Ottawa gadget enthusiasts, here's a fun one for your kitchen: a Polaroid-style fridge magnet that displays your photos using E Ink technology, and it doesn't need a single battery to do it.
VidaBay has released its Classic Plus NFC E-Ink Fridge Magnet, a small digital photo frame that looks just like a classic Polaroid print but uses the same low-power colour E Ink screens you've probably noticed on electronic price tags at your local grocery store. The twist? It gets all the power it needs directly from your phone's NFC chip, no charging cables, no batteries, no hassle.
How Does It Work?
E Ink displays are uniquely suited for this kind of trick. Unlike traditional LCD or OLED screens, E Ink only draws power when the image is being updated, once a photo is displayed, it just… stays there, indefinitely, using zero electricity. That makes it perfect for a fridge magnet that you set and forget.
To update the image, you simply tap your NFC-enabled smartphone to the magnet. The phone's NFC chip provides just enough power to refresh the display with a new photo. It's genuinely clever engineering that makes the device feel almost magical in practice.
What Does It Cost?
The Classic Plus is available globally through VidaBay's online store. Individual magnets come in white, red, or yellow and are listed at $35.99 USD each, currently discounted to $29.99. If you're thinking of picking up a few, maybe as a housewarming gift or to fill out a gallery wall on the fridge, a three-pack runs $99.99 (discounted to $86.99).
For Ottawa shoppers, keep in mind prices will reflect the CAD exchange rate plus any applicable duties if ordering directly from VidaBay's international store.
A Perfect Gift for Ottawa's Tech-Curious Crowd
Ottawa has a strong tech-savvy population, between the federal public service, Shopify's local presence, and the city's growing startup scene, there's no shortage of people here who love a well-designed gadget. This one sits at a sweet spot: it's genuinely useful (everyone has a fridge), it's aesthetically appealing, and the underlying technology is interesting enough to spark a conversation at your next dinner party.
It also makes for a surprisingly thoughtful gift. Instead of printing photos the old-fashioned way, you can swap the image displayed on the magnet any time you want, perfect for keeping a rotating gallery of your favourite memories, your dog, or that one great photo from last summer at Mooney's Bay.
E Ink Beyond E-Readers
For years, most people only encountered E Ink technology in devices like Kindle e-readers. But the display tech has quietly expanded into all kinds of form factors, smartphones, digital notebooks, smart home displays, and yes, grocery store price tags. VidaBay's fridge magnet is a fun consumer example of where that trend is heading: everyday objects that are smarter, longer-lasting, and less dependent on constant charging.
If you're curious to try one, check out VidaBay's online store for current pricing and availability.
Source: The Verge
