Buy Emporia phones
Are you looking for an emporia mobile phone? This Austrian brand has been making handsets for years that do one thing well: they stay simple. Large keys, a clear menu and a dedicated emergency call button are standard features here, rather than a cluttered home screen. You’ll find the range below, with the current prices charged by the associated mobile network operators listed next to each model. We don’t sell anything ourselves and don’t earn any more from one handset than from another. Use the filters to choose between a push-button mobile, a flip phone and a basic smartphone.
What should you look out for when choosing an emporia phone?
Start with the type. emporia offers two product ranges side by side: phones with physical keys and Android smartphones with a greatly simplified home screen. Within the keypad range, you can also choose between a classic bar-style model and a clamshell phone. That choice determines virtually everything that follows, from how it’s operated to what you can do with the device.
Keypad, clamshell or touchscreen
You can make calls and send messages with a keypad phone. That’s all it does, and that’s a deliberate choice, not a shortcoming. If you also want to share photos, do your banking or use DigiD, you’ll need a smartphone.
- Keypad mobile: tactile keys, long battery life, few settings and virtually no chance of accidentally touching something
- Flip phone: closing it ends the call, the screen is protected and you won’t accidentally make a call from your coat pocket
- Basic smartphone: touchscreen with large icons; apps and internet access, but more to get to grips with
The emergency button
Most emporia models have a separate emergency call button, usually on the back. This button calls the contacts you have pre-set yourself, not the emergency number. On smartphones, you can also set this same button as a shortcut to another function. Compile the list together with the person who will be using the phone and let the selected contacts know that they’re on it, as an emergency button that dials an unreachable number is of no use to anyone.
Network: can the device still make calls?
Check whether the model supports 4G and can also make calls via 4G, which is listed as VoLTE in the specifications. Older networks are being phased out in the Netherlands, so handsets that only make calls via 2G or 3G will lose that capability as soon as such a network is switched off. With a second-hand or older model, this is the first thing you should check.
Usability, sound and display
Pay attention to the features that affect day-to-day use: how loud the ringtone can be, how large the text can be displayed, and whether the phone can transmit sound directly to a hearing aid. In newer models, this is done via the ASHA protocol, but it varies from device to device, so check the specifications. Please note: being suitable for use with a hearing aid is not the same as transmitting sound directly.
Battery and battery life
A basic phone lasts longer than the average smartphone, simply because it runs fewer functions. With some smartphones, you can also replace the battery yourself, which significantly extends the device’s lifespan; check this for each model. With a smartphone, it’s not just the battery that determines how long it lasts, but also how long the device receives security updates.
Who is Emporia aimed at?
The brand focuses on older people, but its target audience is broader than that. Anyone who wants to stay connected without notifications, apps and distractions will find a suitable handset here. Do be honest about what the user needs: a keypad phone isn’t too complicated for anyone, but it also cuts you off from everything the rest of the world now relies on, from parcel delivery to banking. You should therefore compare the range on offer with the broader overviews of phones for older people and dumbphones.
