Bigme recently released another new phone that’s available with a black and white E Ink screen or a color E Ink screen, and both are less expensive alternatives to the new Boox Palma 2 Pro, and they can actually be used as phones unlike the Boox model that only supports data.
Bigme has released several different E Ink phones over the past couple of years. The latest Bigme HiBreak S phones are their budget models. The BW version is currently $299 on Amazon with free shipping, and the color model is selling for $306.90. They’re even cheaper when purchased direct from Bigme’s website, but they ship from China and shipping is pretty expensive and they’re subject to import fees.
The color version appears to be using an older previous generation color E Ink screen so I would probably avoid that one (why is E Ink even still making the older screens?). The color resolution is only 92 ppi, whereas the black and white resolution is a respectable 276 ppi for both models, with a screen size of 5.84″.
Both versions of the Bigme HiBreak S run Android 14. They have 128GB of internal storage, with 6GB of RAM, and there’s a memory card slot for expansion up to 1TB. They use an octa-core CPU, with support for Bigme’s xRapid technology for faster refreshing, up to 24 frames per second (which is actually pretty impressive for E Ink).
They support dual band WiFi and Bluetooth 5.0. They have front and rear cameras (5MP and 13MP), with a built-in speaker and microphone. They support GPS, and they have a USB-C port, and a 3300mAh battery. A frontlight with adjustable color is also included.
One thing about these “S” models is they only support 4G networks, not 5G like the more expensive HiBreak Pro, which has a larger screen and some upgraded specs. It sells for $459; it’s more comparable to the Palma 2 Pro than these cheaper “S” models, but it’s good to see there are less expensive alternatives as well.
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