Phone with an additional screen. YotaPhone: the first Russian smartphone with two screens

Young users who think the idea of equipping a phone with a second screen as innovative are mistaken. Even primitive “clamshells”, which were at the height of fashion a good ten years ago, were equipped with auxiliary LED displays. Additional screens displayed the most important information - thanks to this, the user of the clamshell did not have to flip the lid every time to, for example, see the time.

It seemed that the concept of two screens had “sunk into oblivion” along with the “folding phones” themselves. However, it was “resurrected” by the Russian company YotaPhone in 2012, demonstrating its revolutionary gadget with an additional E-Ink display. This article will tell you how modern Yotafons differ from the debut model, and will also present other current smartphones with two screens.

Main screen: diagonal 5 inches, FullHD resolution
Additional screen: diagonal 4.7 inches, resolution 960×540
Memory(operational / built-in) : 2 GB / 32 GB
Camera: 8 megapixels
Battery: 2,500 mAh

Price: from 14,900 rubles

YotaPhone 2 is not new; this Russian smartphone was presented at the MWC exhibition at the beginning of 2014 - where, by the way, it made a splash. The device became a real pride and a classic example of the domestic smartphone industry - even famous politicians did not hesitate to advertise it.

Like the first generation model, YotaPhone 2, in addition to the main FullHD screen, also has an E-Ink display of almost the same size - it is located on the rear surface. The user can use the additional screen not only to read books (although this is the most obvious way to use it), but also to control the basic functions of the mobile device. This is the key difference between the second Yotafon and its “predecessor” - in the first generation gadget, the auxiliary display was not fully touch-sensitive. There was only a bar that you could swipe to turn the pages of the e-book.

The design and functionality have also changed. YotaPhone 2 looks more attractive than the first model thanks to its rounded body, free of sharp corners. The ergonomics of the device are excellent: a smartphone with two screens is neither heavy nor thick; in weight and dimensions it is comparable to classmates. The device received technical equipment at the level of 2014 flagships: the manufacturer provided it, in particular, with wireless charging, a protected AMOLED display, modules and LTE, and even an audio player capable of playing FLAC files.

A detailed comparison of YotaPhone and YotaPhone 2 was made by the website www.maxabout.com. The results were presented by the portal in the form of infographics:

Image: maxabout.com

The second Yotafon would have been a bestseller in Russia, if not for one “but”: the price of the gadget turned out to be “biting”. They asked for more than 32 thousand rubles for the device. Of course, for that kind of money, Russians preferred to buy the Samsung Galaxy S5 and other flagship models from well-known manufacturers.

By 2017, the cost of YotaPhone 2 had dropped many times, which was facilitated by the appearance of the next generation device.

Advantages:

Attractive design and good ergonomics.
E-Ink touch screen.
Support for YotaEnergy – a proprietary energy saving function.
Supports wireless charging technology.

Flaws:

The smartphone doesn’t look like a new product – it was released back in 2014.
The gadget does not have a slot for a memory card.

YotaPhone 3

Main screen: diagonal 5.5 inches, FullHD resolution
Additional screen: diagonal 5.2 inches, E-Ink technology
4 GB / 64 – 128 GB
13 Mpix / 12 Mpix
Battery: 3,200 mAh

Price: 29,990 – 34,990 rubles (according to expert forecasts)

YotaPhone 3 has not yet been officially presented in Russia - that’s why there is no certainty about the price. But a gadget with two displays has already been shown to Chinese users. Users from the Middle Kingdom will be able to pre-order from September 5 at a price of 2,398 yuan (about 21,500 rubles at the current exchange rate). The implementation of YOTA3 - as YotaPhone 3 is called in Asia - will be carried out by the JD.com trading platform.

The YotaPhone developers again made a radical design change - the third model looks nothing like the second. More on the first one - it was decided to abandon the rounded body and return to a rectangular shape. The gadget has an interesting sensor on the back panel - thanks to this sensor, the smartphone accurately determines which of the 2 screens the user wants to unlock. The fingerprint sensor, mandatory for modern flagships, is also present here - it is located on the front edge under the main display.

Surely the new Yotafon will compete with the best tablets for reading books, because the gadget will be sold with several pre-installed applications for book lovers - including iReader and China Reading.

YotaPhone 3 has a lot of other advantages compared to its “predecessor” - the screen is larger and the cameras are better - but this is understandable: more than 3 years have passed since the release of the second model, and all these years progress has not stood still. Technically, the third Yotafon is equipped no worse than modern flagships, however, it also has a rather impressive price. Russian users will be able to get acquainted with the new device only towards the end of the year.

Advantages:

Own operating system YotaOS 3.0 (based on Android 7.1.1).
Cameras with high resolution and good light sensitivity.
Support for popular services for reading e-books.
Lots of memory for storing data.

Flaws:

Impressive cost - especially for a know-name product, which Russian retailers consider YotaPhone 3 to be.
The gadget is not yet for sale in Russia.

Where can I buy: Domestic Yota fans can be advised to wait for the start of pre-orders and order the device from the Chinese online store JD.com.

LG V20

Main screen: diagonal 5.7 inches, resolution 2560×1440.
Additional screen: diagonal 2.1 inches, resolution 160×1040
Memory (RAM/built-in): 4 GB / 64 GB
Camera (rear/front): 16 + 8 Mpix / 5 Mpix
Battery: 3,200 mAh

Price: from 22,720 rubles

Conclusion

Contrary to popular belief, YotaPhone is not the only company that produces smartphones with dual displays. There are enough two-screen models on the market, but only a few of them reach Russia. Domestic users could find V series smartphones from LG with small color displays on display, but the respectable Doogee T3 and clamshell VKworld T2 Plus were not officially sold in Russia. One can only envy Chinese users: they can admire the most original gadgets in person - and even the Russian-made YotaPhone 3 smartphone is shown to them before the Russians themselves.

One of the most interesting trends in the smartphone market is the use of two screens. Of course, smartphones with two screens do not appear too often, but quite regularly.

For such smartphones, the second screen is usually more economical and is used constantly, while the main screen of the smartphone is turned off. An additional screen can display information about the current date, time, missed calls or notifications from applications.

In this article we will look at smartphones with two screens that are relevant at the end of 2017 and beginning of 2018. We hope that our review will help you decide which smartphone with two screens is right for you and whether you need it at all.

Meizu Pro 7 and Meizu Pro 7 Plus

Meizu Pro 7 and Meizu Pro 7 Plus are the most advanced and top-end smartphones with two screens that are on the smartphone market at the moment. In fact, this is the only flagship smartphone of 2017 that received a second screen.

On the back of the Pro 7 and Pro 7 Plus smartphones there is a small SuperAMOLED screen with a diagonal of 1.9 inches and 240 x 536 pixels. It may seem that the resolution is very low, but at such a diagonal it creates a pixel density of 309 ppi. This screen can display information about the current time, weather, incoming calls, SMS messages, steps taken, alarms and much more. Moreover, this screen can be used when taking photographs, which means that you can now take selfies not only with the front camera of your smartphone, but also with the rear one, which allows you to get a much higher quality image.

In the settings of Meizu Pro 7 and Meizu Pro 7 Plus there is a separate section where you can configure everything related to the second screen of the smartphone. Here you can select what data should be displayed on this screen, set the wallpaper, etc.

As for the other characteristics, Meizu Pro 7 has the following: Android operating system,

Operating system: Android;
SIM card type: nano SIM;
Number of SIM cards: 2;
Dimensions: 70.72×147.62×7.3 mm;
Weight: 163 g
Diagonal: 5.2 inches.
Image size: 1920×1080;
Pixels per inch (PPI): 424;
Rear camera: dual 12/12 MP;
Processor: 8 core MediaTek Helio P25 (MT6757T);
RAM capacity: 4 GB;
Battery capacity: 3000 mAh;

The Meizu Pro 7 Plus model, which is also equipped with two screens, has a larger main screen (5.7 inches), higher resolution (2560×1440), a more powerful processor (10-core MediaTek Helio X30), and more RAM (6 GB) and a more capacious battery (3500 mAh). Otherwise, Meizu Pro 7 and Meizu Pro 7 Plus are the same.

LG is a dual-screen smartphone from LG. It was introduced in 2016, but is still relevant and available for sale. The second screen of the LG X view smartphone is a small “strip” attached to the main screen at the top of the smartphone.

This small screen is constantly on and displays a variety of information. For example, the current date and time, battery level, application notifications, missed calls and SMS messages. Also, through the second screen, quick access to the most popular smartphone settings is provided. In particular, settings for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, sound, etc. can be displayed on the second screen. In addition, the user can create their own menus for the second screen and place shortcuts to the most necessary programs there. In general, the smartphone has a lot of possibilities for using two screens.

Other technical specifications of the LG X view include:

OS version: Android 6.0;
Number of SIM cards: 2;
Dimensions: 71.8×142.6×7.1 mm;
Weight: 120 g.
Diagonal: 4.93 inches.
Image size: 1280×720;
Pixels per inch (PPI): 298;
Rear camera: 13 MP;
Front camera: yes, 8 million pixels.
Processor: 4-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 MSM8916, 1200 MHz;
RAM capacity: 2 GB;
Battery capacity: 2300 mAh;

It should be noted that the LG X view is not the first smartphone with two screens from LG. Previously, LG released the LG V10 and LG V20, which also had two screens. But at the end of 2017, these models practically disappeared from sale.

U Ultra is a dual-screen smartphone from HTC. As in the LG X view, the secondary screen is a small strip located above the main screen.

The second screen of HTC U Ultra has a diagonal of 2.05 inches and a resolution of 160x1040 pixels. This screen does not work when the smartphone is locked. But, as soon as you pick up the smartphone, the screen wakes up and begins to display a variety of information. This can display the current time, weather, battery status, notification and more. You can also display shortcuts to frequently used applications on the second screen.

Other HTC U Ultra specifications include:

OS version: Android 7.0
SIM card type: nano SIM
Number of SIM cards: 2
Dimensions: 79.79×162.41×7.99 mm
Weight: 170 g
Diagonal: 5.7 inches.
Image size: 2560×1440
Pixels per inch (PPI): 515
Rear camera: 12 MP
Front camera: yes, 16 million pixels.
Processor: 4-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 MSM 8996 Pro, 2150 MHz
RAM capacity: 4 GB
Battery capacity: 3000 mAh

A dual-screen smartphone is a niche device. There are actually only a few models on the market that can please their owner with two screens. And in some models you may not notice the second screen at all.

Yota YotaPhone and Yota YotaPhone 2

Of course, we should start with this device, since it has practically no analogues and, what is no less interesting, was created by the Russian company Yota Device. The first generation YotaPhone was introduced in 2012. Here's what it looked like:

A couple of years later, the second generation of the smartphone was presented, which turned out to be much more interesting: it has a large main screen (5 inches versus 4.3 inches), a more modern design, powerful hardware, etc.

An additional screen is installed on the back of the case. In the case of YotaPhone 2, its diagonal is 4.7 inches, the resolution is 960 by 540 pixels, and it displays 16 shades of gray. Why is it needed? It can be used, for example, to read books or to control the desktop if the battery is very low. Moreover, with this screen you can visit websites and even play games! True, in black and white.

Some characteristics of Yota YotaPhone 2:

Main screen diagonal: 5 inches

Screen resolution: 1920 by 1080 pixels (FHD)

Number of SIM cards: 1

Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 800, 4 cores, 2.26 GHz

Memory capacity: 32 GB

RAM capacity: 2 GB

Main camera: 8 MP

Memory card support: no

Highscreen Ice 2

An interesting device from Highscreen. Do you know why it's interesting? That's right, there is an additional display on the back of the case. True, this screen is quite small, but it is backlit. It can display information such as the current time, date, weather, battery charge or notifications.

Main screen diagonal: 4.7 inches

Screen resolution: 1280 by 720 pixels (HD)

Number of SIM cards: 2

Processor: MediaTek MT6592, 8 cores, 1.7 GHz

Memory capacity: 16 GB

RAM capacity: 2 GB

Battery capacity: 2500 mAh

Main camera: 13 MP

Memory card support: yes

LG V10

The flagship device from LG, which is not similar to the company's previous models. This is a fairly large phablet, which is primarily distinguished by an additional screen. But if above we only talked about additional screens that are installed on the back of the case, here such a screen is installed... Right above the main screen on the front panel! Its diagonal is 2.1 inches and notifications are displayed on it.

Main screen diagonal: 5.7 inches

Number of SIM cards: 2

Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 808, 6 cores

Memory capacity: 64 GB

RAM capacity: 4 GB

Battery capacity: 3000 mAh

Main camera: 16 MP

Memory card support: yes

By the way, there is support for memory cards up to 2 TB (!!!).

UMi Zero 2

And this is an analogue of Yota YotaPhone 2, because the smartphone uses two screens, the additional one is monochrome, installed on the back of the case and can be used, for example, for reading.

At the time of writing, there is little information about the model, since it will be presented a little later. But we still managed to collect some preliminary information.

Main screen diagonal: 5 or 5.2 inches

Screen resolution: 2560 by 1440 pixels (QHD)

Number of SIM cards: 2 (?)

Processor: unknown

Memory capacity: 64 GB

RAM capacity: 4 GB

Battery capacity: unknown

Main camera: 20 MP

Memory card support: unknown

Discounts, TOP and credit

Iris scanner

Mobile phone type

A telephone is a portable communication device used for voice communication. Some phone models, in addition to performing the main task of providing high-quality communication, have additional functions: mp3 player, Bluetooth, FM radio, etc. The main advantages of phones are their compact size and low cost.
A smartphone is a phone that is equipped with an operating system that allows you to install and work with additional applications, which in turn significantly expands the functionality of the device. On smartphones, the user can fully use all the capabilities of the Internet, work with email, create and edit documents, take high-quality photographs and shoot videos. In a word, the smartphone has turned into a pocket computer and has become an indispensable human assistant. Smartphones, unlike telephones, are significantly larger (the screens of some models have already exceeded 6 inches) and are more expensive.

Type of shell

Classic monoblock– the simplest type of case, which does not contain moving parts and is presented in the form of a candy bar with an open screen and keyboard. The main disadvantage is the need to constantly block the buttons to avoid unnecessary presses. This type of case is the strongest.
Clamshell - the body consists of two parts connected to each other by a hinge. The keyboard is located on the bottom of the phone, and the screen is on the top. This design is compact in size, avoids accidental button presses and protects the screen. Some models are equipped with two screens: internal and external.
With hinged lid– the design of the phone has a hinged cover that protects the phone’s keyboard and prevents accidental presses on it.
A slider is a body that consists of two parts located in parallel planes and connected by a special mechanism that allows them to move relative to each other. The screen is located on the top of the phone, and the keyboard is on the bottom. This design allows for a compact phone size and avoids accidental clicks.
Slider horizontal– unlike a regular slider, the parts of the slider move apart not in a horizontal, but in a vertical plane.
A watch is a mobile phone designed in the form of a wristwatch.

Thickness, mm

Memory card slot

Used to functionally expand the capabilities of the phone. Modern smartphones support memory cards up to 256 GB, which in turn allows you to store a large number of photos, music, videos, navigation maps and other information necessary for the user.

Weight, gr.

Waterproof housing

Protects your smartphone from liquid getting inside the device. Modern smartphones are equipped with two standards of dust and moisture protection: IP 67 and IP 68. Smartphones with a protection standard of IP 67 indicate complete dust protection, as well as the ability to immerse the device in water to a depth of 1 meter, IP 68 – to a depth of more than 1 meter.

Shockproof housing

Allows you to maintain the functionality of your smartphone or phone under extreme operating conditions (falls, shocks). Smartphones with shock-resistant casings are popular among construction workers, tourists and people leading an active lifestyle.

Stylus included

Color

Screen diagonal, "

Diagonal screen size, measured in inches. Smartphones with smaller screen sizes fit better in the hand. A larger screen diagonal increases the amount of information that can be displayed on it, however, at the same time, the size of the smartphone and its power consumption increase.

Touch screen

The touch screen allows you to control your smartphone using touches. Due to the simplicity of the graphical interface, ease of operation, and quick access to device functions, the touch screen greatly simplifies working with a smartphone. Depending on the smartphone model, touch screens can recognize from 5 to 10 simultaneous touches (multi-touch). Multi-touch makes working with a smartphone much easier and more comfortable.

Curved screen

Main screen resolution

Two screens

Performance

Built-in memory capacity, MB

Built-in memory is a part of the system that is designed to store data, program codes and other necessary information. The size of the built-in memory plays an important role, since the amount of information that the user can store on the phone (programs, photos, videos) depends on its volume. This parameter plays a particularly important role in those smartphones that do not support memory cards.

Volume of RAM, MB

RAM is designed to store application files running on the smartphone. When you close the application, this data is deleted from it. The amount of RAM affects the number of applications that can be simultaneously running on a smartphone. If there is a lack of RAM, the speed of the smartphone will drop significantly.

CPU

The most important part of a smartphone, on which its operating speed and energy consumption depend. The largest manufacturers of smartphone processors are Qualcomm and MTK. Qualcomm processors have greater performance and lower power consumption than MTK, but are more expensive.

Number of SIM cards

Most modern phones and smartphones support the ability to work with two (sometimes even three) SIM cards. In practice, this allows you to stop using several phones for each individual SIM card, and use just one phone both for calls to numbers from different operators and for the mobile Internet.

GLONASS

Russian satellite system, which, along with GPS, allows you to determine location coordinates using signals received from satellites. The combined use of GLONASS and GPS allows you to more accurately determine location coordinates, and the navigation program can use data from the satellites of the two systems.

3G (UMTS) support

A third generation network that allows data transmission at relatively high speeds (in practice, up to 384 Kbps). At the same time, 3G allows you to use video telephony, download audio and video files to your smartphone or phone.

WiFi

Standard for data transmission over radio channels. This technology allows you to create a wireless connection between smartphones and computers to transfer data or provide access to the Internet.

Bluetooth

Wireless technology that allows data to be transmitted over radio channels. Using Bluetooth, the user can create a wireless connection between smartphones (for data transfer), remotely control devices and exchange voice communications.

GPS module

A device that allows you to receive signals from a satellite to determine your location. The accuracy of location determination depends on the number of satellites from which the GPS module receives signals. Thanks to the GPS module, a smartphone user can use his device as a navigator.

LTE/4G

A standard for wireless high-speed data transfer for smartphones. This technology allows you to increase the data download speed up to 150 Mbit/s depending on the frequency. LTE/4G supports operation at different frequencies (called bands) from 1 to 44. In Russia, bands 3, 7, 20, 38 are used. When choosing a smartphone, you should make sure that the required frequency is supported by the smartphone.

NFC

Wireless communication technology that allows several devices located close to each other (no more than 5-10 cm) to exchange data. In smartphones, the presence of NFC allows you to make instant payments to pay for purchases in a store or for travel on the subway.

SIM card type

Purpose

For the elderly

The main goal of phones for older people is to be as simple and easy to use as possible. These phones are mainly used for making calls and sending SMS. Phones for older people can be equipped with large buttons and numbers, larger screen font sizes (for people with poor vision), and a loud ringer.

Children's mobile phones

Children's phone models are available in bright colors, and the body can be made in different shapes, and may also contain parental control programs.

Platform

Android is an open operating system that allows you to install applications from third-party developers. In this regard, a large number of companies are engaged in the production of Android-based smartphones, and the Play Market offers a huge selection of additional applications.
Windows is a less popular operating system developed by Microsoft Corporation. The main disadvantage of this operating system is the significantly smaller set of applications in the Microsoft Store.
iOS is an operating system that is designed specifically for mobile devices manufactured by Apple. The main advantages of this operating system are ease of learning, good system optimization and a huge selection of applications in the App Store.

Smartphones with two screens: why?

Mobile phones with two screens appeared back in the nineties, and the first devices of this format were the well-known clamshells. With the advent of smartphones, manufacturers concentrated on creating touchscreen all-in-one devices and forgot about auxiliary screens for a while. In 2017, everything changed: five large companies at once - LG, HTC, Samsung, Meizu and ZTE - presented a new product, marking the beginning of a new trend. ZOOM takes a look at what dual-screen smartphones are on the market today and why they need a secondary display.

It would seem that there are not so many models with two screens, but upon closer examination there are more than a dozen of them. We studied all the trends and identified five main groups: smartphones with an additional touchscreen color display, with a monochrome display, with an auxiliary screen based on E-ink, devices that fold in half with two identical screens, and modern clamshells.

Folding beds

The first flip phone was the Motorola MicroTAC model introduced in 1989, although it received a more familiar form factor only with the release of an upgraded version of the Motorola StarTAC in 1996. And although all-in-one PCs completely dominate the market, flip phones are still selling and are even evolving. At first, manufacturers began adding small screens to the back of phones, and when devices began to get smarter, equivalent touch screens appeared on both sides of the devices.

Samsung W2017

A good example of such a design is the Samsung W2017 model. It received two 4.2-inch Full HD displays, a quad-core Snapdragon 820 processor, 4 GB of RAM, support for wireless charging and Samsung Pay, and so on. In a word, a truly top-end folding phone. True, it was made for the Chinese market and is very expensive - about 20,000 yuan (180,000 rubles).

Folding smartphones

Smartphones with two equivalent screens, once popular in Japan, appeared quite a long time ago. At first, manufacturers began to use QWERTY keyboards, then the keyboard began to slide out from the side, and then was even supplemented with a second display, as, for example, in the 2011 LG Dual Screen QWERTY Phone model. Subsequently, the need for a physical keyboard disappeared and was replaced by a second screen of identical dimensions to the main one and a folding design, when the smartphone resembles a horizontal clamshell. The NEC Medias W smartphone became a hit at MWC 2013, but this concept never gained widespread popularity around the world. Subsequently, such modifications were practically never produced outside Japan, and at the end of 2017, ZTE again decided to return to this idea by introducing the Axon M.

ZTE Axon M

The device has modern hardware, two Full HD displays with a diagonal of 5.2" each, and a wide range of usage scenarios. When folded, to save battery, the auxiliary screen turns off and the device becomes similar to a regular smartphone. For games, there is a special mode in which control buttons are displayed on one display, and the main action is displayed on the second. And finally, desktop mode allows you to display the same picture on both screens, which is convenient for watching videos with a large group. In general, ZTE's interest in such a solution is quite remarkable, especially considering the fact that Samsung has long been threatening to show its vision of the concept, in which one large display will be divided into two, folding like the Axon M. At first, this development was mentioned under the name Project Valley. then Galaxy X, and now it has completely disappeared from view.

Second E-ink display

The first idea to combine a smartphone and a reader was implemented in 2013 by the Russian company Yota Devices, which presented its . The device differed from its competitors by the presence of a second display on the rear panel, similar in size to the main one, but made using electronic ink technology. This made it possible not only to use it as an e-reader, reading text with greater comfort, but also to continue working even when the charge level dropped to a minimum.

YotaPhone 2

Electronic ink has significantly lower energy consumption, so you can use such a device longer than a regular smartphone. Following the first version of YotaPhone in 2014, the company was then sold to the Chinese, who independently introduced it in 2017, not yet available on the Russian market. At one time, the Umi company was going to release a similar model called Zero 2, but then it was rebranded as Umidigi and, apparently, the plans were abandoned.

Second monochrome display

Auxiliary touch displays have practically replaced monochrome ones, but at a certain period of time manufacturers managed to experiment with them. First, such technical screens appeared in clamshells, allowing you to see information about the time, calls and messages without opening the phone, and then they were introduced into smartphones. One of the most interesting products that implemented a similar idea was the Chinese Doogee T3, introduced in 2016.

Doogee T3

The device combines a non-standard design with genuine leather inserts, good performance for a price of less than 10,000 rubles and an additional screen located on the upper end of the case. It is capable of displaying information about missed calls, notifications about unread messages, time, etc. Looking at such a screen, however, is not very convenient, and there is no brightness adjustment, so Doogee has something to work on.

Highscreen Ice 2

The domestic manufacturer Highscreen also distinguished itself here. His Ice 2 smartphone also has a small secondary OLED display on the back that can display the time, weather, notifications and other similar data, automatically turning on after a set interval.

Second touch display

Perhaps the most promising concept in modern realities is adding an auxiliary screen to the main screen, but not monochrome, but color and touch. LG was the first to implement the idea of placing a narrow secondary display above the main one in 2015, introducing the flagship V10 (). Over the next two years, the South Koreans managed to release three more models: V20 (that too), Q8 and the “state-priced” LG X view.

Impressed by the concept, at the beginning of 2017 HTC showed its U Ultra, using an identical solution, followed by Meizu in July. Naturally, the Chinese did everything their own way, installing an additional screen in the Pro 7 and Pro 7 Plus not on the front, but on the back.

Meizu Pro 7

The implementation turned out to be more interesting than that of LG, which has been exploiting the same idea for the second year, and HTC, which simply copied the concept from the Koreans. Moreover, the location of two displays one below the other, even taking into account the fact that the camera is located on the side of the auxiliary one, inevitably leads to an increase in dimensions. The Pro 7 doesn’t have this problem; in addition, the main screen is frameless, so everything looks neat and modern. The only thing is that the issue of ease of use of the additional display located at the back is somewhat controversial: to look at it, the smartphone will have to be turned over with the front screen down.

HTC U Ultra

Regardless of the location of the second display, its purpose is similar for all models: it is an additional screen for displaying all kinds of notifications, time, weather, charge level and other information that can be displayed when the main display is turned off. Other application scenarios include controlling an audio player, displaying the most frequently used contacts or camera operating modes. Meizu in its Pro 7 also offers to use an additional display to view the image when taking a selfie on the rear module.