YotaPhone 2 review: Russia’s dual-screen smartphone impresses with rear-facing e-ink display

The YotaPhone 2, a smartphone created by Russia’s Yota Devices, never fails to draw a second glance whenever one uses it in public. The dual-screen phone sets itself apart from the rest of the Android smartphone pool by featuring an always-on, e-ink screen on the back of the smartphone.

The phone went on sale in mainland China back in May and is now being heavily promoted in the run-up to Christmas. It was re-released in Hong Kong in November after a previous attempt to launch it in the city was aborted after just one month at the end of 2014.

Hong Kong’s REX Global signed an agreement to purchase a majority stake in Yota Devices for US$100 million this October, and the company said it has plans to take its upcoming YotaPhone devices to the mainstream in Asia.

Compared to the likes of Samsung and Apple, the YotaPhone 2 may still be fairly unknown to the rest of the world. But in Russia and China, the phone catapulted to fame about one year ago when Russian President Vladimir Putin presented President Xi Jinping with two YotaPhone 2s in November.

READ MORE: Russia’s Yota Devices sees partnership with China’s ZTE on next dual-screen YotaPhone as means to supersize fan base

From video footage, Putin demonstrated to Xi the dual-screen capabilities, and Xi looked understandably fascinated by the device. This reporter got her hands on a YotaPhone review unit and it is not difficult to see what piqued Xi’s curiosity.