# Unihertz Jelly Star

12 Hacker News commenters recommended Unihertz Jelly Star and 4 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 6 of 13 months. It meets the Hacker Approved badge rule.

**Verdict:** Recommended as a very small phone that suits people who want less smartphone use, with apps working well; the most common caveat is the tiny screen and weak battery.

## Why people recommend it

- Small, pocketable size (5 comments): "By the way this phone is awesome. Highly recommend for anyone who wishes they didn't need to carry a smart phone." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48541373)) "Because it's small, it doesn't look like a regular smartphone" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47487622)) "makes being small their whole selling point" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49654092))
- Good for limited phone use (2 comments): "By the way this phone is awesome. Highly recommend for anyone who wishes they didn't need to carry a smart phone." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48541373)) "use it just for banking apps" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49540605))
- Runs LineageOS or Graphene (2 comments): "it has a 3" screen, which is comparable to your old HTC Hero (3.2"), and you can run a LineageOS GSI on it" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46211635)) "My dream phone is a Star running Graphene." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47315948))

## What people warn about

- Screen is very small (2 comments): "The Unihertz Jelly Star satisfied your requirements. But the screen is smaller than the 1st iPhone's even." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45890122)) "that's way too small for me" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47232479))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [Apple iPhone](https://hackerapproved.com/p/iphone.md): 706 recommend
- [Fairphone](https://hackerapproved.com/p/fairphone.md): 168 recommend
- [Apple iPhone Pro](https://hackerapproved.com/p/iphone-17-pro.md): 144 recommend
- [iPhone 13 mini](https://hackerapproved.com/p/iphone-13-mini.md): 141 recommend
- [Jolla Phone](https://hackerapproved.com/p/jolla-phone.md): 88 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Unihertz+Jelly+Star&tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Official site](https://www.unihertz.com/)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Unihertz Jelly Star", https://hackerapproved.com/p/unihertz-jelly-star/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).