs in hardware, build, and a lower rate at $39 a month. The Brooklyn-based company's core ethos remains the same: a completely minimalist UI, no email, no apps, and limited features -- even less than the Light Phone 3, which was already spare. The result is a unique device in wild colors designed solely for making calls and sending texts (if you can brave the T9 keyboard).

Also: I gave up my iPhone for a dumbphone with no apps. A month later, here's my take Sure, it's a flip, but it's chunkier than the Light Phone 3, has a worse camera, no touchscreen, no NFC capabilities, is made of plastic instead of aluminum, and has less memory. So what's the draw here? Obviously, it's not about the specs; Light says it's about the lifestyle.

I talked to Light's two co-founders, Joe Hollier and Kaiwei Tang, ahead of the announcement, and they were clear about the intended demographic: 18- to 30-year-olds who want out of the smartphone ecosystem. Working with a consultancy during development, Tang said that 52% of Gen Z and Millennial consumers would consider using a non-smartphone -- a statistic that throws the door wide open for product development.