Why The Clicks Communicator Has Everyone Talking
The Clicks Communicator is a minimalist, nostalgia-inducing, tactile phone specifically designed to separate communication from consumption
Physical keyboards on phones are a thing of the past. Or are they?
Known for developing add-on keyboards for various smartphones, the UK consumer tech startup Clicks Technology, famous for bringing back tactile physical interfaces for modern devices, might have launched its best product yet.
The Clicks Communicator is a minimalist, nostalgia-inducing, tactile fantasy dream specifically designed to separate communication from consumption. Unlike the standard smartphones that compete for your attention with their large screens and infinite media apps, the Clicks Communicator phone is built to engage in high-value tasks (calling, texting, and answering emails) while actively discouraging you from "doomscrolling" and getting distracted.
The Communicator focuses on nostalgic functional utility, bringing back features that mainstream phones have abandoned.
The 4.03-inch AMOLED display makes watching videos or scrolling social media intentionally less immersive, nudging users back to typing and communicating. The full physical QWERTY keyboard comes with capacitive keys, allowing you to swipe over them to scroll through content without having to touch the screen.
The phone also offers features such as a Prompt Key for voice tasks and a multicolour notification LED that is customisable according to your contacts. The kill switch mutes your phone instantly (hallelujah!), while the Clicks key shortcut is similar to Apple’s action button, built to toggle specific tasks.
A long-lost dream for many smartphone users, the phone also comes with microSD expansion up to 2TB and a 4,000mAh silicon-carbon battery. Other classic features like the 3.5mm headphone jack, physical SIM card and microSD card support remain for added functionality, despite being phased out from many modern devices.
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Most of the features are similar to the Android device experience, the phone’s OS is based on Android 16, but the additional functional touches and a focus on it being more of a ‘communication device’ rather than a distraction box is what separates it from the rest.
Another fun, physical design feature is the wedged edges and their colourful swappable backplates, adding a touch of ingenuity to the whole package. The Clicks Communicator is not a flagship and costs $499 (approximately ₹45,000). You can pre-order it for $399.
Although it is marketed as a companion to your primary device, with the main feature being able to pair it with your smartphone, the perennial digital exhaustion in this era can easily push people to replace their dopamine candy bars with this tactile toy.
With pop culture heavily pushing digital detox as a serious solution in self-help and mental health fields and a continuous comeback of retro futuristic designs, this product could just be the new ‘IT’ device.