Cell phone or earphone? Kit allows you to make a truly old school device

Rotary phones have been out of the market for a long, long time – to the point where younger people have no idea how to operate them. But nostalgia is a force of nature. With this in mind, Sky's Edge has launched an unusual solution, to say the least.

The kit offered by the company allows the customer to assemble their own functional smartphone, with 4G connection and a dial in the style abandoned in the 1980s. And, to keep it retro, despite having an internet connection, the functions of this device are limited to calling and sending messages. Aimed at those who want to get away from this connected world for a while, heading back to the days of the Afternoon Session classics and the fear of global nuclear annihilation.

The Rotary Un-Smartphone is based on an open-source project by engineer Justine Haupt. Created in 2020, the idea was a hit, but it was very difficult for users to find the materials needed to build the device.

The Sky's Edge kit is designed for just that purpose. The package costs $400 (around R$2 in direct conversion) and includes the handset and components of a conventional cell phone. To assemble it, you only need a screwdriver.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0euCWf0FpOA&feature=emb_title

retrofuturism

Despite its old-school look, it has some features that are, let's say, modern... for the 80s. You don't have to dial a number again every time you want to call someone, calls are saved and you can create dedicated buttons for specific contacts.

On the back of the Rotary Un-Smartphone is a small display with a retro look (obviously), which can be used to display dialed numbers or even SMS messages.

Photo: Courtesy/Sky's Edge

To complete the extravagant look, the mobile phone has a huge antenna on the side, giving an extra charm to this router, I mean, smartphone. In short, it is a device aimed at a specific audience and for specific situations, after all, even though it is portable, it may not be so easy to carry it in your pocket.

Through which channels you reach those people, classic and out of the box. Slashgear