Using the CAT S22 Flip in 2024/2025!
Phone Specs
Below are the basic Specifications for the phone.
- OS: Android Go 11 (Last updated in July 2022!)
- SCREEN: 2.8in TFT Touch Screen
- CPU: Qualcomm QM215 Snapdragon 215
- RAM: 2GB
- MEMORY: 16GB (Expandable with SDCard both for apps or just general data)
- CAMERA: Main: 5MP Selfie: 2MP
- BATTERY: Removable 2000 mAh (Average 2 days light usage, 1 day moderate usage)
(Image from GSMArena)
The Review
A flip phone with Android in 2025? It sounds crazy I know. But hear me out. What better year to get away from all the distractions, social media, and doom scrolling than 2025?
The device comes equiped well enough to be a daily driver, even for you techies out there, like me. Touch screen for apps that don’t support hardware keyboards, and a T9 + D-Pad for everything else. This phone can get the job done. I have been using this device for a few months (started in 2024) and have little issue with the device, little issue with apps not working properly, and the battery life has been top tier especially compared to my now-not used Pixel 7.
I got my device from my current service provider, Mint Mobile, but they no longer carry the device. You can also get it on Amazon. My device is currently setup on Mint with a 64GB SDCard setup for apps (extension of internal storage and not setup for general data usage).
There are a few must-have apps in order to make this phone a standout for 2025. On your PC, you’ll need Universal Android Debloat Tool - As the name implies, this is a tool we will be using to debloat the phone (debloat meaning removing and/or disabling unwanted apps) a wiki on how-to use this app on your pc is here
Hit up the releases page for a download of the above (make sure to get the right version for your OS as well).
Must-have apps for the phone itself: Apps I list here are hardware-keyboard compatible unless otherwise stated.
- Droid-ify (F-Droid compatible app store, useful for finding and downloading OSS apps)
- sspanak tt9 keyboard (This is better than the built-in T9, trust me)
- RedReader (Download this from Droid-ify) (Reddit app for mobile devices. UI leaves something to be desired but is 100% T9 compatible!)
- NewPipe (Download this from Droid-ify) (OSS YouTube App which supports custom playlists and offline/closed play)
- Symfonium (Light weight, but feature rich music player, compatible with online and offline music libraries)
Some notable mentions include Google Maps, Bitwarden (Password Manager), and Tailscale.
You can setup the phone as you normally would. Power it on, go through the “Out-Of-Box-Experience”, and once you are at the home screen you can install the must-have apps above. After installing the must-haves, you will need to enable developer mode to use the Universal Android Debloat Tool.
Once developer mode is on, go back to Settings > System > Advanced > Developer options and enable USB Debugging. While you’re in there, also set Window Animation Scale, Transition Animation Scale, and Animator Animation Scale to .5x (If you set to 0 scale it will make the animations of the system to instant, this works but is jarring at times) - this will make the device feel a bit snappier. Close out of settings and plug the phone into your computer and start the Universal Android Debloat Tool. On the phone, allow the connection from your computer and then, while keeping the Universal Android Debloat Tool in “Recommended” mode, select all the apps and then select uninstall. This will remove all the bloat from the phone while keeping your apps you installed.
I’d recommend rebooting the device now and then setup a pin number as well (PIN on the lock screen can be entered by pressing the Home o button and then typing the pin, then pressing the select (Center D-Pad) button).
That’s the general setup I have on my phone, I have a couple more apps (banking, bitwarden, tailscale for my music for example) but since the screen is so small, scrolling on FB/YT/TT is really difficult and not really user-friendly.
Overall my time with this device has been a great experience. Other than a couple apps, which I don’t remember anyway, everything runs as smooth as I need it to, which for most apps is usable and pleasant. NewPipe works great, and while I wouldn’t use this phone to watch videos all the time, for the quick 5 or 10 minute video while waiting in line somewhere or casually while waiting for something it works great. RedReader’s UI is dated but the app is up to date and works well for reading news from Reddit. I plan to continue to use this device through most of 2025 until I can find a more up-to-date Android powered flip phone. Battery life is great as well, even when listening to music using BT (car or ear phones) the battery easily lasts 1 to 2 days, and even 3 days if I dont use it for media and only for phone calls.