I held my breath as I walked into the concert venue and showed the bouncer a ticket barcode on a three-inch, square screen. But just as Meadow founder Shreyas Narlanka promised me, the code I scanned onto the startup’s minimalist phone earlier that day worked fine. With Meadow’s barebones smartphone, I had called an Uber, streamed Apple Music during the ride, and entered the show.
Not once did I need to touch my iPhone, which I only brought with me as a backup in case the ticket scan didn’t work. That’s resulting in a new device category that promises a reprieve. Some of these devices, like the Light Phone, require users to completely give up their smartphone and switch to a simpler device.
Others, like the Wisephone, offer a modern touchscreen device with a minimal UI and a few apps. Still others are embracing more tactile form factors, like the Commodore Callback, which is a flip-phone with a touchscreen. Meadow, meanwhile, is taking the middle road, intending to simply supplement your existing device.
It runs Android, and so supports apps like Maps, Strava, Uber, Apple Music and Spotify. It also has native apps for utilities like the camera, voice memos, notes, camera, text, calling, location sharing, and ticket scanning. It also supports Bluetooth, and you can connect 3.5mm headphones to it using a USB-C-to-3.5mm adapter.
Narlanka recommends his customers take advantage the iPhone’s “driving” focus feature, which by default tells your top contacts that you’re on the road — instead, he says, you can customize the text to say you’re out with the Meadow. This way, you might miss the latest chatter in your group chats, but if anyone needs to contact you urgently, they’ll still be able to reach you. People talk about reducing their screen time as something that’s universally assumed to be good for you, like eating vegetables or flossing.
Even ADÉLA, the artist whose concert I attended, used her manager’s phone to publish a celebration post after her debut album hit number four on the charts. Her fans don’t feel the same way — I saw several people recording the entire show on their iPhones. (There’s nothing wrong with snapping a few photos or a short video for Instagram, but an entire show?) Speaking of cameras, the one on the Meadow worked well when out and about during the day, the pictures weren’t great when I tried using it to take photos at the concert. The camera app also works differently from your usual smartphone fare: You can take as many photos and videos as you want, but you can only see your photos once you get home and use the Meadow app from your main smartphone.
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