Astrohaus will launch the Freewright Alpha, the cheapest digital typewriter in the Freewright series, in mid-January next year, priced at $349. However, you can pre-order the black or white version now on the company's website.
FreewriteAlpha is the follow-up to the original $649 Freewrite and the $499 portable Freewrite Traveler launched in 2020. Like the previous two products, this Wi-Fi-enabled typewriter won't be distracted by things like web browsers and emails, helping you focus on writing. After you finish writing, this gadget can also wirelessly synchronize the document to software services such as Google Drive and Dropbox so that you can edit and share the document.
However, Alpha abandoned the EInk display in favor of a reflective monochrome LCD screen, thus reducing costs. Additionally, it now only has one screen instead of two, and it weighs about half as much as the original, making it heavier than the Traveler.
On the other hand, Astrohaus promises the Alpha will have a longer battery life of up to 100 hours, while continuing to support USB-C. The Alpha also brings the mechanics missing from the Traveler, offering KailhChocV2LowProfile shafts that are even slimmer than the KailhBoxBrown shafts in the original model. The new typewriter can also move the cursor around a document like a Traveler, a feature the original model lacked.
Astrohaus raised $446,742 through an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign in 2022, and ahead of that, a shipping date for the Alpha typewriter has been confirmed. The company started fulfilling orders earlier this year and is offering an $80 discount to early backers.