Who is This For? Clicks Communicator Explained
The internet is buzzing following the announcement of the Clicks Communicator, but the reveal has left a lot of people scratching their heads. Is it a BlackBerry clone? Is it a "dumb phone" that happens to run apps? Is it a phone at all?
The conversation around this device is fascinating because it is not trying to be a flagship killer. Instead, it is trying to be something totally different.
What is the Clicks Communicator?
At its core, the Communicator is a standalone Android 16 device that prioritizes typing and messaging over consumption. Yes, it’s a phone. Despite the marketing of this device being largely based around positioning it as a secondary device, their website confirms it can be used as your only phone if you so choose. And yes, you can install whatever apps you want. It features a 4.03-inch squared AMOLED display sitting above a full physical QWERTY keyboard.
While it looks nostalgic, the hardware is very modern. The keyboard is capacitive, meaning you can scroll through lists by swiping your fingers over the physical keys. The spacebar houses a fingerprint sensor, and there is a dedicated "Prompt Key" on the side that handles voice-to-text, voice notes or triggering your digital assistant of choice. It also brings back a "greatest hits" list of features that big manufacturers have killed off: a 3.5mm headphone jack, microSD expansion, a customizable notification LED and a physical kill switch to more fully disconnect.
What is the Point?
The "why" behind this phone is actually its most interesting feature. It is designed to be a tool for intentionality.
Curbing the Scroll: The smaller, squared screen is a deliberate choice. While you can technically open Instagram or TikTok, the aspect ratio makes the experience mediocre at best. This reminds me a bit of my time reviewing the Boox brand e-readers. I worried that since they technically could install and run any android app that I’d be pulled away by the suction of social media and forget to read. As it turns out, those apps just aren’t fun to use on those devices, so that just wasn’t a problem. I think the same might be true here, albeit it to a lesser degree.
The Weekend Unplug: Many people want to be reachable for their family or work via Slack and WhatsApp without being sucked into a YouTube rabbit hole. The software uses a message-centric Niagara Launcher that puts your chats front and center, while a customizable LED light on the side tells you exactly who is messaging you without you even needing to wake the screen.
The SIM Swapper's Home Base: This is what I’m hoping to get from the Communicator. I switch phones constantly. My hope is that the Communicator can offer a "home base" solution. That “primary” phone needs to be small and light enough to not be annoying to carry with my foldable. It also needs to offer a specific use experience that differs from the foldable. If I end up scrolling through Threads on it anyways, what’s the point? The Communicator seems tailor made for my use. My plan is to keep my primary SIM in the Communicator and use it as an anchor for calls and texts. When I want to mess around with one of my foldables and Wi-Fi isn’t available, I can tether it. I plan to use something like Beeper or Messages for Web to keep text messages available on the secondary foldable. No more swapping SIMs? Yes, please.
Of course, when I’m reviewing a phone, the SIM will go into that phone, but most of the time, a home base device might make perfect sense for me.
Why not buy the Unihertz Titan 2 or Ikko Mind One?
One question I keep seeing pop up is why not just buy one of the other QWERTY phones that are already available? The two that keep being mentioned are the Unihertz Titan 2 and the Ikko Mind One. I think this is a perfectly valid question worth digging into.
Unihertz is known for releasing interesting and novel pieces of hardware, but their software is notoriously buggy and rarely updated. The Titan 2 is still running Android 15 and I doubt that will ever change. Clicks is promising 2 years of Android OS updates and 5 years of security updates. In a niche category where devices are often abandoned by the manufacturer after a couple months, if Clicks can actually deliver meaningful updates for 2 years, that would be a step up. Is it Samsung or Google level? Of course not. Clicks is a much smaller company and we shouldn’t expect them to do what the big players do.
The Ikko Mind One is another stylish option, but there are always questions about brand longevity and reliability with newer players. Clicks has the advantage of being led by people who are deeply embedded in the tech community. This gives me a level of confidence that the device is built to meet the standards of actual enthusiasts rather than just being a "gimmick". It’s also worth noting that the Mind One is currently for preorder at $429 with an additional $89 needed for the keyboard case. The Clicks Communicator has an MSRP of $499 and an early bird price of $399, matching the Titan 2.
It is also important to talk about the price. Some might find it steep for a device with a 4-inch screen. However, we have to consider economies of scale.
When a giant like Samsung or Apple builds a phone, they are ordering components by the millions, which drives the cost per unit way down. Clicks is a small, independent company. They do not have the massive buying power to negotiate bottom-dollar prices for screens, batteries, or custom-tooled keyboards. Every physical key, the brushed aluminum buttons, and the specialized capacitive sensors cost more to produce in smaller batches. When you buy a Communicator, you are not just paying for the plastic and glass; you are supporting the specialized engineering and production runs that a small team has to manage without the safety net of a multi-billion-dollar corporation.
The Specs
To wrap things up, let's look at what is actually under the hood. While the Clicks Communicator is not chasing the latest flagship chip for gaming or heavy 4K video editing, the specs are more than good enough for a device with this focus. RAM is yet unspecified.
Display: 4.03-inch AMOLED (1080 x 1200 resolution).
Processor: MediaTek 4-nanometer 5G IoT SoC.
Memory & Storage: 256GB on-board storage with microSD expansion up to 2TB.
Battery: 4,000 mAh silicon-carbon battery.
Charging: USB-C and Qi2 wireless charging.
Cameras: 50MP main rear camera with OIS; 24MP front-facing camera.
Connectivity: 5G, Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax), Bluetooth, and NFC.
SIM: NanoSIM + eSIM support.
Audio: 3.5mm headphone jack.
Software: Android 16 (with 2 years of OS updates and 5 years of security patches).
Dimensions: 130.5mm x 78.63mm x 12mm.
Weight: 170g.
Final Thoughts
The Clicks Communicator is a refreshing entry in a smartphone market that has felt stagnant for years. It is a device that knows exactly what it is and who it is for. It is not trying to be the most powerful phone in your pocket; it is trying to be the most intentional one. While we’ve seen the concept of a secondary or weekend phone before, those phones were terrible. Rather than offering a distinct use case that lends itself to a specific use while pushing you away from the doom scroll, those phones were largely so bad, you just didn’t want to use them at all.
By leaning into physical keys, a message-centric launcher, and a form factor that discourages mindless scrolling, Clicks is offering a hardware-level solution to a software-level problem. Whether you use it as your "weekend phone" to help you stay present or as a reliable "home base" for your SIM card while you jump between other devices, the Communicator provides a level of intentionality that flagship phones don’t attempt. If you look at this phone and only see a grab at nostalgia that’ll fade in days or weeks, I would venture that this just isn’t the phone for you. It’s a phone for the keyboard die-hards. The people for whom a physical keyboard isn’t nostalgia, it’s a genuine preference.
It is a bold move from a small company, but for those of us who miss the tactile feel of a physical keyboard and want to reclaim our attention from the "doom scroll," the Clicks Communicator might be exactly what we need.