This tiny, e-ink Android phone is the minimalist gadget I've been waiting for

One of the more interesting smartphone trends of the last year or two has been the rise of minimalist phones; phones that are designed to be less addictive than “regular” smartphones while still keeping you connected to phone calls, texts, etc.

I saw one such device at CES 2026 last week. It’s called the Mudita Kompakt, and compared to other minimalist phones on the market today, it’s the first one I’m actually tempted to buy.

As you’d expect from a phone of this caliber, the Mudita Kompakt is a pretty simple device. It has a 4.3-inch e-ink touchscreen display, a 3.5mm headphone jack, IP54 dust/water resistance, 32GB of storage (expandable up to 2TB), and a 3,300mAh battery rated to last up to six days.

From a hardware perspective, the Kompakt immediately made a strong first impression. The plastic body feels comfortable yet sturdy, and the 4.3-inch screen is easy to use with one hand.

One of my favorite hardware features is the physical switch on the left side of the phone. When enabled, it kills the Kompakt’s GSM and microphones at a hardware level; at the software level, it also disables Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and the cameras. Mudita calls this “Offline+ Mode,” and it’s a genius feature for this type of smartphone.

Equally impressive to me during my hands-on session was the Mudita Kompakt’s software. The phone runs Mudita’s custom MuditaOS operating system, which is based on a de-Googled version of Android.

The Kompakt’s main home screen shows the time and date at the top, while the bottom has shortcuts to the phone and texting apps, plus a button to view all installed applications. These additional apps include things like an alarm, calculator, calendar, e-reader mode, music player, and maps with turn-by-turn navigation.

Mudita’s selection of pre-installed apps is exactly what you’d expect from a minimalist phone, but you can also sideload virtually any Android app you want. The Mudita Kompakt I used during my hands-on session had WhatsApp and Spotify sideloaded; the Spotify app ran a bit slowly due to the Kompakt’s e-ink screen, but it still worked just fine. I could easily navigate between the different tabs, scroll through the app, and play music without a hitch.

Compared to the Light Phone 3, which doesn’t support sideloading at all, and the Boox Palma 2 Pro, which has the Google Play Store installed out of the box, I think the Mudita Kompakt strikes a nice middle ground between the two. There are certain apps, such as Telegram and Google Tasks, that I’d want to have on a minimalist phone. However, I don’t want the constant temptation of being able to readily install Instagram, X, TikTok, and other time-wasters. You need to plug the Kompakt into your computer and use Mudita’s desktop app to sideload, and I think that added bit of resistance is good to have.

I only had about 20 minutes of hands-on time with the Mudita Kompakt, but that was enough to convince me it’s the first minimalist phone I could actually see myself using. It feels great, the e-ink display is wonderful, the software is as clean as you’d expect, and the addition of sideloading makes it all the more appealing.

The Mudita Kompakt is available for purchase now. It’s available in three colors (black, white, and gray) and costs $439.