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Yota 3 (YotaPhone 3) officially revealed with all-new rear E Ink display
As for the prices, these are considerably higher than what we previously thought, with the regular 64 GB model coming in at 3,699 yuan (~$560) and the 128 GB model and 64 GB premium models costing 4,299 yuan (~$655). It seems we spoke too soon regarding the dramatic price drop compared to the YotaPhone 2, though the base handset still manages to undercut its predecessor's launch price by almost 300 bucks.
The Yota 3, also known as the YotaPhone 3, is now official. The latest device from Russian manufacturer Yota was announced at an event in Beijing, with details being posted on Yota’s VK page soon after.
The series is somewhat unique as far as Android smartphones are concerned thanks to its display setup. The Yota 3 comes with a 5.5-inch, Full HD, AMOLED display on the front, but also features a 5.2-inch E Ink display on the rear (the Yota 2‘s E Ink screen came in at 4.7 inches).
We don’t yet know the full range of features that this rear screen will offer, but we do know that it houses three capacitive buttons. Additionally, in China, the Yota 3 will come with several pre-installed apps dedicated to reading, as well as a library of modern and classic eBooks. It seems that this type of usage will, as you would expect, play a large role in how the rear screen is used.
The rear display is clearly the highlight of the device, as there’s nothing particularly exciting about the rest of the specs. The handset arrives with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor, 4 GB of RAM, and 64 GB Or 128 GB Of internal storage space, depending on which model you pick up.
There’s a single camera on the rear with 12 MP dual tone LED flash, while a 13 MP snapper sits up front. The handset is powered by a 3,300 mAh battery with USB Type-C connectivity, includes a fingerprint scanner, and will launch running YotaOS 3.0 on top of Android 7.1.1 Nougat. For those wondering about an update to Android 8.0 Oreo, it could take a while for it to reach the Yota 3 — Yota hasn’t been exactly zippy with updates in the past.
Pre-orders for the 128 GB variant of the Yota 3 will launch in mid-September with Chinese retailer JD.com for around $465. This will be followed by the 64 GB variant pre-orders on September 18 for around $360, before the device is officially released in China soon after. These prices are, as previously rumored, considerably lower than the price of the YotaPhone 2, which started at around $850 — something that should come as a good news to anyone interested in what the YotaPhone series has to offer but was previously put off by the price.
The handset will be going on sale in both Russian and in China, but whether it will launch in other territories hasn’t been confirmed. We’ll let you know as we learn more.