Planet Computers
Gemini

The debut device from Planet Computers was an attempt to recreate the Psion 5 — a much-loved personal digital assistant (PDA) from the late 1990s — and update it for the cellular era. The Psion 5 sported a clamshell design and a full qwerty keyboard for text entry and app navigation. Planet Computers retained both these features in the Gemini, working with the designer of the Psion hardware, Martin Riddiford, to create a device that in many ways was more PDA than phone. The Gemini lacked an external display and had just one button when closed. A series of five LEDs tucked into the clamshell's lid could be programmed to relay basic notifications of incoming messages and calls. Although the device could be used for calls when closed, thanks to external speakers and microphone, it worked best opened up and held in both hands or placed on a desk. To enhance the device's usefulness on a desk, Planet Computers also produced an HDMI dongle that fed video from one of the Gemini's USB-C ports to an external monitor, and a port expander with Ethernet and full-sized USB sockets. An optional five-megapixel camera module could be fitted to the outside of the clamshell lid, giving the otherwise sleek design a prominent bump. As well as producing a range of accessories, Planet also developed several applications that took advantage of the Gemini's keyboard and landscape display. Among them, Agenda (a calendar app) and Data (a basic database) mimicked the names and many of the features of earlier programs on the Psion 5. The phone was one of the first mobile devices to support e-SIM technology, which allowed it to connect to networks without needing a physical SIM card. The Gemini was funded by an Indiegogo campaign and developed by a company of fewer than a dozen people. Relatively successful in a tiny niche of the mobile phone market, the Gemini reflected the determination of its creators and the opportunities afforded by small-scale manufacturing in China.