First Week with Light Phone III

 

Light Phone III 經過一個禮拜的使用，摘要以下幾點心得：

1. 電池：Light Phone 帶有 1,800 mAH 的電池，在藍芽與無線網路均開啟，且在市區網路穩定的環境之下，Light Phone 的待機時間大約三天，與 Punkt MP02(1,280 mAH)的兩天，以及 Pixel 8(4,575 mAH)的五天相比，機器的電池消耗率不相上下。不過，Light Phone 曾經發生過一次因為電力不足直接當機，需要持續按電源鍵才有辦法開機。
2. 相機：Light Phone 的相機為 5,000 萬畫素，色調偏冷，這讓我想起 Ricoh GR Digital；其獨特的二階段快門(two-step shutter button)，讓攝影多了一些趣味，唯從「半按對焦」到「全按取景」的秒差，容易錯過拍照的時機，並增添物體移動的機會，我想這應可以透過未來軟體更新來獲得改善；至於前置鏡頭，因為比較少自拍因此無法分享。
3. 介面：Light Phone 的進階功能，主要透過網頁介面(Dash)啟用與操作，但網頁缺乏多重要素驗證(Mutiple-Factor Authentication, MFA)，只需要密碼即可登入，這增添資訊被入侵的風險，包含聯絡人資訊、行事曆、記事本等私人資訊；在網頁介面可以按照需求新增功能，包含行事曆(Google Calendar Support)、記事本、音樂、方向(Here 圖資)、熱點等。
4. 通知：這是一支不希望影響您生活的工具，因此任何通知，包含鈴聲、簡訊聲都很「輕」，輕到您不會注意到，因此容易錯過一些來電或簡訊；如果收到帶有網址的簡訊，會自動轉發到您初始設定的電子信箱，但這又會牽涉到隱私問題，如果內容會較為機密，經過該公司的伺服器，是否又會延伸資安的風險，這需要再多一點資訊才有辦法信服。

Light Phone III - Summary of One Week's Usage Experience

1. Battery: The Light Phone comes with a 1,800 mAH battery. With Bluetooth and Wi-Fi enabled, in a stable urban network environment, the Light Phone's standby time is about three days. This is comparable to the Punkt MP02 (1,280 mAH) with two days and the Pixel 8 (4,575 mAH) with five days, showing that the device's battery drain rate is similar across these devices. However, the Light Phone did experience one incident where it crashed due to insufficient power and required holding down the power button to restart.

2. Camera: The Light Phone's camera is 50 megapixels with cooler color tones, reminiscent of the Ricoh GR Digital. Its unique two-step shutter button adds some interest to photography, but the delay between "half-press to focus" and "full-press to capture" can cause missed photo opportunities and increase the chance of subject movement. I believe this could be improved through future software updates. As for the front camera, I can't share much as I rarely take selfies.

3. Interface: The Light Phone's advanced features are primarily enabled and operated through a web interface (Dash). However, the website lacks Multiple-Factor Authentication (MFA), requiring only a password to log in, which increases the risk of information breaches, including contact information, calendar, notes, and other personal information. Through the web interface, functions can be added according to needs, including calendar (Google Calendar Support), notes, music, directions (Here maps), hotspot, etc.

4. Notifications: This is a tool designed not to disrupt your life, so all notifications, including ringtones and message alerts, are very "light" - so light that you might not notice them, making it easy to miss calls or messages. If you receive a text message containing a URL, it will be automatically forwarded to your initially configured email address, but this raises privacy concerns. If the content is confidential, passing through the company's servers might pose security risks, which would require more information to be convincing.

Light Phone III 的初步印象

Light Phone III

經過將近一年的漫長等待，Light Phone III 總算抵達，先分享幾個初步印象：

1. 手感：我不只一次在筆記本，描繪手機的長度與寬度，並想像拿在手中的感覺，比較的手機包含先前的 Punkt MP02 與目前使用的 Pixel 8，雖然 Light Phone 的寬度與 Pixel 8 相同，但是拿在手裡的感覺還是不大習慣，以整體手感來說，無疑的還是 Punkt MP02 較優。
2. 螢幕：Light Phone 的螢幕是 OLED，並以黑底白字為主要的操作介面，唯獨使用相機時，會轉換為全彩的介面，包含相簿也是以全彩呈現。有些用戶表示，螢幕與 E-Ink 相較，注視時較為不舒服，或許這樣的原因有部分會轉向 Mudita Pure 等使用 E-Ink 的手機。
3. 質感：無疑的，這是一個高品質且有個性的極簡手機，與 Punkt MP02 不相上下，從材質的選用到包裝的設計，都可以看見這家公司的堅持。唯獨官方保護殼，其材質為塑料，雖然價格便宜且保護力佳，但是裝上保護殼後，整體質感便下降許多。
4. 功能：額外功能透過網頁進行新增，直覺方便，以日曆來說，可綁定 Google 日曆，雖然只能同步主要行事曆，但已經相當方便，介面能正常呈現正體中文；筆記本，可以在網頁進行新增，並於手機中進行檢視，可作為待辦事項的筆記本；通訊錄，支援匯入vcf，但是資料儲存在該公司雲端，還讓我有隱私的疑慮。

接下來會花時間來好好認識這支極簡手機的功能，包含期待的二階段快門鈕(two-step shutter button)、拍照的效果、電池的續航力等。

After nearly a year of long waiting, the Light Phone III has finally arrived. Here are some initial impressions:

1. Handfeel: More than once, I've sketched the length and width of phones in my notebook, imagining how they would feel in hand. Comparing with the previous Punkt MP02 and my current Pixel 8, although the Light Phone has the same width as the Pixel 8, holding it still feels unfamiliar. In terms of overall handfeel, the Punkt MP02 is undoubtedly superior.

2. Screen: The Light Phone uses an OLED screen with a primarily black background and white text interface. Only when using the camera does it switch to a full-color interface, including the photo gallery which also displays in full color. Some users have mentioned that compared to E-Ink, the screen is less comfortable to look at for extended periods, which might be why some users switch to phones using E-Ink displays like the Mudita Pure.

3. Quality: Undoubtedly, this is a high-quality minimalist phone with character, on par with the Punkt MP02. From material selection to packaging design, you can see this company's commitment to quality. The only exception is the official protective case, which is made of plastic. Although it's inexpensive and offers good protection, once the case is on, the overall quality feel decreases significantly.

4. Functions: Additional functions can be added via the website, which is intuitive and convenient. For the calendar, it can be linked to Google Calendar, and although it can only synchronize with the primary calendar, it's already quite convenient. The interface can properly display Traditional Chinese characters. The notebook function allows adding notes via the website that can be viewed on the phone, useful as a to-do list. The contacts feature supports importing vcf files, but the data is stored in the company's cloud, which raises some privacy concerns for me.

Next, I'll spend time getting to know this minimalist phone's features better, including the anticipated two-step shutter button, photo quality, battery life, and more.

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Full technical specifications for the Light Phone III.

• Packaging weight/Dimensions: 1.125lb / 7” x 7” x 1.5”
• Dimensions: 106mm x 71.5mm x 12mm
• Weight: 124g
• Network: 5G + 4G LTE
• B1, B2, B3, B4, B5, B7, B8, B12, B13, B14, B17, B18, B19, B20, B25, B26, B28, B29, B30, B38, B40, B41, B42, B48, B53, B66, B71, N1, N2, N3, N5, N7, N8, N12, N14, N20, N25, N26, N28, N29, N30, N38, N40, N41, N48, N53, N66, N70, N71, N78
• Display: 3.92" AMOLED (1080x1240)
• Screen: Matte Glass
• Port: USB-C 2.0
• Camera: 12m default image output
• 50m rear sensor / 8m front sensor
• SIM: Nano SIM + E-SIM
• Memory: 128GB / 6GB RAM
• Battery: 1800 mAH
• Sound: 2 mics (noise cancellation), 2 stereo speakers
• Features: GPS, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, Fingerprint ID
• Materials: Aluminum, Glass, SORPLAS Recycled Plastic
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM 4450
• IP Rating: IP 54